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Lgrayson Posted 22 years ago
Grammar
Parenthetically challenged.
The correct use of parenthetical punctuation.
He used a gerund in his last sentence (whatever that is!).
Or,
He used a gerund in his last sentence (whatever that is!)
Is the full stop in the first example necessary?
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Also, with entirely parenthesised sentences, does the full stop land inside or outside of the last bracket?
For example:
...with the colour blue. (Blue should never be used as the primary colour in compositions). To see this...
or,
...with the colour blue. (Blue should never be used as the primary colour in compositions.) To see this...
----
The only examples I can find are from American reference books (which are of no use to me), so I'm looking for assistance in finding the definitive -- and English -- answer.
Both my Sub Editor and I would be grateful of any assistance in the matter. Before we come to blows!
Thanks in advance,
Laurence
He used a gerund in his last sentence (whatever that is!).
Or,
He used a gerund in his last sentence (whatever that is!)
Is the full stop in the first example necessary?
----
Also, with entirely parenthesised sentences, does the full stop land inside or outside of the last bracket?
For example:
...with the colour blue. (Blue should never be used as the primary colour in compositions). To see this...
or,
...with the colour blue. (Blue should never be used as the primary colour in compositions.) To see this...
----
The only examples I can find are from American reference books (which are of no use to me), so I'm looking for assistance in finding the definitive -- and English -- answer.
Both my Sub Editor and I would be grateful of any assistance in the matter. Before we come to blows!
Thanks in advance,
Laurence
Top answer
Hello, Laurence. This isn't really my "field"; I'm not the best person to make comments about style. But...
- Hello, Laurence.
- This isn't really my "field"; I'm not the best person to make comments about style.
- But...
- " The comment in parentheses starts with a lower case word, it appears to be part of the sentence.
- So yes, the full stop is necessary.
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8 Answers
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Hello, Laurence. 
This isn't really my "field"; I'm not the best person to make comments about style. But...
- In the
This isn't really my "field"; I'm not the best person to make comments about style. But...
- In the
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Sorry for the delay -- I wanted to check first with a real editor to get an authoritative answer.
He used a gerund in his last sentence (whatever that is!).
In the above sentence, the full stop is definitely needed after the right parenthesis. The parenthetical information is part of the sentence, and is treated the same way regardless of whether it happens to be terminated wi
He used a gerund in his last sentence (whatever that is!).
In the above sentence, the full stop is definitely needed after the right parenthesis. The parenthetical information is part of the sentence, and is treated the same way regardless of whether it happens to be terminated wi
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0 I came across this post in searching for an answer to my similar question. 02 br
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00 Do I understand correctly that even if the entire sentence in parenthesis is the final sentence of a paragraph, page or chapter of a book, there is no need for additional punctuation outside the parenthesis? 02 br
02 br
00 It looks so incomplete, and yet I'm working with a
02 br
00 Do I understand correctly that even if the entire sentence in parenthesis is the final sentence of a paragraph, page or chapter of a book, there is no need for additional punctuation outside the parenthesis? 02 br
02 br
00 It looks so incomplete, and yet I'm working with a
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0 Hi Bronwyn, 02 br
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00 If the sentence is truly a complete sentence, then leave the end punctuation inside the parentheses. When I write for fun, I often do have parenthetical sentences, and sometimes they will be questions, and sometimes exclamatory sentences. 02 br
02 br
00 But I would seriously question the wisdom of starting a paragraph or chapter with a
02 br
00 If the sentence is truly a complete sentence, then leave the end punctuation inside the parentheses. When I write for fun, I often do have parenthetical sentences, and sometimes they will be questions, and sometimes exclamatory sentences. 02 br
02 br
00 But I would seriously question the wisdom of starting a paragraph or chapter with a
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01 cite 10 Lgrayson 12 cite 10 The correct use of parenthetical punctuation. 12 br10 Excuse me! Maybe this is an off question, but wh
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10 Both my Sub Editor and I would be grateful of any assistance in the matter. 11 b 10 Before we come to blows! 12 br
12 b 12 br
12 blockquote
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0 01 b 00 Before we come to blows = 02 b 00 before we begin to fight 0-
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0 "come to blows" means that people start to fight. When used like this, it's generally not meant to say that they would actually hit each other, but it does mean that the argument is getting more intense. 0-
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0 Thanks, Inchoateknowledge and GG, for your enlightment. 02 br
02 br
00 So, "come to blows" means "come to give blows to each other" and also could be used figuratively to connote "starting to argue intensly." To make sure, it I get the hang of it, I'll make it a sentence using it: 02 br
02 br
00 It's not worh coming to blows over a small trifle/triviea. 0-
02 br
00 So, "come to blows" means "come to give blows to each other" and also could be used figuratively to connote "starting to argue intensly." To make sure, it I get the hang of it, I'll make it a sentence using it: 02 br
02 br
00 It's not worh coming to blows over a small trifle/triviea. 0-
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