The semicolon is semi extinct, exclamation marks are clubbed together like stick-thin twins, and words just dont have the space anymore. A simple punctuation mark or its absence could change the entire meaning of a sentence.
Your Life shows you how
Comma-tose
You wont find this big rule for commas anywhere: Dont use commas like a stupid person. See what happens when a comma is misplaced:
Asmita walked on her head, a little higher than usual.
Mistakenly implies Asmita walked on her head! The comma belongs after on.
Commas for lists
Commas divide items in lists, but are not required before the and on the end. The rule here is that the comma is correct if it can be replaced by the word and or or. Here are examples:
The colours of the Indian flag are saffron, white and green.
In a list of adjectives, again the rule is that you use a comma where an and would be appropriate where the modifying words are all modifying the same thing to the same degree:
It was a dark, stormy night.
But dont use a comma for: It was an endangered white rhino.
Commas for joining
Commas are used when two complete sentences are joined together, using such conjunctions as and, or, but, while and yet.
The boys wanted to stay up until midnight, but they grew tired and fell asleep.
However and nevertheless must not be used to join two sentences together with a comma. It sounds redundant:
It was the Queens birthday on Saturday, nevertheless, she had no post whatever.
Use a new sentence or a semicolon here.
Commas that come in pairs
The first rule of bracketing commas is that you use them to mark both ends of a weak interruption to a sentence or a piece of additional information. Thus:
John Keats, who never did any harm to anyone, is often invoked by grammarians.
The sin of no-space
Jerry Pinto Author, lecturer and editor of Mans World
One of the most neglected punctuation marks is the common space. Youknowthe oneinbetween thewordsthat makes them intelligible? This generation seems to have decided that English needs to operate like Sanskrit or German, and so they collapse words into each other.
They always right of course as one word. They have now started using in fact as a single word. Recently, one of my journalism students wrote inspiteof instead of the usual in spite of. Ifthistrendcontinueswho knowswhere... oops!
The tractable apostrophe
1. It indicates a possessive in a singular noun:
The boys hat
When the possessor is plural, but does not end in an s, the apostrophe similarly precedes the s:
The childrens playground
But when the possessor is a regular plural, the apostrophe follows the s:
The babies bibs
2. It indicates time or quantity:
One weeks time
3. It indicates the omission of figures in dates:
The summer of 69
4. It indicates the omission of letters:
We cant go to Joburg (we cannot go to Johannesburg)
The apostrophe of omission creates the word its:
Its your turn (it is your turn)
Its got very cold (it has got very cold)Rule: the word its (with apostrophe) stands for it is or it has. If the word does not stand for either, you should use its. If you can replace the word with they are, then the word is theyre:
Theyre not going to get away with this.
Colons and semicolonsSee how the sense changes with the punctuation:
Tom locked himself in the shed. England lost to Argentina.
(Two unrelated sentences)
Tom locked himself in a shed; England lost to Argentina. (We can infer from the semicolon that these events occurred at the same time, although it is possible that Tom locked himself in the shed because he could not bear to watch the match and still does not know the outcome.)
Tom locked himself in the shed: England lost to Argentina. (Tom locked himself in the shed because England lost to Argentina.)
Hyphen
Use hyphens when spelling out numbers, such as thirty-two, forty-nine. When a hyphenated phrase is coming up and you are qualifying it beforehand, it is necessary to write:
He has a two- or three-year-old.
Use hyphens when linking nouns with nouns:
Mumbai-Delhi train.
While linking adjectives with adjectives:
American-Indian relations.
Hesitation and stammering are indicated by hyphens:
I reached for the w-w-w-watering can.
When a noun phrase such as stainless steel is used to qualify another noun, it is hyphenated, as stainless-steel kitchen.
Certain prefixes traditionally require hyphens: such as un-Indian or anti-Apartheid.
To know more, read Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation by Lynne Truss available for Rs 150 at all bookstores across the city.
Im left breathless
Zaheer Merchant,
Mid Day news editor
With the honest intention of including the five Ws and one H into the first sentence of a story, reporters often cram seven sentences into one. So, the first line, though grammatically correct, literally takes your breath away. You are left breathless after reading it! Another common mistake is mixing up its and its.
The two once got mixed up in a strap line, and the chief reporter had to spend the entire day answering telephone calls from well-versed readers. Writers often overuse commas with the wrong perception that the more commas you use, the better a writer you are.
The other extreme is not using the full stop enough. But if you see any punctuation error in a report, its probably the sub editors mistake, since we often end up rewriting the raw copy. How is Mumbais punctuation? How does the meaning of this sentence change when you add two commas to it?
1. The people in the queue who managed to get the tickets were very satisfied.
2. The people in the queue, who managed to get tickets, were very satisfied.
Answer: The first sentence implies that ALL the people in the queue managed to get tickets. When you add commas, the number of ticket owners comes down, which is the same as the number of satisfied people. 
Abhik Datta
26, computer engineer
There is absolutely no difference between the two sentences. 
Teena Sura
17, SVP College student
I know these two sentences mean two different things. But I cant tell how. 
Sonam Patel
17, Mithibai College student
The sentence without the commas is incorrect. 
Jennifer Fernandes
37, Hairstylist
Both sentences mean the same thing. 
Duru Gursahaney
66, social worker
The first sentence is wrong, since it is not punctuated. The
second one is correct. 
Prita Shah
27, executive
The sentence without the commas suggests that all those in the queue got tickets and were satisfied.
The next one says that only a section of them got tickets, and were thus satisfied. 
Krupa Choksy
24, chartered accountant
The sentence without any commas implies that everyone got tickets. The other sentence suggests that only a section of people who got tickets were satisfied. 
Saugat Guha
21, engineering student
There is a difference between the two, but I cant put my finger on it. Rather than obsessing about punctuation, most people concentrate on getting the message across. 
Aparna Hegde
22, web developer
The first sentence implies that all the people were satisfied, while the second suggests that only the people who managed to get tickets were satisfied. 
Anuradha Chopra
35, Ajivan School principal
The first sentence signifies that everyone in the queue is satisfied. The second is laying stress on some people. 70%
Mumbaikars got it wrong
40%
did not even think commas made any difference
30%
thought one of the sentences was incorrect WiN
Mid Days international award-winning diary.
How good is your punctuation?
Take this quiz and find out. If yours is the first correct entry, you can win Mid Days international award-winning diary. All you have to do is email the answers to this quiz to yourlife@mid-day.com
Instructions:
Put the correct punctuation mark at the end of each sentence
a) . b) ? c) !
1. Can you tell me what your address is
2. Im so afraid
3. I changed my subject
4. Are you sitting here
5. I live in Los Angeles
6. What a great idea
7. What is your phone number
8. I went to Mexico last year
