"I am trying to generate a CMW link for my Unit 4 Lesson 4 portfolio, only to be greeted with a red message telling me that there is an error in doing so (i.e. it is not able to generate such a link for me.)."
Is putting the period at the end of the parentheses, as well as at the end of this entire sentence, correct, or no? Please explain (this is not a homework question, I'm asking this out of curiosity because I sent it to my teacher and was wondering if this is how you properly end an English sentence), thank you so much :)
To determine whether to put the period at the end of the parentheses or at the end of the entire sentence, we need to follow a few rules of punctuation.
Generally, if the text inside the parentheses is a standalone sentence, the period should go inside the closing parenthesis. For example:
"I am trying to generate a CMW link for my Unit 4 Lesson 4 portfolio, only to be greeted with a red message telling me that there is an error in doing so (it is not able to generate such a link for me)."
However, if the text inside the parentheses is part of a larger sentence, the period should go after the closing parenthesis. For example:
"I am trying to generate a CMW link for my Unit 4 Lesson 4 portfolio, only to be greeted with a red message telling me that there is an error in doing so (I'm not sure why)."
In the case of your question, since "Please explain" is intended as a separate sentence from the previous sentence, the period should go after the closing parenthesis and at the end of the entire sentence, like this:
"Is putting the period at the end of the parentheses, as well as at the end of this entire sentence, correct, or no? Please explain. Thank you so much :)"