ELLIPSES

What are ellipses and how are they used?

Ellipses consist of three spaced periods (. . .) to indicate omissions in material taken from other contexts. They are the exact opposites of brackets (which are used for insertions of information within quoted material):

Original: Relaters, although the unknown may be intriguing,

prefer to stick with what they already know.

Relaters...prefer to stick with what they already know.

The ellipsis may also be used at the beginning or end of a sentence:

Original: Fearing sudden changes, they are naturally

concerned with what may happen.

...they are naturally concerned with what may happen.

or

Original:  The real question is how best to use the positive

aspects of each trait while recognizing the less-developed

attributes that accompany it.

The real question is how best to use the positive aspects

of each trait....

In the latter example, note that the ellipsis is followed by the end punctuation of the sentence (a period).

Must ellipses always be employed when using portions of quoted material?

No. Only quotation marks are needed when the quotation is just a small part of the original sentence:

not this

We considered the "...behavioral adaptability concerns..."

described by Harrington in his last formal report.

but this

We considered the "behavioral adaptability concerns"

described by Harrington in his last formal report.

What is used to show the omission of one or more lines of text?

A line of spaced periods indicates that one or more entire lines of text are omitted:

'Tis but thy name that is my enemy;

Thou art thyself, though not a Montague.



.........................................



Without that title, Romeo, doff thy name,

And for that name which is no part of thee

Take all myself.