The arbitrary over-use of the ellipsis dots [...] in emails.
I’m not a stickler on grammar, or spellign mistakes, nor do I demand the proper usage of the more esoteric literary devices [sic]. You’ll never hear me correct anyone on the proper use of a word or literary device in person, in an email, or even in IM. But god damn, I am shocked and appalled when I face the overwhelming over-use and arbitrary use of the ellipsis dots “…” in emails, IMs, and comments. Let me focus in on the epidemic of the ellipsis in emails.
Have you ever received an email in which all punctuation was replaced by someone taking a shit on the proper use of an ellipsis?
Hey…. So I was wondering if I could expect that quarterly report…….. it’s almost 6…… -Bob……
Bob, shut the fuck up, ok? Your smug aloofness has somehow perfectly translated itself across the sea of electrons that you’re speaking through. When did you start using email, 2006? You write like an 11 year old girl playing online checkers in 1997. And it’s no thanks to your god damn use of the ellipsis.
What exactly is this ellipsis meant to portray in these emails? Are they taking long thoughtful pauses, is an epic struggle of syntax and word-choice happening in their brain? Are they actors, measuring out the beats of their lines? Are we supposed to picture someone thoughtfully pacing around dictating to us, stopping in revelation before saying their next thought? Are they pausing and waiting for the applause to end before they continue?
No matter what the implication of a string of 15 periods is meant to be, when I see it, and you write it, there’s only one way I interpret it: you’re an asshole. The worst offenders are those who construct questions that end in an ellipsis instead of a question mark:
Is that expense report coming along ok….. will you be able to get it in by Friday…….. let me know… -Bob…
Bob, shut the fuck up. Here the writer implies that the question is so obvious from the context of the sentence and the situation that including it would be overly redundant. The other implication is that the person writing the email is leaving a space in which you would answer the question, but you’re not, so they’re smugly continuing anyways. They judgingly shake their head while writing, miming shrugs and cupping their hand around their ear to better hear the answers they’re not getting.
If you want to use an ellipsis, use three dots in the middle of a sentence, and four at the end of a sentence. I receive emails now from smart “educated” people where it seems like they immediately press the period key whenever they’re not typing a word, leaving a string of 27 dots on the line before the next word. I don’t need a visual cue to every single moment and pause you took while writing. Writing is separate from speaking, I don’t need to know when you inhaled, and you’re not portraying any additional information by typing three dozen periods rather than one, except that you’re an asshole.
Did you get my last email… -Bob……….
Bob, shut the fuck up. What the fuck is that long string of periods after your name supposed to be? Are you waiting for my email? By including those extra periods are you hinting to me that you’re sitting there at your computer furiously clicking the button that checks for new emails? It’s smug bullshit, smugly implying that they’re waiting for a response and getting none. Bob, I’m sorry to disappoint you, I can’t respond to your emails because I’m too busy counting all the fucking dots.
August 27th, 2009 at 3:04 am
God, I love this article.
December 1st, 2009 at 5:17 pm
This is brilliant! Thanks for addressing the issue and proving laughs while at it.
December 3rd, 2009 at 8:39 am
Any information on your sources though?
December 30th, 2009 at 12:37 pm
Wow! Thank you! I always wanted to write in my site something like that. Can I take part of your post to my blog?
April 1st, 2010 at 4:20 am
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May 24th, 2010 at 10:05 pm
Thank you! This is an insanely annoying trend which has befouled all manner of written communication bar published books. Prepare for the generation Z wave of authors whose works will read like a few scant words amidst a sea of periods.
October 30th, 2010 at 4:38 am
You you could edit the webpage title The arbitrary over-use of the ellipsis dots [...] in emails. to more catching for your blog post you write. I loved the post still.
December 9th, 2010 at 7:53 pm
It has been my experience, that the overuse of elipsis’ can oftentimes be a indicator that the person you are communicating with is not only not very skilled in American English, they are also likely to be from another country; usually Nigeria, UK, etc. Oftentimes they are impersonating someone other than who they really are and ultimately for some personal financial gain. Just my behaviorial observation of many individuals over several years. As for the people you know personally, why do they give the “elipsis” a bad name, puzzle……ing…………….
March 9th, 2011 at 3:06 pm
Very interesing.
March 10th, 2011 at 1:46 pm
it’s about time someone said something about this…
April 18th, 2011 at 12:41 pm
I hate that shit, and that is how I found this post! Thank you for sharing in my hate for Bob.
April 27th, 2011 at 12:52 pm
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May 27th, 2011 at 1:08 pm
article was pretty good i guess……. probably work on the tone a bit you know…….. cause it seems like your realy angry at people who do this thing with the periods…. sorry i’m trying to stop but it’s a CHRONIC COMPULSION of mine……… man they rlly need a spprt grp for this…
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It seems evident to me that people who overuse the elipsis simply don’t understand the purpose for using it. Anyone with any knowledge about quoting, understands the importance of proper elipsis usage. Simply put, when we wish to quote a particular message, we can choose to only include the relevant words, thereby eliminating the words that don’t need to be there to still get your message across. If the writer’s desire is to suggest to the reader that they are thinking, rolling their eyes, or whatever, write a screenplay.
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December 20th, 2011 at 1:11 pm
I don’t care how old this thread is…but pointing out a writing habit in an angry way and “demanding it to stop” is just as pretentious as the act itself. You know what needs to stop? posts like these where people think they’re funny or witty because people are different than they are…and the flock of sheep haters that always follow with comments like “oh, this is so true.” pointing out this or how people say “like” too much is like saying Chinese people make Ching Chong noises when they talk. This is just how we write or speak or communicate, just because it looks or sounds funny to you doesn’t mean you have to comment. And if you’re thinking “but these are grammar rules!!!!!” there’s also speeding rules and I bet you don’t do the exact speed limit every day for your entire life. There are also etiquette rules…and I’m sure no one follows those to the T. So, in short, get a life and just because people are different than you doesn’t make them wrong. The English language was butchered waay before … And likes were over used. Get over it.
December 21st, 2011 at 6:33 am
Dear Tbhonest,
The point is that the original post is easy to read. The reasoning is clearly and well communicated. On the other hand your comment is quite difficult to read and to follow. One of the reasons is the misuse of ellipses. They make no sense at all.
I understand that you feel offended by the post and the shown lack of respect. You need to be aware however, that slack grammar and punctuation shows a lack of respect for the reader as well. No one is going to tell you stop doing that, but many will simply give up reading a post after noticing it has been written poorly.
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