# What does \_\_\_\_\_\_\_\_ period mean? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 26, 2002, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-________-period-mean/138873 "2002-11-26T12:52:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Dunmurry](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d2c977/32.png) [@Dunmurry](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dunmurry)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 12:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-________-period-mean/138873/1 "2002-11-26T12:52:02Z")
In many posts on the SDMB people say something like “He’s a con artist. Period.” What does “Period” mean? ---
**Author:** ![garius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e19b73/32.png) [@garius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garius)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-________-period-mean/138873/2 "2002-11-26T12:57:53Z")
it means “end of argument” i’m wondering whether you are english (like me) - because “Period” is what those damned ex-colonials on the other side of the pond call a “full-stop”. Barbarians. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Desmostylus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c57346/32.png) [@Desmostylus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Desmostylus)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-________-period-mean/138873/3 "2002-11-26T12:57:53Z")
That’s it. Period. No arguments. Period. ---
**Author:** ![Desmostylus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c57346/32.png) [@Desmostylus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Desmostylus)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 1:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-________-period-mean/138873/4 "2002-11-26T13:00:03Z")
Emphasises finality. Period. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 1:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-________-period-mean/138873/5 "2002-11-26T13:26:36Z")
Unless your British. Full stop. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-________-period-mean/138873/6 "2002-11-26T13:27:39Z")
Umm…_you’re_ that is. ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-________-period-mean/138873/7 "2002-11-26T13:36:06Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by pulykamell \* > \*\*Unless your British. Full stop. \*\* Unfortunately more and more of the younger generation are using “period” in this way as, simply, they have no idea of where the phrase comes from. ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-________-period-mean/138873/8 "2002-11-26T14:16:20Z")
Always makes me think of Victor Borge, though. ---
**Author:** ![CookingWithGas](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cookingwithgas/32/485_2.png) [@CookingWithGas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CookingWithGas)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 2:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-________-period-mean/138873/9 "2002-11-26T14:20:01Z")
Just to state the obvious, that little dot at the end of a sentence is a period, so that’s what this refers to. If I had to provide an exact substitute, I would say, “There’s nothing further to say.” ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-________-period-mean/138873/10 "2002-11-26T14:33:06Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by CookingWithGas \* > \*\*Just to state the obvious, that little dot at the end of a sentence is a period, so that’s what this refers to. > > If I had to provide an exact substitute, I would say, “There’s nothing further to say.” \*\* It isn’t “obvious” as not all English-speaking countries call it a period. As was mentioned above, in the UK it is called a “Full Stop”. ---
**Author:** ![stuyguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ec9cab/32.png) [@stuyguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stuyguy)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-________-period-mean/138873/11 "2002-11-26T14:35:51Z")
I want to ever so subtley disagree with the explanations given thusfar. I would say that “period” does not mean “end of argument” as much as it means “without qualifications.” To use an example, when someone says “Brenda is the best player on the team. Period.” they are not saying she is the best female player, or the best player who showed up to practice today, or the best batter, or anything else that might be added to the statement to water it down. ---
**Author:** ![garius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e19b73/32.png) [@garius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garius)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-________-period-mean/138873/12 "2002-11-26T15:09:08Z")
Picky…picky…picky… 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Sparrow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Sparrow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sparrow)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-________-period-mean/138873/13 "2002-11-26T15:12:34Z")
Well to me as a female Brit a period is something that happens once a month and I don’t want to think about it the rest of the time, so it always seems a bit squicky to hear Americans use the word the way they do. ---
**Author:** ![RiverRunner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/977dab/32.png) [@RiverRunner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RiverRunner)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 3:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-________-period-mean/138873/14 "2002-11-26T15:15:57Z")
Squicky? What a wonderful word! I must try to remember to use it sometime. RR ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-________-period-mean/138873/15 "2002-11-26T15:30:56Z")
“Squicky”? Well, that’s a little too close for comfort to “squicking” and we don’t wanna go _there_. ---
**Author:** ![mazzer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eada6e/32.png) [@mazzer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mazzer)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 3:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-________-period-mean/138873/16 "2002-11-26T15:45:04Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Sparrow \* > \*\*Well to me as a female Brit a period is something that happens once a month and I don’t want to think about it the rest of the time, so it always seems a bit squicky to hear Americans use the word the way they do. \*\* Well, it means that here, too. But since we call all of our sentence-ending dots “period,” chances are as an American you learned that definition of the word first. Not to imply that the Brits can’t handle homographs, but context clues pretty much eliminate the squickiness, fifth-graders excepted. ---
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 6:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-________-period-mean/138873/17 "2002-11-26T18:03:03Z")
It means “no ifs, ands or buts”. Period. ---
**Author:** ![\_etalhea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/_/779978/32.png) [@\_etalhea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/_etalhea)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-________-period-mean/138873/18 "2002-11-26T18:49:38Z")
So, it’d be _really squicky_ if I said something like: [british accent] Ya see mate, the damn Yanks call a full stop a _bloody period_!! [/british accent] ---
**Author:** ![gonzoron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a6a055/32.png) [@gonzoron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gonzoron)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-________-period-mean/138873/19 "2002-11-26T18:59:15Z")
For the record, there’s a maxipad commercial that uses a slogan something like: The best protection. Period. The commercial illustrates this with a little red dot flying around. I had no idea what the feeling I got watching it was called. Now I know: squicky. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2002, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-________-period-mean/138873/20 "2002-11-26T18:59:33Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by KneadToKnow \* > \*\*Always makes me think of Victor Borge, though. \*\* I use phonetic punctuation every once in a while, just to see if people are paying attention. Pt! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-does-________-period-mean/138873.md?page=2)