Ellipsis

An ellipsis is three little dots.

They can show a pause in speech. They can also show a thought that stops.

Sometimes, writers use them to leave out words. This helps make a story shorter. Some people call them "dot dot dot." Writers use them in books and news. They help us feel what a person is thinking. You might see them in your own writing too.

An ellipsis is a mark made of three dots.

People often call it "dot dot dot." Writers use it to show many things. It can show a pause in speech. It can show an unfinished thought. It can even show a nervous silence.

Sometimes, people use an ellipsis to leave out words. This is helpful in news stories. It makes a long quote shorter and easier to read. In some books, an ellipsis can show a feeling of longing. In poetry, it can show a pause in a thought.

Rules for dots can change. The Chicago Manual of Style says to put spaces between the dots. The AP Stylebook says to put no spaces between them. In Japan, writers often use six dots instead of three. In Polish, the word for it is "wielokropek." This means "multidot." Writers like Jane Austen and Virginia Woolf have used these dots in their work. Even old plays by Shakespeare used dashes to show a voice cutting off. The dots help us see what is not said.

An ellipsis is a punctuation mark made of three dots.

People often call it "dot dot dot" in casual speech. This tiny mark helps writers show things that are not written down. It can represent a pause in a person's speech. It can also show an unfinished thought or a nervous silence. Sometimes, it is used to suggest feelings like longing or sadness. In poetry, it might mark a pause in a thought or a line break.

There are many ways to use these dots in writing. One common way is to leave out parts of a quote. This is called an intentional omission. It helps news reporters make long quotes shorter and easier to read. In these cases, the dots are often put inside square brackets. This shows that the words were removed for brevity or relevance. An ellipsis can also imply an unstated idea. For example, saying "I never drink wine ..." suggests the speaker drinks something else.

History shows that these marks have been used for a long time. One early use of the ellipsis dates back to 1588. A man named Maurice Kyffin used them in a translation of a play called Andria. However, his version used short dashes instead of dots. The use of these marks grew much more popular later on. By 1627, a translation of the same play used 29 of them. Famous writers like William Shakespeare and Ben Jonson also used them in their plays. Some writers, like Jane Austen and Virginia Woolf, have also championed their use.

Rules for how to draw an ellipsis can change depending on the guide. The Chicago Manual of Style says to put a space between each dot. The AP Stylebook says to use no spaces between the dots at all. When a sentence ends with an ellipsis, some guides say to use four dots. This includes three dots for the ellipsis and one dot for the period. In the United States, legal writing follows specific rules in the Bluebook. It requires dots to be separated by spaces to make them clear. Different styles help make sure the reader understands the writer's intent.

Different languages have their own special ways to use these marks. In Poland, the ellipsis is called "wielokropek," which means "multidot." In Russia, writers combine the ellipsis with other marks like exclamation points. Japanese writing often uses six dots instead of just three. These are called "3-ten rīdā," or "3-dot leaders." In Japanese manga or video games, you might see these dots used very often. Whether using three dots or six, they all help us understand what is left unsaid.

An ellipsis is a punctuation mark consisting of a series of three dots.

It is also known by several other names, such as suspension points, dots, or ellipsis points. Colloquially, people often refer to it simply as "dot-dot-dot." This small mark serves many vital roles in written communication. It can indicate an intentional omission of text or numbers within a passage. It can also imply a concept without using explicit words. Furthermore, writers use it to mark a pause in speech or to represent an intentional silence.

There are many specific ways to use an ellipsis to change a reader's experience. One technique is called aposiopesis, which is the use of an ellipsis to trail off into silence. For example, a character might say, "But I thought he was..." to show an unfinished thought. In poetry, the ellipsis can mark a thought-pause or a line break at a caesura. It can also highlight sarcasm or prompt the reader to reflect on the final points of a poem. When placed at the end of a sentence, the mark might suggest feelings of melancholy or longing. In some newspaper and magazine columns, ellipses are even used to separate items in a list instead of using paragraph breaks.

In news reporting, the ellipsis is often used to condense a quotation for brevity or relevance. This process involves removing parts of a quote to make it shorter. To ensure clarity, these omissions are often placed inside square brackets, appearing as [...]. This indicates to the reader that the words were removed by the editor. For instance, a reporter might shorten a long statement from a President to focus on the most important part. This method helps maintain the core meaning while saving space. Some journalists, like Herb Caen, became famous for a style known as "three-dot journalism."

Rules for how to render an ellipsis vary significantly between different style guides. The Chicago Manual of Style requires three periods, with each period separated from its neighbor by a non-breaking space. In contrast, the AP Stylebook suggests that the periods should have no space between them. When text is omitted immediately following a sentence, a period terminates that sentence, and a subsequent ellipsis follows. Some guides, including the Chicago Manual and the APA Stylebook, suggest using four dots in this specific case. The extra dot serves as the period for the preceding sentence, while the other three form the ellipsis. The Modern Language Association (MLA) has different requirements, often specifying spaces before and after the dots.

History shows that the use of these marks has evolved over centuries. While it is difficult to pinpoint the exact origin of the "dot-dot-dot" phrase, Anne Toner suggests an early use dates to a 1588 translation of Terence's *Andria* by Maurice Kyffin. Interestingly, Kyffin's version used short dashes rather than dots. The popularity of these marks grew quickly; a 1627 translation of the same play contained 29 examples. The ellipsis also appears in the works of William Shakespeare and Ben Jonson. In the first folio edition of Shakespeare's *Henry IV, Part 1*, the character Hotspur dies on a dash, as his final words are cut short. While some 18th-century writers like Jonathan Swift expressed dislike for the "dash," others like Jane Austen and Virginia Woolf championed its use.

Different languages have developed unique standards for the ellipsis. In Polish, the mark is called *wielokropek*, which literally means "multidot." This term distinguishes it from mathematical notation. In Russian, writers combine the ellipsis with other punctuation, such as exclamation or question marks, to create forms like "!.." or "?.." Japanese writing uses a different approach. The most common character is the *3-ten rīdā*, or "3-dot leaders." While a single *3-ten rīdā* can be used when space is limited, Japanese writing often uses six dots. In Japanese media like manga, ellipses appear very frequently and can even be changed during translation.

Because the ellipsis deals with what is left unsaid, it connects deeply to the nuances of human communication. It can represent a nervous or awkward silence, an echoing voice, or even an unstated alternative. For example, the phrase "I never drink wine ..." might imply that the speaker drinks something else, such as vodka. By using these dots, writers can guide the reader's emotions and thoughts without needing to write every single word. Whether used in legal writing, which follows strict rules in the Bluebook, or in creative fiction, the ellipsis remains a powerful tool for adding depth to language.