COMMA

I. Commas SHOULD be Used in the Following Situations 1) USE COMMAS to Se a!ate "h!ee o! Mo!e Items in a Se!ies Examples It is time for me to collect your papers, to read them, and to comment on your work. We had soft-boiled eggs, tomato juice, and dry wheat toast for breakfast. DO #O" use a $omma to se a!ate onl% two items in a se!ies. Examples He enjoys skiing and running. He knew that she was en ious of him and that she would try to ruin his plans. &) USE COMMAS to O''set Int!odu$to!% (h!ases) "!ansitional E* !essions) and (a!entheti$als Examples !y the end of the day, e eryone was exhausted. "eachers, though, are underpaid. "he test, it seems, was too difficult. "oday, commas are starting to disappear from short introductory phrases, but make sure to use a comma e en for a short introductory phrase if the absence of a comma could cause confusion, as in #$fter eating the dog wanted to go out.# +) USE COMMAS to O''set A ositi,es

Examples %alph, my best friend, eloped with my fianc&. 'y best friend, %alph, eloped with my fianc&. (ote) $n #appositi e# simply renames something. In the abo e examples #my best friend# and #%alph# are exactly the same thing, so you would use commas to offset your #renaming# of the subject. -) USE COMMAS to O''set #on!est!i$ti,e Clauses Examples *ur doctor, whom we isit often, is on acation. English +,+, which is re-uired for most students, is a challenging course. (ote) $ #nonrestricti e clause# gi es additional information that is not ital to the meaning of a sentence. In both examples abo e, the information between the commas could be remo ed, and the main points of the sentences would not change. .) USE A COMMA /etween "wo Inde endent Clauses Se a!ated b% One o' the 0Fan /o%s0 1'o!) and) no!) but) o!) %et) so) Examples He graduated from college with honors, and he was hired by I!' immediately after graduation. .he joined the health club, but she was not satisfied with the results. He studied all night, for the instructor promised a #challenging# exam.

(ote) /* (*" use a comma if there is not a new subject after the word 0one of the #fan boys#1 that links the two parts of your sentence. Examples He graduated from I233 with honors and was hired by I!' immediately after graduation. .he joined the health club but was not satisfied with the results 2) USE COMMAS to Se a!ate Inde endent Clauses '!om De endent Clauses Examples If the rain continues, we will ha e to cancel the picnic. $lthough he studied all week, 4rank was still unable to pass the exam. Howe er, don5t put a comma after the main clause when a dependent 0subordinate1 clause follows it 0except for cases of extreme contrast1. In$o!!e$t3 "he cat scratched at the door, while I was eating. Co!!e$t3 .he was still -uite upset, although she had won the *scar. 0"his comma use is correct because it is an example of extreme contrast.1 3ommon introductory phrases that should be followed by a comma include participial and infiniti e phrases, absolute phrases, nonessential appositi e phrases, and long prepositional phrases 0o er four words1. Ha,ing 'inished the test) he left the room. "o get a seat) you5d better come early. A'te! the test but be'o!e lun$h) I went jogging. "he sun !adiating intense heat) we sought shelter in the caf& 3ommon introductory words that should be followed by a comma include yes, however, well. 4ell) perhaps he meant no harm. 5es) the package should arri e tomorrow morning. Howe,e!) you may not be satisfied with the results. 6) Use $ommas to se a!ate two o! mo!e $oo!dinate ad7e$ti,es that des$!ibe the same noun. /e su!e ne,e! to add an e*t!a $omma between the 'inal ad7e$ti,e and the noun itsel' o! to use $ommas with non8$oo!dinate ad7e$ti,es. 3oordinate adjecti es are adjecti es with e-ual 0#co#-ordinate1 status in describing the noun6 neither adjecti e is subordinate to the other. 7ou can decide if two adjecti es in a row are coordinate by asking the following -uestions) /oes the sentence make sense if the adjecti es are written in re erse order8 /oes the sentence make sense if the adjecti es are written with and between them8

If you answer yes to these -uestions, then the adjecti es are coordinate and should be separated by a comma. Here are some examples of coordinate and non-coordinate adjecti es) He was a difficult) stubborn child. 0coordinate1 .he often wore a gray wool shawl. 0non-coordinate1 7our cousin has an easy) happy smile. 0coordinate1 "he +1 relentless) 91 powerful :1 summer sun beat down on them. 0+-9 are coordinate6 9-: are non-coordinate.1

