From the course: Writing with Proper Punctuation
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How to use parentheses
- Parentheses are very similar to commas and dashes in that you can use them to set off extra information, asides, or examples in a sentence. Here's an example of one way to use parentheses to add additional information. The anniversary of the Mount St. Helens eruption, May 18, 1980, brought back vivid memories of ash and darkness. Here's one that uses parentheses for examples. His writing was full of Latinate words, purchase, assemble, commence, instead of Germanic words, buy, meet, begin. And here's one that uses parentheses for a cute aside. I'm on my way out, it's club night, but I'll text you tomorrow. Often, when you go back to a document to edit it later, it's a good idea to ask yourself if you really need the information in parentheses. And if so, whether it would make sense to remove the parentheses and make it a more integrated part of the sentence. It may make sense stylistically to keep it in parentheses, as…
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