The singular form is parenthesis, which is only one of the curved brackets, while the plural parentheses denotes the pair of open and closed curved brackets. Both words are of Greek origin. In terms of using the punctuation marks, you will almost always want to use them as a pair (parentheses).
In British usage they are known as round brackets (or simply brackets), square brackets, curly brackets, and angle brackets; in American usage they are respectively known as parentheses, brackets, braces, and chevrons.
A parenthesis is a punctuation mark used to enclose information, similar to a bracket. The open parenthesis, which looks like (, is used to begin parenthetical text. The close parenthesis, ), denotes the end of parenthetical text.
Their proper names are parentheses and braces. Parentheses is the proper term for curved, round brackets. Braces is the proper term for curly brackets. Square brackets are simply called brackets.
Side-by-side parentheses are used when two or more parenthetical elements need to be placed together inside a single phrase or sentence. Usage rules for side-by-side parentheses differ by academic style guide. APA style recommends using only one parenthesis and separating the parenthetical elements with a colon.
There are four types of brackets: parentheses, square brackets, angle brackets and curly brackets.
Parentheses and brackets are punctuation marks used to set apart certain words and sentences. Parentheses, ( ), are used to add extra information in text, while brackets, [ ], are used mainly in quotations to add extra information that wasn't in the original quote.
The difference between a 'bracket' and a 'parentheses' can be a bit confusing. Generally, 'parentheses' refers to round brackets ( ) and 'brackets' to square brackets [ ]. However, we are more and more used to hearing these referred to simply as 'round brackets' or 'square brackets'.
A pair of em dashes can replace a pair of parentheses. Dashes are considered less formal than parentheses; they are also more intrusive. If you want to draw attention to the parenthetical content, use dashes. If you want to include the parenthetical content more subtly, use parentheses.
Parentheses ( ) are used to enclose additional, non-essential information to clarify, explain, or add a side note in a sentence. Use parentheses to prevent disrupting the flow of a sentence. Examples: She is coming to our house after work (around six o' clock). I am going to visit my grandma (my dad's mom) today.
In British English, "bracket" normally refers to the "round" type, which is called a "parenthesis" mark in American usage. Parentheses are the curved brackets "( )". They are also called round brackets, curved brackets, oval brackets, or, colloquially, parens.
There are three kinds of brackets used for mathematical expressions: Parentheses or round brackets represented as: '( )' Curly or brace brackets represented as: '{ }' Square or box brackets represented as: '[ ]'
Types of Brackets
The four main paired punctuation symbols are the bracket (or square bracket; also called parenthesis in British English), the parenthesis (plural: parentheses), the brace (curly bracket in British English), and the inequality sign (pointy bracket).
Curly brackets {}
Curly brackets, also known as braces or curly braces, are rarely used in formal writing and are more common in other fields such as science, math, and computing.
Square brackets are used, usually in books and articles, when supplying words that make a quotation clearer or that comment on it, although they were not originally said or written.
parentheses or "round brackets" ( ) "square brackets" or "box brackets" [ ] braces or "curly brackets" { } "angle brackets" < >
() are parentheses. They are used to supply additional information and comments to a sentence. [] are square brackets, which are used to supply context to a sentence with omitted information. {} are curly brackets, which don't have a literary use but are used in programming commonly.
Square Brackets […] are most often used to include additional information from an outside source (someone other than the original author). Curly Brackets {…} are often used in prose to designate a list of equal choices. Angle Brackets <…> are typically used to enclose and illustrate highlighted information.
The most common error in using parenthesis marks (besides using them too much) is to forget to enclose the parenthetical material with a final, closing parenthesis mark. The second most common is to place concluding punctuation incorrectly.
Use parentheses to enclose information that clarifies or is used as an aside. Example: He finally answered (after taking five minutes to think) that he did not understand the question. If material in parentheses ends a sentence, the period goes after the parentheses. Example: He gave me a nice bonus ($500).
Because they are so jarring to the reader, parentheses should be avoided whenever possible. If removing a parenthetical note changes the meaning of the sentence, it should not be in parentheses. Place a period outside a closing parenthesis if the material inside is not a sentence (such as this fragment).
Just as people often say hyphen when they mean dash, they say brackets when they mean parentheses ( e.g. , "Should I put this part of the sentence in brackets?"). It's understandable that we Canadians should waver on terminology, being in the middle, as we are, of that sandwich of British and American usage.