Similarly, if you have a sentence introducing a bulleted list, AP style allows you to put a colon after a sentence fragment like this:īecause I don’t like this style, I usually add the words “the following” before the colon. Whereas this sentence would be wrong in APA and Chicago style, it’s fine in AP style:Īardvark’s moods are: grumpy and grumpier. The huge difference is that AP colon rules allow you to use a colon after a sentence fragment. It’s like APA style in that you capitalize the first word after a colon if it’s the start of at least one complete sentence. To summarize, in Chicago style, you use colons only after complete sentences and you capitalize the first word after a colon only if it’s the start of at least two complete sentences or is a proper noun.ĪP Style: Sentence Fragments and Capitalizationįinally, let’s look at Associated Press style. Grammar Girl has had may hobbies over the years: She used to love watching clouds. Grammar Girl has had many hobbies over the years: she used to love watching clouds. Today, however, she prefers to use colored pencils to fill in all the round letters she finds in magazines.īut in Chicago style, you wouldn’t capitalize “she” in “she used to love watching clouds” if you ended the description of Grammar Girl’s hobbies after “she used to love watching clouds” because then there’s only one sentence after the colon: Grammar Girl has had many hobbies over the years: She used to love watching clouds. Therefore, you’d capitalize the word “she” in the following sentence because it’s the start of a two-sentence series: If it’s just one sentence in Chicago, you keep the first word lowercase.
Where Chicago differs from APA style is that in Chicago style, you’re only supposed to capitalize the first letter after the colon if it’s the start of at least two complete sentences. A Quick and Dirty Tip for deciding whether a colon is a good choice is to test whether you can replace it with the word “namely.” For example, you could say, “Grammar Girl has two favorite hobbies, namely , watching clouds and seeing how long she can stand on one foot.” Most of the time, if you can replace a colon with the words “namely,” or “it is,” or “they are,” then the colon is the right choice. I referred to my favorite hobbies before the colon and then specifically named them after the colon. Notice how the items after the colon expand on or clarify what came before the colon. They’re similar to APA in that they only allow you to use a colon after something that could stand alone as a complete sentence.įor example, it’s correct to write, “Grammar Girl has two favorite hobbies: watching clouds and seeing how long she can stand on one foot.” That’s correct in Chicago style because “Grammar Girl has two favorite hobbies” is a complete sentence all by itself.Īnd let’s think for a minute about why we use colons.
Seicolon fragment definition manual#
Next, let’s look at the colon rules from the Chicago Manual of Style. So in APA style, you can use a colon only after a complete sentence, and you capitalize the first word after a colon when it’s the start of a complete sentence.Ĭhicago Style: Complete Sentences and Less Capitalization Squiggly has one dream: he dreams of becoming a chocolatier. Squiggly has one dream: He dreams of becoming a chocolatier. (incorrect in APA style)Ģ) In APA style, you capitalize the first word after a colon if it’s the start of at least one complete sentence (or of course, if it’s a proper noun). Squiggly bought: chocolate chips, butter, and a spatula. Squiggly has one dream: becoming a chocolatier. In other words, after only something that could stand on its own as a complete sentence. I’ll start with the style I like best, which is APA style: the style of the American Psychological Association.ġ) In APA style, you use a colon only after a complete introductory clause. APA Style: Complete Sentences and Capitalization Making your own personal style sheet is one way to make it easier to be consistent in the future. If you don’t follow a specific style guide, you can pick the rules that you like best. The two main rules that differ are whether you can use a colon after a sentence fragment and whether you capitalize the first word after a colon. Style guides differ significantly, however, when it comes to colons, so the most important thing is to know what style guide you should be following and what rules it recommends.
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