Do you know when to use parentheses in
writing? Parentheses are marks (like this) that go around words and
phrases. Although they have several uses, they are mainly used to show
extra ideas, or show an afterthought. It's like saying, "Oh, by the
way..."
Look at this example-
Ted picked up his new watch (which he loved)
and put in on the table.
The words which he loved is extra information. They are not
necessary to make the sentence whole.
Important: If you take out the words in the parentheses, the
meaning of sentence should not change. For example, you could say-
Tom bought peas, carrots, and potatoes (all
vegetables,) and nothing else.
If you take out the words in the parentheses, your sentence would
still be complete.
Tom bought peas, carrots, and potatoes and
nothing else.
But look at this sentence-
Georgia took her (son) to the beach.
If you take out the word son, the sentence would not be a
complete sentence.
Georgia took her to the beach.
That's very confusing. What did she take to the beach???
