Bullets and lists

Explanation for list and lead in combinations taken from Australian Government Style Manual.

Alignment

Align bulleted and numbered lists to the left.

Use minimal punctuation for all lists

In a bullet or numbered list, don’t use:

semicolons (;) or commas (,) at the end of list items
‘and’ or ‘or’ after list items.*

*Only include ‘and’ or ‘or’ after the second-last list item if it is critical to meaning – for example, you are writing in a legal context. Make sure the lead-in is a clear guide for how this kind of list should be interpreted.

Lists should always have more than one point. Short simple lists may be more suitable as a sentence with the items separated by commas, e.g.:

For breakfast I ate bacon, eggs and toast.

Rather than:

For breakfast I ate:

bacon
eggs
toast.

Make sure lists conform to their type. Consistency helps people scan lists.

Types of list

There are different ways to construct a list, whether the list is ordered or unordered.

Types of lists include:

sentence lists (full sentences, can come after any of the three lead ins)
fragment lists (a series of partial or incomplete sentences that complete the phrase lead-in)
stand-alone lists (stand-alone words or sentence fragments that comes after a heading).

Types of lead-ins

There are also 3 types of lead-ins that interact with specific list types:

heading (only followed by a sentence list or stand-alone list)
sentence lead-in (only followed by a sentence list)
phrase lead-in (followed by either a sentence list or phrase list).

Punctuation rules for list and lead-in combinations

The interaction and rules of lists and lead-ins is mapped in the table below.

List type	General rules	Lead in type	Specific Rules	Example
Sentence List	Sentence lists are a series of complete sentences that could make sense on their own. They can have either a heading, sentence lead-in or phrase lead-in. All sentence lists should follow normal sentence structure in each list item, with capital letter and full-stop. Align run-over lines with the text, not the bullet or number. Avoid using multiple sentences in each bullet or numbered item if possible. If you include more than one sentence per list item, consider whether all list items conform to a similar pattern, and the list builds rhythm for readability.	Heading	The heading should have no punctuation (no colon or full-stop). Start each list item with a capital letter, and end with a full-stop. Using full-stops will be important for screen-readers.	Actions The secretary will respond to each recommendation. The secretary will allocate responses that need more work to members. Members will discuss the recommendations at the next meeting on 9 March.
		Sentence lead-in	The sentence lead in may end with either a full-stop or a colon. Both are acceptable though a colon is more commonly used. Keep your punctuation choice consistent throughout the resource.	The committee members decided on several actions. The secretary will respond to each recommendation. The secretary will allocate responses that need more work to members. Members will discuss the recommendations at the next meeting on 9 March.
		Phrase lead-in	The phrase lead in must end in a colon. Use full sentence list items for imperative list items where there is no stated subject in the lead-in.	To write well: Use everyday words. Learn about the words people use. Choose simple words, not complicated expressions.
Fragment List	A fragment list has either a sentence or phrase lead-in. Use lower case for the first letter of each fragment, unless it’s a proper noun. Add a full stop to the last list item only. Use a grammatically parallel structure for each list item.	Sentence lead-in	The sentence lead-in must end with a colon if it will be followed by a fragment list.	Writers should become familiar with the conventional types of content structure: hierarchical sequential narrative.
Fragment List		Phrase lead-in	The phrase lead in must end in a colon. Fragment list items complete phrase lead-ins to form a grammatical sentence. Make sure each fragment can complete a phrase lead-in.	Queensland is famous for its: islands and coral reefs abundant wildlife tropical rainforest beautiful beaches. [If you combine the lead-in with each fragment, you make 4 complete sentences: Queensland is famous for its islands and coral reefs. Queensland is famous for its abundant wildlife. Queensland is famous for its tropical rainforest. Queensland is famous for its beautiful beaches.]
Stand-alone List	A stand-alone list has no lead-in, only a heading. Stand-alone list items do not form a grammatical sentence.	Heading	The heading should have no punctuation (no colon or full-stop). Start each list item with a capital letter. Don’t add full stops to the end of any of the list items (even the last item).	My weekly tasks Answer phone enquiries Book conference venues Order stationery Take meeting minutes

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