punctuate

punc·tu·ate

(pŭngk′cho͞o-āt′)

v. punc·tu·at·ed, punc·tu·at·ing, punc·tu·ates

v.tr.

1. To provide (a text) with punctuation marks.

2. To occur or interrupt periodically: "lectures punctuated by questions and discussions" (Gilbert Highet)."[There is] a great emptiness in America's West punctuated by Air Force bases" (Alfred Kazin).

3. To stress or emphasize.

v.intr.

To use punctuation.

[Medieval Latin pūnctuāre, pūnctuāt-, from Latin pūnctum, point, from neuter past participle of pungere, to prick; see peuk- in Indo-European roots.]

punc′tu·a′tive adj.

punc′tu·a′tor n.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

punctuate

(ˈpʌŋktjʊˌeɪt)

vb (mainly tr)

1. (Linguistics) (also intr) to insert punctuation marks into (a written text)

2. to interrupt or insert at frequent intervals: a meeting punctuated by heckling.

3. to give emphasis to

[C17: from Medieval Latin punctuāre to prick, from Latin punctum a prick, from pungere to puncture]

ˈpunctuˌator n

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

punc•tu•ate

(ˈpʌŋk tʃuˌeɪt)

v. -at•ed, -at•ing. v.t.

1. to mark or divide (something written) with punctuation marks in order to make the meaning clear.

2. to interrupt at intervals: Cheers punctuated the mayor's speech.

3. to give emphasis or force to.

v.i.

4. to insert or use marks of punctuation.

[1625–35; < Medieval Latin pūnctuātus, past participle of pūnctuāre to point, derivative of Latin pūnctus a pricking; see punctual]

punc′tu•a`tor, n.

punctuate

, punctuation - Punctuate—which first meant "point out"—and punctuation are from Latin punctus, "prick, point"; the present-day meaning comes from the insertion of "points" or dots into written texts to indicate pauses (once called "pointing").

punctuate

Past participle: punctuated
Gerund: punctuating

Imperative
punctuate
punctuate

Present
I punctuate
you punctuate
he/she/it punctuates
we punctuate
you punctuate
they punctuate

Preterite
I punctuated
you punctuated
he/she/it punctuated
we punctuated
you punctuated
they punctuated

Present Continuous
I am punctuating
you are punctuating
he/she/it is punctuating
we are punctuating
you are punctuating
they are punctuating

Present Perfect
I have punctuated
you have punctuated
he/she/it has punctuated
we have punctuated
you have punctuated
they have punctuated

Past Continuous
I was punctuating
you were punctuating
he/she/it was punctuating
we were punctuating
you were punctuating
they were punctuating

Past Perfect
I had punctuated
you had punctuated
he/she/it had punctuated
we had punctuated
you had punctuated
they had punctuated

Future
I will punctuate
you will punctuate
he/she/it will punctuate
we will punctuate
you will punctuate
they will punctuate

Future Perfect
I will have punctuated
you will have punctuated
he/she/it will have punctuated
we will have punctuated
you will have punctuated
they will have punctuated

Future Continuous
I will be punctuating
you will be punctuating
he/she/it will be punctuating
we will be punctuating
you will be punctuating
they will be punctuating

Present Perfect Continuous
I have been punctuating
you have been punctuating
he/she/it has been punctuating
we have been punctuating
you have been punctuating
they have been punctuating

Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been punctuating
you will have been punctuating
he/she/it will have been punctuating
we will have been punctuating
you will have been punctuating
they will have been punctuating

Past Perfect Continuous
I had been punctuating
you had been punctuating
he/she/it had been punctuating
we had been punctuating
you had been punctuating
they had been punctuating

Conditional
I would punctuate
you would punctuate
he/she/it would punctuate
we would punctuate
you would punctuate
they would punctuate

Past Conditional
I would have punctuated
you would have punctuated
he/she/it would have punctuated
we would have punctuated
you would have punctuated
they would have punctuated

Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Verb

punctuate - insert punctuation marks into

add - make an addition (to); join or combine or unite with others; increase the quality, quantity, size or scope of; "We added two students to that dorm room"; "She added a personal note to her letter"; "Add insult to injury"; "Add some extra plates to the dinner table"

quote - put quote marks around; "Here the author is quoting his colleague"

punctuate - to stress, single out as important; "Dr. Jones emphasizes exercise in addition to a change in diet"

background, play down, downplay - understate the importance or quality of; "he played down his royal ancestry"

set off, bring out - direct attention to, as if by means of contrast; "This dress accentuates your nice figure!"; "I set off these words by brackets"

re-emphasise, re-emphasize - emphasize anew; "The director re-emphasized the need for greater productivity"

bear down - pay special attention to; "The lectures bore down on the political background"

evince, express, show - give expression to; "She showed her disappointment"

topicalize - emphasize by putting heavy stress on or by moving to the front of the sentence; "Speakers topicalize more often than they realize"; "The object of the sentence is topicalized in what linguists call `Yiddish Movement'"

point up - emphasize, especially by identification; "This novel points up the racial problems in England"

press home, ram home, drive home - make clear by special emphasis and try to convince somebody of something; "drive home a point or an argument"; "I'm trying to drive home these basic ideas"

punctuate - interrupt periodically; "Her sharp questions punctuated the speaker's drone"

punctuate

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

punctuate

verb

To mark with punctuation:

Translations

vyznačit interpunkci

írásjelekkel ellát

nota greinarmerki

dėti skyrybos ženkluspunktuacijaskyrybaskyrybos ženklasskyrybos ženklų dėjimas

likt pieturzīmes

vyznačiť interpunkciu

postavljati ločila

noktalama işaretleri koymaknoktalamak

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

punctuate

[ˈpʌŋktʃʊeɪt] vt

punctuate

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

punctuate

(ˈpaŋktʃueit) verb

to divide up sentences etc by commas, full stops, colons etc.

punctuation noun

1. the act of punctuating.

2. the use of punctuation marks.

punctuation mark

any of the symbols used for punctuating, eg comma, full stop, question mark etc.

punctuate

n. puntuar, acto de perforar un tejido con un instrumento afilado.