Punctuation – Full Stop

Punctuation means the right use of stops in a sentence. The principal punctuation marks are:

• Full stop or period
• Comma
• Semicolon
• Colon
• Interrogation mark
• Exclamation mark
• Inverted commas or Quotation marks

Full Stop
The full stop represents the longest pause. It is used at the end of an assertive or imperative sentence:

• He is a clever boy.
• It is raining.
• We are coming.
• The dog is barking.

The full stop is also used after abbreviations and initials. Examples are:

• Ltd.
• Kg.
• M.A.
• Co.

Note that British people do not normally use full stops after abbreviations.
Full stops are also omitted when the abbreviation ends with the final letter of the full word. Examples are: Mr, Mrs, Dr etc.