Cases of setting a colon. Homogeneous members of the sentence and punctuation marks with "and

Lists allow you to beautifully structure the text, draw the reader's attention to something, highlight an important idea, in a word, using them in an article is good. But it remains the case for small: competent design. Let's deal with punctuation marks and other difficulties.

Most often, consistency is violated. Each enumeration item must be in the same gender, case and number, and also be consistent with the generalizing word before the list. For example, wrong:

• washing, brushing teeth,
• make the bed
• breakfast cooking,
• to drink coffee.

It's more correct like this:

What to do in the morning before going to work:

• wash, brush your teeth,
• make the bed
• Make a breakfast,
• to drink coffee.

So, don't forget to ask one question for each item and check for grammatical consistency.

How to designate the elements of a list?

The functionality of our exchange offers two options: numbered and bulleted lists. However, there are three options for partitioning multilevel lists:

• the highest level is indicated by a capital letter with a dot or a Roman numeral with a dot (I. or A.);
• middle level - Arabic numeral with a dot (1.);
• the lowest level - with a marker, a lowercase letter with a bracket or a number with a bracket (a), 1), etc.).

Accordingly, if you want to enter a multi-level list into an article, then it will look something like this:

We love spring for many things:

1. Everything really comes to life.

• nature,
• birds.

1. You can finally get your favorite things:

• light jackets,
• sneakers.

What letter should the listing items start with: lowercase or uppercase?

In fact, the same punctuation rules apply in the design of lists as in regular sentences. If an enumeration element is preceded by a digit or letter followed by a dot, it must begin with a capital letter as a new sentence. For example:

My plans for today were simple:

1. How to sleep.
2. Order in the nearest food delivery for the whole day.
3. Invite a friend over to watch a movie.

Also, if the paragraphs are separate sentences, and not parts of one, then each element will begin with a capital letter and end with a dot (more on this below).

What punctuation mark to put before the list

The list can be preceded by a dot or a colon.Colon- after a generalizing word or phrase, indicating that the enumeration follows, i.e. offer will be shared. A colon is allowed if the elements start with a capital letter.In other cases, a dot. For example:

I really wanted to do two things today:

• go to a concert
• sleep peacefully.

Punctuation marks after enumeration points

At the end of each element of the enumeration is put:

— dot– if parts of the list are separate sentences. And, as mentioned above, each paragraph begins with a capital letter;

Example . Saint Petersburg is a wonderful city!

• White nights are filled with romance.
• Drawbridges are mesmerizing.
• Lots of architectural monuments.

— comma– if the elements of the list are simple, i.e. consist of one or more words, begin with a lowercase letter, do not contain punctuation marks inside. However, it is permissible to format such paragraphs with a semicolon;

Example . Options for getting to the city:

• train,
• airplane,
• hitch-hiking.

— semicolon- if the listing items begin with a lowercase letter, there are punctuation marks inside them, several sentences are included in one item.

Example - the given enumeration list.

Punctuation marks are nothing more than a system of characters that is used in various languages for structuring written speech. The same punctuation marks in different languages ​​can not only be put differently, but also have different meanings.

Let's talk about such an important punctuation mark as a colon. This punctuation mark is placed inside a sentence. A colon is placed between parts of a sentence that can be either related or different from each other. Such a sign can be found both in simple sentences and in complex ones. The colon draws the reader's attention to what comes after it.

As a rule, a colon is placed after the generalizing word when enumerating. For example: “In this amazing store you could buy many different sweets: caramel, cotton candy, chocolate, toffee, all sorts of buns and sweets.

If you need to insert a quote from some text into your essay, you should first put a colon, and then quotes. The colon in complex sentences is used where one of the simple sentences requires an explanation of the other. For example: "It became clear to everyone that the perpetrator was still in the room: his footprints could be seen throughout the room, but not at the door."

So let's recap. A colon is used in the following cases:

To focus on one of the parts of the sentence;

When listing homogeneous members after a generalizing word;

To highlight direct speech;

To explain one sentence to another.

So, the colon is a punctuation separator. Unlike a period, exclamation and question marks, and ellipsis, it does not have a separating function, that is, it does not separate sentences in the text from each other. The colon is placed only inside the sentence, and therefore indicates that after it the statement will be continued.

The colon can be found in simple and complex sentences. In a simple sentence, it separates and highlights parts of the statement; in a complex one, it also plays a semantic role: it indicates the semantic relations between the parts of an unassociated complex sentence.

So what is the correct way to use a colon without making mistakes and not confusing it with others? Let's look at the main cases.

