Can I use a colon and a semicolon in the same sentence? Here’s my example, “There were no known friends or family members, so besides his physical symptoms he was admitted with only one certainty: his longstanding IV drug use; he had numerous track marks and was noticeably malnourished.” Is there a better way to structure this?
Colon and semicolon in a single sentence
February 14th, 2006 by Teresa Jimenez
8 Responses to “Colon and semicolon in a single sentence”
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The logic of your sentence says that everything before the colon is a clause with an implied question which is answered on the other side of the colon. But then the problem is that after the colon you have the structure of [phrase];[independent clause]. That’s grammatically incorrect. So the question isn’t so much of whether you can use a semicolon and colon in the same sentence, but rather of making sure you have an independent clause on each side of the semicolon.
On the other hand, maybe everything in front of the semicolon belongs together and the independent clause after it belongs alone, in which case the punctuation is technically correct.
In the first case I would restructure the sentence into something like:
"There were no known friends or family members, so besides his physical symptoms he was admitted with only one certainty: his longstanding IV drug use that gave him numerous track marks and made him noticeably malnourished.
If the second case is the goal, just use a period:
"There were no known friends or family members, so besides his physical symptoms he was admitted with only one certainty: his longstanding IV drug use. He had numerous track marks and was noticeably malnourished.
Those two solutions are in the world of the practical. In the world of theory, you could have a semicolon and a colon in the same sentence. But in the example given it’s not clear what the sentence means.
Fun problem, thanks.
Thank you. I believe that I understand what you’re saying. I like your second suggestion and think that it reads well. I’ve been staring at this for so long, trying to figure out what the problem is and you come along and fix it with a simple switch of punctuation. Thanks again..
Another good structure:
"There were no friends or family members, so besides his physical symptoms he was admitted with only one certainty: his longstanding IV drug use (he had numerous track marks and was noticably malnourished)."
When listing in a sentence do I use a semi colon or a colon? Here is my example. For example, you can fill the basket with diapers, baby wipes, baby lotion baby powder, baby oil, NS BOTTLES/
I was hav always used a colon to do my listings. You can perhaps try something along this line.
"For example:you can fill the basket with diapers, baby wipes, baby lotion, baby powder, baby oil, NS Bottles/".
While a colon is used for lists, the example "stranger" gave is not quite correct. First of all, the colon should be at the beginning of the list itself, i.e., before "diapers", but a colon should not be used if the list starts with a preposition (like "with") or linking verb; thus, it should read: "For example, you can fill the basket with diapers, baby wipes, baby lotion, baby powder, baby oil, and NS Bottles."
If a colon were to be used, it would look something like this: "For example, you can fill the basket with the following: diapers, baby wipes, baby lotion, baby powder, baby oil, and NS Bottles."
P.S. – Note my use of a colons for other purposes: to introduce a quote and, in this very P.S., to introduce an example or explanation.
see http://www.writingcenter.emory.edu/colonsemi.html (courtesy of speedwell from another posting)
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When there is no sentence, phrase or anything before the list, then obviously no punctuation is required.
Example:
You can fill the basket with diapers, baby wipes, baby lotion baby powder, baby oil, and NS bottles.
If there is a phrase or sentence fragment (weak clause) before the list, then use a comma.
Example:
Remember that, you can fill the basket with diapers, baby wipes, baby lotion baby powder, baby oil, and NS bottles.
If there is a sentence before the list, which is a complete sentence (strong clause), then use a semicolon after the sentence and before the list. The semicolon must have an introductory phrase (For example [e.g.], that is [i.e.], or for instance) after it and a comma must come after the introductory phrase.
Example:
You can fill the basket with Baby Products; for instance, diapers, baby wipes, baby lotion baby powder, baby oil, and NS bottles.
Use a colon when you do not want to use an introductory phrase; in this case, you would use a colon instead of the semicolon.
Example:
You can fill the basket with Baby Products: diapers, baby wipes, baby lotion baby powder, baby oil, and NS bottles.
Go to this website: http://www.grammarbook.com
That is how I learned grammar; you’ll love it. =D