The Semi in the Colon

Question

What is the difference between a semicolon and a colon?

Answer 1

SEMICOLON

A semicolon is often used to connect two related sentences. Instead of using a period, use a semicolon to show that these sentences are connected.

Example

I feel overwhelmed; my final is coming up in less than a week.

Note that if we used a period instead of a semicolon, these would still be two complete sentences.

Less commonly, semicolons are used to separate items in a list when those items themselves contain commas.

Example

I have Math, English, and a free period on Mondays and Wednesdays; Physics, Chemistry, and History on Tuesdays and Thursdays; and Drama, Art, and Dance on Fridays.

COLON

A colon can be used to introduce a quote or a list.

Example

As Walt Disney famously said: "The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing."

I have three dogs: Max, Jack, and Baby.

A colon can also be used to join two clauses in order to provide a definition or explanation.

Example

She finally knew why her cat was so upset: there was a thorn in his paw.

Answer 2

A colon is used to indicate some sort of list is to come next, or possibly an explanation, for example:

Yesterday, I accomplished many garden tasks: weeding, planting my pineapple plants, pruning my fig, pear and persimmon trees, and building a raised garden bed for vegetables.

A semicolon is most often used to join two complete sentences to make one sentence, for example:

Today was a really beautiful day; the gentle ocean breeze and temperatures in the 70's made it wonderfully pleasant.

Answer 3

My take on the difference between the semicolon and colon - two punctuation marks that are way too similar!

Answer 4

Watch this video for the answer to your question, explanation of the roles semicolons and and colons in texts, and an abundance of adorable examples ft. my cat, Groucho.