punctuate

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“
My tendency, I think, is to over-punctuate, and your proclivity would, I believe, counteract this Mais revenons ŕ nos moutons (_mutatis mutandis_, of course).

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Definitions (11)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (4)

  1. transitive verb To provide (a text) with punctuation marks.
  2. transitive verb To interrupt periodically: "lectures punctuated by questions and discussions” (Gilbert Highet). "[There is] a great emptiness in America's West punctuated by Air Force bases” (Alfred Kazin).
  3. transitive verb To stress or emphasize.
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Examples (37)

  • Fritz learned to write a fine, free-flowing, rapid and legible business-hand; "Arithmetic" too, "Geography," and many other Useful Knowledges that had some geniality of character, or attractiveness in practice, were among his acquisitions; much, very much he learned in the course of his life; but to SPELL, much more to punctuate, and subdue the higher mysteries of Grammar to himself, was always an unachievable perfection. —  History of Friedrich II of Prussia
  • He tried to punctuate his words with an easy smile, but he suspected it looked more like the grimace of a man passing a kidney stone. —  LastFullMeasure
  • She didn't bite into the sandwich, merely waved it to punctuate her words You got problems? —  dummy2
  • I neglected to punctuate the word "escorts" with a question mark. —  Paula Mooney's Tips - Get blog readers and make money online...
  • Famous quotations nicely punctuate each chapter's ending. —  Enter the Laughter
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Roget's II Roget's II: The New Thesaurus

Allen's Allen's Synonyms and Antonyms

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punctuate:   punctuated
Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary. Copyright © 2003, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Etymologies (3)

Toggle American Heritage etymologies American Heritage Dictionary (1)

  1. Medieval Latin pūnctuāre, pūnctuāt-, from Latin pūnctum, point, from neuter past participle of pungere, to prick; see peuk- in Indo-European roots.

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (2)

  1. from Middle Latin punctuate (later F. ponctuer), mark with points, from Latin punctus, a point: see point, n., and cf. point, v., punch, v., and punctate.
  2. from Middle Latin punctuatus, past participle: see the verb.
 

Pronunciations
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/ˈpəŋktʃjueɪt/
by American Heritage

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