I just noticed nearly everyone here uses full stops.
Posted by BusinessYou1657@reddit | Xennials | View on Reddit | 353 comments
And that makes me happy.
Posted by BusinessYou1657@reddit | Xennials | View on Reddit | 353 comments
And that makes me happy.
Lanky33@reddit
PSA: "full stop" is the punctuation the rest of the road calls what Americans call "period".
Lanky33@reddit
Related fun fact. Periods go inside quotation marks in the USA, but full stops go outside quotation marks elsewhere.
OccamsYoyo@reddit
Canada checking in. We do periods inside quotation marks too. Otherwise we use the King’s English.
jadedbeats@reddit
Really? I'm Canadian and always put them outside quotation marks
Sad_Egg_5176@reddit
The person you’re responding to is correct (I’m Canadian and write stuff for a living)
jadedbeats@reddit
I also write stuff for a living lol. Too funny.
Sad_Egg_5176@reddit
I’m sure you write much more interesting stuff than me! I’m a technical writer, so everything needs to be “proper”
Apprehensive_Hat8986@reddit
The lack of a period after proper is 🤌.
Sad_Egg_5176@reddit
Hey, I’m off duty
jadedbeats@reddit
Lol I write for senior bureaucrats! Perhaps slightly more interesting, but only to a select few
OccamsYoyo@reddit
You’re right. I follow Canadian Press Style because I’m a journalist.
Apprehensive_Hat8986@reddit
Canuck too. I was taught that punctuation precedes the quotation marks. So quotations, "are rendered like this." That's what you'll see in magazines and books.
However, as a programmer, some of the English rules conflict with the more rigid and more precise syntax of computers.
From that I now vary of the punctuation is in or out based on which feels appropriate. To wit: if the quotation is of a fragment that excludes the stop I struggle to put a stop inside the quotation marks, since that is not what was originally written.
Terakahn@reddit
To be fair Canadians flip flop beget British and American English rules in practice
Apprehensive_Hat8986@reddit
Just like the rest of our standards. See: "metric"
sgrams04@reddit
As a programmer, it makes sense to me to add it outside the quotes. It just looks wrong inside. I’ve always ignored that rule and done it “my way”.
sysiphean@reddit
Maybe it’s because I’m a developer; I vary whether the period, exclamation point, or question mark go inside or outside the quotes based on whether they apply to what is inside the quotes or outside the quotes.
But commas are always outside the quote. And the Oxford comma is non-negotiable.
relikter@reddit
It's called logical quoting (or logical punctuation) and I often worry that using it makes coworkers think I don't know how to write correctly. But based on this post, apparently my younger coworkers wouldn't know when to use a semicolon if their lives depended on it
TP_Crisis_2020@reddit
Same, and for the same reason.
gdj11@reddit
I refuse to put periods inside quotes unless the entire sentence is in quotes.
bottlebowling@reddit
No, the period goes within the quotation marks if the quote contains multiple sentences. The last sentence of any quotation has the terminator after the quotation marks.
e.g. Mark said "Jim and Anne were both present. Jim was the one who made the observation".
Lanky33@reddit
Yes. If it's part of the original quote. Otherwise it goes outside. (USA)
LazarusDark@reddit
Um, but what if the quote is a question? I would write:
Which means Sally asked a question of whether or not the car is parked. It may not be the most clear writing as "Is the car parked?" would be clearer in writing, but Sally could actually have said it like that with a questioning inflection and it could be a direct quote that can't be rewritten, so it can happen. Are you saying you'd write it this way:
Because I would misread that as you asking whether or not Sally did say that, and it seems like Sally may have just stated that the car is parked.
If the question mark needs to go inside the quotations for it to convey the correct information, then I assume all punctuation should go inside the quotation, whether a question mark, period, or exclamation. Right?
TP_Crisis_2020@reddit
I am in the US but I have always put my periods outside of the quotation marks.
Ex-PFC_WintergreenV4@reddit
Unless the quoted passage was the end of the sentence. (“…end of the sentence.”)
TP_Crisis_2020@reddit
I know, I'm saying that I have never done that.
pregnantandsober@reddit
I like to put the period inside the quotation marks when it's something somebody said, like a quote or a character's dialogue. I put it outside the quotation marks when it's a specific term or sarcasm or other things like that.
Status-Hovercraft784@reddit
They do?!? I've always hated the period inside the quotation marks!
kahrahtay@reddit
Same. I'm in the us. I was always taught to put the quotations outside the periods but I always refused to do so. It's just so obviously the wrong way to do it.
coolpartoftheproblem@reddit
and quotations! it is so ugly
NutellaPC@reddit
Hey, I didn’t know this, so thank you for teaching me something new today!
RanklesTheOtter@reddit
Full stop sounds like some telegraph shit. 😂
Coriandercilantroyo@reddit
I thought they were talking about driving. Full stop as opposed to a California/rolling stop
RanklesTheOtter@reddit
Haha that's a good one too. I was thinking like,
"My dearest Margaret, the war has worn on me these past few months. I hope tending the fields and the children rending the tallow is fortunate for you in my absence.
-Truly yours,
Bernard."
PacketFiend@reddit
Canada too actually.
Lanky33@reddit
Yeah Canada is just USA light. (/s if it's not obvious)
PacketFiend@reddit
It's funny because it's true...
coolbandshirt@reddit
Is rest of the road the non American way of saying rest of the world or is that a typo?
Lanky33@reddit
Fat finger typo, thanks!
coolbandshirt@reddit
No worries!
No_Mood2658@reddit
My wife just started her monthly "full stop."
eroded_wolf@reddit
Are you talking about punctuation? Are you an actual Xennial? If it's not punctuation you have lost this particular Xennial.
My elder Alpha sisters say that using punctuation makes me sound aggressive, but that they know I'm old so they don't take it personally.
