Period

Summary

The period is the most commonly used punctuation in writing and texting. Although it can mean many things, it generally notates a serious or angry tone of voice from the sender.

Texting Uses

The period is used by literally everyone who texts. This being said, many different people use it in different ways (see context).

Context

The period is so universally used that it can mean many different things. The main use of the period is anger or seriousness, as a neutral sentence in texting generally has no end punctuation. Since the period adds such a serious tone to a sent message, it is generally read as angry. A period or lack of one can completely change the way something is supposed to be implied:

Photo courtesy of this article on NewRepublic which indicates the new meaning of the period.

Although the period implies anger, it does not imply just any form of anger. It implies subtle anger, which is characterized by the sender being angry, but wanting their recipient to figure it out themselves instead of the sender directly saying it. The period is passive-aggressive in this nature, and is not to be used when happy, so as not to give the recipient the wrong idea.

One extreme example of a period being a companion to angry phrase in texting is the term “K.”. This phrase, coined as the K-Period on TheCrimson.com’s post about what texting punctuation indicates, shows that the sender is fed up and has nothing else to say but “K.”, which is another example of how a period can make all of the difference in a text message. For example, if someone says “k”, it usually means they are acknowledging you, but are just in a rush and don’t have time to text. In contrast, a K-Period indicates that the person is angry and is not willing to talk unless they receive an apology or explanation.

Periods can also be used to notate a serious tone when the other person in a conversation is joking around. If you are not in on the joke, or wish to be serious, a simple “Stop.” will usually be enough to let the other person in your conversation know that you mean business.

Lastly, and more rarely, periods can be used to notate emphasis. This is generally done when periods are used between each word of a sentence. More about periods’ power to emphasize and show emotion can be found on AllThingsLinguistic’s blog.