Colon (rhetoric)

In rhetoric, a colon is a punctuation mark (:) that is used to introduce a list, an explanation, or a quotation that follows directly from the preceding clause. It serves to signal to the reader that what comes next will elaborate on or clarify the information given before the colon. For example: - "She has three favorite hobbies: reading, painting, and hiking." - "He made one critical mistake: he underestimated his opponent.