TheREALBaldRider@reddit
I don’t know anyone under 35. I am insulated from the aversion to punctuation except on Reddit. Some posts make my head hurt.
solemn_penguin@reddit
I have direct reports who are young enough to be my kid. The first time I hear "I dont remember" or "I wasn't born yet" when asked "where were you on 9/11?" will be the day my back finally gives out.
Gator_Tail@reddit
Happens all the time for me. I'm in the military and we have lots of fresh, young people all the time. So plenty of them weren't born yet when 9/11 happened.
Platt_Mallar@reddit
My oldest son is almost the same age I was when 9/11 happened. Fuck, I'm old.
red_bird85@reddit
Whoa. Just realized my oldest is two years older than I was on 9/11 which was also the day I went to my first OB appointment with him. Wild.
drdr314@reddit
Probably no one in their 20s really remembers 9/11. They all were either not born or under 5.
Sorry for you back. 🫣
GamerKormai@reddit
Well, thank you for that gut punch. 😭
Amanuet@reddit
Can confirm. Back going out, work with people still on their P-plates and not alive when 9/11 happened.
NurseCait@reddit
Punctuation and proper grammar. Like, how am I supposed to know it’s a new sentence if there’s no punctuation or capital letter at the beginning? SMH
FalconGK81@reddit
I think I get accused of my posts being AI generated sometimes because I actually use punctuation and complete sentences.
giveusalol@reddit
I swear if you post anything logically reasoned, longer than four lines, with actual punctuation, someone will show up to call you a bot. I’m getting so paranoid I’m starting to wonder if there are bots built to accuse people of being bots.
Platt_Mallar@reddit
I should make one. That would be funny.
giveusalol@reddit
Noooooo
SunshineofMyLyfetime@reddit
I know how to use an em dash, and actually use them; so I’m automatically AI.
Myfourcats1@reddit
Run on sentences. No capital letters. And “I seen” instead of “I saw”. That’s my most recent pet peeve.
Just-Try-2533@reddit
When I read a long rambling post with zero punctuation, I usually just give up. How do people not know how to finish one thought before starting another?
Ells666@reddit
And one 50 line paragraph...
BallsDieppe@reddit
Agreed.
FiveCrappedPee@reddit
I am so crazy about my paragraph breaks because I hate reading paragraphs that go longer than idk like 6 or 7 lines.
Some accomplished writers really piss me off because they don't believe in paragraphs. I'm sorry it's just a personal thing as I am a writer myself. Fuck you Melville and Dickens and those British ass writers who for some reason didn't give a fuck (sorry no offense just venting.)
Ain't nobody got time or fuck even the god damn eyesight anymore either to read your mother fucking blocks of text! Just hit return motherfucker start a new one when that idea or premise ends please for the love of fucking god!
Ryanookami@reddit
In all fairness, with some of the older British writers, they were writing in a time before certain formatting was considered the standard. It was the Wild West of publishing, every man for themselves.
I just personally hope that the way people write now never supplants the current standards of publishing. About the only rule I can accept disappearing is the indent in new paragraphs, that doesn’t bother me one way or the other.
FiveCrappedPee@reddit
Yep no doubt good insight. And famously for The Count of Monte Cristo, Dumas got paid by the word so he was like fuck it let it ride bitches! Also i worked at Bennigans in the 90s and all of you, my people, remember how god damn mother fucking delicious the Monte Cristo was. I still drool over that motherfucker.
But yeah I feel you it definitely was a different time in publishing. Guttenberg did his shit up in 1462, and helped spark the Renaissance, but in reality books were just still for rich people until the latter part of the industrial revolution when common folk started finally being Ike "hey maybe we should learn to like, read and shit." Paragraphs are key!
History is wild and I love learning about it. Cheers!
Gutter_Snoop@reddit
Tolstoy too. God damn that dude could ramble one. Why use 30 words to describe a situation when you can use 300?
giveusalol@reddit
Yes, and some of what we get as books now were first published in parts in periodicals so it was not quite so daunting. Though I suppose back then readers were more accustomed to it.
TheREALBaldRider@reddit
Add Joyce to the list
FiveCrappedPee@reddit
Ulysses was a good read but god damn with the long ass pages. Wtf
I don't want to come off like I'm trying to champion like dan brown three page chapters, it ain't that. It's just like, fuck there has to be a middle ground. Well all the classics are dead so. I don't even know where I'm going with this.
Feisty-Lifeguard-550@reddit
Iv tried so hard to read Ulysses , first time half way through , second time six pages in and I thought fuck this. Then I tried it on audio and decided life was too short
FiveCrappedPee@reddit
You didn't miss all that much but I remember I think the show called life's too short with that one funny guy and the REM Stand song for the theme? On fox in like the early 90s?Was that a thing or am I just that drunk right now? I remember it was funny, that's all I remember.
Ekoh_TripR88@reddit
I think it was Get A Life starring Chris Elliott.
FiveCrappedPee@reddit
Thank you shirt brother that's what it was!
i_chose_this_shit@reddit
Just-Try-2533@reddit
Brothers or DeWitt?
TheREALBaldRider@reddit
Ha! James
JamesMattDillon@reddit
I need the paragraph breaks after every 3-5 sentences.
CheesyRomantic@reddit
Me too, lol. My daughter (in Junior High School) corrected me on my over use of paragraphing.
mnemonicmonkey@reddit
Tell her she should start a new one every 6 or 7 sentences.
CheesyRomantic@reddit
That's what she told me (she learned in school).
artfully_dejected@reddit
No Jose Saramago for you!
FungiStudent@reddit
Or David Foster Wallace
robboppotamus@reddit
chief financial officer.
nernst79@reddit
I blame The Scarlet Letter for normalizing this.
