Southwest Airlines Professional Communications Certification Practice Exam

Which punctuation mark is typically used after an interjection or a strong command?

1. Period

2. Exclamation mark

3. Comma

4. Question mark

The correct answer is: Exclamation mark

The exclamation mark is the correct punctuation mark to use after an interjection or a strong command because it conveys the intensity or emotion behind what is being expressed. Interjections, such as "Wow!" or "Hey!", are abrupt remarks that express strong feelings or reactions, and the exclamation mark emphasizes that emotional response. Similarly, strong commands, like "Stop!" or "Listen!", are intended to grab attention and convey urgency, making the exclamation mark the appropriate choice to reflect that intensity. In contrast, a period indicates a complete thought with no additional emphasis, a comma serves to connect clauses or items in a list but does not indicate strong emotion or command, and a question mark suggests a query rather than an emphatic statement. Thus, using the exclamation mark in these contexts helps to accurately portray the speaker's expression and intention.