Communication is a combination of words and body language. Words carry as much weight as human expressions in visual communication. But what happens when there is no physical presence or visual communication. It is hard to convey full human emotions and tone through words irrespective of how carefully or appropriately they are chosen. What can make your job much easier under such circumstances is the use of the exclamation mark.
Reputable coaching institutes which offer English speaking course in Noida can do an excellent job of helping you learn the correct usage of an exclamation mark to punctuate your sentences and make it more expressive.
What is an exclamation mark?
An exclamation mark also called an exclamation point, is a type of punctuation mark that is placed at the end of a sentence and looks like a period with a vertical line above it (!). It is interesting to note that exclamation marks despite being introduced to the English language as early as the 15th century did not find a mention on typewriter keyboards until the 1970s. Today they are present on every computer keyboard on the number 1 key.
When to use the exclamation mark?
Exclamation points were initially called ‘note of admiration’ and for obvious reasons. Till date, they are used to convey a sense of excitement, astonishment, surprise, and similar other emotions. A sentence expressing strong emotion or excitement can be accurately denoted with an exclamation mark. For example, ‘India won the match! ‘sounds more expressive than a simple ‘India won the match’.
Exclamation marks are commonly used after interjections-- words or terms such as hurray, oh, ugh, wow, etc. For example, "Wow! This cake was indeed delicious. Oh! That's right, I did." "Ugh! Will you stop screaming?"
Do not make excessive use of exclamation marks
It is, however, important to remember that exclamation marks are like sugar and as such you need to be very careful in its usage as too much of it can ruin the taste. So, be careful if you just mean to say, "We shall walk," rather than "We shall walk!" the next time you're going to the grocery store with your wife.
Your tone or extra stress you place on certain words can modify its meaning-- and in certain cases the urgency of the sentence a well.
Also, be careful to put the exclamation mark within the quotation marks if used in quotes. Roger said, "Chocolate ice-creams are my favorite!"
Conclusion
Experts are divided whether it is right to use an exclamation mark in formal writing. Most conventional grammar rules are not in favor of exclamation mark or at least believe that their usage should be sparse. Its opponent argues that a sentence should be capable of conveying an emphasis or emotion on its own and exclamation does little more than to distract the reader. However, best-selling authors like Tom Wolfe use them a lot as do comics to express excitement.
For more clarification, you can type ‘English teacher near me’ in Google and hopefully, you will be able to find one who can explain about this punctuation mark clearly and concisely.
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