The comma appears to be a harmless little
fellow, but don't let
appearances deceive you. Sure, the little guy
never shouts, never
declares, never questions, never even finishes
a sentence, but that
doesn't mean he holds no power. In fact, he is
the hardest working of
all the punctuation marks�the
only
one
often appearing more than once in a single
sentence. He holds
the power to change the meaning of a sentence
and to disrupt the flow
of prose. Therefore, isn't it time to give the
little guy his due and
quit misunderstanding him? Here's his M.O.:
Use
a
comma to separate the clauses of a compound
sentence connected by a
coordinating conjunction (and, but, or,
nor, for, so and yet).
The
comma is placed before the
coordinating conjunction, not
after. Example:
The students ate spaghetti for
dinner, but
they had no dessert.
However,
do not use a comma before and,
but, or and
nor
when they link pairs of words, phrases or
elements other than main
clauses. Example:
The
trick
here is to recognize whether the conjunction
separates a main
clause (or major thought), or if it simply
links pairs of words or
phrases. Writers may omit the comma in short
compound sentences when
the connection between the clauses is close,
but it is required when
linking the elements of a compound sentence.
If the sentence is clearly
understandable without the comma, it's
probably okay to omit it, too.
Here's an example:
Use
the
comma to separate two or more adjectives
modifying the same noun if and
could be used between them without changing
the
meaning. Example:
Janine pushed her long, straight
hair out of
her eyes.
However,
do
not use a comma between unequal adjectives
or when an adjective
modifies another adjective (instead of the
noun):
The
comma
also separates the items in a list or a
series. Example:
Jasmine visited the park, the
museum, the
court house, and the historical hotel on
the last day of her vacation.
Note
that
the comma before the last item in the series
(the one directly
before and) is optional. Also, note
that no comma appears
before the first element in the list (the
park), nor after the last
element in the list (the historical hotel).
The
comma
is used in setting off transitional
expressions (however,
regardless, of course and so on) from
the rest of the sentence.
Examples:
The weight of the ball, however,
was greater
than the strength of the boy.
Of course, we could have eaten
after they
arrived.
Use
the
comma with introductory elements:
No, he didn't wear a hat.
When the bell rings, the students
race through
the halls.
A
comma sets off long phrases that precede a
principal clause:
Before we could call Great Aunt
Mary, we had
to locate her phone number.
The
comma
sets off words or phrases that rename nouns.
Examples:
John, my oldest cousin, loves to
garden.
However,
do
not use a comma if the added information is
essential to the meaning
of the sentence, such as:
The song "Unchained Melody" melts
my heart.
People who dream in color are
thought to be
clairvoyant.
The
test
is whether the sentence makes sense if the
renamed noun is removed
from the sentence.
A
comma can indicate the omission of a word or
words:
To err is human; to forgive,
divine.
Use
a
comma to set off a word of direct address:
Thank
you,
Wilma, for teaching me about commas.
A
comma is used to set off a quotation from a
dialogue tag. Examples:
He said, "I didn't do it."
"I don't believe it," Jason
replied, "but
maybe if you prove it, I will."
A
comma sets off a tag question from the rest
of the sentence:
I didn't see it there, did you?
You
can
also use a comma to set off any sentence
element that might be
misunderstood if the comma were not used,
such as:
To me, Millie would always be my
best friend.
And
finally,
use a comma to set off a city from a state,
the year from a
full date, a series of four or more numbers,
and to set off titles and
degrees from surnames and from the rest of a
sentence:
My children were born in
Winneconne, Wisconsin.
My oldest daughter was born on
November 21,
1986.
I wish my husband made $625,000 a
year.
My husband's full name is Sherden
C. Tritt,
Jr., although he goes by "Butch."
As
you
can see, the innocuous little fellow known
as the comma can be
quite cantankerous. Study this little guy�once
you've
mastered
him,
you've accomplished a great feat.
For additional tips,
worksheets, and discussions, order your own
copy of the
Inspiration for Writers Tips and
Techniques Workbook.
