How to Use Bulleted Lists

Introduction: What is a Bulleted List and Why are They So Helpful?

Bulleted lists are extremely helpful in summarizing and organizing information. They are also very easy to read and comprehend.

Bulleted lists are also used to present the key points for a given topic, so that the reader can easily follow along with what is being discussed. This is usually done by using sub-bullets to break up the different points of the list.

How Bullet Lists Help with 5 Use Cases

Bullet Lists are short and concise lists. They are usually arranged in a single column and each item is separated by a hyphen, asterisk, or another symbol.

1. Bullet Lists are very popular for blog posts as they make it easier to read the content.
2. They can also be used for blogs that have a lot of information or any other type of content that has a lot of items.
3. Bullet Lists make it easier to skim through the content and find what you want more quickly.
4. When you need to remember something, Bullet Lists will help you do this because they give your brain a break from reading long blocks of text.
5. Some people prefer Bulleted Lists because they feel like they can get more done faster when writing them as opposed to paragraph form.

Important in Technical Writing

Bulleted lists are important in technical writing. They summarize information in a manner that is easy to read and absorb. Use them whenever you can to get your information across quickly.

“In winter months make sure to check your tires, have enough wood for the fireplace, make sure there is are extra blankets for the guests, and the pump water is shut off.”

“Make sure to do the following to get ready for the winter:

• Check your tires.
• Have enough wood for the fireplace.
• Keep extra blankets for the guests.
• Shut off the pump water.”

Another Comparison

Which list would you remember with less difficulty?

This one:

“A knowledge of mathematics, besides geometry, trigonometry and physics, is necessary for an civil engineer to know well.”

Or this?

“A civil engineer should know his

• mathematics
• geometry
• trigonometry
• physics

well.”

But when you are drawing up a bulleted list try to use “parallel construction”; that is, the bullet items should be similar grammatically. They should have the same mood and tense. If one starts with a verb, the others should also start with a verb.

Malformed bulleted List

“In my spare time, I love to

• go to a restaurant
• run 5K
• books are what I prefer over movies”

The first two items start with a verb, but the third doesn’t.

Corrected List

“In my spare time, I love to

• go to a restaurant
• run 5K
• read books rather than watch movies”

As you can see, now all items start with a direct action verb. It’s now easier to remember this list.