Ellipsis: the dot-dot-dot that killed coherent thought

You may have seen them on Facebook. . . or in work emails. . . those three dots. . . 

They seem a bit innocuous. . . fun, even. . .

. . . until, as you can see, they get out of hand.

The ellipsis has a practical and stylistic place in the English language. But, this sporadically-appropriate punctuation is overused in the corporate world. And I can admit, I’m no stranger to this infraction.

If you find yourself filling your emails with ellipses, here's a grammar tip. Most sentences end with a full stop—period.

Ellipsis points are traditionally used in the following cases:

• When omitting words from a quotation or cited text

• To indicate a slight pause in speech, sometimes to show irony or sarcasm

• Signifying an unfinished thought trailing off into silence

When I see a lot of ellipses, I assume that people pound down on the period key repeatedly to convey some sort of urgency. Or perhaps their thoughts are just flowing so quickly that their fingers can barely keep up. Others may use them intentionally as a pause. In this vein—and in if you’re writing something more formal—consider the following. An ellipsis pause lacks strength when compared to the assuredness of a dash. In fact, the Chicago Manual of Style has this to say about ellipses:

“Ellipsis points suggest faltering or fragmented speech accompanied by confusion, insecurity, distress, or uncertainty.”

When you use ellipses excessively, you risk appearing as if you're rambling on insecurely. This can be easily avoided by resisting the urge to tap the "." key more than once. End your sentences with a full stop. And if you need a different type of pause, be confident and take a stand—use that dash!

Want to learn more? See what Grammar Girl has to say about ellipses.

PS. Yep, I’m not perfect. I use them inappropriately too, sometimes…