# Your ellipses showing...! **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 22, 2021, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-ellipses-showing/931232 "2021-01-22T19:06:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2021, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-ellipses-showing/931232/61 "2021-01-25T04:51:51Z")
> [@MrAtoz](#): > > I thought that it was periods that you weren’t supposed to use in texts. That’s what I’ve been hearing lately, that the young folks find sentences that end with periods to be “rude,” somehow. Young folks who think that are idiots. And I’m ~~polite~~ compassionate to enough to notify them of that fact before they embarrass themselves. As for leaving things unsaid, I struggle to imagine a circumstance that would inspire me to telegraph the fact that I’m doing so. ---
**Author:** ![AppallingGael](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b9bd4f/32.png) [@AppallingGael](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AppallingGael)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2021, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-ellipses-showing/931232/62 "2021-01-25T04:53:50Z")
People often use ellipses to explain “I’ve just said something clever, so slow down and wait for my wit to penetrate.” But what else can one do in the absence of an embedded laugh track? ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2021, 5:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-ellipses-showing/931232/63 "2021-01-25T05:19:04Z")
I stand corrected, then. Although my use of an ellipsis for that purpose is something I tend to confine to Facebook and (rarely) message boards. ---
**Author:** ![TroutMan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troutman/32/6721_2.png) [@TroutMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TroutMan)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2021, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-ellipses-showing/931232/64 "2021-01-25T18:08:13Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > Young folks who think that are idiots. And I’m ~~polite~~ compassionate to enough to notify them of that fact before they embarrass themselves. I don’t get this attitude (hopefully you’re being tongue-in-cheek). A period at the end of a text has by convention developed a specific meaning. The same words with and without a period convey two different meanings. This is a change from other written forms of communication, but that doesn’t make it incorrect. And if someone isn’t aware of this difference, then they are the person who needs education, not those who leave off the period. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2021, 8:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-ellipses-showing/931232/65 "2021-01-25T20:04:20Z")
“Convention?” What does _convention_ have to do with anything? I use texting for me and for my loved ones, not for “conventions.” ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [January 25, 2021, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-ellipses-showing/931232/66 "2021-01-25T20:34:12Z")
Depends a bit on how big your circle of txt counterparties is. My phone tells me I have over a hundred people I’ve been txting with just in the last month. Most are over age 40. Those who are younger almost never end a txt with a period though they do use ? and ! conventionally to end a txt. And do use a period conventionally between sentences in a txt. On the rare occasions they send a multi-sentence txt. Which lack of trailing periods is not something I’d actually noticed before reading about it in this thread. ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2021, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-ellipses-showing/931232/67 "2021-01-27T05:59:19Z")
> [@TroutMan](#): > > And if someone isn’t aware of this difference, then they are the person who needs education, not those who leave off the period. Would it follow that if those who leave off the period are not aware of the other way, the need for education in them, not those who use it? ---
**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:** [January 27, 2021, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-ellipses-showing/931232/68 "2021-01-27T13:08:34Z")
As far as who needs education, language and the way we use it is constantly changing. The old guard thinks that changes are bad and are due to errors and carelessness. Yet changes happen still. There was a time when written language had no punctuation at all. And I’m sure somebody said, “These whippersnappers think you need a funny-looking dot at the end of a complete thought. Can’t they just tell where it ends from context?” ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2021, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-ellipses-showing/931232/69 "2021-01-27T14:43:01Z")
> [@MrAtoz](#): > > I thought that it was periods that you weren’t supposed to use in texts. That’s what I’ve been hearing lately, that the young folks find sentences that end with periods to be “rude,” somehow. That seems like a strange idea. If one period is seen as rude, wouldn’t an ellipse be seen as three times as rude? ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2021, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-ellipses-showing/931232/70 "2021-01-30T12:58:41Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > > [@digs](#): > > > > I try hard to write the way I speak. So if there’s a pause, or a word that’s drawn out or slowed down, I try to replicate that. > > I tend to disagree. Writing and speaking are two different forms of communication and there’s no reason why they need to use the same set of rules. > > If I’m writing and I pause while I think of the word or phrase I feel will best communicate my message, there’s no reason why I need to include that pause in the message unless the pause itself is part of the message. I don’t think he’s talking about unintentional pauses like that, though. He’s talking about the pauses we do intentionally in speech. And I’d say those are always part of the message. That said, I don’t use ellipses for those pauses, as ellipses to me convey trailing off. I in fact use commas. You may not notice so much, as I tend to mostly pause only in places where commas are valid. I will also utilize any other punctuation mark. And I’ll use periods with conjunctions to convey a larger pause–which is exactly what I just did. I do think there is use in mimicking these aspects in writing, because writing is generally converted to speech in our heads. The less formal the speech, the more important tone and prosody are to the meaning of the conversation. People invented emoticons, smileys, and now emoji for a reason. They convey aspects that are in speech but not in standard written English. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2021, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-ellipses-showing/931232/71 "2021-01-30T13:08:33Z")
