National Punctuation Day: Hot tips to get it right

We get it—punctuation can be tricky. Even more, for many of us, those lessons in school were quite a while ago. Never fear, we’re here to help on this National Punctuation Day. Today’s the day to get a quick refresher so you always put your best foot forward when you’re communicating with the written word.

An internet, TV, and phone provider help with punctuation? Heck yeah! We have a crack team of writers on staff who have seen (and corrected) all kinds of punctuation mistakes.

Here are six common errors to avoid:

Making your holiday card possessive (aka apostrophes where they shouldn’t be).
If there’s more than one of something, add an s on the end of the word.

• Example: Happy holidays from the Smiths.

Yes, this same plural rule applies to names. Adding an apostrophe means you’re making the word possessive.

• Example: The Smith’s holiday was wonderful.

To be super clear, do not say: Happy holiday from the Smith’s—it’s wrong, wrong, wrong.

Using it’s instead of its (aka apostrophes where they shouldn’t be part 2).
It’s, with an apostrophe, means it is or it has.

• Example: It’s a really lovely day out.

Alternatively, its—without an apostrophe—is actually the possessive form of it (similar to using the words his/hers) to show ownership.

• Example: The city council announced its new plans.

Exclaiming too much.
Don’t use too many exclamation marks!!! You end up sounding excited about everything!! The reader won’t know what’s important and what’s not! (The same happens with all caps, by the way.)

Using quotation marks when you’re not quoting anyone.
Just about the only time you should use quote marks is when you’re actually quoting something someone.

• Example: Nancy said, “I love fresh fruit.”

Do NOT use quotation marks to emphasize something—whether it be a word, phrase, or name. Why? It implies you’re being sarcastic or ironic. “Fresh” brown eggs or “fresh” fruit implies neither are at their peak. If “Lucy” is your assigned hairstylist, her name may actually be Nancy. If a place is “open to the public” it actually may be members only. Bonus quote tip: You can (and should) put quotes around the title of an article, movie, book, play, or other media.

Putting the period outside of quote marks.
Nancy said, “In American English, we put the period inside the quotes.” “The same goes for commas,” said Larry.

Too many dots in your ellipses.
Three dots in the middle, at the end, or at the start of a sentence indicate a missing word, trailing thought, or to show hesitation (otherwise known as an ellipses). The key here is the number three. Not five, not two, not eight—three. If you’re wondering whether there should be a space before and after an ellipses, the answer is: it depends. Some style guides say add spaces, and some say no. Be consistent one way or the other and you’ll be OK.

Still need help? There are AI punctuation and grammar checkers out there like QuillBot and Grammarly.