25.2: Open and Closed Punctuation
- Page ID
- 180839
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Though many grammar rules are clear-cut, there are some gray areas where the experts disagree. One area of debate is the use of "open punctuation" versus "closed punctuation." Open punctuation advocates believe that writers should use only what’s necessary to prevent misreading, while closed punctuation advocates are more apt to include punctuation whenever the grammatical structure of the material justifies it. For example, the following sentence illustrates how different writers might punctuate a particular sentence:
Open punctuation example-the meaning is clear without using all the punctuation that’s needed by the grammatical structure:
If used incorrectly they may alter an intended meaning, and if used excessively they can decrease reading speed and make your meaning difficult to determine.
Closed punctuation example-using all required punctuation does not make meaning clearer and may slow reading speed:
If used incorrectly, they may alter an intended meaning, and, if used excessively, they can decrease reading speed and make your meaning difficult to determine.
In the Air Force, the trend is to towards open punctuation. If you’re confused about where to put commas, sometimes the best solution is to restructure the sentence to make the meaning clearer and eliminate the need for extra punctuation.
Modified sentence structure example-a slight change in sentence structure results in fewer words to read and the meaning is clear:
If used incorrectly, they may alter an intended meaning; if used excessively, they can decrease reading speed and cause confusion.