If used properly, punctuation marks can greatly enhance the overall structure, organization, and clarity of writing. However, when used improperly, punctuation marks can become cumbersome, inhibiting the reader's ability to understand the material and establish order and flow. Moreover, an excess of punctuation marks can lead to the creation of run-on sentences - sentences in which two or more independent clauses (i.e., complete sentences) are joined without appropriate punctuation or conjunction. For these reasons, it is beneficial to learn how to properly use punctuation marks. Punctuation marks are symbols that indicate the structure and organization of written language, as well as intonation and pauses to be observed when reading aloud. In written English, punctuation is vital to disambiguate the meaning of sentences. For example, "woman, without her man, is nothing" (emphasizing the importance of men) and "woman: without her, man is nothing" (emphasizing the importance of women) have greatly different meanings, as do "eats shoots and leaves" (to mean "consumes plant growths") and "eats, shoots and leaves" (to mean "eats firstly, fires a weapon secondly, and leaves the scene thirdly"). "King Charles walked and talked; half an hour after, his head was cut off" is less surprising than "King Charles walked and talked half an hour after his head was cut off". (For English usage, see the articles on specific punctuation marks.) The rules of punctuation vary with language, location, register and time and are constantly evolving. Certain aspects of punctuation are stylistic and are thus the author's (or editor's) choice. Tachygraphic language forms, such as those used in online chat and text messages, may have wildly different rules.
Below you'll find our complete list of printable punctuation worksheets outlining the most important aspects of English punctuation. These punctuation worksheets are clear, colorful, and of the highest quality. Scroll down this page to view specific descriptions of each punctuation exercise presented in this section.