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How to use brackets and parentheses

2025-02-25 / / 0 Comments

In a previous post we looked at brackets and parentheses.

Knowing when and how to use brackets and parentheses can be challenging. We will try and sort out the problem here.

Round brackets

Round brackets are used

  • to add extra information in text

Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519) is considered one of the greatest artists ever.
Cary Grant (born as Archibald Leach) starred in over seventy films.

  • to add personal comment

Hum in Croatia is the smallest town in the world (and very beautifully situated on top of a hill).

  • to define an abbreviation or acronym

UNITAR (The United Nations Institute for Training and Research) has its headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland.

  • to refer to another part of the same text

Exports increased by 6 % (Table 3).
Production time can be reduced by using a new application (see Chapter 6). 

  • in referencing

Such methods are based on direct observation (Jones et al., 2012).

Square brackets

Square brackets are used

  • to show that text has been added to a quotation

Several new products were introduced [on the company’s website].

  • to show that part of a quotation has been omitted (by using an ellipsis)

Relatives, friends and neighbours as well as his landlord, his employer, his former professor […] had all come to congratulate him.

(The Chicago Manual of Style recommends using the three dots without brackets. The Modern Language Association, on the other hand, recommends brackets to distinguish this kind of ellipsis from an ellipsis in the original text.)

  • when you capitalize the first letter of a quotation that is not capitalized in the original (or use lowercase where the original is capitalized)

Original: 

The professor said, ”Perhaps the best example of Renaissance architecture is St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City”.

Paraphrased:

The professor told his students that ”[p]erhaps the best example of Renaissance architecture is St. Peter’s Basilica in Vatican City”.

  • around the Latin abbreviation sic (read more here).

To sum up:

Use parentheses to add information to something you have written.

Use brackets to change or add comments to somebody else’s words that you are quoting.

Braces (Curly brackets)

Curly brackets are mainly used in computer programming, mathematics, and science. They often identify the elements of a set.

Angle brackets (Chevrons)

Angle brackets are seldom used in English. They may indicate a website or something said in a foreign language.  In some languages, double angle brackets are used instead of quotation marks.

Brackets and parentheses

2025-01-28 / / 1 Comment

Brackets and parentheses are punctuation marks used to set apart a segment of text from the surrounding text. (By the way, parentheses is the plural form of parenthesis).

You are, of course, aware of the fact that British English and American English do not always agree. BE lift is elevator in AE;  a BE pavement is a sidewalk in AE. Holiday is vacation, handbag is purse, queue is line, tube is subway, etc.

When it comes to brackets and parentheses, the situation is just as confusing.

These marks

Brackets

are called brackets or round brackets in British English. In American English they are parentheses.

Brackets in American English are called square brackets in British English. They look like this:

Square brackets

Then we have these:

Braces

They are called braces in both British and American English, but in BE they are also called curly brackets.

Historically, the earliest form of brackets were angle brackets or chevrons. They look like this:

Angle brackets, chevrons

In a later post we take a look at how to use these brackets and parentheses.

[sic]—What’s that?

2024-12-20 / / 0 Comments

Sic comes from Latin and means so, thus, in this manner.

Sic erat scriptum means so written, thus it had been written.

When quoting something, writers may use sic to indicate that a word or phrase that looks wrong is indeed an exact reproduction of the original—the mistake appears in the source. Quotations should always be in their original form.

Sic is usually written in square brackets: [sic]. The word sic is often seen as a loanword that does not require italics, but in the United States, sic is usually italicized.

Sic can be used to mark an actual error or misprint or a conspicuous detail in the text, a word that seems odd or erroneous.

Since sic is used to draw the reader’s attention to a mistake by the writer, it often indicates disapproval and may signal superciliousness or be condescending. You should use caution when writing [sic] in order not to sound haughty or malicious.

There [sic] son had graduated from Cambridge.
The correct spelling is, of course, their.

She carries out research at the John [sic] Hopkins University.
This is a common error. The correct name is Johns Hopkins University, named after the entrepreneur and benefactor Johns Hopkins. His great-grandmother’s name was Margaret Johns; she married Gerard Hopkins and they named their son, the benefactor’s grandfather, Johns Hopkins. His grandson had the same name.

