CANYOUIMAGINEHOWHARDITWOULDBETOREADSENTENCESLIKETHIS? The ancient Greeks wrote this way. The lack of punctuation marks(标点符号) probably didn’t bother good readers, though. As they read, they just put pauses where they fit best. Also at this time, sentences switched directions. A sentence read from left to right. The next one read right to left, and then left to right again, etc.
The ancient Romans sometimes punctuated like this: They·put·a·point·between·each·word·in·a·sentence. The word punctuation actually comes from this idea and the Latin word punctum, which means a prick(刺).
When the 5th century arrived, there were just two punctuation marks: spaces and points. The space separated words and while the points showed pauses in reading. Then in the 13th century, a printer named Aldus Manutius tried to standardize punctuation. He always used a period for a complete stop at the end of a sentence. He used a slash (/) to indicate a short pause. Over time, that slash was shortened and curled, and it became the modern comma.
Since that time, other marks have enlarged the punctuation family. The exclamation mark comes form the Latin word xt. It was originally formed by putting an upper-case(大写字母) I on the lower-case xt. The Latin word xt means “exclamation of joy.” The question mark originally started out as the Latin word question, meaning question. Eventually, scholars put it at the end of a sentence to show a question. Over time, it became a symbol formed by putting a lower-case q on an o.
Punctuation is still changing today. New marks are coming into existence, and old punctuation marks are used in new ways. Take for example, the “interrobang.” This 1962 invention combines the question mark and exclamation mark for times when writers want both. For example, “She did what??” or “How much did you pay for that dress??” Obviously, the interrobang is not widely used or recognized – yet. But its invention shows that English is not yet finished with its punctuation.
Which of the following is a comma?
A. , B. : C. ; D. !
What’s the first paragraph mainly about?
A. The history of punctuation.
B. The introduction of punctuation.
C. The very beginning of punctuation.
D. The ancient Greek way of writing without punctuation.
Please put the following events in the order they happened.
a. The exclamation mark and question mark came into the punctuation family.
b. Comma came into existence.
c. Romans put a dot between words to separate words.
d. A period was used to end a sentence.
e. The “interrobang” was invented.
A. cbdae B. dcbae C. dbcea D. cdbae
What is the most possible situation for “She did what??”?
A. You are told she gave her baby boy a good beat.
B. You are wondering what she did to save the poor boy.
C. You want to know what she did for a living after fleeing to a foreign country.
D. You demand someone else tell you what in the world happened to her.
According to the article, we learn ________.
A. punctuation didn’t come into being until the 5th century.
B. no one can really tell what new marks we may have in the future.
C. the invention of “interrobang” is a failure since it is not widely used.
D. both the exclamation mark and the question mark come from Greek words.