Definition

Noun: A punctuation mark (.) used primarily to indicate the end of a declarative sentence or to signify an abbreviation. It is also commonly known as a "period" or "full stop."

Usage

The full point is used in written English to mark a complete stop in thought or sentence structure. * It is placed at the end of a statement or command. * It follows many abbreviations.

Examples

• End of a sentence:
• With abbreviations:

Advanced Usage

• In digital contexts (URLs, file names), the full point is often referred to as a "dot" (e.g., "example.com" is said as "example dot com").
• In some British English style guides, the full point is omitted from certain abbreviations that include the first and last letters of the shortened word (e.g., "Mr" not "Mr.", "Dr" not "Dr."), though this practice is not universal.

Variants and Related Words

• Period (noun): The common American English term for a full point.
• Full stop (noun): The common British English term for a full point.
• Dot (noun): An informal term, especially in computing and telecommunication contexts.
• Point (noun): Used in some contexts, such as in "decimal point."

Synonyms

• Period
• Full stop
• Stop (chiefly British, informal in this context)

Related Phrases

• To put a full point to something: An idiomatic expression meaning to bring something to a definite end or conclusion.
  • The successful product launch put a full point to months of hard work.

Noun

1. a punctuation mark (.) placed at the end of a declarative sentence to indicate a full stop or after abbreviations
   • in England they call a period a stop