Complete-Dimension35@reddit
And one 50 line ~~paragraph~~ run-on sentence...
AYearInOaxaca@reddit
I recently read the book Angel Down (an NPR recommendation) and the entire book is, no shit, one sentence. I thought I was losing my fucking mind.
DBPanterA@reddit
These clowns must have never had to write a 5 paragraph paper in their lives. 🤷♂️
GetrIndia@reddit
Who knows where thoughts come from? They just appear.
AquariusRising1983@reddit
Same. If the poster can't be bothered to put periods in their massive block of text, I can't be bothered to read said massive block of text.
I always assume the lack of punctuation (periods especially) indicates the person typing doesn't care enough about their statement to structure it in an intelligent way that is easily accessible to readers...and if that's the case, whatever point they're making probably isn't of enough interest or importance to justify my reading it. 🤷🏻♀️
_ism_@reddit
i remember when boomers got onto me for not using capitalizaiton in online discourse
Lehk@reddit
I appreciate when someone indicates early not to bother reading what they wrote.
maryummy@reddit
A lot of influencers talk like this too. They go from one sentence to another without a pause or indication that the thought is complete. I find it really grating.
aravarth@reddit
A "full stop" is what a "period" is called in some places.
knewleefe@reddit
Yep, we stop our sentences. Menstruation is important, but not for punctuation.
Apprehensive_Hat8986@reddit
Wtf is this downvoted?!? 😅
FalseQuestion7864@reddit
No wonder why they're all full of anxiety! They're all assigning what's in their own heads to the text that was written by someone else... and that person really hasn't even given any clues to their tone because there's not even any punctuation.
It's funny how they're the ones with the problem and confused... yet their assigning 'aggression' to our intentions.
They are the Blind leading the deaf, blind and dumb.
FlatSixFun@reddit
That’s the funny part to me. Punctuation actually helps with understanding tone and intonation, something sorely lacking from reading unadorned plain text. They’re making life harder, not easier.
FlatSixFun@reddit
And not using punctuation makes people sounds like grade schoolers. 🤷♂️
TSGarp007@reddit
That’s the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard; Using punctuation is a courtesy to others - how else can one make sense of the constant changing of subjects, pronouns, etc… I used to be upset no one used the Oxford comma. Those are the days!
LMurch13@reddit
relikter@reddit
I still am. I used to be, but I still am too. The Oxford comma is objectively correct and I will remain steadfast, refuse to budge, and be persistent about this issue.
KinkMountainMoney@reddit
Mitch!!
kaest@reddit
They also think the thumbs up is aggressive. 🤷
vajrasana@reddit
This is how they take it lol
FreeFortuna@reddit
Honestly, that’s how I take it too.
If I suggested a meeting time/place and get a thumbs-up, that’s totally cool. But if I write more than two sentences and just get a thumbs-up in response, it feels like judgment or a brush-off.
Periods are kind of the opposite. The shorter the message, the more periods feel passive-aggressive. I’ve intentionally removed periods from my texts just so it doesn’t come across like I’m angry.
vajrasana@reddit
Which is why I like ellipses…it’s a great way to separate a thought without the “aggression” of a period…alas, the young’ns don’t take kindly to my beloved ellipses either…
FreeFortuna@reddit
Yeah, I loved em-dashes for similar reasons, until AI ruined them. Some subs won’t even let me comment if I dare to use one, so I’ve had to find alternative punctuation. RIP, my beloved.
BarrelFullOfWeasels@reddit
Wait, what? I use that all the time. I thought it was the friendly text acknowledgement instead of just saying "k".
Am I actually offending people? And if so, WTF can I say when I want a quick shorthand affirmative response?
EvanTurningTheCorner@reddit
I was briefly dating someone under 30 a few years ago, and they got really upset when I replied to a text with 'ok'. They were like, that's so fucking rude and passive aggressive.
Terakahn@reddit
They must think the middle finger is a hate crime then
rotcex@reddit
Are talking about the thumbs up emoji or an actual IRL thumbs up?
kaest@reddit
The emoji. Although I wouldn't be surprised at thinking the same about actual thumbs up.
nobearable@reddit
Me all day to every coworker under 30: 👍👍👍👍👍 & the animated smiley face one on teams when they're extra adorable (insufferable).
AmputeeHandModel@reddit
One of mine gets a little triggered by "K" so of course I waste no opportunity to use it, in good fun.
nobearable@reddit
🤣
Esabettie@reddit
And they like writing i all lower case.
giveusalol@reddit
This does predate Gen Z I think. I remember blogging platforms where many people typed like this and they’d have been millennials at the youngest. For some reason seeing capitalisation in tags also freaks me out a bit having grown accustomed to tagging conventions.
At least in those cases it was a deliberate stylistic choice only when people wrote on certain platforms. Their actual messages or work were still normally punctuated.
Esabettie@reddit
I never noticed before until I joined a discord for tv show and the younger ones had their caps disabled.
giveusalol@reddit
They’d never survive texting with my dad. Me: At the hospital. Dad: 👍🏾
GardenRafters@reddit
And think an 'lol' after every sentence doesn't sound passive aggressive. In my head I hear "I'm laughing at your stupidity".
AmputeeHandModel@reddit
It's just like punctuation, so you know it's not a serious sentence. It's hard to get tone across in text.
vajrasana@reddit
Oops, I just responded to another post with a final “lol”. For me it just softens the tone a bit, but doesn’t necessarily mean I’m laughing at you lol (…you dumb fuck…/s 😜)
Status-Hovercraft784@reddit
There's a time and place for "lol". You're good.
