--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: So we’re seemingly in quite a pickle…" description: "\"“So we’re seemingly in quite a pickle. Sometimes a period provides too much pause between these two sentences, but the comma doesn’t provide enough. Lu..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19d/jenny-baranick-17184_comma_so-we-re-seemingly-in-quite-a-pickle-som_2380618.jpg" --- # So we’re seemingly in quite a pickle. Sometimes a period… ![“So we’re seemingly in quite a pickle. Sometimes a period provides too much pause between these two sentences, but the comma doesn’t provide enough. Luckily, the period and the comma had a drunken one-night stand and produced this adorable little spawn they named the semicolon.” quote by Jenny Baranick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19d/jenny-baranick-17184_comma_so-we-re-seemingly-in-quite-a-pickle-som_2380618.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19d/jenny-baranick-17184_comma_so-we-re-seemingly-in-quite-a-pickle-som_2380618.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19d/jenny-baranick-17184_comma_so-we-re-seemingly-in-quite-a-pickle-som_2380618.jpg) > ““So we’re seemingly in quite a pickle. Sometimes a period provides too much pause between these two sentences, but the comma doesn’t provide enough. Luckily, the period and the comma had a drunken one-night stand and produced this adorable little spawn they named the semicolon.”” [Jenny Baranick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-baranick/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The semicolon blends pause and continuation, offering a middle ground between a full stop and a comma. **In simple terms:** A semicolon is a hybrid pause. Key Takeaway Use semicolons to link related ideas smoothly. Themes grammar punctuation writing creativity humor Mood playful informative Type educational humorous When to use this quote - editing essays - creative writing - academic papers - blog posts Key Concepts syntax tone balance Questions to Reflect On - When does a semicolon improve clarity? - Is a comma sufficient? A Different Perspective Overuse can make prose feel overly complex. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Semicolon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/semicolon/) ## Related quotes > [“Seems indecisive, doesn't it? Either be a period or be a comma, but make up your mind.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/seems-indecisive-doesn-t-it-either-be-a-period-or-be-a-comma-but-make/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [I'm pretty sure when I need a comma; I'm not so sure about a semicolon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-hernandez/i-m-pretty-sure-when-i-need-a-comma-i-m-not-so-sure-about-a-semicolon/) [Keith Hernandez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-hernandez/) > [“The semicolon, my friends, is the punctuation mark we use to join two complete sentences. When we want to separate two complete sentences, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-baranick/the-semicolon-my-friends-is-the-punctuation-mark-we-use-to-join-two/) [Jenny Baranick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-baranick/) > [“We might also want to use a semicolon to hold together two sentences to avoid giving the reader too much time to think about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-baranick/we-might-also-want-to-use-a-semicolon-to-hold-together-two-sentences/) [Jenny Baranick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-baranick/) > [A comma . . . catches the gentle drift of the mind in thought, turning in on itself and back on itself, reversing, redoubling,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/a-comma-catches-the-gentle-drift-of-the-mind-in-thought-turning-in-on/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [I use a whole lot of half-assed semicolons; there was one of them just now; that was a semicolon after 'semicolons,' and another one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/i-use-a-whole-lot-of-half-assed-semicolons-there-was-one-of-them-just/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [Semicolons . . . signal, rather than shout, a relationship. . . . A semicolon is a compliment from the writer to the reader.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-will/semicolons-signal-rather-than-shout-a-relationship-a-semicolon-is-a/) [George Will](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-will/) > [“Nora— Forgive me for copyediting, but it must be said—you have raped the semicolon yet again. Stop it. It wasn’t asking for it no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tiffany-reisz/nora-forgive-me-for-copyediting-but-it-must-be-said-you-have-raped/) [Tiffany Reisz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tiffany-reisz/) > [It is almost always a greater pleasure to come across a semicolon than a period. The period tells you that that is that; if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-thomas/it-is-almost-always-a-greater-pleasure-to-come-across-a-semicolon/) [Lewis Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-thomas/) > [“The stops point out, with truth, the time of pause A sentence doth require at ev'ry clause. t ev'ry comma, stop while one you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cecil-hartley/the-stops-point-out-with-truth-the-time-of-pause-a-sentence-doth/) Cecil Hartley > [“The American writer Donald Barthelme wrote that the semicolon is “ugly, ugly as a tick on a dog’s belly”.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lynne-truss/the-american-writer-donald-barthelme-wrote-that-the-semicolon-is-ugly/) [Lynne Truss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lynne-truss/) > [Sometimes you get a glimpse of a semicolon coming, a few lines farther on, and it is like climbing a steep path through woods…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lewis-thomas/sometimes-you-get-a-glimpse-of-a-semicolon-coming-a-few-lines-farther/) [Lewis Thomas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lewis-thomas/) > [How hideous is the semicolon.