The proper use of exclamation marks is essential to the understanding of a sentence or statement’s tone. It is important not to overuse this strong mark of punctuation. It is used to denote great surprise, a command, deep emotion, emphasis and sarcasm. Use an exclamation mark with questions that are exclamatory in form. Remember to not use an exclamation mark to end a mildly exclamatory sentence, or to use a comma or period after an exclamation mark. Finally, ensure that the exclamation mark is inside quotation marks when it is part of the quoted material, and outside when it is not.
I got all my holiday shopping done.
I got all my holiday shopping done!
The use of an exclamation mark instead of a period changes the tone of this statement from a regular sentence, to one indicating surprise. It is important that this statement is surprising because it is four weeks before Christmas Day and that’s not typical of my character. Everyone that knows me can tell you I love to procrastinate, and especially on my Christmas shopping.
Just because I don’t prioritize shopping for my loved ones in my busy schedule doesn’t mean I love them any less. I just love the thrill of last minute shopping. Even the crowds and the waiting times aren’t so bad. I just pass the time sending messages to my friends filled with exclamation marks indicating surprise, command, emphasis and sarcasm.
“How is the Christmas shopping coming along?”
“Amazing! Looks like I’ll get all my gifts in one day.”
“You better! Tomorrow is Christmas Day!”
“Have some faith, shopping is what I do best.”
“Oh, sure!”
So naturally it would be surprising that I got all my holiday shopping done this early.
I got all my holiday shopping done.
I got all my holiday shopping done!
The use of an exclamation mark instead of a period changes the tone of this statement from a regular sentence, to one indicating surprise. It is important that this statement is surprising because it is four weeks before Christmas Day and that’s not typical of my character. Everyone that knows me can tell you I love to procrastinate, and especially on my Christmas shopping.
Just because I don’t prioritize shopping for my loved ones in my busy schedule doesn’t mean I love them any less. I just love the thrill of last minute shopping. Even the crowds and the waiting times aren’t so bad. I just pass the time sending messages to my friends filled with exclamation marks indicating surprise, command, emphasis and sarcasm.
“How is the Christmas shopping coming along?”
“Amazing! Looks like I’ll get all my gifts in one day.”
“You better! Tomorrow is Christmas Day!”
“Have some faith, shopping is what I do best.”
“Oh, sure!”
So naturally it would be surprising that I got all my holiday shopping done this early.
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