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They save sentences from run-ons, fragments, and comma splices.

* Run on sentences combine two or more complete (subject + predicate) sentences without punctuation.

Eg. He sailed bravely across the sand dune during low tide the sand bar was still barely visible below the water line.

Improved with semi-colon power - He sailed bravely across the sand dune during low tide; the sand bar was still barely visible below the water line.

* Sentence fragments are incomplete sentences; they do not contain a subject (noun) and a predicate (verb).

Eg. He wiggled persistently. Could not sit still.

Improved with semi-colon power - He wiggled persistently; he could not sit still.

* A comma splice incorrectly joins two complete sentences with a comma.

Eg. Alfred cleaned the attic meticulously, and he discarded many valuable items.

Improved with semi-colon power - Alfred cleaned the attic meticulously; and he discarded many valuable items.

The only danger in using semi-colons, an error which writers frequently make, involves using the second part of the sentence (the one following the semi-colon) to tell something that happens in sequence.

Eg. He stopped at the store; after, he headed to his beloved mother's house. In this instance you can only use the semi-colon to explain something more about stopping at the store or what happened while at the store. Something that follows in sequence (eg. visiting mom) requires a separate sentence.

Some writers find semi-colons intimidating. They have this confusing bi-functional identity: Are they commas or periods? Why can't they make up their mind? Well, they do both. They connote two complete subject/predicate sentences (their period function) and they show a linkage between two connected ideas (their comma function).

Learn more about this author, Barbara Whitlock.
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