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/how-hideous-is-the-semicolon/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [“Academics love the semicolon; their hankering after logic demands a division which is more emphatic than a comma, but not quite as absolute a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/victor-klemperer/academics-love-the-semicolon-their-hankering-after-logic-demands-a/) [Victor Klemperer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/victor-klemperer/) > [“You didn’t put a semicolon there — God did.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eleanor-brownn/you-didn-t-put-a-semicolon-there-god-did/) [Eleanor Brownn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eleanor-brownn/) ## More by Jenny Baranick > [“The difference between lay and lie is like the difference between sadism and masochism: one means doing something to someone (or something) else, while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-baranick/the-difference-between-lay-and-lie-is-like-the-difference-between/) [Jenny Baranick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-baranick/) > [“We use the en dash when we want to express a range of values: Goldilocks will only sleep on Egyptian cotton sheets with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-baranick/we-use-the-en-dash-when-we-want-to-express-a-range-of-values/) [Jenny Baranick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-baranick/) > [“Lacks commitment: I suppose I could marry Dan. Acknowledges commitment: I’m supposed to marry Dan.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-baranick/lacks-commitment-i-suppose-i-could-marry-dan-acknowledges-commitment/) [Jenny Baranick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-baranick/) > [“First impressions stick. That’s why it’s so important that we do tedious things like remember to wear deodorant, brush our teeth, and insert commas…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-baranick/first-impressions-stick-that-s-why-it-s-so-important-that-we-do/) [Jenny Baranick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-baranick/) > [“The semicolon, my friends, is the punctuation mark we use to join two complete sentences. When we want to separate two complete sentences, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-baranick/the-semicolon-my-friends-is-the-punctuation-mark-we-use-to-join-two/) [Jenny Baranick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-baranick/) > [“Guys who kiss like they’re giving CPR should have to attend kissing classes. If I take out “who kiss like they’re giving CPR,” this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-baranick/guys-who-kiss-like-they-re-giving-cpr-should-have-to-attend-kissing/) [Jenny Baranick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-baranick/) > [“You may think that you don't need to worry about actually learning the grammar rules because spell check and grammar check will come to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-baranick/you-may-think-that-you-don-t-need-to-worry-about-actually-learning/) [Jenny Baranick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-baranick/) > [“In high school, I was such a slut. And I was not alone; most girls in my high school were total sluts. We didn’t…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-baranick/in-high-school-i-was-such-a-slut-and-i-was-not-alone-most-girls-in-my/) [Jenny Baranick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-baranick/) > [“I am the English teacher who teaches the “boring stuff”— I teach a class on grammar called Writing Skills. My students think I love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-baranick/i-am-the-english-teacher-who-teaches-the-boring-stuff-i-teach-a-class/) [Jenny Baranick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-baranick/) > [“A comma splice means that a comma has been inserted between two complete sentences.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-baranick/a-comma-splice-means-that-a-comma-has-been-inserted-between-two/) [Jenny Baranick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-baranick/) > [“Incorrect: I use to be the most popular guy in school, but now I am the Thursday night trivia king at the local bar.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-baranick/incorrect-i-use-to-be-the-most-popular-guy-in-school-but-now-i-am-the/) [Jenny Baranick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-baranick/) > [“We might also want to use a semicolon to hold together two sentences to avoid giving the reader too much time to think about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-baranick/we-might-also-want-to-use-a-semicolon-to-hold-together-two-sentences/) [Jenny Baranick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-baranick/) > [“Dictionaries are like vitamins and floss; we buy them and then never use them. Even I, an English teacher, a lover of words, have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-baranick/dictionaries-are-like-vitamins-and-floss-we-buy-them-and-then-never/) [Jenny Baranick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-baranick/) > [“One of the most pressing questions of our time is arguably this: Does size matter? Is it about quantity or quality? Is it the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-baranick/one-of-the-most-pressing-questions-of-our-time-is-arguably-this-does/) [Jenny Baranick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-baranick/) > [“Not only can rearranging our sentences to avoid ending them in prepositions sound pretentious, it’s also unnecessary. Grammar experts agree that it’s perfectly acceptable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-baranick/not-only-can-rearranging-our-sentences-to-avoid-ending-them-in/) [Jenny Baranick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-baranick/) [Explore all 38 Jenny Baranick quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-baranick/) ## More Comma quotes > [Sometime yuh got to shut up, swallow yr pride and accept that yuh are wrong. It's not called giving up, it's called growing up](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teary-persaud/sometime-yuh-got-to-shut-up-swallow-yr-pride-and-accept-that-yuh-are/) [Teary Persaud](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teary-persaud/) > [There is truth and falsehood in a comma.