PUNCTUATION

Use of the Period

1. Omit the period in abbreviations of offices, schools, and organizations:
AMP NBSP WHO LEFT. PNG.
2. Use the period instead of parentheses with numbers or letters accompanying an enumeration:
1. not (1)
a. not (a)
3. Do not use periods in tabulated matter

Use of the Coma

1. Use commas to set of identifications:
Dr. Josephine R. Navarro, Superintendent, Division of City Schools, Manila
2. Do not use a comma if the identification is precoded by of:
Harry Pangan of 615 bulakan S., Tondo, Manila
3. Do not use a comma between a man's name and Jr., Sr., III, ete:
Fortunato Vendivel Jr.; Roberto Ruiz III; Sergio Osmeña Sr.
4. Omit commas in ages, time, distance, measurements, etc. :
17 years 11 months 23 days
5. Do not use a come between two nouns, one of which identifies the other as in:
The noted lawyer Alberto Ad. Santos is president of Armenia High School
Community Association

Use of the Colon

1. Use the colon to introduce a series of names, statements, etc.:
The officers elected were: Oliver Tejario, president; Ramon Limcolioc, vice
president; Liza Sangui, treasurer and Ofelia Miranda, secretary
2. Do not use the colon together with the dash as in:
Elected were: —
Use of the Semicolon
Use the semicolon to separate a series of names, addresses or identifications:
Rodrigo Cruz, San Miguel, Tarlac; Ernesto Baun, San Roque, Tarlac.

Use of the Dash

1. In a sentence containing commas, dashes may be used to set off parenthetical expressions:
The household rushed to her aid, but Santos — the man who could have
prevented the incident — was nowhere in sight.
2. Use a dash between two figures to indicate the inclusion of all the intervening figures:
Jan. 15—23
Avoid such expressions as "From Jan. 10 to 14." "From" and "to" are parts of a
balanced expression like "neither… or." They have to be followed by the same parts of
speech. The correct form is: "From Jan. 10 to Jan 14." Better: "Jan. 10—14."
3. Omit the hyphen in the titles vice president and general manager.
4. Use the hyphen in compound titles like secretary- treasurer and sergeant-at-arms. Note that
editor in chief is now spelled without the hyphen.
5. Use a hyphen in writing figures or fractions:
Twenty-four, three-fourth
6. Use the hyphen in compound adjectives:
18-year-old girl, so-called nationalist, jet-black hair, well-known actor.
Do not use the hyphen in compound adjectives the first word of which is an
adverb: newly elected barangay chairman.

Use of the Parentheses

1. Use a parenthesis to insert a word within a title:
San Fernando (La Union) Lions
2. Use parentheses in a direct quotation to impart words which are not the speaker's:
"They (the 300 students who passed the NCEE) will be admitted at UP," said
Dean Armando Malay.
3. Use parentheses to indicate the antecedent:
Principal Mabini S. A. Gonzales told the visiting school administrators that she
would order an investigation of the students involved in what she (Gonzales) described
as a black mark on the student body.
It is better to rewrite the sentence to avoid the parenthetical material.
Use of Quotation Marks
1. Do not use quotation marks in names of newspapers, magazines, ships, or animals.
2. Avoid using quotation marks in titles of motion pictures, books, operas, and paintings.
They saw the film, The Three Musketeers. But—They saw the film, "Sa Ngalan
ng Anak. "
3. Use quotation marks in titles of speeches and discussion subjects which are long and involved:
This year's theme will be "The Role of the Youth in Nation-Building. "
4. Use quotation marks to set off coined words or unusual words or expressions the first time such
words or expressions are used in the story.
5. Close quotation marks always come after periods and commas.
6. Use close quotation marks after the question marks, interjection marks, colon, semicolon and
dash if such punctuation marks are part of the quoted matter; otherwise, the close quotation
mark precedes the punctuation mark:
Did you join the debate on "Family Planning, a Must?" Have you read the article
"Is God Dead?”

Use of the Apostrophe

1. Do not use the apostrophe to form the plural of capital letters or the plural of figures:
two 'Ms, 1970s
But plurals of lower case letters need avoid apostrophes:
p's and q's

ABBREVIATION
1. Abbreviate scholastic degrees as follows:
A.B., B. S., B. S. Ed., bse.by. B., M.A., M.D., D.D., Ed.D., Ph. D., etc.
2. Abbreviate Company, Corporation, Incorporated, Brothers, Limited, at the end of the name of a
business enterprise:
Liwayway Publishing Co., Inc. Far East Ltd. , Martin Bros.
3. The names of some countries may be abbreviated:
RP, US, UK, USSR.
4. Abbreviate Saint, Santo, Santa, Fort and Mount in names like:
Sto. Tomas, Sta. Maria, Ft. Bonifacio and Mt. Banahaw.
5. Do not begin a sentence with an abbreviation. And do not, as a general rule, use an abbreviation
before you use the full name. Exceptions are names of agencies which are well-known such as
PC, NAPOLCOM, etc.
6. Abbreviate street, avenue, boulevard, drive, road, after a name as follows:
Bulacan st., Taft ave., Roxas blvd., Bonifacio dr., Kennon rd.
7. Use "per cent" not the symbol % in body matter. The symbol may be used only in tabulation.
Use "and," not the symbol & except when part of a name as in D & S Restaurant. Also use "each"
instead of @
8. Abbreviate names of months (except March, April, May, June and July) then followed by a date
such as: Jan. 1, 1984, Aug. 4, etc.
Spell out when no definite date follows as in December 1941. Do not use a comma between
month and year.
9. Titles are abbreviated when used before a person's full name or before his first name's initial
and his surname. Titles are spelled out only when the surname follows:
Dr. Edilberto P. Dagot, Dr. E. Dagot, Doctor Dagot.
10. The titles Dr., Mr., and Mrs. are always abbreviated. Mr. is used only with the name of the
President of the Philippines, It is omitted before other men's names except in the case of a
phrase like Mr. and Mrs. Edilberto Dagot. However, in campus papers, the title Mr., Miss and
Mrs. are used for courtesy sake and to distinguish between the teachers and the students.
11. The following titles are not abbreviated: president, vice president (no hyphen), secretary,
treasurer, director, governor general, ambassador, minister,mayor, vice mayor.
12. In a list of names, use the titles singly:
Mr. Ariston Corpuz, Mr Rogelio Espiritu, Mr. Dioscoro Vasquez and Mr. Jesus
Wyco. Mrs. Clehenia C. San Juan, Mrs. Liwayway Ocampo, Mrs. Severina Cruz and Mrs.
Loretto Fernandez
NOT Messrs. and Mesdames followed by several names.
13. Abbreviate civilian titles as follows:
Mr., Mrs., Dr., Prof., Mr. (Monsieur), Mme. (Madame), Gov., Supt.
14. Abbreviate ecclesiastical titles as follows:
Rev., Fr., Msgr., Bro.,
Papal Nuncio, Cardinal, Archbishop and Bishop are not abbreviated.
15. Abbreviate military titles as follows:
Gen., Lt. Gen., Col., Mag, Caps., Sgt., Cpl., Pfc., Pvt., Adm.