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There is a place where the rule for the colon and the rule for the dash overlap, in other words, a place where each one is correct. ...There are several things to consider: money outlay, time spen...

There is a little-known dash rule that is called the "summary dash." It is used when a sentence has concluded and a clause refers back to the subject of that sentence. The clause is really an appos...

When an indefinite pronoun renames one noun, use a comma. ...He saw several books, none of which interested him. ...We looked at three models, each of which had some interesting features. ...I tal...

...The key that was hidden on the premises -- is it the one you used to get in that night? "The key that was hidden on the premises" is the start of a sentence that never gets finished. Then the ...

Rather than thinking of the dash as being used for an "interruption," it will serve you better to frame that rule as "A dash is used for a sentence that got started and did not get finished -- brok...

When so is said at the end of a thought, it seems to say "So that is my explanation; that is my reason." The word so can mean "for that reason" or "therefore" when it is used as a conjunction. In ...

When a person finishes a sentence and then decides to add "clarification" in the form of an appositive that renames the subject, the only correct punctuation is a dash. ...We didn't have the exper...

Most reporters use the dash simply for that ever-present interruption. There are, however, grammar rules associated with the dash. Here's one: When an indefinite pronoun follows ONE word and rena...

Just a quick note to get some terminology cleared up: The dash in formal English is a long mark, called the "em" dash, that is flush against the word on either side. In court reporting, back in th...