ellipse help

[Diana Lowery]

I like ellipses, but I am confused about how to use them.

How should this be punctuated?

That should be enough. . . but wait, there's more.
That should be enough. . . But wait, there's more.
That should be enough . . .but wait . . . there's more.
That should be enough . . .But wait . . . there's more

[UndeniablyMë]

Hi @Diana Lowery
I believe this is the sentence construction you are looking for.
That should be enough, but wait... there's more.

[jammie alexander]

“That should be enough . . . but wait . . . there’s more” would be correct in this example.
This is beca It’s used to create a pause for suspense on both sides.

[jammie alexander]

“That should be enough . . . but wait . . . there’s more” would be correct in this example.
This is beca It’s used to create a pause for suspense on both sides.

[Andrew Butchers]

I am pretty sure that if you have a capital letter after, you need to end the previous sentance - so there needs to be another stop (or other punctuation).

As for whether to include a second ellipsis, I don't think that there is a rule to say yes or no - that is a matter of personal style and what you are trying to convey. (For example, if this is speech, do you want to show a pause longer than just a comma ?)

[Melissa Best]

Hi!

Ellipses are not treated as the end of a sentence, so that would eliminate the two options where "but" is capitalized.

As for writing "wait ... there's" vs. "wait, there's" that's more of a point of personal preference. Ellipses indicate hesitation and can create suspense in a similar way that commas do. Personally, I would lean towards the first example you gave just to avoid overuse of the ellipses.

[Shane Lucey]

Capitalization is not generally required unless it begins an entirely new sentence. I think the "..." after "wait" depends on how long of a pause you want to convey.

[MsH2k]

I like ellipses, but I am confused about how to use them.

How should this be punctuated?

A. That should be enough. . . but wait, there's more.
B. That should be enough. . . But wait, there's more.
C. That should be enough . . .but wait . . . there's more.
D. That should be enough . . .But wait . . . there's more

Hi Diana,

That’s some question you have there.
I noticed it a while back—answering it was like seeing someone you wanted to talk to on the far side of a crowded room. I finally made it over to you!

According to the Chicago Manual of Style, the capitalization of “But” in examples B and D is fine if you intended the first sentence to be deliberately incomplete (13.55). Otherwise, there would be a period at the end of the sentence (no space before the period) followed by the ellipse. (13.53)

Regarding spacing, CMOS places a space between the dots and says there is usually a space on either side of the ellipse. The Punctuation Guide states, “Each period should have a single space on either side, except when adjacent to a quotation mark, in which case there should be no space.”

I didn’t notice anything about how many ellipses are acceptable in close proximity, so I think that’s up to your aesthetic preference.

So, based on these two sources, it looks like the main thing in your examples is to ensure there is a space both before and after the ellipse.

Tossed in for free, the end punctuation is missing in D.

https://www.thepunctuationguide.com/ellipses.html

[Diana Lowery]

I like ellipses, but I am confused about how to use them.

How should this be punctuated?

A. That should be enough. . . but wait, there's more.
B. That should be enough. . . But wait, there's more.
C. That should be enough . . .but wait . . . there's more.
D. That should be enough . . .But wait . . . there's more

Hi Diana,

That’s some question you have there.
I noticed it a while back—answering it was like seeing someone you wanted to talk to on the far side of a crowded room. I finally made it over to you!

According to the Chicago Manual of Style, the capitalization of “But” in examples B and D is fine if you intended the first sentence to be deliberately incomplete (13.55). Otherwise, there would be a period at the end of the sentence (no space before the period) followed by the ellipse. (13.53)

Regarding spacing, CMOS places a space between the dots and says there is usually a space on either side of the ellipse. The Punctuation Guide states, “Each period should have a single space on either side, except when adjacent to a quotation mark, in which case there should be no space.”

I didn’t notice anything about how many ellipses are acceptable in close proximity, so I think that’s up to your aesthetic preference.

So, based on these two sources, it looks like the main thing in your examples is to ensure there is a space both before and after the ellipse.

Tossed in for free, the end punctuation is missing in D.

https://www.thepunctuationguide.com/ellipses.html

Thanks for this. I will file it away for future reference. I think I submitted the review with one of those examples, and it wasn't flagged as incorrect. I guess I got lucky on that one. I am pretty sure I did include an end punctuation mark.
Glad you finally made it across the crowded room.

[Andrew Butchers]

Different places have different guidelines.

For example, Distributed Proofreaders, which supplies works to Project Gutenberg, says "An ellipsis should have three dots. Regarding the spacing, in the middle of a sentence treat the three dots as a single word (i.e., usually a space before the 3 dots and a space after). At the end of a sentence treat the ellipsis as ending punctuation, with no space before it.

"Note that there will also be an ending punctuation mark at the end of a sentence, so in the case of a period there will be 4 dots total. .... A good hint that you're at the end of a sentence is the use of a capital letter at the start of the next word, or the presence of an ending punctuation mark (e.g., a question mark or exclamation point)."