Colon in a simple sentence

Rule 1. Colon in a sentence with homogeneous members

If the generalizing word is in front of homogeneous members, then a colon is needed after it, for example: snow lay everywhere: on the roofs of houses, on fences, on lawns, on cars.

In this sentence, the word everywhere summarizes a number of similar circumstances. The generalizing word is located before homogeneous members, and therefore there is a colon after it.

Rule 2. Colon in sentences with qualifying words

When generalizing words in a sentence, qualifying words can be used: as for example, for example, as that, namely, preceded by a comma and followed by a colon. For example: snow lay everywhere, namely: on the roofs of houses, on fences, on lawns, on cars.

In this sentence, together with the generalizing word everywhere used a refinement of its construction "namely" , followed by a series of homogeneous members, so it is followed by a colon.

Rule 3. Colon in constructions with direct speech

If direct speech follows the words of the author, then a colon is placed before it, and direct speech itself is enclosed in quotation marks and the first word of direct speech is capitalized: The teacher said: "Hello, children!". Also, if direct speech breaks the words of the author in the text, then a colon is placed in front of it, for example: Saying: "Hello, children!", The teacher entered the classroom. A comma must be placed after direct speech.

Colon in compound sentence

Rule 4. A colon can be placed between the parts of a non-union complex sentence (BSP) in the following cases.

• The second part of the BSP explains what was said in the first (between the parts of the sentence you can insert " namely"), for example: There is such a sign among the people: swallows fly low to the rain; Katya writes very competently: she never makes mistakes in words, she correctly places punctuation marks. In these non-union complex sentences, in the second part, an explanation is given of what is being discussed in the first. Between parts of sentences you can insert " namely": There is a saying among the people (namely): swallows fly low over the water to rain. Therefore, in the above sentences, a colon is used.

• The second part of the BSP reveals the reason what was said in the first (conjunctions can be inserted between the parts of the sentence: because, because), for example: Katya writes very competently: she reads a lot, learns poetry by heart, trains her memory; It will soon rain: swallows fly low over the water. In these BSPs, the second part substantiates, indicates the reason for what was said in the first. Unions can be inserted between parts: because, because. It's gonna rain soon (because): swallows fly low over the water. Therefore, in such sentences, a colon is used.

• The second part of the BSP complements, reveals what was said in the first one (such sentences are synonymous with complex sentences with an explanatory clause, so a union can be inserted between parts of the BSP what). For example: Katya knows: reading books is not only interesting, but also very useful for studying; People say: swallows fly low over the water to rain. In the BSP data in the second part, the meaning of what is discussed in the first part is revealed. If the parts of such a sentence are connected by a union what, then you get a complex sentence with an explanatory clause: The people say (what,): swallows fly low over the water to rain. In sentences of this type, a colon is used.

• In the first part of the sentence, the verbs are omitted: and saw and heard and felt, for example: I raised my head: a ray of sun broke through the clouds, illuminating the clearing with a bright light; He turned around: the echo of hurried footsteps was heard very close. These sentences are also synonymous with a complex subordinate clause with an explanatory clause; verbs of the type are omitted in the first part: and saw and heard union can be inserted between parts what. I raised my head (and saw that): a ray of sun broke through the clouds, illuminating the clearing with bright light.

Colon vs dash

The main difficulty in using a colon is that it is sometimes easy to confuse this punctuation mark with another one - a dash. IN Lately these signs are often used in parallel, that is, in the same cases, both a dash and a colon can be placed. For example: And the judges decided: if it rains, the competition will be canceled; I noticed the first stone, I decided - there is a treasure here, I started poking around(Tendryakov), Of course hechanged(: –) hunched, gray, wrinkledin the corners of the mouth; I'm coming in(: – ) everything is quiet; Do not say these words in front of him(: – ) may be offended; Everyone was interested in only one question(: – ) how to get out of the situation as soon as possible; It meant one thing(: – ) need to part.

Such options are considered equal, you can use both a dash and a colon without fear of making a mistake. However, it must be remembered that the dash, in addition to syntactic functions, also performs emotional and expressive ones, that is, indicates the emotionality of the statement, emphasizes its expressiveness. Therefore, if the sentence does not carry such meanings, is neutral, you need to avoid the use of a dash and put a colon, following the rules we have considered.

A dash, as a rule, is used in non-union complex sentences to indicate the nature of the semantic connection between its parts. However, there are other uses of this punctuation mark.

