Meaning & use
full stop
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Meanings
nouncountableBritish
The punctuation mark (.) used to end a sentence, called a period in American English.
Grammar: Countable: put a full stop at the end of a sentence.
Patterns
- put a full stop
- come to a full stop
Remember to put a full stop at the end of your sentence.
In British English, we call this mark a full stop; Americans call it a period.
The editor added a full stop where the sentence ended.
nouncountable
A complete stop, especially of a vehicle or a process.
Grammar: Often used in the phrase 'come to a full stop'.
Patterns
- come to a full stop
- bring something to a full stop
The bus came to a full stop at the red light.
The project came to a full stop when the money ran out.
interjectioninformal
Used to emphasize that a statement is final and not open to discussion.
Grammar: Often placed at the end of a sentence for emphasis.
Patterns
- …, full stop.
I'm not going, full stop.
That's my decision, full stop.
Word forms
| plural | full stops |
|---|
Common combinations
- put a full stop
- Don't forget to put a full stop at the end.
- come to a full stop
- The car came to a full stop at the crossing.
- full stop at the end
- There should be a full stop at the end of the line.
Synonyms and how they differ
- period
- The American English word for the same punctuation mark; use 'period' in US contexts.
Word family
- stop verb
- To cease movement or action.
Commonly confused: full stop or comma?
full stop vs comma
A comma (,) separates parts of a sentence, while a full stop ends it.
Practice
In British English, what is the punctuation mark (.) called?
Choose one answer.
The mark (.) is called a full stop in British English and a period in American English. The other options are different punctuation marks.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “full stop”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.