Thisizamazing@reddit
Hard for me not to read a bunch of lol’s that way too. And, for the record, I fucking hate this: 🤣
CrushyOfTheSeas@reddit
Punctuation is aggressive‽ ‽ ‽
kellybelly4815@reddit
You want aggressive punctuation?! I’ll show you aggressive punctuation!!!
vajrasana@reddit
All caps is definitely aggressive, but beyond that, I don’t find it aggressive. Oh wait, I find lowercase “i”s (as in the personal pronoun) to be aggressive.
Amanuet@reddit
WAIT UNTIL YOU SEE HOW AGGRESSIVE i CAN BE!!!!
vajrasana@reddit
sickofmakingnames@reddit
Punch-you-ation!
NthDgree@reddit
Nice interrobang
ThedIIthe4th@reddit
I was just about to congratulate the usage of a interrobangs!
calyxcell@reddit
Interrobang gang rise up‽‽
Purple4199@reddit
Right‽ I use the interrobang all the time.
Status-Hovercraft784@reddit
Is that what that thing is called?
the__ghola__hayt@reddit
I interrobanged your mom.
Status-Hovercraft784@reddit
That question mark/exclamation point thing you're doing is really neat! Should be a thing!
CrushyOfTheSeas@reddit
I’m trying to do my little part to popularize the interrobang. ⁉️ it is for exclamatory questions.
whither_wander_you@reddit
It's literally my favorite. I use it everywhere!!
TP_Crisis_2020@reddit
People are threatened by what they don't understand.
LatinBotPointTwo@reddit
Aggressive? Well, that's stupid. I'm sorry, but it is.
makeupwearsoff@reddit
How are you Gen X or Millennial and have Gen Alpha sisters? Are your parents still having kids in their 70s???
eroded_wolf@reddit
I answered that already
ThresholdSeven@reddit
Eschewing punctuation is that generation's way of trying to hide the fact that they don't know how to use punctuation correctly
I've been accused of being old simply because I use punctuation and "big words", but the funny thing is that I generally write at around a high school grammar level when commenting online and save formal grammar for when I'm writing prose or whatever, because that's the normal way to use the English language.
It's Idiocracy in real life.
OhkokuKishi@reddit
When writing casual prose like fanfiction, character backstories, or wiki articles, it becomes disturbingly common to see people splooge out the same sort of quality as their chat messages and think it's quality.
10J18R1A@reddit
It's the idea that people are actually having to THINK in order to pump out competent comments.
See: dollar signs after numbers. It requires no thought to do, yet people swear that it's hard for them to remember.
SunshineofMyLyfetime@reddit
People using the dollar sign after the numbers will most likely be the death of me.
10J18R1A@reddit
It has to be made up
I used to think it was just people from other countries, to which I would understand more.
But it's people born and raised in America, who have literally never seen a dollar sign after a number, talking about "I write it how I say it". That's because you're stupid, buddy.
It started with "ur" and people perpetually confused by your/you're. The Idiocracy of America continues.
SunshineofMyLyfetime@reddit
Exactly! I’ll always give grace to someone from another country, someone trying to learn English, that’s bilingual, etc., but it’s the people that have no excuse (i.e. born and raised in the USA), that grind my gears, and makes me realize just how stupid people really are.
And yes, you’re/your will, in fact, be the death of me, if the dollar sign doesn’t kill me first.
Followed by: to/two/too, and there/their/they’re.
Just list them all as the cause of death on my death certificate.
10J18R1A@reddit
"per say"
Just don't use shit if you don't know it.
Typos happen, that's fine. I'll leave out a period sometimes in texting. But the complete acceptance and often endorsement of ignorance is just insane to me.
The dollar sign issue is now my "I don't even want to read the rest of your shit" deal breaker.
SunshineofMyLyfetime@reddit
The thing is, a majority of the time, you can tell when someone makes a typo(and that’s cool, autocorrect has gotten us all!); as opposed to them not knowing how to spell.
Then, they’ll try to say, “Well, I was using talk to text, and it got it wrong, so…”.
There’s a super easy way to fix that, proofreading!
But, if you don’t know how to spell, and/or use proper grammar, you wouldn’t catch the mistakes anyway, and that goes back to people just spelling things all willy nilly, and/or how they sound.
Or, like our favorite, putting the dollar sign afterwards because it’s how they say it aloud. 🥴
10J18R1A@reddit
I'm not even extremely nitpicky - most of my writing is complete stream of consciousness. However, most people's "shortcuts" would take me forever to do because writing 91% correctly is just habit.
Fuck you, "prolly".
And yeah, you can absolutely tell the typos that slipped as opposed to the "what is this, school" people who are still somehow struggling with contractions.
We all have our things. I mix up effect and affect (so I use impact as my stand in). I will never be able to spell restaurant without red line assistance. Nobody expects perfection from casual commenting but I assume we made it past 4th grade.
Also, aloud/allowed, while we're listing things lol
Just to rage bait myself- 780$
THAT DOES NOT EVEN LOOK RIGHT
FungiStudent@reddit
Go away, Im baitin!
YouAggressive8549@reddit
Tell them that dumbing it down any further would be physically painful for you.
ThresholdSeven@reddit
It would. I'm already not a very good writer and trying to be even worse so that I can communicate more effectively with a younger generation that doesn't want to even use punctuation makes me want to opt out.
ChickenBossChiefsFan@reddit
I work in food service, so I work with a lot of kids. I’ve been told that not only is punctuation aggressive, but the 👍emoji is apparently highly passive-aggressive and implies I am upset instead of the “okey dokey” I’m actually going for.
I have also been told I get a pass due to my advanced age.
spacebardidntwork@reddit
My 14 y/o tries to dictate texts to other parents because she says I sound cringe when I ask with manners and punctuation.