> [@rowrrbazzle](#): > > Would it follow that if those who leave off the period are not aware of the other way, the need for education in them, not those who use it? It would, but such is almost never the case. The same people who don’t use periods in texts (or use other texting conventions mentioned in Tom Scott’s video) will still use them correctly in more formal writing. So they clearly do understand. One problem with writing “ok.” is that you’re already using signals of informality. You didn’t capitalize the word. You used the shortened abbreviation. So you already have indicated you’re using a particular dialect. To then use the period rules from a more formal dialect will not be expected. If you instead wrote something like “Okay, I agree with that. We can discuss it more later.” you’re much less likely to be misunderstood. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2021, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-ellipses-showing/931232/72 "2021-01-30T16:07:55Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > It would, but such is almost never the case. The same people who don’t use periods in texts (or use other texting conventions mentioned in Tom Scott’s video) will still use them correctly in more formal writing. So they clearly do understand. I think there’s more genuine ignorance going on than you may realize. I’ve seen writing by people who clearly have no idea what they’re doing. How quotation marks works seem to be an especially difficult issue for some. “What time is it” he asked? “It’s around midnight.” She said. He said “he was tired and was going home”. “She asked him can you give me a ride”? He said okay get your coat. “What’s your name?”. She asked him. "My name is “John”. ---
**Author:** ![puzzlegal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/puzzlegal/32/3827_2.png) [@puzzlegal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/puzzlegal)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2021, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-ellipses-showing/931232/73 "2021-01-30T16:19:45Z")
That just looks like a careless mistake. Everyone makes mistakes, especially in texts. ---
**Author:** ![Zyada](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zyada/32/3028_2.png) [@Zyada](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zyada)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2021, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-ellipses-showing/931232/74 "2021-01-31T02:05:53Z")
I use ellipses as a sort of "I could say more but I don’t need/want to " or where the joke is better left unsaid. Or, if in the middle of a sentence, to indicate a pause before continuing the thought I had started. This is relevant [![](https://i.redd.it/3ota6oj39sd61.jpg) ](https://i.redd.it/3ota6oj39sd61.jpg) ---
**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:** [January 31, 2021, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-ellipses-showing/931232/75 "2021-01-31T13:55:24Z")
That’s a social media post with a lot of typing, almost certainly on a computer keyboard (not a phone). So it makes sense in this context. The OP (remember the OP?) is about text (SMS) messages, which have developed their own conventions. ---
**Author:** ![NetTrekker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nettrekker/32/2909_2.png) [@NetTrekker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NetTrekker)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2021, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-ellipses-showing/931232/76 "2021-01-31T14:25:09Z")
Whatever… Can I still use them in forum posts? Please? ---
**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:** [January 31, 2021, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-ellipses-showing/931232/77 "2021-01-31T15:29:03Z")
Please do! Just refrain from entire posts in all caps and multiple exclamation points. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2021, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-ellipses-showing/931232/78 "2021-01-31T16:23:51Z")
> [@CookingWithGas](#): > > Just refrain from entire posts in all caps and multiple exclamation points. OK FINE!!!1!1!! ---
**Author:** ![Zyada](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zyada/32/3028_2.png) [@Zyada](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zyada)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2021, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-ellipses-showing/931232/79 "2021-01-31T17:30:16Z")
? The social media post is about an intergenerational experience with texting which is why I passed it along ---
**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:** [January 31, 2021, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-ellipses-showing/931232/80 "2021-01-31T18:17:58Z")
> [@Zyada](#): > > The social media post is about an intergenerational experience with texting which is why I passed it along Sorry, I had no idea why you passed it along. It’s an image, and I just saw that it was very long and had some text with ellipses in it. So I thought the point was the style of that post rather than the content. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-ellipses-showing/931232.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/your-ellipses-showing/931232.md?page=5)