Comma, Comma, Who’s Got the Comma?
Commas can be confusing, especially as there are divergent opinions on some uses. Being the old-fashioned type, I’m going to give you only one set of rules, leaving the least chance of misapprehension of your writing.
Commas are used to signal a pause in thought or to set off a phrase or clause (either for emphasis or as an aside). One way to determine whether a commas is needed is to say the sentence aloud, and set a comma where you naturally pause for breath.
You wouldn’t say, “Mary went to the store bought some ice cream returned home and ate two servings.” At least, you wouldn’t say it without pausing for a breath somewhere! You’d probably say: “Mary went to the store {pause} bought some ice cream {pause} returned home {pause} and ate two servings.” Now, just put a comma in where each of the pauses occurs, and you have a grammatically correct sentence: “Mary went to the store, bought some ice cream, returned home, and ate two servings.”
Now for some specific uses and rules.
- Use a comma to separate an introductory word or phrase from a sentence.
Examples: Unfortunately, his car wouldn’t start. Once upon a time, a princess sat by a deep well. - Use a comma to show when someone is being directly addressed. Examples: Michael, row the boat ashore. Don’t rock the boat, Susan!
- Use a comma to show when the action or subject changes.
Example: Mary walked the dog, washed the car, and swept the porch. - Use a comma to separate words in a series. Don’t forget the “serial comma” that comes between the penultimate word in the list and the word “and.” [The final serial comma is one of those hotly disputed rules. If you always use it, you will never cause confusion. Leaving it out sometimes makes a big mess.]
Examples: John bought milk, eggs, bread, and cheese. Three dogs, a ferret, six cats, and fourteen fish are enough pets for any child! - Use a comma to separate multiple adjectives modifying the same noun.
Examples: The blonde, blue-eyed girl in the red dress is my niece. The policeman picked up the dirty, tear-stained, sniffling child. - Use a comma to separate spoken words from the rest of the sentence.
Examples: “You may go to the zoo,” their mother answered. “Say, Bob,” Adam shouted, “Help me with this ladder!” - Use a comma to separate two independent clauses (groups of words that can stand alone as sentences) that are joined by a conjunction.
Examples: Peter held the cat, and Mark chased the dogs away. Alvin kicked the door shut, but the wind blew it open again. - Use a comma to set off words that introduce an example or explanation.
Examples: The doctor warned of side effects, such as headaches, indigestion, and weight gain. Don’t be undependable, that is, be on time, follow through, and keep your promises. - Use pairs of commas to set off state names and years in written works.
Examples: On July 4, 1776, this nation was born. Elvis lived in Memphis, Tennessee, for many years.
It’s not really as scary as your grammar classes used to make it. I think the many uses of the comma, and the contradictory opinions on certain uses, make the comma seem more formidable than it really is.
10 Comments
I’ll read this later when I have more time. It’s too scary to think about right now but it’s something I need help with. I have to get to work!
(Was there supposed to be a comma after ‘right now’?)
The one I see missed most often: Use a comma to separate two independent clauses (groups of words that can stand alone as sentences) that are joined by a conjunction.
Examples: Peter held the cat, and Mark chased the dogs away. Alvin kicked the door shut, but the wind blew it open again.
I read that if you can make two sentences of one, you should. Sometimes, though, I feel that a longer sentence gives the reader a more relaxed feeling. Action sentences should be short. They speed up the reading.
She lounged in the blue chair, sipping a beer, and soaking up the sun. A bee landed on her nose. She screamed as she jumped out of the chair. Her beer flew from her hand. She ran to the door. It was locked. The bee flew away.
Thank you for these rules. Is it okay if I paste them on my wall?
I have to put you in my favorites… you explain these rules better than most books I’ve read.
Editorium, great post. Now why don’t they teach it like this in school?
Write, my guess is that the teachers don’t know it that well. I’ve sat under some teachers who should’ve sat down and let me teach. Like my 11th grade English teacher, who agreed with some doofus that “in the tree” was a noun clause. (shudder)
Edit, how right you are! Just the other night I was going over the rule, with my 14 year old daughter, that the “to be” verb takes nominative pronouns and prepositions take objective pronouns. Her response to me was that she didn’t think her teacher had these rules down, but yet, they were going to be tested the next day on these rules. Either the teacher didn’t get it or couldn’t impart it in a way the children would understand.
Remember, too, that the teachers have their tests and answer keys provided to them by the textbook publishers. They don’t have to know the subject to teach it.
Editormum, In this example, I would use a semicolon:
Peter held the cat ; and Mark chased the dogs away.
Alvin kicked the door shut ; but the wind blew it open again.
What say you, my learned friend?
No, no! Don’t abuse the poor semi-colon.
A semicolon separates two complete sentences when they are not joined by a coordinating conjunction. Because your examples include “and” and “but,” you would not use a semicolon, you would use a comma:
Peter held the cat, and Mark chased the dogs away.
Alvin kicked the door shut, but the wind blew it open again.
If you like semicolons and want to use them, drop the coordinating conjunctions:
Peter held the cat; Mark chased the dogs away.
Alvin kicked the door shut; the wind blew it open again.
Make sense?