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-stoppard/there-is-truth-and-falsehood-in-a-comma/) [Tom Stoppard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-stoppard/) > [“Never place a period in your life where God only meant to place a comma.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gracie-allen/never-place-a-period-in-your-life-where-god-only-meant-to-place-a/) [Gracie Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gracie-allen/) > [I mean we cant even rock them shoes if it dont got a comma on the price tag ya know. I mean.. I mean…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicki-minaj/i-mean-we-cant-even-rock-them-shoes-if-it-dont-got-a-comma-on-the/) [Nicki Minaj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicki-minaj/) > [“It is no accident, Ma, that the comma resembles a fetus— that curve of continuation. We were all once inside our mothers, saying with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ocean-vuong/it-is-no-accident-ma-that-the-comma-resembles-a-fetus-that-curve-of/) [Ocean Vuong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ocean-vuong/) > [A comma . . . catches the gentle drift of the mind in thought, turning in on itself and back on itself, reversing, redoubling,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pico-iyer/a-comma-catches-the-gentle-drift-of-the-mind-in-thought-turning-in-on/) [Pico Iyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pico-iyer/) > [My cholesterol count has a comma.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-pinette/my-cholesterol-count-has-a-comma/) [John Pinette](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-pinette/) > [The goofiness of radicals thinking they have to dress in Guatemalan peasant clothes. The poor don't want you to look like them. They want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tracy-kidder/the-goofiness-of-radicals-thinking-they-have-to-dress-in-guatemalan/) [Tracy Kidder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tracy-kidder/) > [“Consider failure as just a comma in the middle of a sentence that tells the story of your life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-o-leary/consider-failure-as-just-a-comma-in-the-middle-of-a-sentence-that/) [Jeff O'Leary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-o-leary/) > [Give me the comma of imperfect striving, thus to find zest in the immediate living. Ever the reaching but never the gaining, ever the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/winston-graham/give-me-the-comma-of-imperfect-striving-thus-to-find-zest-in-the/) [Winston Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/winston-graham/) > [I'm a fierce editor! I don't edit out things that I began by saying, usually. The editing is on the micro level - a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lydia-davis/i-m-a-fierce-editor-i-don-t-edit-out-things-that-i-began-by-saying/) [Lydia Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lydia-davis/) > [“Some folks metabolism isn't just slow, it's in a comma.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sincerrea-carrington/some-folks-metabolism-isn-t-just-slow-it-s-in-a-comma/) [Sincerrea Carrington](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sincerrea-carrington/) > [“1) I’m, a, comma, whore. Apparently, I throw them around like confetti. Or glitter. The title of my next book: WHY COMMAS RULE THE…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kimberly-derting/1-i-m-a-comma-whore-apparently-i-throw-them-around-like-confetti-or/) [Kimberly Derting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kimberly-derting/) > [I have spent most of the day putting in a comma and the rest of the day taking it out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/i-have-spent-most-of-the-day-putting-in-a-comma-and-the-rest-of-the/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [I guess its time for the trama, with the E-A-Z-Y-E comma now thats drama, so pay attention by the way I must mention, I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eazy-e/i-guess-its-time-for-the-trama-with-the-e-a-z-y-e-comma-now-thats/) [Eazy-E](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eazy-e/) Browse all 74 Comma quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“So we’re seemingly in quite a pickle. Sometimes a period provides too much pause between these two sentences, but the comma doesn’t provide enough. Luckily, the period and the comma had a drunken one-night stand and produced this adorable little spawn they named the semicolon.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Jenny Baranick" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-baranick/so-we-re-seemingly-in-quite-a-pickle-sometimes-a-period-provides-too/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Comma" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-baranick/so-we-re-seemingly-in-quite-a-pickle-sometimes-a-period-provides-too/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19d/jenny-baranick-17184_comma_so-we-re-seemingly-in-quite-a-pickle-som_2380618.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19d/jenny-baranick-17184_comma_so-we-re-seemingly-in-quite-a-pickle-som_2380618.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/19d/jenny-baranick-17184_comma_so-we-re-seemingly-in-quite-a-pickle-som_2380618.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“So we’re seemingly in quite a pickle. Sometimes a period provides too much pause between these two…” — Jenny Baranick", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Jenny Baranick", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jenny-baranick/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“So we’re seemingly in quite a...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-baranick/so-we-re-seemingly-in-quite-a-pickle-sometimes-a-period-provides-too/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jenny-baranick/so-we-re-seemingly-in-quite-a-pickle-sometimes-a-period-provides-too/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```