noun

colon

colon, large intestine

Use a colon to introduce a list of items.

Use a colon to introduce a list of items.

The doctor examined the patient's colon.

The doctor examined the patient's colon.

((a colon)) the punctuation mark (:) Use a colon before a list.

((a colon)) the part of the large intestine The colon is part of the digestive system.

Punctuation: semicolon, period; Anatomy: intestine, bowel

From Greek 'kolon' meaning 'limb, clause, large intestine'. The punctuation mark was named for marking a 'clause' of a sentence.

Think of the two dots (:) as representing two parts of a sentence, or two parts of the intestine (ascending/descending colon).

This page is designed for learning support. Please use it as a learning reference, not as a formal reference.