Know which Chinese punctuation marks to use in your writing

With the opening day for the MSL Master Chinese Writing Contest 2026 less than two weeks away, it is the perfect time to review an area that often trips up language learners: Chinese punctuation marks.

Using punctuation correctly is vital for a qualifying entry. However, because Chinese punctuation rules differ from English, many second-language learners find them confusing. For instance, because Chinese lacks capital letters to signal proper nouns or book titles, it relies on entirely unique punctuation marks.

Understanding where these marks come from—and how to type them correctly—will give your submission a polished, professional edge.

A Brief History of Chinese Punctuation

Compared to the long history of the Chinese language, punctuation is a modern invention. For thousands of years, Chinese texts were printed in vertical columns from top to bottom with absolutely no spaces or marks between characters. Readers were expected to know naturally where a sentence ended.

By the early 20th century, scholars realised that incorporating punctuation would make reading faster, easier, and far less ambiguous. They paired traditional pause marks with Western punctuation elements to create a standardised set.

Shortly after, the layout of Chinese books shifted from ancient vertical columns to the modern, horizontal left-to-right format we use today. This layout change altered how certain marks are used. For example, while the vertical quotation marks “「」” work beautifully in vertical texts, they are outdated in horizontal layouts. For this contest, we follow modern horizontal standards: use “ “” ”, not “「」”.

The Digital Challenge: Full-Width Spaces

Because this contest requires submissions via Google Forms, you will be typing your entry. This brings up the most common mistake: spacing.

In digital typesetting, Chinese characters occupy a "full-width" space (a square block). Chinese punctuation marks must also occupy this exact same full-width space.

If you use a Pinyin keyboard layout, your computer input method might default to standard English "half-width" punctuation. For example, instead of a proper Chinese full stop “ 。”, it might mistakenly type an English period “.”. Or, instead of a full-width comma “，”, it might insert a thin English comma “,”.

Tip: To avoid formatting errors, double-check your keyboard settings while typing, switch to a handwriting input mode, or manually review your punctuation spacing before hitting submit.

Five Essential Punctuation Marks for Your Submission

To help you polish your story, pay close attention to these five commonly misused marks:

1. Full Stop | 句号 (jù hào) — “ 。”

The Chinese full stop is a small, hollow circle. Never use a solid English period “.” in your Chinese text.

2. Slanted Comma | 顿号 (dùn hào) — “ 、”

Often called the "enumeration comma," this short, slanted dash is strictly used to separate words or phrases in a list.

3. Regular Comma | 逗号 (dòu hào) — “ ，”

This looks like an English comma but takes up a full-width character space. Use it to indicate a pause between clauses in a sentence, not for separating lists of items.

4. Book Title Marks | 书名号 (shū míng hào) — “ 《 》 ”

Because Chinese has no italics or capitalisation, titles of books, newspapers, magazines, articles, or movies must be placed inside these brackets.

5. Quotation Marks | 引号 (yǐn hào) — “ “ ” ”

Always use the horizontal quotation marks “ “” ” to denote dialogue or direct quotes. Do not use the vertical brackets “「」”.

Mastering these small details will make your text highly readable and ensure your 320-character masterpiece looks flawless to the public voters. 

Best of luck with your writing, and see you on August 1!