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I'm writing something along the lines of

The service is comprised of two parts; detailed tracking, and logging.

Should I employ the semi-colon, as above, or is a colon more appropriate? Or should I start a new sentence? My feeling, because this is such a short list, is that a new sentence would be somewhat clunky. This is a follow up to the helpful answer I found about comprise.

JJJ
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Dave
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    IMO a colon is definitely the better choice. A colon indicates clearly that the clarification or exposition of the first part, comes in the second part. A semicolon however merely indicates somehow-related ideas being merged into a single sentence. – JDM-GBG Apr 12 '19 at 10:35
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    Thank you, that makes a lot of sense. The direct indication, offered by the colon, is something that had escaped me. – Dave Apr 12 '19 at 10:38

2 Answers2

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  1. "Comprised of" is non-standard usage; "composed of" is preferred.
  2. When introducing a list with a colon, it's common to separate the subsequent list items with a semicolon or to format the list items as bulleted phrases (though this is far less common).

The service is composed of two parts: detailed tracking; and logging.

alternatively—though much less common:

The service is composed of two parts:

  • detailed tracking.
  • logging.
Just Some Guy
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Semicolons are used to separate two independent clauses without conjunction, which isn’t the case for your sentence, so you should use a comma. Also, looking up the word comprise in Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English, the example it shows is almost like yours:

The house comprises two bedrooms, a kitchen, and a living room.

Neeku
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    Why downvote, if you don’t mind taking a minute to explain the issue rather than clicking a button? – Neeku Apr 12 '19 at 15:21
  • I'd love to know that too. I didn't down vote it. – Dave Apr 12 '19 at 16:11
  • Hi @Dave. Maybe consider upvoting if you found the answer helpful:) – Neeku Apr 13 '19 at 11:00
  • Your sentence is NOT "almost like" Op's sentence: your sentence has a verb ("comprises") introducing a list. In Op's sentence the verbal phrase ("is comprised of") introduces the phrase "of two parts" - and the sentence could end there: "The service is comprised of two parts." In Op's sentence, the list is an expansion / explanation of the words "two parts"; but your sentence does not have** anything corresponding to the words "two parts". Therefore, Op's sentence needs punctuation to connect the words "two parts" with the list that amplifies those "two parts". ... Cont'd – TrevorD May 12 '19 at 22:53
  • Cont'd ... In my view that 'connection' between "... two parts" and the following list of those two parts requires either a colon (:) or an em-dash. The list after the colon or dash amplifies the words "two parts". Your sentence has nothing equivalent to the words "two parts" in Op's sentence. – TrevorD May 12 '19 at 23:01
  • As someone who has not voted on this answer, but often explains his downvotes to other answers, may I answer your comment “Why downvote if you don’t mind talking a minute …”. My experience is that frequently this results in an aggressive and abusive response from the person who has made the answer. As a comment is not required for a downvote, I suspect many list members prefer to avoid the “agro”. – David Nov 16 '19 at 13:07