You can find a number of Latin abbreviations used in English here.

A tricky mark—the apostrophe

2024-09-29 / / 1 Comment

The apostrophe is a punctuation mark in the Latin and some other alphabets. It is used to indicate quotations, to show that one or more letters are left out (contractions), to show the possessive form (genitive) of names and nouns, and to mark the plural of single letters.

QUOTATION

In UK English, single quotation marks are commonly used (even if the US English system is also accepted), while US English prefers double quotation marks.

UK English: ’Welcome to London’, he said.

US English: A man appeared in the doorway asking, ”Is there a restroom somewhere here?”

When a quote appears inside another quote, the opposite style of quotation marks is used:

UK English: The woman looked at the policeman and said, ’All I heard was ”I can’t find my keyes”’.

US English: The woman looked at the officer and said, ”All I heard was ’I can’t find my keyes.’”

Read about punctuation marks and quotations here.

CONTRACTION

In a contraction, an apostrophe represents one or more letters that have been omitted.

I’ve  I have
I’d  I had or I would
He’s  He is
They’re They are
She can’t She cannot
You mustn’t You must not
Singin’ in the rain Singing in the rain
O’Leary  [descendant] of Leary
Rock’n’roll  Rock and roll

An apostrophe can represent thousand:

15’ = 15 000

An apostrophe can replace the first two numbers in a year:

This was popular in the ’80s = in the 1980s

POSSESSIVE

An apostrophe is used with an s after names or nouns to show ownership or close connection.

This is the boy’s room
Let me introduce my wife’s best friend

In the plural, there is no s after the apostrophe:

This is the boys’ room

Especially in spoken language, the plural is expressed using of: This is the room of the boys.

A sign outside a bar with the word cocktail's. The use of an apostrophe is wrong.
Not quite right…

PLURAL OF LETTERS

An apostrophe is used to mark the plural of single letters:

It’s hard to distinguish between your g’s and q’s.

Mind your p’s and q’s (be careful about what you say or do).

 Don’t confuse an apostrophe with an accent! Read more here.

What are false friends?

2024-04-17 / / 1 Comment

False friends are words in two languages that look and/or sound alike but whose meanings are completely or partially different. The two words may have—and often do have—the same origin (If they do not have the same origin, they are called false cognates).

It is clear that false friends may give rise to amusing and sometimes embarrassing mistakes, but they can also cause potentially disastrous misunderstandings with serious consequences.

Here are some examples of English false friends in other languages
(The first letter in German nouns is upper-case):

English–French

carcoach, bus, van
cavecellar, basement, nightclub
figureface
journalnewspaper, magazine
lecturereading, reading matter
locationrenting, hiring; lease, reservation
radioX-ray
routeroad
sensiblesensitive
smokingdinner-jacket, tuxedo
English–German
alsoso, thus
blankshiny, bright
chefleader, boss
chipspotato crisps
fatalawkward, embarrassing
giftpoison, venom
hallsound, echo
kindchild
lackvarnish, lacquer
listcunning, trick
modefashion
plumpawkward; crude; obvious
smokingdinner-jacket, tuxedo
stillquiet, silent
tastekey (on a keyboard)
English–Italian
braceembers, charcoal
cuteskin
duetwo
famehunger, starvation
faredo, make
mediaaverage
replicarepetition; reply
smokingdinner-jacket, tuxedo
stilestylus
turbinewhirlwind, swirl
English–Spanish
actualcurrent, topical, fashionable
cabaretnightclub
editorpublisher
eventualpossible; temporary
particularprivate, personal
sensiblesensitive; responsive; emotional
villasmall town, municipality
virtualpotential, possible
English–Swedish
artspecies
barnchild
bragood, well
fartspeed
fasteraunt
friskhealthy; fresh
frompious
glassice cream
kisspee
semestervacation
slutend
smokingdinner-jacket, tuxedo

You can read about my book on English–Swedish false friends and other treacherous words here.

Critic or critique—what’s the difference?