AmputeeHandModel@reddit
Apparently, they are triggered by 👍 too 🙄
jackytheripper1@reddit
I'm triggered by my boomer MIL who responds to my updates on gravely ill husband's condition with 👍🏻
kinetic_cheese@reddit
And by K
CheesyRomantic@reddit
OMG... I stopped working a while ago, but went back from maternity leave the person I was replacing told me iver and over again that my use of commas (to seperate items) made me sound rude.
knewleefe@reddit
That's crazy. Commas indicate a natural pause for breath. If someone fails to use them, I actually start feeling uncomfortable and have to physically take a deep breath, even if I'm only reading it in my head.
CheesyRomantic@reddit
Right? In my case I was using commas to seperate style names and prices. Ex: Angie $3.00, Bonnie $3.25, Cameron $3.50 etc...
PokerbushPA@reddit
TIL commas are rude.
Tiny_dinosaur82@reddit
How in the everloving fuck can punctuation make you sound aggressive? A smily face emoji apparently does too. I give up.
osddelerious@reddit
Wait. You were born in or about 1980 and you have sisters that were born after 2010? My daughter is an alpha.
eroded_wolf@reddit
My bad, they're zoomers.
PrimalSeptimus@reddit
To be honest , that annoys me a lot less than how the Olds type , with their spaces between punctuation .. and two-dot ellipses with inconsistent spacing that make no sense , plus their double-spacing between sentences . We don 't use typewriters anymore . .
FungiStudent@reddit
Ive had to break myself of the double space after a period. I did, of course, partially learn to type on an actual typewriter (electronic typewriter, but still). We did have Apple IIe typing class but mom had the electronic typewriter for work. It had the thing where you could erase words you had typed.
PrimalSeptimus@reddit
I learned it but just never did it. Even back then, I thought it looked too stupid.
Tristram19@reddit
Shoot, I’m still trying to stop putting double spaces after a sentence. Most days I’m combing back through my writing to take them out afterwards.
BayouLuLu@reddit
I double space and don’t think twice about it.
DrButtgerms@reddit
Sometimes I am being aggressive, too. 👍
davwad2@reddit
I never understood this take about punctuation. Without it, how do I know where a sentence ends?
grilledwax@reddit
My daughter doesn’t even use capital letters. Like, I don’t even know how, I assume she’s turned off autocorrect? Just type anything and I get capitals at the start of a sentence.
irate_alien@reddit
I am aggressive.
DW_555@reddit
What else would they be talking about?
TheCuriousCorsair@reddit
Ehh, that's what the 'lol' period is for lol
wayoverpaid@reddit
When writing an email, you absolutely need it.
When writing a text or other short form communication you seemingly do not.
Reddit is odd. Sometimes you need it if the message is long, and sometimes you don't. Sometimes you use it for every single sentence except the last one.
CeruleanShot@reddit
One uses punctuation, Darling. Because being literate is a flex.
SnooDrawings7662@reddit
We need that on a T-shirt.
Daped01@reddit
Team punctuation!
Humble_Ladder@reddit
Yes, I agree; I even pull out the occasional semicolon.
SnooDrawings7662@reddit
Ooh.. sexy... 😂
LazarusDark@reddit
I literally have the entire Unicode character documentation open when I'm doing TTRPG writing. I want to use ALL the punctuation.
Bytowneboy2@reddit
‽
bikemandan@reddit
Interrobang is my favorite. Thank you
critical_patch@reddit
It’s like Team America, but…punctuation.
CalmTheAngryVoice@reddit
🎵Periods! Fuck yeah!
Comin' to save the motherfuckin' syntax! 🎵
Legend_017@reddit
Punctuation’s the only way, YEAH!
BusinessYou1657@reddit (OP)
Generation Z your game is through…
SnooDrawings7662@reddit
Thank goodness for punctuation! And praise be for a place that appreciates it!
Terriblarious@reddit
But, do you double space after a period?
travelinmatt76@reddit
Always.
pendejo-san@reddit
Some of us start sentences with conjunctions, but we’re all capable of change.
scoff-law@reddit
From what I'm reading in here, reading a book must be trauma for these kids
Slartibartfast39@reddit
I'm also a fan of semicolons, commas, and the Oxford comma.
Also the interrobang. 'You are how many toothbrushes‽'
Terakahn@reddit
I've never found a use for a semi colon. I'm sure they exist but I don't think I'd them.
And the interrobang is foreign to me along with that squiggly dash lol
Slartibartfast39@reddit
Interrobang is easy. It's for a statement that's both a question and an exclamation. "You did what‽"
A semicolon is a little trickier. It connects two closely related independent clauses (complete sentences) that are not already joined by a conjunction like 'and' or 'but'. "It was the best of times; it was the worst of times." If you could connect the bits into one sentence you've almost certainly got the option for using a semicolon.
Terakahn@reddit
Why not just write !? Or ?!
I think with a semi colon I would just use a comma or period.
Slartibartfast39@reddit
And you can do all of that. It's all written communication and if you get your meaning across its worked. These are just opinions I use sometimes.
gdj11@reddit
I liked emdashes until AI ruined it for me.
Legend_017@reddit
How do you type an interrobang.
FiveCrappedPee@reddit
Go to wiki, look it up and copy. I am a huge fan of it and just did it again because I'm drunk.
FungiStudent@reddit
My version is "?!?", I dont have to copy/paste anything...
Slartibartfast39@reddit
On my phone? Hold the question mark symbol and select the interrobang. The other alternative option is that Spanish upsidedown question mark
Legend_017@reddit
I don’t have the correct keyboard downloaded. :/
sgrams04@reddit
The emotions I feel when someone doesn’t use the Oxford comma are anger, confusion, and contempt.
ReadyAimTranspire@reddit
I am astonished, relieved, and grateful to see that so many others are in support of the Oxford comma.
