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CSTW Center for the Study and Teaching of Writing

College of Humanities

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Drafting and Style

Parentheses and Dashes

Parentheses ( )

Purpose:
  • Provide extra/nonessential information.
  • Separate material (a word, phrase, or sentence) from the main part of the sentence.
  • De-emphasize the importance of the material in the parentheses.
Example: Tragically, Clay Aiken (a talented singer) did not win American Idol.

Punctuation:
  • When parenthetic information is part of the main sentence, the sentence punctuation goes outside the parenthesis.

    Example: Many viewers complain about the excessive praise of a particular American Idol judge (Paula Abdul).

  • When the punctuation belongs to the parenthetical information itself, the punctuation goes inside the parenthesis.

    Example: Singers are often criticized for being “pitchy.” (A pitchy singer typically gives a poor vocal performance.)

Dashes –

Purpose:
  • Similar to the function of parentheses, except dashes emphasize information.
  • Join a phrase to the end of a sentence to add an example, illustration, or contradiction.

    Example: American Idol is hosted by the most humorous man on earth – Ryan Seacrest.

  • Insert an idea into the middle of a sentence to add an example, illustration, or contradiction.

    • The idea must be enclosed by dashes and could be lifted out of the sentence without affecting its overall sense.

    Example: Channel 19 – considered by many as the home of trashy television – airs American Idol on Tuesday nights.