Hanini
19-02-2008, 10 : 15 PM
Do you know when to use parentheses in writing? Parentheses are marks (like this) that go around words and phrases. Although they have several uses, they are mainly used to show extra ideas, or show an afterthought. It's like saying, "Oh, by the way..."
Look at this example-
http://www.5minuteenglish.com/sp21a.gif
Ted picked up his new watch (which he loved) and put in on the table
The words which he loved is extra information. They are not necessary to make the sentence whole
Important: If you take out the words in the parentheses, the meaning of sentence should not change. For example, you could say-
Tom bought peas, carrots, and potatoes (all vegetables,) and nothing else
If you take out the words in the parentheses, your sentence would still be complete
Tom bought peas, carrots, and potatoes and nothing else
But look at this sentence-
Georgia took her (son) to the beach
If you take out the word son, the sentence would not be a complete sentence
Georgia took her to the beach
That's very confusing. What did she take to the beach???
Look at this example-
http://www.5minuteenglish.com/sp21a.gif
Ted picked up his new watch (which he loved) and put in on the table
The words which he loved is extra information. They are not necessary to make the sentence whole
Important: If you take out the words in the parentheses, the meaning of sentence should not change. For example, you could say-
Tom bought peas, carrots, and potatoes (all vegetables,) and nothing else
If you take out the words in the parentheses, your sentence would still be complete
Tom bought peas, carrots, and potatoes and nothing else
But look at this sentence-
Georgia took her (son) to the beach
If you take out the word son, the sentence would not be a complete sentence
Georgia took her to the beach
That's very confusing. What did she take to the beach???