TP_Crisis_2020@reddit
Me when I see someone list examples without a colon. 😭
PresentationLost1006@reddit
Sorry to point it out when you’re already triggered, but a colon must come after an independent clause (full sentence), so your example would not be correct. You could say “are the following:” and that would do it. Without an independent clause, the example above yours would be correct.
FiveCrappedPee@reddit
What no that's crazy isn't it‽
Lotan@reddit
Semicolons
Affectionate-Bag-611@reddit
I had a coworker complain to our supervisor that I was being "too aggressive" by using punctuation. And actually had a meeting about it.
Dorkinfo@reddit
This happened to me like fifteen years ago!
External-Praline-451@reddit
What the actual fuck?! Please tell me the coworker was told they're a fucking idiot? I wouldn't have been able to contain myself 😂
Affectionate-Bag-611@reddit
They had to discussion with HR!
S_A_R_K@reddit
Hit em with a triple tap next time...
BeerAandLoathing@reddit
YOU SHOULD START USING CAPSLOCK TOO
GhettoSauce@reddit
Can we have examples? I need a laugh
quickguileismyhandle@reddit
Punctuation triggered. Bang
Dunnersstunner@reddit
Related to this is indenting paragraphs. I know some style guides eschew this, but I was taught to indent my paragraphs.
It's fair to say I honor this more in breach than in observance, but I am conscious of the practice and I still put in a line break in my paragraphs online. At least providing some indication of a new point.
Adbam@reddit
Im an older xen and have started to regress with punctuation, capitalization and spelling. It took me a while to stop doing the double space after periods and i dont always punctuate the last sentence of a text paragraph
MCA2142@reddit
Is that like a move? Like Frank’s “stop short”?
vajrasana@reddit
Just means a period at the end of a sentence. I prefer ellipses, but then I heard that other gens don’t like it, so I stopped. Some gens use no punctuation at all, which imo is by far the greatest crime against humanity.
TragicHedgehog@reddit
I live and die by the ellipses…
Good-Bodybuilder-985@reddit
Semicolon gang checking in!
TrumpsCovidfefe@reddit
I thought I was the only one…
hypo11@reddit
Why would you make that comment and then not use a semicolon??
DaoFerret@reddit
How could you pass up a perfect opportunity for an interrobang‽
thekrawdiddy@reddit
I caught so much flak for using semicolons I eventually conditioned myself not to use them.
FungiStudent@reddit
"(...)" ala David Foster Wallace to indicate a heavy pause in conversation.
whither_wander_you@reddit
They are so nice. especially in longer conversations where I intend to come back and reply. If I give you a solid period, im done. if I give you an ellipses, ill come back and/or wait for you.
PennyFromMyAnus@reddit
This is the way..
yayoffbalance@reddit
Me too...
Dobako@reddit
Right? You got a problem with ellipses, you got a problem with me, and I suggest let that one marinate
jinsaku@reddit
I don’t understand people who replace a period with “lol” and it’s all too common.
vajrasana@reddit
Sometimes I’m worried that my tone may come across as harsh so I’ll add a “lol” at the end to soften it a bit. It can sometimes be hard to read a text in the intended manner with which it was sent. For example, this post should be read as if it were lyrics to a Swedish Death Metal song…who knew?
Also, obligatory Key & Peele sketch for reference.
jinsaku@reddit
Adding lol is fine, but when it replaces a sentence break, that I don't get.
For example, "I ate a fish lol it was tasty." versus "I ate a fish. It was tasty."
vajrasana@reddit
Oh yeah, that shit is fucked up
Melsother@reddit
I sincerely miss when Reddit was critical of folks who used incorrect grammar or punctuation.
Country_Gravy420@reddit
Other generations don't like ellipses...I didn't know that!
vajrasana@reddit
Yeah, I think I read that they view it as passive aggressive or something. Like you’re leaving something unsaid but implied.
“It’s just that we’re putting covers on all the TPS reports now….(unsaid: so get with the program if you still want to have a job)”
CalmTheAngryVoice@reddit
100% that's how I read ellipses.
emarkd@reddit
It's usually how I mean them...
FungiStudent@reddit
"..."
CombatDeffective@reddit
.... you fuck.
thyleullar@reddit
They don’t like ellipses… or the em dash — thanks to ChatGPT.
SunshineofMyLyfetime@reddit
And I use em dashes all of the time. I don’t care!
GardenRafters@reddit
Oh no. Are ellipses an AI thing/indicator?
bgva@reddit
I think the em dash more than anything. Although I only see the AI implications on Reddit, so grain of salt and all.
thyleullar@reddit
Many younger generations consider it so; I feel since they don’t actually use punctuation.
raspberrybee@reddit
My mom is a boomer and she loves using ellipses.
CheesyRomantic@reddit
I love using ellipses as well. Not a boomer. I also don't get offended over much. Especially not 3 little dots.
po_ta_toes_80@reddit
iloveyourlittlehat@reddit
Stopping short, huh? …That’s a good move.
280EastBroad@reddit
If the Xennials go with the Period, and the Xers go with the ellipsis, who do the Alphas go with?
Intelligent-Invite79@reddit
This guy, this is not my kinda guy.
Zopheus_@reddit
He once had a silver… dollar collection.
rajalove09@reddit
Not me…. The 90s are strong in this one…
antariusz@reddit
We’re cooked bro
antariusz@reddit
I’m guilty of the boomer ellipses.
SunshineInDetroit@reddit
Hi.
MsJenX@reddit
What do you mean?
Able-Pain-2442@reddit
I still use the Oxford comma. I belive punctuation is very important to get the message out properly.
jimmythesaint83@reddit
It makes me happy when I see people double space after a period.
Spartan04@reddit
I unlearned that one in college and now I hate seeing it in documents. I work with some people that still do it and if it’s a collaborative document and I have last edit I’ll use find replace to change it to single space so it’s consistent.
