Ellipsis Four-Dot Method
The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation
Ellipsis Four-Dot Method
You may have seen three dots within text when reading a sentence (…). This punctuation mark is called an ellipsis. An ellipsis represents an omission of one or more words within a quoted passage. The plural of ellipsis is ellipses.
The ellipsis serves efficient writing by allowing us to abbreviate content or otherwise include only details we believe are relevant to our audience. We can use an ellipsis in the start, middle, or end of a sentence.
Original: “Looking out among the standing, clapping audience, I realized I was no longer myself: I was the public persona I had invented.”
Ellipsis: He became his own judge when he said, “… I realized I was no longer myself: I was the public persona I had invented.”Original: “The happiness of your life depends upon the quality of your thoughts.” Marcus Aurelius, Meditations
Ellipsis: “The happiness of your life depends upon … your thoughts.” Marcus Aurelius, MeditationsOriginal: “The budget committee has always said that it lacks the funds to begin the sweeping campaign for the homeless, but I disagree right down to the custom-tailored suit the chairman is wearing.”
Ellipsis: According to the secretary, “The budget committee has always said that it lacks the funds to begin the sweeping campaign for the homeless …”
Note how we use spaces with the ellipsis in each sentence. We include a space on both sides of the mark when it is in the middle of text. When it appears at the start or the end of the sentence, we use a space only before the first typed character (start) or after the last typed character (end). We do not include a space before or after the quotation mark.
(This style is our preference for formal writing. Some publishers may choose to omit the spaces around the mark.)
Knowing the function of the ellipsis helps us understand the ellipsis four-dot method.
When to Use the Ellipsis Four-Dot Method
If a complete sentence or several sentences precede an omission, we will use a period before the three-dot ellipsis mark, resulting in four total dots (periods).
Original Content: “Smart phones have revolutionized the ways in which we interact. Where once we had to visit or call our neighbors to communicate with them, we can now send a text or a direct message through social media. We can also more easily block or avoid them. We can find information for ourselves where once we may have had to consult with experts much more often. We can program our television and our thermostat and even spy on our neighbor using available apps. Yes, we have become a bit smarter and more efficient, but are we any more human?”
Four-Dot Ellipsis: The professor’s closing words still lingered well after the lecture had ended: “Smart phones have revolutionized the ways in which we interact. … we can now send a text or a direct message through social media. … We can find information for ourselves where once we may have had to consult with experts much more often. … we have become a bit smarter and more efficient, but are we any more human?”
Once again note how we apply spacing with our four-dot ellipsis. We include the concluding period at the end of the complete sentence, add a space, insert the ellipsis, and follow it with another space. If the text following the ellipsis is a fragment of the next sentence rather than the start of it, we use a lowercase letter.
Let’s look at one more example:
Original Content: Earthquakes do much more than destroy property. They demolish infrastructure as well. People might survive, but what they labored to build often cannot. What follows can include the loss of industries, roads and railways, and public services such as sewer and water. That is only the short term. Over the long term, those must be re-established, which may result in an entire generation’s economic loss.”
Four-Dot Ellipsis: Earthquakes do much more than destroy property. … People might survive, but what they labored to build often cannot. What follows can include the loss of industries, roads and railways, and public services such as sewer and water. … Over the long term, those must be re-established, which may result in an entire generation’s economic loss.”
Ellipsis Four-Dot Method: Other Punctuation Marks
When a complete sentence ends in punctuation other than a period, such as a question mark or an exclamation point, the sequence is word, punctuation mark, space, ellipsis, space.
Original Content: “How many times could Coach Hardy watch Miller slide into second that way? The brawny first baseman swung a big bat and showed hustle on the base path, but he was a season-ending injury waiting to happen. The human body can bend, but bend it enough and it will break! What a season that must have been for Hardy. He did not yet know what we do now: Miller survived his reckless running all the way to the World Series.”
Four-Dot Ellipsis: “How many times could Coach Hardy watch Miller slide into second that way? … The human body can bend, but bend it enough and it will break! … He did not yet know what we do now: Miller survived his reckless running all the way to the World Series.”
Related Topic
Ellipses
Ellipsis Marks
What Is an Ellipsis?
If the article or the existing discussions do not address a thought or question you have on the subject, please use the "Comment" box at the bottom of this page.
I learned that the four-dot ellipsis should be used at the end of quoted material to show that there is more material not quoted. Has that changed?
The ellipsis four-dot method is used at the end of a complete sentence in the quote to indicate you are omitting one or more sentences before continuing with the next one in the quote.
If I quote two complete sentences from the beginning of a paragraph, with more of the paragraph remaining, do I need to use an ellipsis to indicate there’s more to the paragraph?
And if I quote two or three complete sentences from the middle of a paragraph, do I need to use an ellipsis to indicate previous sentences omitted, as well as sentences afterward?
I have searched all grammar websites for this answer; it’s not addressed anywhere!
AP Stylebook says, “When material is deleted at the end of one paragraph and at the beginning of the one that follows, place an ellipsis in both locations.” The Chicago Manual of Style states, “Ellipses are normally not used (1) before the first word of a quotation, even if the beginning of the original sentence has been omitted; or (2) after the last word of a quotation, even if the end of the original sentence has been omitted, unless the sentence as quoted is deliberately incomplete.” We asume there are no other requirements beyond what is stated in these rules.
How many dots are at the end of a sentence in screenplay dialogue?
As with fiction, screenwriting style might occasionally apply liberties of writer preference and style. Unlike in daily formal writing, ellipses in screenplays will typically convey paused or incomplete thoughts rather than indicate omissions of content. For that reason, many screenwriters might apply the three-dot ellipsis (…) with a space between the last dot of the ellipsis and the following letter or word if there is one.
e.g.
Did you really come here to… Hey, what are you writing on my wall?