Brackets and parentheses Wikipedia:Manual of Style

mos:b&p
mos:bracket
mos:paren

the rules in section apply both round brackets ( ), called parentheses, , square brackets [ ].

if sentence contains bracketed phrase, place sentence punctuation outside brackets (as shown here). however, 1 or more sentences wholly inside brackets, place punctuation inside brackets. (for examples, see § sentences , brackets, below.) there should no space next inner side of bracket. opening bracket should preceded space, example. may not case if preceded opening quotation mark, opening bracket, or portion of word:

he rose address meeting: (ahem) ... ladies , gentlemen, welcome!
only royal characters in play ([prince] hamlet , family) habitually speak in blank verse.
we journeyed on inter[continental].

there should space after closing bracket, except punctuation mark follows (though spaced dash still spaced after closing bracket) , in unusual cases similar listed opening brackets.

if sets of brackets nested, use different types adjacent levels of nesting; 2 levels, customary have square brackets appear within round brackets. sign of excessively convoluted expression; better recast, linking thoughts commas, semicolons, colons, or dashes.

avoid adjacent sets of brackets. either put parenthetic phrases in 1 set separated commas, or rewrite sentence:

square brackets used indicate editorial replacements , insertions within quotations, though should never alter intended meaning. serve 3 main purposes:

to clarify. (she attended [secondary] school, intended meaning, type of school unstated in original sentence.)
to reduce size of quotation. (x contains y, , under circumstances, x may contain z may reduced x contains y [and z].) when ellipsis (...) used indicate material removed direct quotation, should not bracketed (see § ellipses, below).
to make grammar work. (referring s statement hate laundry , 1 write hate[s] laundry .)

sentences , brackets

if sentence includes material enclosed in square or round brackets, still must end—with period, question mark, or exclamation mark—after brackets. principle applies no matter punctuation used within brackets:


however, if entire sentence within brackets, closing punctuation falls within brackets. (this sentence example.) not apply matter added (or modified editorially) @ beginning of sentence clarity, in square brackets:

that preferable this, potentially ambiguous:

but here consider addition rather replacement of text:


a sentence occurs within brackets in course of sentence not have first word capitalized nor end period (full stop) because starts sentence:

it clearer rewrite single sentence or separate thoughts separate sentences:



brackets , linking

brackets inside of links must escaped:

the <nowiki> markup can used: <nowiki>[doe]</nowiki> or <nowiki>[etc.]</nowiki>.

if url contains square brackets, wiki-text should use url-encoded form http://example.site/foo.php?query=%5bxxx%5dyyy, rather ...query=[xxx]yyy. avoid truncation of link after xxx.

cite error: there <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on page, references not show without {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see page).