exclamation mark UK /ˌɛks.kləˈmeɪ.ʃn̩ ˌmɑːk/US /ˌɛks.kləˈmeɪ.ʃn̩ ˌmɑɹk/ noun1 •The punctuation mark “!” (generally used to denote excitement, surprise or shock).The excessive use of exclamation marks devalues their effect, but is typical of concise genres such as cartoons, not reference works! formsexclamation marks