Imagine kijiye aap ek aisi sadak par gaadi chala rahe hain jahan na koi red light hai, na speed breaker, na koi sign board. Kitna confusion aur accident hoga!

Likhavat (writing) bhi ek sadak ki tarah hai. Agar ismein sahi jagah par rukne (pause) ya bhaav (emotion) dikhane ke liye signals na hon, toh padhne wale ko matlab samajhne mein bahut mushkil hogi.

Yeh signals hi Punctuation Marks (विराम चिह्न) hain. Yeh chote-chote symbols hain jo hamare sentences ko sahi structure aur saaf meaning dete hain.

Chaliye, in zaroori signals ke baare mein jaante hain.

1. The Full Stop ( . ) – The Red Light

Yeh signal batata hai, “Ruk Jao! Yahan baat poori ho gayi.”

• Kab use karein? Har declarative (bayan) ya imperative (aagya) sentence ke अंत mein.

• Examples:

  • I am a student.

  • The sun is hot.

  • Please close the door.

2. The Comma ( , ) – The Speed Breaker

Yeh signal batata hai, “Thoda ruko, ek chhota sa pause lo.”

• Kab use karein?

  1. List mein cheezon ko alag karne ke liye:

     • I need to buy milk, bread, and eggs.

  2. Do lambe वाक्यों ko ‘and’, ‘but’, ‘so’ se jodte waqt:

     • He is very rich, but he is not happy.

  3. Shuruaati shabdon ke baad:

     • Yes, I can do it.

     • After the dinner, we went for a walk.

  4. Question Tag se pehle:

     • It’s a lovely day, isn’t it?

3. The Question Mark ( ? ) – The Inquiry Sign

Yeh signal seedha-seedha sawaal poochta hai.

• Kab use karein? Har direct question (interrogative sentence) ke अंत mein.

• Examples:

  • What is your name?

  • Have you finished your homework?

• Important: Indirect questions ke baad question mark nahi lagta.

  • He asked me what my name was.

4. The Exclamation Mark ( ! ) – The Emotion Horn

Yeh signal tez bhaavnaon (strong emotions) ko dikhata hai — jaise khushi, dukh, hairani, ya gussa.

• Kab use karein? Exclamatory sentences ya Interjections ke baad.

• Examples:

  • What a beautiful sight!

  • Wow!

  • Get out of my room!

5. Quotation Marks ( “…” ) – The Speakerphone

Yeh signal batata hai ki “Yeh mere shabd nahi hain, koi aur bol raha hai.”

• Kab use karein? Kisi ke dwara kahe gaye exact shabdon (Direct Speech) ko dikhane ke liye.

• Examples:

  • The teacher said, "Honesty is the best policy."

  • She asked, "Where are you going?"

6. The Apostrophe ( ‘ ) – The Connection Mark

Is chote se mark ke do bade kaam hain.

1. Possession (मालिकाना हक़) dikhane ke liye: “kiska” ka jawab deta hai.

   • This is Ram's book. (यह राम की किताब है।)

   • I borrowed my friend's car. (मैंने अपने दोस्त की कार ली।)

2. Contractions (shabdon ko chota karna) ke liye: Yeh batata hai ki koi letter gayab hai.

   • don't (do not)

   • it's (it is)

   • I'm (I am)

“Trifles make perfection, and perfection is no trifle.” (छोटी-छोटी बातों से ही निपुणता आती है, और निपुणता कोई छोटी बात नहीं है।) – Michelangelo