What are the rules for using parentheses?

What are the rules for using parentheses?

Use parentheses to enclose information that clarifies or is used as an aside. Example: He finally answered (after taking five minutes to think) that he did not understand the question. If material in parentheses ends a sentence, the period goes after the parentheses. Example: He gave me a nice bonus ($500).

How do you use punctuation with parentheses?

Punctuation with parentheses is very similar to punctuation with quotation marks. If the information in the parentheses is a separate, complete sentence, the period at the end of the sentence goes inside the parentheses. We spent two hours at the zoo. (Most of us could have spent two hours watching the otters.)

Do periods go inside or outside parentheses?

As a general rule, a period goes outside of the parentheses when the parenthetical phrase is an incomplete sentence sharing contextual information or examples. A period goes inside the parentheses when the parentheses contain a complete sentence that stands alone.

How do you use parentheses in a list?

Parentheses are also used to enclose certain numbers or letters in an outline or list.

1. Use parentheses to enclose additional or supplemental information that clarifies or illustrates a point.
2. Use parentheses to offer a digression or afterthought.

Can an entire sentence be in parentheses?

Parentheses are punctuation marks that are used to set off information within a text or paragraph. Outside the realm of emoticons, parentheses always come in pairs. They can enclose a single word, a phrase, or even an entire sentence.

What is parentheses and examples?

Parenthesis is the use of a phrase, word or sentence that’s added into writing as extra information or an afterthought. It’s punctuated by brackets, commas or dashes. For example, ‘his favourite team – whom he had followed since the age of five – was Rockingham Rovers’.

What’s the difference between parenthesis and parentheses?

The singular form is parenthesis, but the plural parentheses is the word you’re more likely to see. Both words have a wide range of related meanings, and what some people identify as a parenthesis, others call parentheses.

What are parentheses used for?

Parentheses are used to enclose incidental or supplemental information or comments. The parenthetical information or comment may serve to clarify or illustrate, or it may just offer a digression or afterthought. Parentheses are also used to enclose certain numbers or letters in an outline or list.

Where do you use parentheses?

Parentheses ( ) are used to enclose nonessential or supplemental information in a sentence. Parentheses are always used in pairs; you must have both an opening and a closing parenthesis. In formal academic writing, it is a good practice to use parentheses sparingly.

What is a single parentheses called?

What do words in parentheses mean?

They can enclose a single word, a phrase, or even an entire sentence. Typically, the words inside the parentheses provide extra information about something else in the sentence. Brackets, sometimes called square brackets, are most often used to show that words have been added to a direct quotation.

What do parentheses stand for in a sentence?

Parentheses are a grammatical symbol that holds extra information within them. While they look similar to brackets, they are rounded. Inside parenthesis, you may have just one word, a fragment, or a complete sentence. A lot of people get confused about whether or not to add a period inside parentheses.

Do you have to recast a sentence with parentheses?

Whatever the material inside the parentheses, it must not be grammatically integral to the surrounding sentence. If it is, the sentence must be recast. This is an easy mistake to avoid. Simply read your sentence without the parenthetical content.

When do you put a period after a parentheses?

If material in parentheses ends a sentence, the period goes after the parentheses. The period after the parentheses is necessary to bring the entire sentence to a close.

When to put a punctuation mark outside the parenthesis?

When parenthetical content occurs at the end of a larger sentence, the closing punctuation mark for the sentence is placed outside the closing parenthesis. Example. After three weeks on set, the cast was fed up with his direction (or, rather, lack of direction).