Double space is only necessary for typewriters.
paisleymanticore@reddit
I still struggle to not add one, I was taught to type on a typewriter in 1993. We had our first pc in the late 80s and I feel I should've known sooner that the rule has changed, but I still didn't find out until 2001 when I was asked to proofread our website and tried to get our editor to fix it
Terakahn@reddit
What's the purpose of the double space?
paisleymanticore@reddit
I think it had something to do with the monospacing typewriters
coolpartoftheproblem@reddit
as an editor, i absolutely hate this
79anon@reddit
I was starting to drift away from the double space, but with AI writing shit I’m going back to the double space so that people know someone is actually writing the email.
jimmythesaint83@reddit
It's just how I was taught in high school and it's so hard to unlearn. No matter what, when I get into a flow it just happens. If I think about it too much, I'll lose the flow.
Potential-Ant-6320@reddit
That’s only really necessary for typewriters and not necessary for modern word processors. Type in textile do it button avoid it in a more processor.
ShartFlex@reddit
My old boss beat this out of me like 10 years ago. God damned progressive boomer.
Pho-Soup@reddit
Related, but it’s a huge pet peeve of mine when people on Reddit type out “full stop” to try to sound overly dramatic when they are making a point. Full stop.
S_A_R_K@reddit
I agree. Half stop.
makeupwearsoff@reddit
Just stop.
Valadrea@reddit
I had a 29 year old coworker explain that using punctuation like periods at the end of a sentence makes you sound 'angry' in texts. So since then, I leave off periods for the young'uns so I don't stress them out too much. Everyone else gets a full stop like God intended.
West-Veterinarian-53@reddit
I was taught grammar by a nun 🤷🏻♀️.
VVrayth@reddit
dukefett@reddit
My wife sends things like “Happy Birthday.” sometimes lol
MaxMcLarenTBSL@reddit
Not even an exclamation mark? What did they do to hurt her so?
Far-Implement-818@reddit
I wouldn’t know, because as a low functioning GATE genius with ADHD and autistic, tendencies, I know the proper use of full stops, what they represent, are useful for, and where and when they are contextually necessary, or completely irrelevant, outdated, and socially harmful when used to disseminate between hierarchical worth standards and biased discrimination, while also being self aware of my own personal proclivities to use them, habitually, though my qualities per word usage are in such a low percentage that they are more likely to be numerical notation, such as .0002%, than the rarest of possibility of my successful completion of a single sentence, like this one.
adammonroemusic@reddit
Hello, fellow GATE child. Personally, I just read far too many books to not use periods or proper punctuation.
I suppose if I just used the internet, social media, and sent texts, that my brain might turn to mush, and I would no longer care about such things.
Far-Implement-818@reddit
See, not true though, because outside of work that’s basically all I do now, and I still use periods, even if they are mostly just…
Redbird9346@reddit
For clarification for those not familiar with the term, "full stop" refers to the character
., which is also called a period.aftersox@reddit
Okay, but how many spaces between a full stop and a new sentence?
kristosnikos@reddit
I was taught two but adapted to using one when typing style changed by the time I was in college.
I write and read a lot and if one would notice, no one uses two spaces after a period/complete sentence.
beeurd@reddit
Just the one for me; I don't recall ever being taught to use two spaces after a full stop.
TragicHedgehog@reddit
tehgimpage@reddit
two! i will die on that hill! but reddit changes it to just one anyway. i swear i typed two tho!
jodiesattva@reddit
Remember when it was 2?!?!?!
NJTrash@reddit
My son started getting on my case about that when he was like 15. I didn't understand it. It drove him crazy.
He kind of trained it out of me now. At least in texts.
sator-2D-rotas@reddit
They can claw ‘.’ from my cold, dead hands.
Same with cursive. In fact, I think I’ll learn older forms of cursive to make my writing that much harder to read.
Terakahn@reddit
One day we'll be using cursive to write in code because none of the kids will be able to read it.
Terakahn@reddit
If you don't use punctuation then you never learned how to write properly. Period lol.
Donmiggy143@reddit
Paragraph breaks. Punctuation. Upper case and lower case letters. Spelling out the whole word.
Yep, these seem to be disappearing.
TP_Crisis_2020@reddit
They will be extinct in 2 more generations.
jdsmith575@reddit
It’s not just the younger generations. I see it in older folks at work and assume they can’t type well despite spending 8 hours a day in front of a keyboard.
YakApprehensive7620@reddit
Brought to you by Carl’s Jr
DarthFuzzzy@reddit
You mean... periods? Yeah buddy, back in the olden days they would teach us how to write in English.
After_Match_5165@reddit
If someone asks me if I've done something, I don't say "Yes ". I normally say "Yep!" Or "Oh! Yes I did, thanks for reminding me." It's almost as though words and punctuation make it possible to convey tone and intent. Shocking.
TrulyCunty@reddit
Ok, but please don’t take my beloved em dash from me—I need it, and imo it reads better than a semicolon.
SunshineofMyLyfetime@reddit
I use both, and I won’t be giving up either of them!
bikemandan@reddit
Two spaces though after?
KerissaKenro@reddit
I have learned not to put a period at the end of a paragraph. It upsets the young’uns. But within a paragraph, I will properly punctuate everything and you can never make me stop
HelpImOverthinking@reddit
It bothers me that my boss who is older than me sends one sentence emails and doesn't finish them with a period.
TP_Crisis_2020@reddit
I work with high 9 figure CEO's who have the grammar of a 9 year old via text and email.
ReadyAimTranspire@reddit
This is typically not because said individual is unintelligent, but rather that they are absolutely abysmal at typing and will go to any lengths necessary to do it as little as possible.
I learned to type in HS and became fast and accurate with AIM chat and playing MMO games, and it has proved to be one of my most valuable skills in the workplace in years past.