2024-03-27 / / 0 Comments

It may be difficult to understand the difference between critic and critique.

A critic in English refers to a person. It is someone who criticizes something, in other words, expresses criticism.

A critic is also someone who gives an opinion about books, films, music, etc., usually professionally in a paper or magazine or on radio or television. A critic writes a review.

A small boy is reading a book while walking on a pavement. The image is meant to illustrate the concept of a critic.
Future critic?

A critique is a detailed analysis and assessment, usually of a literary, philosophical, or political theory.

The problem for Swedish speakers of English is that both criticism and critique correspond to the same word in Swedish, kritik, and that critic can be mistakenly taken to mean kritik.

Technique and technology

2024-02-27 / / 0 Comments

The words technique and technology are related to each other, but it is important to understand the difference between them.

TECHNIQUE

Technique refers to how you carry out a particular task, an efficient way of achieving something or the skill needed to do so. In order to swim fast, for example, you need a good technique. The corresponding adjective is technical.

Technique

TECHNOLOGY

Technology is applied science, the use of scientific knowledge and methods to accomplish a task. Technology is used to improve products and services. The corresponding adjective is technological.

Technology

To sum up, technology gives us the tools and technique determines how the tools are used.

Biannual and biennial

2024-01-29 / / 0 Comments

What’s the difference between biannual and biennial?

The two words biannual and biennial are easily confused.

Both come from Latin bi-, twice, and annus, year.

Biannual means occurring twice a year, and biennial means occurring every second year – think of the Venice Biennial (in Italian la Biennale di Venezia).

Perhaps you polish your car or clear out your garage twice every year – then that is a biannual activity. If you go to a conference that is held every two years, you attend a biennial conference.

Biennial can also refer to a plant that blooms or bears fruit in its second year and then dies.

Instead of biannual, you can write semiannual; both words refer to something happening twice a year or every half year.

Biweekly and bimonthly don’t have this distinction – there is no vowel as in annus that could show the difference. Biweekly could mean both twice a week and once every second week. A bimonthly magazine could be one that is published twice a month or every two months. As a writer, you need to make it clear what you intend to say.

A view from San Marco in Venice towards the basilica of Santa Maria della Salute with birds flying against a sunset. The image refers to the Biennial of Venice to illustrate the difference between biannual and biennial.
The Venice Biennial is one of the most prestigious cultural festivals in the world

Connect to or connect with?

2023-12-27 / / 0 Comments

There is a difference between connect to and connect with.

CONNECT TO

Use connect to when you talk about a physical link between one object and another.

Make sure the printer is connected to your computer.
My Wi-Fi works but I’m not connected to the internet.

CONNECT WITH

Use connect with when you talk about a relationship, a non-physical link.

These are typical symptoms connected with appendicitis.
He immediately connected with his therapist.
She is extremely good at connecting with her audience.

This, of course, also applies to the noun connection.

A man is being heard by the police in connection with a burglary last night.

A speaker in front of his audience of students. The image illustrates the difference between connect to and connect with.
He is extremely good at connecting with his audience

Practice or practise?

2023-11-21 / / 0 Comments

Should you write practice or practise?

PRACTICE

In British and American English, practice is a noun with the following meanings:

1. custom, method, tradition, habit
–Practice is the process of doing something as opposed to theory

2. exercise, work-out
–Practice is the repeated exercise to acquire a skill

3. profession, work, career, occupation
–I was looking for a text-book on the practice of medicine

4. business, company, office, firm
–She works in a small legal practice

5. use, operation, application
–The nurse encouraged the practice of safe sex

In American English, practice is also a verb, corresponding to practise in British English.

PRACTISE

In British English, practise is a verb related to the nouns presented above.

Consequently, it can mean repeat, rehearse; do, work out; apply, carry out, perform; specialise in, work at.

As you see, American English has only the spelling practice for both the noun and the verb.

In British English, you can write To practise every day is good practice

A young girl is practising playing the flute in a living-room. The purpose of the image is to illustrate the difference between practice and practise.
To practise every day is good practice

Read more about the endings -ice and -ise here.

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