A colon is an introductory mark. It is used to direct your reader's attention forward.

            Important--Before a colon you must have a complete statement. Do not use a colon after are or include or                                 such as.

Colons can introduce the following:
Hint--  When you type, leave two spaces after a colon

• A list   "I came home loaded with supplies: a tent, back pack, and food."

• A quotation   "The author begins his essay with an attention-grabbing line:  "My mother spent her summer sitting naked on the rock."

• An example "I love to eat legumes: for example, beans and lentils."

• An emphatic assertion   "This is the bottom line:  I refuse to work."

• A subtitle   "Pablo Picasso:  The Playful Artist"

1.  Use a colon to link independent clauses when the second clause illustrates, interprets, or explains the first.

                    I am a man, who at the precocious age of thirty-five, experienced an astonishing revelation: it is better to be a success than a failure.

2.  Use a colon after an independent clause that introduces a series.

                The following constitute a basic personal reference library: a desk dictionary, an almanac, a thesaurus, an atlas, and an English handbook.

3.  Use a colon after an independent clause to draw attention to an appositive.

        During the Mideast talks, public attention was focused on one think: peace.

4.  Use a colon after an independent clause to introduce a direct quotation.

                 Roberta remembered the Chinese proverb tacked on the wall: "I hear and I forget. I see and I  remember. I do and I understand."

5.  Use a colon to mark separations between the following elements.

            Salutation and body of business letter        Dear Manger:

            Chapter and verse in a biblical citation        Ruth 2:3

            Title and Subtitle     The Army of the Potomac: A Stillness at Appomattox

MISUSE OF COLONS                          

• Remember that a complete independent clause must always precede a colon.  Do not use a colon to separate a verb and its object, a verb and its complement, or a preposition and its object.

  Incorrect examples--We need to buy: lettuce, peppers, onion, cucumbers, and carrots.

              The candidates for Student Association  President are: Steven Holden, Julie Dwire, and Amy Besette.

              The vendors had an interesting selection of: reed baskets, alpaca sweaters, silver jewelry, and terra        cotta pots.