Legal Writing

In Search of a 4-Dot Ellipsis

By Maeve

Reader Vic Shane writes:

…my editor told me there is a four-dot ellipsis that is not the same thing as the three-dot version. When I went to Journalism school (32 years ago), we only had the three-dot variety, as far as I know. The extra dot came from somewhere and I’d like to get to the bottom of it. I won’t rest until I know why that dot is floating around in the ethers looking for a sentence!

Alas, Vic. Yours is a bootless quest. All the authorities I’ve consulted agree that there is no such thing as a 4-dot ellipsis.

Sometimes the three dots are spaced out and sometimes they are squeezed together, but the ellipsis per se has three dots.

When the ellipsis occurs at the end of a sentence, it is followed by a period. In that case you will see a fourth dot, but that one is the end stop and does not belong to the ellipsis.

According to the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, spaces are inserted before, after, and between the dots of an ellipsis:

Charles I . . . lost his head. (NOT Charles…lost his head.)

If the ellipsis occurs at the end of a sentence, a space goes between the ellipsis and the end stop:

Her voice trailed off . . . . (NOT Her voice trailed off… .)

The web abounds with discussions of the ellipsis. Here are some links.

The Elusive Ellipsis (DWT)

Kent Law writing guidelines

Wikipedia article

The OWL Help Nest (scroll down)

Got the Daily Blog Tips Newsletter?

In Search of a 4-Dot Ellipsis

Full post as published by Daily Writing Tips on May 19, 2009 (boomark / email).