Which punctuation mark is commonly used to indicate a pause in prose?

The semicolon serves a specific role in connecting closely related ideas within a sentence, but it is not primarily used to indicate a pause in prose. Instead, the dash is the punctuation mark most commonly associated with creating a significant pause for emphasis or a shift in thought within a sentence. Dashes can create a dramatic effect or enhance the readability of complex sentences by breaking up ideas. This distinct function makes dashes particularly effective in prose where a writer wants to draw attention to a specific point or create a pause for dramatic effect. While colons and hyphens serve their own purposes—introducing lists or clarifying relationships between words—they do not typically denote pauses in the same way a dash does. Therefore, the best answer to indicate a pause in prose is the dash.