The setting of the dash is governed by the following rules of Russian grammar:

1. A dash is placed in sentences with a compound nominal predicate, between the subjects and the predicate. In sentences of this kind, the predicate, as a rule, is a generic concept in relation to the subject. For example:

• The tiger is a predator;
• Cow - artiodactyl;
• Birch - tree;
• My older sister is a teacher;
• My older sister is my teacher.

Note 1. However, if the subject and predicate is the negative particle “not”, then the dash is not put:

• Poverty is not a vice;
• The goose is not a bird.

Note 2. A dash between the subject and the predicate is not put if they are used in interrogative sentence, and the subject is expressed by a pronoun, for example:

• Who is your mother?

2. If the subject in the sentence is expressed by a noun , and the predicate is an indefinite form of the verb (infinitive), or they are both expressed in infinitive, then a dash is placed between them, for example:

• To love you is to wag your nerves;
• The desire of every person is to love and be loved.

3. A dash is placed before words “this”, “means”, “this is”, “here”, etc. in sentences where the predicate is expressed by a noun in the nominative case or infinitive. As a rule, these words serve to attach the predicate to the subject, and also indicate that a comparison or definition will now follow, for example:

• Desire is the need of a person in spite of all adversity to make his life better;
• Romance is moonlit walks and admiring eyes;
• Loyalty is the stronghold of true human relationships, trust is the stronghold of a strong family.

4. A dash is placed in sentences with enumerations before a generalizing word. For example:

• Dreams, hopes, beauty - everything will be swallowed up by the inexorable course of time;
• Neither her tears, nor her pleading eyes, nor sadness - nothing could make him come back.

5. A dash is placed before the application at the end of the sentence in two cases:

a) If it is possible to put the construction “namely” before the application without distorting the meaning of the sentence, for example:

• I don't like this animal too much - a cat.
• In conversation, he demanded one thing - correctness.
• I obey only one person - my father.

b) If explanatory words are used in the application, and the author needs to additionally indicate the independence of this construction, for example:

• I had a cast-iron teapot with me - my only consolation in traveling around the Caucasus (Lermontov).

6. A dash is placed between two predicates or between parts of a complex sentence if the author needs to unexpectedly attach or sharply oppose them in relation to each other. For example:

• I went into the room, not thinking of seeing anyone there, and froze.
• I'm more likely to Petka - and that's all there.
• I wanted to travel around the whole world - and did not travel around the hundredth part (Griboedov).
• I wanted to sit down to sew - and the needle pricked my fingers, I wanted to cook porridge - the milk ran away.

Note 1. In order to enhance the shade of surprise, a dash can also be placed after coordinating conjunctions that link parts of one sentence. For example:

• Make out vacation - and go to the family.
• I really want to go there to meet them, but I'm afraid (M. Gorky)

Note 2: In addition, for even more surprise, a dash can separate any part of a sentence, for example:

• And she ate the poor singer - to the crumbs (Krylov).
• And the grandfather threw the ruff into the river.

According to the rules of the Russian language, there is no need to put a dash in these sentences. However, it is put only in order to better convey the meaning and reflect what really happened.

7. A dash is placed between the parts of a non-union complex sentence if the second part contains the result or conclusion from what was said in the first, for example:

• Praises are tempting - how not to wish for them? (Krylov).
• The moon has drawn a path across the sea - the night has laid a light veil.

8. A dash is placed between the parts of a non-union complex sentence if between them there is a type of connection "subordinate part - main part":

• Gruzdev called himself get in the body.
• They cut the forest - the chips fly.

9. A dash is placed in order to indicate the boundary of the breakdown of a simple sentence into two verbal groups. This is done only if it is impossible to isolate this decay by other means. For example:

• So I say: do the guys need it?

Very often, such a decay is observed when one of the members of the sentence is omitted, for example:

• Marinka for a good study - a ticket to the sea, and Egorka - a new computer.
• I will - into a fist, my heart - from my chest, and I rushed after him.
• Everything is obedient to me, but I am nothing (Pushkin).