"he +1 relentless) 91 powerful) :1 oppressi e sun beat down on them. 0!oth +-9 and 9-: are coordinate.1 9). Use a $omma nea! the end o' a senten$e to se a!ate $ont!asted $oo!dinate elements o! to indi$ate a distin$t ause o! shi't. He was merely ignorant) not stupid. "he chimpan;ee seemed reflecti e) almost human. 7ou5re one of the senator5s close friends) aren5t you8 "he speaker seemed innocent) e en gullible. :). Use $ommas to set o'' h!ases at the end o' the senten$e that !e'e! to the beginning o! middle o' the senten$e. Su$h h!ases a!e '!ee modi'ie!s that $an be la$ed an%whe!e in the senten$e without $ausing $on'usion. 1I' the la$ement o' the modi'ie! $auses $on'usion) then it is not 0'!ee0 and must !emain 0bound0 to the wo!d it modi'ies.) (ancy wa ed enthusiastically at the docking ship, laughing joyously. 0correct1 In$o!!e$t3 <isa wa ed at (ancy, laughing joyously. 0Who is laughing, <isa or (ancy81 <aughing joyously) <isa wa ed at (ancy. 0correct1 <isa wa ed at (ancy) who was laughing joyously. 0correct1 1;). Use $ommas to set o'' all geog!a hi$al names) items in dates 1e*$e t the month and da%)) add!esses 1e*$e t the st!eet numbe! and name)) and titles in names. !irmingham) $labama, gets its name from !irmingham ) England. =uly 99, +>?>) was a momentous day in his life. Who li es at +@,, Aennsyl ania $ enue) Washington, /38 %achel !. <ake) '/) will be the principal speaker. 0When you use just the month and the year, no comma is necessary after the month or year) #"he a erage temperatures for =uly +>>B are the highest on record for that month#.1 11). Use a $omma to shi't between the main dis$ou!se and a <uotation. =ohn said without emotion) #I5ll see you tomorrow#. #I was able)# she answered) #to complete the assignment#. In +BCB) 'arx wrote) #Workers of the world, uniteD# 1&). Use $ommas whe!e,e! ne$essa!% to !e,ent ossible $on'usion o! mis!eading. "o Eeorge) Harrison had been a sort of idol.

II. Commas SHOULD #O" /e Used in the Following Situations

1) DO #O" Use Commas 'o! =est!i$ti,e Clauses Aeople who do their work efficiently make good students. "ele isions that contain the new 2-chip will help parents control what their children watch. .tories which are difficult to read are seldom popular with students.

(ote) $ #restricti e clause# presents information that #restricts# or limits the meaning of another word. In the first example abo e, I am not saying that #Aeople make good students# 0which would not make much sense16 instead, I am #restricting# the kind of people I am talking aboutF#people who do their work efficiently#. <ikewise, tele isions will

not help parents control what their children watch6 instead #tele isions that contain the new 2-chip# will. !ecause restricti e clauses are ital to the meaning of a sentence, they should (*" be offset with commas. (ote the differences between #nonrestricti e clauses# and #restricti e clauses#D /* (*" confuse a restricti e clause with an appositi e. $re commas used correctly in the following sentence8 #.hakespeareGs play, Hamlet, deals with important philosophical issues.# (o, they are not. $pparently, the writer is thinking that Hamlet is an appositi e for #.hakespeareGs play,# that Hamlet and #.hakespeareGs play# and exactly the same thing, but they are not. .hakespeare wrote more than one play, so Hamlet needs to be treated as a restricti e clause 0it is #restricting# which play the writer is talking about1, and the sentence needs to be rewritten as #.hakespeareGs play Hamlet deals with important philosophical issues.#

(otice the difference in meaning con eyed by the commas alone in the following examples) !ig !ubba .mith5s popular song #.tuck in the *uthouse $gain# is one of my fa orite tunes.

In this example, the lack of commas indicates that !ig !ubba has more than one #popular song#. 3ommas are not used because #.tuck in the *uthouse $gain# is acting as a restricti e clause--it is restricting which #popular song# I am referring to. "he title of the song is not simply renaming #popular song#. !ig !ubba .mith5s popular song, #.tuck in the *uthouse $gain,# is one of my fa orite tunes.

In this example, the commas indicates that !ig !ubba has only one #popular song#. 3ommas are used because #.tuck in the *uthouse $gain# is acting as an appositi e, an exact renaming of !ig !ubba5s only #popular song#. What is the difference in meaning between the two sentences below8 'y sister 'eg called me this afternoon. 'y sister, 'eg, called me this afternoon.

&) DO #O" Use Commas to Se a!ate a Sub7e$t '!om its >e!b "he salesman carrying the leather briefcase full of samples0,1 arri ed at the door. "he storm that ra ished 4lorida and continued to make its way up the East coast0,1 finally dissipated before it reached our home.

+) DO #O" Use Commas to Se a!ate "wo Inde endent Clauses .he could stand it no longer0,1 she had to -uit. "he sharks began to circle the rubber raft0,1 the men panicked. "he exam was difficult0,1 howe er, I answered all of the -uestions correctlyD

Hsing a comma to separate two complete sentences creates a #comma splice#. "o correct a comma splice, 0+1 replace the comma with a semicolon, 091 replace the comma with a period, or 0:1 keep the comma but add a word after the comma that logically #links# the two sentences 0one of the #fan boys# would be a good choice1. Don?t ut a $omma between the two ,e!bs o! ,e!b h!ases in a $om ound !edi$ate@@@ In$o!!e$t3 We laid out our music and snacks, and began to study.

Don?t ut a $omma between the two nouns) noun h!ases) o! noun $lauses in a $om ound sub7e$t o! $om ound ob7e$t@@@ In$o!!e$t 1$om ound sub7e$t)3 "he music teacher from your high school, and the football coach from mine are married. In$o!!e$t 1$om ound ob7e$t)3 =eff told me that the job was still a ailable, and that the manager wanted to inter iew me. Don?t ut a $omma a'te! the main $lause when a de endent 1subo!dinate) $lause 'ollows it 1e*$e t 'o! $ases o' e*t!eme $ont!ast)@@@ In$o!!e$t 1e*t!eme $ont!ast)3 .he was late for class, but not because her alarm clock was broken. In$o!!e$t3 "he cat scratched at the door, while I was eating. Co!!e$t3 .he was still -uite upset, although she had won the *scar.0"his comma use is correct because it is an example of extreme contrast1