The semicolon. WTF is it? Is it archaic? Pretentious? Aggressive? Duplicitous? Essential? Haughty? Passive? Will you cheer or cry over it's demise?

[DrPepper12]

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/9VB7W5W

Above: A 13 question quiz on when you should use a semicolon. TAKE IT! ITS FUN!

The semicolon is a recent edition to the English language having only been born in 1484. It is also a form of punctuation that has its staunch supporters: along with Charles Dickens, Mark Twain and Jane Austen, Abraham Lincoln stood strong on the issue. “I have a great respect for the semicolon; it’s a very useful little chap,” he said.

Be that as it may, semicolon use in English rose by 388% between 1800 and 2006, before falling by 45% over the next 11 years. In 2017, however, it started a gradual recovery, with a 27% rise by 2022.

Latest research:

New analysis from Babbel uncovers a stark decline: semicolon usage in British English books has fallen by nearly 50% in the past two decades. In fact, historical data shows this decline stretches back centuries. In 1781, British literature featured a semicolon roughly every 90 words; by 2000, it had fallen to one every 205 words. Today, there’s just one semicolon for every 390 words.

And it’s not just in books. New survey data from Babbel reveals over half (54%) of UK students didn’t know when to replace a comma with a semicolon.

https://www.babbel.com/en/magazine/when-to-use-a-semicolon

I ❤️ it & use it!!

I hate it & never use it

It STILL has a purpose & place with me!

They're gay. Identify as a comma or a colon!

I don't know when to use it so... Yeah.

Punctuation ITSELF is anachronistic boomer!

I'm a libtard & punctuation is a violent micro-aggression.

[WhiteSteve]

I definitely use them. I’m a big Oxford Comma guy. I can’t stand when people don't use it and can’t believe it’s officially considered optional.

”The dinner options at the banquet were steak, chicken, salmon and spaghetti and meatballs.”

Do we all see the problem there? We can infer in this case, but we don’t know if the salmon, the spaghetti, and the meatballs are one, two, or three meal options. As written, all three could be interpreted as separate, or as one combination of ingredients (🤢), and that, to me, Rulemakers Of English (who would also tell me not to capitalize ‘Of’ in a proper title…. HARD DISAGREE), is ridiculous and nonsensical.

So in this same lane of linguistic logic (alliteration😎😝), I always use semicolons if I’m expressing a series of separate ideas in one ultimate sentence.

“I enjoy fitness for many reasons: I like to be fit so I look good in my clothes, maintain a reasonably attractive appearance, and improved athletic performance; I like to take care of my health; and I don’t hate being in a building with good-lookin’ ladies in tight, and maybe somewhat revealing clothing, because at the end of the day, I’m only a man.”🤷‍♂️😅😝

That paragraph is a mess without semicolons.

🎶It’s Mr. Man the act, boy, what? You get stolen/ I’ll slice your ass in half and leave you with a semicolon🎶🔥🔥🔥

https://www.youtube.com/embed/REmk_4mx1UY

[WhiteSteve]

Got a 90% on the quiz, I got burned by the UK cities. Mistook that it was a list of cities and their “state” or whatever they call them over there🤦‍♂️

[Maybe_Maybe_not]

I don't see this messy paragraph you're seeing. To me, your semicolon would have found a perfect replacement with a period 🤔

[Maybe_Maybe_not]

Plus, it makes your ultimate sentence a meal much too long to digest to me lol

[WhiteSteve]

@Maybe_Maybe_not I see what you’re saying and it’s a fair point. I guess I just see what I’m saying there as a list, and the list should be one uninterrupted sequence, leading off with a colon, and then the details broken up with semicolons

[Maybe_Maybe_not]

Punctuation is strange

[RedInnocent69]

Its classy and elegant; timeless.

[msmissydc]

For me it has three uses;
First one is two combine two main sentences. Rare but usefull.
Second one is when you have two different listings. You have a first list, where you part the items with a normal "," and between those you use a ;.
Third one is here on this side because there is a bug where using two points on top of each other deletes eversthing you write after it.

[Amy10223]

I think most book writers use it. I also use it but rarely. For example: “Climate change has been showing its’ face; it’s now too late for mankind to alter it. “

it is rarely used in today’s writing, especially in articles and any garbage you can read online. So it’s looked upon as something only scholars or writers use.

[Maybe_Maybe_not]

Same conclusion for France, usage of semicolon was already declining when I was in high school. I don't use it, but when someone uses it, I take it as bravery.

Semicolon for me is a sort of in-between, not a comma, not a period, I don't get when to use it. I don't find a need for it either. If someone showed me how and why I need a semicolon then why not. Otherwise, if it gets buried permanently I'll have no love to miss

[DangerouslyCute]

for me semicolon marks end of a code line :D

[NathanDavis]

now I'm just wondering if AI will make it better or worse... lol

[BCRanger10]

I use it quite often. Maybe a little too much; I don't know.

[Anonymous]

Academic standards are an issue in British secondary schools and universities.

[Sal_Monella]

A good writer knows when and how to use a semicolon.

[Sal_Monella]

And yes, semicolons are a symbol of the White patriarchy.

[exitseven]

The only time i use it is when I make a typing error>

[Likes2drive]

Probably could do without it because I certainly don’t use it when I’m writing and neither do a lot of things that I read

[Anonymous]

I actually never use it.

[Opinion Owner]

Almost never, I remember using it a few times, but I usually don't use it.