PUNCTUATION

Dash

Dashes can be used in pairs in a similar way to brackets.

Whenever I walk through the churchyard - especially at night - my blood runs cold.

I walked through the churchyard - what a mistake! - because I thought I would be late home.

As I walked through the churchyard - was it only last night? - little did I realise the consequences of my actions.

Dashes can indicate hesitation in direct speech.

"I - I - what I mean is - I'd like to - to help, that is - but I really can't."

Dashes can indicate a dramatic pause.

Edward lay by the fireplace - with a dagger through his heart!

Dashes can indicate an afterthought.

I am almost certain I left it in the office - or perhaps in reception.

Introduction - Capital letters - Full stops - Question Marks - Exclamation marks - Abbreviations - Contractions - Commas - Speech marks (Quotation marks - Inverted comas) - Possessive apostrophes - Colons - Semi-colons - Brackets - Hyphens - Dashes - Obliques (slashes)