Module 3
Correspondence Mechanics

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Serial Semicolon for Complex Items

When the individual items in the series already have commas within them, the writer must use semicolons to separate the items. The same is true when the individual elements are long and complex. The pattern, then, looks like this:

Punctuation, within item; item; coordinating conjunction item
  • The newest staff members are Amira Said, staff assistant; Georgiy Sumakov, project manager; and Chris Lee, technical director.
  • Before the terms of reference can be completed, we need additional details on how long the project is to last; where and how the recent mission uncovered the issues that are to be addressed; and who the primary in-country contact will be.

Note: Because of the potential for confusion, it is usually better not to use this type of series at the beginning of the sentence.