Punctuation Marks
PUNCTUATION MARKS
The present table introduces the English-language terms used for main punctuation marks. It allows the student to get acquainted with the terms and to compare them with the correspondent terms in his/her mother tongue (either Russian or Estonian). the table also provides examples of the use of the punctuation marks.
Term | Explanation | Russian equivalent |
Estonian equivalent | Example |
Full stop (period) |
The full stop (period) is the punctuation mark used to mark the end of a declarative sentence or indicate an abbreviation. | Точка | Punkt | The weather is nice today. |
Question mark | The question mark is the punctuation mark which indicates the interrogative sentence. |
Вопросительный знак |
Küsimärk |
What time is it? |
Exclamation point |
The exclamation point is the punctuation mark which is used to indicate the exclamatory sentence. |
Восклицательный знак |
Hüüumärk |
What a surprise! |
Comma | The comma is the punctuation mark used to mark a division within a sentence. | Запятая |
Koma | Ready, steady, go! |
Introducer comma |
The introducer comma marks off any element which comes in front of the first independent clause in a sentence. | No equivalent | No equivalent |
As I have been very busy lately, I couldn't answer your e-mail on time. |
Coordinator comma | The coordinator comma is used together with a coordinating conjunction (and, or, but, yet, so) to link coordinate (equal) element within the sentence. |
No equivalent | No equivalent |
She has a caring, gentle and friendly personality.
|
Inserter comma | The inserter comma is used to mark off any element which is inserted in the middle of an independent clause. | No equivalent | No equivalent | My aunt, his wife, is a very energetic person. Her son, who is a police officer, lives in London. |
Tag comma | The tag comma is used to mark off element which are added to the end of the sentence. | No equivalent | No equivalent | He appeared to be quite friendly, however. It isn't logical, is it? |
Semicolon |
The semicolon is the punctuation mark which is very strong and which indicates a more distinct division within a sentence than a comma does. | Точка с запятой |
Semikoolon | Computer use is increasing; computer crime is, too. |
Colon |
The colon is the punctuation mark which is use to introduce a list, a long quotation, to separate groups of numbers, to distinguish between the main title and the subtitle of the book. |
Двоеточие |
Koolon | I need the following things: a large sheet of paper, crayons and scissors. I left home at 7:30 a.m. |
Quotation marks |
Quotation marks are the punctuation mark used to indicate the beginning and the end of a quotation, | Кавычки | Jutumärgid | "Don't worry, be happy", that is what the famous song says. |