E12: FTCE | General Knowledge | English | Semicolons

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Welcome to episode 12 of FTCE seminar, the Florida Teacher Certification Exam Podcast, where we talk about testing tips, study hacks, and how to pass the FTCE. I'm your host, Mercedes Musto. In today's episode, I'll be talking about the FTCE General Knowledge English Subtest. This is part four of a multi-series review

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of what you need to know to pass the English section of the GK. Let's get started. Today we're reviewing semicolons, when to use them and how to use them properly. Concept four, semicolons. According to grammarly.com, there's several ways to use a semicolon.

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But first, what is a semicolon? See, semicolons are like little commas except they have a little dot on top. No, that's so cute Except when you use them incorrectly, that's not cute on a side note If you are unsure about how to use commas then check out episode 10 for a quick review Okay. Okay. When do I use a semicolon then? Well, I'm glad you asked Last episode we talked about independent clauses. Remember, an independent clause has a subject and verb, so basically it can be its own sentence. But what if I have two independent clauses and I just jam

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smash them together like this? I ordered pizza to go I didn't want to cook. I ordered pizza to go I didn't want to cook. Yeah, that's two sentences or two independent clauses. Okay, did you hear the two independent clauses with no pauses? I mean, in fact, that mess is called a run-on sentence because it has no semicolons, no transitional words, nothing. Let's correct that run-on sentence by adding a semicolon in the right place like this.

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I ordered a pizza to go, semicolon, I didn't want to cook, period. Well, there you go. That's much better. So basically you can combine two independent clauses with no transitional word if you use a semicolon. But what if I want to use a transitional word like however or therefore?

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Well, no problem. Then your sentence would sound like this. I didn't want to cook semicolon therefore comma. I ordered a pizza to go perfecto exclamation point. The pattern here is independent clause. Semicolon transitional word comma independent clause period. Like in the next example, she asked for a slice of pizza, semi-colon, however, comma, she did not want pepperoni, period.

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Well, on a side note, use a semi-colon to connect to closely related independent clauses that are not joined by a coordinating conjunction. That was a mouthful. Okay, let me explain. If you see one of those fanboy words, drop it and use a semicolon.

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Remember, fanboy words are like for, and, nor, but, or, yet, and, so. And those, when you see those words, use a comma. No mixing and matching. Like in this sentence, listen for the difference. Example with a semicolon. She plays chess, semicolon. She does not win often.

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What? Burn?

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I play chess. Who writes these sentences? Example with a fanboy's word. She plays chess, comma, and she does not win often. Okay, okay, I get it. There's more than one way to construct a correct sentence. Last part here. You're doing great.

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Use a semicolon when you have items in a series that are separated by commas? What? Wait, now you're telling me to use both. Yes, that's correct and it's easier than you think. Like in this sentence, I plan to travel to Destin, Florida, Savannah, Georgia, semicolon, and Charleston, South Carolina. Since we're already using commas to separate cities and states, it's natural for us to use semicolons to separate the rest of the items in the series. It makes sense now, right?

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Let's review. Semicolons are used to combine two closely related independent clauses in two ways. One, simply combine them with a semicolon, straight up. And two, combine the closely related phrases with this setup, independent clause, semicolon, transitional word, comma. And lastly, when you're already using commas with items in the series,

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then you can use semicolons to organize the list like that. For more practice with semicolons, visit ftceseminar.com. The important thing is to start studying and start studying today so you can pass the Florida Teacher Certification Exam. Well, what are you waiting for? Check us out on YouTube at FTCE Seminar and start studying today.

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This is your host Mercedes Musto. Join me again for FTCE seminar, a Florida teacher certification exam podcast, so you can pass the FTCE. I'd like to thank Kate, Samantha, and the Pickens Multimedia Studio at the University I'd like to thank Kate, Samantha, and the Pickens Multimedia Studio at the University of West Florida for making this podcast possible.

Transcribed with Cockatoo