Section
4.
Punctuation and Typography
Guidelines
for proper punctuation and typography are covered in great detail in Chapters
6, 7 and 8 of The Canadian Style. Only key points and common
questions are outlined below.
4.1 Dashes
The en-dash (–, MS Word: Ctrl+Num -)
is longer than a hyphen and roughly the width of a capital N. It replaces the
word “to” in a numerical range (as in “1974–1978”) and shows an equal
relationship between two words (as in “East–West trade”). Its use between place
names and to separate the date and time of events should be avoided. Rather,
place names should appear as “from Montréal to Toronto” and event listings
should appear as “March 7, 2 p.m.” There should be no space before or after the
en-dash (but see “5.1 Exhibition Titles”).
The em-dash (—, MS Word: Alt+Ctrl+Num
-) is longer than the en-dash and roughly the width of a capital M. It is used
to show an abrupt change in thought, as a substitute for parentheses or to set
off material for emphasis. The em-dash should be used only sparingly. Museum style is
to use the em-dash with a full space before and
after, which is an exception to The Canadian Style.
4.2 Commas
A serial
comma should only be used when it is needed for clarity. In general, do not use
a serial comma before the final “and” in a sequence unless one or more items in
the sequence includes “and” or unless clarification is necessary.
Always place
a comma before etc. as well as after the Latin abbreviations e.g. and i.e. However, in popular texts, these Latin
abbreviations should be avoided, in favour of English expressions such as “for
example” or “such as.”
4.3 Colons,
Semicolons and Obliques
A colon has
many uses, the most common of which is to introduce a list, a statement or a
quotation. It should be followed by only one space. The first letter after a
colon should be capitalized if the colon is introducing a full statement, a new
idea or a direct question.
Semicolons
are often improperly used. In general, the semicolon either connects two
sentences of equal weight or separates a series of items that contain internal
punctuation. For detailed guidelines on the correct use of semi-colons, see section
7.24 in Chapter 7 of The Canadian Style. A semicolon is followed by one
space only.
Do not put a
space before or after an oblique (/) when it is used between individual words,
letters or symbols. Put one space before and one space after an oblique if one
of the elements contains internal spacing.
4.4 Quotation Marks
Double
quotation marks are to be used for speech and for words used out of context.
Single quotation marks are to be used for speech within speech. Periods and
commas must appear within quotations marks; colons and semicolons must appear
outside quotation marks.
4.5 Exclamation
Marks
Exclamation marks should be used
sparingly, and only when absolutely necessary. When overused, the exclamation mark becomes
meaningless. A rule of thumb: if you would not shout the phrase, do not use an
exclamation mark.
4.6 Italics and Emphasis
Use italics
for book titles, works of art, song titles, movie titles, poems, plays,
pamphlets, published reports, films, newspapers, magazines and other
periodicals. Also use italics for Native,
French or foreign words or expressions that are not considered to be
assimilated into the English language (such as caveat emptor). Do not use italics for words commonly used in
English (such as ad hoc, kayak or igloo).
Do not use
italics for emphasis. If a word, phrase or number requires emphasis, use bold font. Underlining should never be used for emphasis.
4.7 Spacing
Use only one
space after any punctuation mark, including periods, colons, question marks,
exclamation points, semicolons, etc.
4.8 Ellipsis
Points
The use of
ellipsis points should limited to indicating a missing segment of text in a
direct quote. When presenting a non-exhaustive list of items, the sentence
should be constructed so that the reader knows it is a sample list, but without
ellipsis points. This could mean beginning your list with “such as” or
“including,” or it could mean reworking the sentence so that it is clear that
the list is meant as a sample. In formatted documents, spaced ellipsis points
(. . .) are preferred over automatic ellipsis points (…).