Because I can type nearly as quickly as I can think of what to say, I can draft detailed reports and emails etc. and get them done quickly, and it's always been noticed by my employers.
Withnail_I_am_I_am@reddit
I still use two spaces between sentences. That's just how I roll.
GreenZebra23@reddit
Sometimes I do, sometimes I don't
ReadyAimTranspire@reddit
I also sometimes use periods. Other times I don't
dadneverleft@reddit
I lead a to write on a physical keyboard, not a phone. That probably accounts for it.
Helo7606@reddit
I know this may sound aggressive. But honestly, if you don't use punctuation. I just assume you're stupid or extremely uneducated. I get misspelling or even using the wrong punctuation sometimes. But using none at all is just idiotic. You just sound like you don't know how to write or form a complete thought. And I won't read anything you have to say. Also, the weird ass Gen A and Z's who say using punctuation comes off as rude is so damn weird. Like, go back to English classes please.
Traditional_Entry183@reddit
Why would a person not use proper punctuation and speak in complete sentences?
Library_Gremlin2@reddit
Probably because they don’t know how
Cael_NaMaor@reddit
What are you talking about?
autocosm@reddit
I knew the iPhone would have this effect.
BirdBrain_99@reddit
We were taught how to write properly and most of us still do but I admit I dont always use a full stop when I'm texting/commenting with my phone. Which I am
fforde@reddit
I actually deliberately avoid punctuation and capitalization when texting with my nieces and nephews. It feels weird.
BirdBrain_99@reddit
It's like code switching but in type haha
cowboycoco1@reddit
my college educated daughter sends me messages with no punctuation it takes me forever to parse them out i mean sometimes there's clear starts and stops to the sentences but even those are hard to find since there's no actual punctuation it drives me insane
But I'm an aggressive boomer when I format a message. And god forbid I end a thought with a disappointed pause...
EastCoastDizzle@reddit
Can we talk about the people that never use a capital letter?
RodneyBarringtonIII@reddit
Big fan of full stops with double spaces afterward. Also the em dash, the Oxford comma, and semicolons. Occasionally people accuse me of being AI.
CosmicFelineFoliage@reddit
I cannot dumb myself down enough to give up punctuation.
Moons_of_Moons@reddit
Not at stop signs though
Heyoooo
Budum Pshh
tristero200@reddit
I'm always learning about new signifiers - things that are now giving me away as old - on here.
Geek_Wandering@reddit
Full Stop? Are you an elder boomer. Not even elder gen-x uses the term full stop.
DHammer79@reddit
The use of the terms "full stop" and "period" is country specific.
Slippery-Pete76@reddit
Well, maybe they don’t use their exclamation points as haphazardly as we do.
Bright_External_4161@reddit
Always use it….
And I’m happy to hear it’s a trigger for kids nowadays.
wrel_@reddit
Hell, I still put two spaces between sentences.
doduotrainer@reddit
I DON'T
Noisechild@reddit
You mean we don’t end every post with “lmao” when saying something not even remotely funny? lmao
MinivanPops@reddit
Lowkey no but yeah
JD4Destruction@reddit
That's only on twitter or Snap, right? Not a real world thing.
I know what you are referring to bit I have never really seen it even online.
I use LLMs to soften my emails so I've gotten fewer complaints from young co-workers. AI allows me to sound more human I guess.
TP_Crisis_2020@reddit
Mark my words: proper grammar is going to be completely extinct in 2 more generations.
Status-Hovercraft784@reddit
Here's a thing I've been doing that I would like to see become normalized: putting spaces on either side of a slash. For instance, left / right / up / down. I like it particularly when in use within a paragraph. I feel like it gives each word distinction and looks cleaner, versus something like left/right/up/down, which looks jumbled.
Ill-Percentage-3276@reddit
Thought we were talking about stop signs for a moment.
Andi_Lou_Who@reddit
Have younger people stopped using them?
Alarming_Cat_2946@reddit
Who knows… I don’t interact with younger people.
^for legal reasons, this is a joke
Verbull710@reddit
I don't, not if it's just one line
TurtleSandwich0@reddit
One space or two?
coolpartoftheproblem@reddit
in text/chat it comes across as stentorian
Averagestiff@reddit
*.
CubicleHermit@reddit
By "full stop," you mean what in the US is called a "period" - (
.), right?We had a consultant talking to managers at my last employer at one point say that "GenZ new grads find using proper capitalization and punctuation 'too aggressive.'" although the solution seemed to be a suggestion to use more emoji.
Given that we're the mini-generation that popularized the predecessor :) I think I'm good with that although they can make fun of my not bothering with substituting emoji for those unless the software does it automatically.
(Separately, software that replaces A) B) lists with A) 😎 are stupidly annoying.)
toughheartskill@reddit
Let me help..
unbalancedcentrifuge@reddit
You are awful close to an elipse there, buddy. Another punctuation us older folk are known for...
BusinessYou1657@reddit (OP)
Maybe, this is
Because we all
Spent a lot of time
Watching STAR WARS
When we were
Young….
toughheartskill@reddit
OnyXerO@reddit
Had a younger coworker comment on this recently. I found it weird that he doesn't.
BusinessYou1657@reddit (OP)
Apparently, they find it aggressive. A kid at work thought my boss was mad at her when he used one in a text.
It’s funny, because we’re the ones who remember paying by the letter, so you think it would be us who abandoned them.
PeterPunksNip@reddit
Well, it always has been the normal way to end a sentence. 🤷🏽♂️
Greedy-Nectarine1762@reddit
I have never heard of 'full stop' as a reference to punctuation. In fact, any one who says full stop in a sentence I usually assume needed extra attention in the classroom.
butterbeanscafe@reddit
British English = full stop American English = a period.