• Brackets look like this:

( ) or [ ] or < > or { }

• Brackets are used in pairs to set apart or interject text within a written text

• Parentheses ( )
• also called round brackets
• used to contain parenthetical (or optional, additional) material in a sentence that could be removed without destroying the meaning of the main text
• Example: "George Washington (the father of his country) was not the wooden figure with wooden teeth that many think him."
• used to add supplementary information
• Example: "Sen. Kennedy (D., Massachusetts) spoke at length."
• may also be nested
• Example: (with one set inside another set (but this is not commonly used in formal writing))
• Square brackets [ ]
• used to enclose explanatory or missing [...] material, especially in quoted text
• Example: "I appreciate it [the honor], but I must refuse."
• Example: "The future of psionics [See definition] is in doubt."
• Angle brackets < >
• used to enclose highlighted material, such as URL’s in text
• Example: "I found it in Fun Easy English <www.funeasyenglish.com>."
• Braces { }
• also called curly brackets
• used in specialized ways in poetry and music (to mark repeats or joined lines), and sometimes used in conventional text to indicate a series of equal choices
• Example: "Select your animal {goat, sheep, cow, horse} and follow me."