The document discusses the proper uses of colons in writing. It explains that colons can be used after the greeting in business letters, before subtitles, between chapter and verse in Bible references, before lists and quotations after independent clauses, in dialogue, with times and numbers, and in emoticons in text messages. The document provides numerous examples and ensures the reader understands the various contexts in which colons are used correctly.

5. Its time for….
Learning about colons

6. All you need to
know about
Colons
and a whole
lot more.

7. Derived from Greek word
κῶλον
Meaning
• Limb
• Appendage
• Part of something

8. Colons are used after the greeting of
a business letter
Friendly Letter
Dear Mrs. Minor,
When is the essay due?
Business Letter
Dear Mrs. Minor:
When is the essay due?

9. In books and movies, colons are
used to separate the title from the
subtitle.

12. Bible Reference
You can use a colon between the chapter and
verse of a Bible reference (e.g. John 3:16,
Genesis 1:1)

13. After an Independent Clause
A colon can be used before a list after a
independent clause.
• James had so many things to do this week:
a math test, two research papers, seven
essays, and a chemistry test!
• I absolutely love the following dishes: beef
enchilada, grilled chicken, caeser salad,
and fettuccini alfredo.

14. Colons are used before a quotation
after an Independent Clause
1. Kory’s statement really reflected how he
felt about the test: “The ACT is awesome!”
2. After viewing Padlet, Joshua was in total
agreement: “We should definitely do padlet
over Theemefy.”

15. Important Notice!

16. You must have a independent
clause before a list or quotation
• Paige owns: a Mac Pro, two Nexus tablets,
and a Nokia Lumia
You must not separate a verb from its
complement (its direct object).
• Paige owns a Mac Pro, two Nexus tablets,
and a Nokia Lumia.

17. You must have a independent
clause before a list or quotation
• Hannah remarked: “Only if I had written the
outline first.”
The sentence must be able to stand on its own
• Hannah remarked, “If I had only written the
outline first.”

18. Review:
How to Use Colons

19. Colons are used
1. After the greeting
of a business
letter
2. Subtitles
3. Bible Verses
4. After Independent
clauses

20. Got it?

21. Colons can be used between 2
Independent Clauses
The first word of the second clause will not be
capitalized, unless there are more than one
sentences following the colon.
There is also no coordinating conjunction
between the clauses.

22. Situation #1
The first situation is when you want to explain
or emphasize the second clause
• Glenn stayed up till two o’clock this
morning: Spending hours trying to find a
stronger verb was a noble cause, though.

23. <Grammar Geek Side Note>

24. Appositive Clauses
The second clause can also be an appositive
clause.
For example: Theron could not speak: He was
concentrating extremely hard.
The second clause is an appositive, meaning
it modifies Theron instead of telling why he
could not speak.

25. Appositive Clauses
It does not change how the words were
ordered or how they would be said, but it
does change it internally and grammatically.

26. </Grammar Geek Side Note>

27. Situation #2: Logical Consequence
The second place to use a colon between two
independent clauses is similar, but it is when
one is trying to show a logical consequence.
• Only one thing could have happened:
Micah had gotten here first.
• We are convinced that grammar and
spelling is drastically important: we looked
at Youtube comments

28. Dialogue
Colons are used after a character’s name to
indicate speech in scripts.
George Lucas: You didn’t shoot first!!
Hans Solo: NOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!

29. Numbers!!
Colons are also very prevalent with numbers.
Use a colon between hours and minutes.
Example 9:30 AM
It can also be used between
minutes and seconds.
Example 10:34:45, 20:13:30

30. More numbers
In ratios and in scale, colons appear between
the two numbers.
Example: 2:3 (this is read as “2 to 3),
A double colon shows that the ratio is
reduced.
Example: 4:16::1:4 (“4 is to 16 as 1 is to 4)

31. More…
MATH!!

32. Okay
Even More

33. Most popular use of colons, thanks
to this guy….

34. Emoticons!!!!
Icon Meaning
:-) :) :o) :] :3 :c) :> =] 8) =) :} :^) :っ) Smiley or happy face.[1][2][3]
:-D :D 8-D 8D x-D xD X-D XD =-D =D =-3 =3 B^D Laughing,[1] big grin,[2][3] laugh with glasses[4]
:-)) Very happy or double chin[4]
>:[ :-( :( :-c :c :-< :っC :< :-[ :[ :{ Frown,[1][2][3] sad[5]
:-|| :@ >:( Angry[4]
:'-( :'( Crying[5]
:'-) :') Tears of happiness[5]
QQ Crying[6]
D:< D: D8 D; D= DX v.v D-': Horror, disgust, sadness, great dismay[2][3]
>:O :-O :O °o° °O° :O o_O o_0 o.O 8-0 Surprise, shock,[1][6] yawn[7]
:* :^* ( '}{' ) Kiss, couple kissing[4]
;-) ;) *-) *) ;-] ;] ;D ;^) :-, Wink,[1][2][3] smirk[6][7]
>:P :-P :P X-P x-p xp XP :-p :p =p :-Þ :Þ :þ :-þ :-b :b Tongue sticking out, cheeky/playful,[1] blowing a raspberry
>: >:/ :-/ :-. :/ : =/ = :L =L :S >.< Skeptical, annoyed, undecided, uneasy, hesitant[1]
:| :-| Straight face[2] no expression, indecision[5]
:$ Embarrassed,[3] blushing[4]
:-X :X :-# :# Sealed lips or wearing braces[1]
O:-) 0:-3 0:3 0:-) 0:) 0;^) Angel,[1][2][6] saint,[5] innocent
>:) >;) >:-) Evil[2]
}:-) }:) 3:-) 3:) Devilish[5]
o/o ^5 >_>^ ^<_< High five[7]
|;-) |-O Cool,[5] bored/yawning[6]
:-& :& Tongue-tied[5]
#-) Partied all night[5]
%-) %) Drunk,[5] confused
:-###.. :###.. Being sick[5]
<:-| Dumb, dunce-like[6]
ಠ_ಠ
Look of disapproval[8] The Unicode character ಠ is from the Kannada
alphabet and can be called differently in HTML

35. To really review
COLONS!

36. Colons appear in
1. Business letters
2. Subtitles
3. Bible verses
4. After independent clauses
a) Before lists
b) Before quotes
c) Before another independent clause
5. Dialogue
6. Time
7. Math
8. And Texting…
not while driving

37. And that is all you need
to know about colons and
a whole lot more.
Yes, that was much more….

38. The End! :)

39. Any resemblance
between the names in
the presentation and
people in this room is
probably on purpose.