Semicolon Help...

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1

<p>Are you meant to use semicolons with conjunctions? I know you’re not meant to use them with and… but, what about " however" or “thus?”</p>

<p>Which is correct: He didn’t score a 2300 on his SAT**;** thus, he didn’t get into Harvard.</p>

<p>Or</p>

<p>He didn’t score a 2300 on his SAT**,** thus, he didn’t get into Harvard.</p>

<p>He scored a 2000**;** however, he still got into Harvard</p>

<p>Or</p>

<p>He scored a 2000**,** however, he still got into Harvard.</p>

<p>(I should have probably used “although” for the last example… ignore that)</p>

<p>Another example:</p>

<p>Be sure to watch out for grammar errors**;** for instance, comma splices, run-on sentences, and dangling modifiers. </p>

<p>Or</p>

<p>Be sure to watch out for grammar errors**,** for instance, comma splices, run-on sentences, and dangling modifiers.</p>

2

<p>You can use semi-colons:

  1. Between closely related independent clauses NOT conjoined with a coordinating conjunction:
  • “I went to the basketball court; I was told it was closed for cleaning.”
  • “I told Ben he’s running for the hills; I wonder if he knew I was joking.”
  • “Nothing is true; everything is permitted.”
  • “A man chooses; a slave obeys.”
  1. Between independent clauses linked with a transitional phrase or a conjunctive adverb
  • “Everyone knows that he is guilty of doing the crime; of course, it will never be proven.”
  • “Bob’s friend was refused admittance by the doorkeeper; as a result, he left before the presentations.”
  • “I like to eat fish; however, I don’t like to be eaten by them.”
  • “I like being odd; yet, I hate being different.”
  1. Between items in a series or listing containing internal punctuation, especially parenthetic commas, where the semicolons function as serial commas:
  • “She saw three men: Jamie, who came from New Zealand; John, the milkman’s son; and George, a gaunt kind of man.”
  • “Several fast food restaurants can be found in each of London, England; Paris, France; Dublin, Ireland; and Madrid, Spain.”
  • “Examples of familiar sequences are: one, two and three; a, b and c; and first, second and third.”</p>

<p>If you want further information, I suggest you type “semicolon” on google and you’ll have plenty of great explanations.</p>

3

<p>Which is correct:</p>

<p>He didn’t score a 2300 on his SAT; thus, he didn’t get into Harvard.</p>

<p>---- this is correct but a strange word choice…should use “consequently” or use “so” with just a comma before it & nothing after.</p>

<p>If you’re going to use “thus,” you would more correctly say, “He didn’t score a 2300 on his SAT, thus disappointing his parents and himself.”</p>

<p>“Thus” means more than common usage of “so” or even “consequently” - it means “by this specific action.” “So” can also take on this extra shade of meaning in phrases like, “In so doing, he ruined his own birthday.” We see that sort of phrasing mostly in legal documents.</p>

<hr>

<p>He didn’t score a 2300 on his SAT, thus, he didn’t get into Harvard.</p>

<p>—incorrect.</p>

<p>He scored a 2000; however, he still got into Harvard</p>

<p>—correct</p>

<p>He scored a 2000, however, he still got into Harvard.</p>

<p>—incorrect</p>

<p>(I should have probably used “although” for the last example… ignore that) </p>

<p>–yes, although would work well, but with although you do not use the comma after it. “Although” is more flexible than “however” and can allow the sentence to be inverted:</p>

<p>can be used if you can switch the clauses around.</p>

<p>He scored a 2000, although he still got into Harvard.
He still got into Harvard, although he scored a 2000.
Although he scored a 2000, he still got into Harvard.
Although he still got into Harvard, he scored a 2000.</p>