10. In addition, with the help of a dash, they distinguish:

a) Sentences and words used in the middle of a sentence and serving to explain what was said, but only if the brackets can weaken the connection between the insert and the one being explained, for example:

• Here - there is nothing to do - I got into his cart and sat down.
• How suddenly - a miracle! oh shame! - the oracle spoke nonsense (Krylov).
• And only once - and then by accident - I spoke to him.

b) A common application if it comes after the noun it defines and needs to emphasize its own independence, for example:

• The senior sergeant - a gallant aged Cossack with stripes for extra-long service - ordered to "build up" (Sholokhov).
• In front of the doors of the club - wide log house- workers with banners (Fedin) were waiting for the guests.

in) Homogeneous Members sentences if they are in the middle of a sentence and need special emphasis, for example:

• Usually, from the riding villages - Elanskaya, Vyoshenskaya, Migulinskaya and Kazanskaya - they took Cossacks to the 11-12th army Cossack regiments and to the Life Guards Atamansky (Sholokhov).
• And again, the same picture - crooked houses, road potholes and dirty puddles - opened up to my eyes.

11. A dash can be used as an additional punctuation mark after a comma in sentences where there are two repeated words. , and this repetition is necessary in order to connect one part of this sentence with another. For example:

• I knew very well that it was my husband, not some new, unknown person, but good man- my husband, whom I knew as myself (L. Tolstoy).
• Now, as a judicial investigator, Ivan Ilyich felt that without exception, the most important, self-satisfied people, everything was in his hands (L. Tolstoy).

12. A dash is placed after a group of subordinate clauses before the main part of a complex sentence in order to emphasize the split into two semantic parts. For example:

• Whether it was worth it or not is not for me to decide.
• Whether Stoltz did anything for this, what he did and how he did it, we do not know (Dobrolyubov).

13. A dash is placed in paired constructions, meaning any temporal, spatial or quantitative framework , and in this case it is synonymous with a pair of prepositions "from ... to", for example:

• Flight Novosibirsk - Moscow,
• 1991 – 2001,
• Ten to twelve grams.

14. A dash is placed between two proper names if collectively they name any teaching or discovery:

• Boyle's physical law - Mariotte.

The colon is one of the oldest punctuation marks. He is already almost 600 years old, and a colon appeared in the distant 15th century, almost immediately after the very first punctuation mark - a dot.

At S.Ya. Marshak has a poem called "Punctuation marks". So the colon in this poem says the following words about itself:

However, despite the importance of the colon, in terms of the number of rules, this punctuation mark is significantly inferior to all the others. To use the colon correctly in writing, you need to remember only four rules.

Rule one. Colon and generalizing words

The colon is placed in those sentences that use generalizing words and homogeneous members of the sentence. This punctuation mark should be placed after generalizing words and before enumeration.

Sergey Timofeevich Aksakov writes in one of his works: "Hunting with a spear requires three conditions: dark night, clear water and perfectly clear weather".

The generalizing phrase in this sentence is underlined with one line, and the homogeneous members of the sentence are in italics.

Do not forget that if the generalizing word is after the homogeneous members of the sentence, then we put not a colon, but a dash. The same sentence in reverse order would look like this:

Dark night, clear water and perfectly clear weather - three conditions, which are needed for hunting with a spear.

Rule two. Colon and non-union compound sentences

A colon is placed in non-union complex sentences in several cases, namely: if the second part explains or reveals the content of the first part, indicates the reason for what is being said in the first part, and also warns that the matter does not end there. To remember this rule, you need to learn the words with which you can complete the sentence.

1. If the sentence indicates a reason, then unions will harmoniously fit between the two simple parts because And because. Let us recall the well-known words of Maxim Gorky about books:

Love a book: it will help you sort out the motley confusion of thoughts, it will teach you to respect a person.

Instead of a colon, we can easily put and because, And because. In this sentence, you can see how the second part reveals the reason for the first, giving us good reasons why we should love a book - a source of knowledge.

2. If the second part explains the first, then you can put the words exactly or like that. Here is an example from the work of A.S. Pushkin:

The weather was terrible: the wind howled, wet snow fell in flakes.

Instead of a colon, it is appropriate to put the words namely.

3. If in a sentence one part warns of a further presentation, then you can put words and I will see what, and I will hear how. Consider an example from Nikolai Ostrovsky's play:

You can see for yourself: everything around is in a powerful movement.

In this sentence, we can put the union that, turning the unionless difficult sentence into a complex one.

Rule Three: Colon and Direct Speech

Finally, I said to her: “Do you want to go for a walk on the rampart?”

He turned away and, moving away, muttered: "But still, this is completely against the rules."

Rule four. Colon and headings

A colon is used in headings if they are divided into two parts:

First part(nominative) names the place of action, the person, the general problem.

The second part specifies the first part.

For example:

Bazhov: reader and book lover.

Country budget: problems and judgments.

That's all the rules that apply to the placement of colons in sentences. However, do not forget that this punctuation mark can also be used to express feelings. For example, like this:) or:(.