All about parentheses

Parentheses, also called round brackets, are used for both general and specialized purposes. Plus, there are specific rules for using other punctuation marks with parentheses. There's more to this multipurpose pair than meets the eye!

Fill in the blanks in the sentences below to see how much you know about the particulars of parentheses!

1. Parentheses are used to provide additional information, such as examples, , brief explanations and comments.

important details

non-essential afterthoughts

long quotations

2. The information between parentheses must not .

be a full sentence

contain internal punctuation

be essential to the meaning of the sentence

3. My grandmother my mom, my sister and I have started a knitting club.

(an avid knitter),

( an avid knitter ),

(an avid knitter) ,

4. She'll meet us there , so we'll save her a seat.

(She's coming straight from work)

(she's coming straight from work)

(She's coming straight from work.)

5. I love the summer, but there's something so calming about the fall

(wouldn't you agree)?

(wouldn't you agree).

(wouldn't you agree?).

6. Parentheses are not used to enclose .

translations within quotes: They shouted, "Sláinte (cheers)!"

abbreviations: Ottawa Art Gallery (OAG)

a letter or group of letters: address(es) listed

7. After my run I did 20 minutes of yoga.

(my fourth one this week,)

(my fourth one this week),

, (my fourth one this week)

8. Commas or can replace parentheses to give an idea greater emphasis.

asterisks

dashes

square brackets

9. In legal documents, parentheses (not square brackets) are used to enclose .

a change in a quote: "(A)ccording to the precedent … "

additions to a quote: "It (the offence) was not his first."

a number previously written out: thirty (30) business days

10. I forgot my ear plugs and my sleep mask .

(I should have made a packing list [oops!])

(I should have made a packing list (oops!))

(I should have made a packing list {oops!})