Download - Commas and Their Use
Commas and Their UseENGL 3100Dr. Shelley Thomas
Comma
Description The comma is used more often than any other
mark of punctuation because it has a variety of uses: it can link, enclose, separate, and show omission. Used with care, the comma can add clarity and emphasis to your writing; used carelessly, it can cause confusion. (520)
(from Alred, Brusaw, Oliu. Writing that Works. New York: St. Martin’s, 1984.)
Punctuation Saves Lives
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Comma
“Do not follow the old myth that you should insert a comma wherever you would pause if you were speaking” (HTW 78).
Comma – To Link
Coordinating conjunctions and, but, for, or, so, nor, yet
Comma is placed BEFORE the coordinating conjunction to connect independent clauses
Example
Human beings have always prided themselves in their unique capacity to create and manipulate symbols.
Today computers are manipulating symbols.
Human beings have always prided themselves in their unique capacity to create and manipulate symbols, but today computers are manipulating symbols.
Comma – To Enclose
Nonrestrictive elements Provide additional, nonessential information
about things they modify
Example Our new Detroit factory, which began operations
last month, should add 25 percent to total output.
Comma – To Enclose
Parenthetical elements Also provide extra information Set off by commas to show a loose relationship
with the rest of the sentence
Example We can, of course, expect their lawyer to call us.
Comma – To Separate
Introductory commas Sets off introductory elements from the rest of
the sentence Indicates to the reader where the main part of
the sentence (the subject) begins
Example
Introductory Commas Since many rare fossils never occur free from
their matrix, it is wise to scan every slab with a hand lens.
During the first field-performance tests last year at our Colorado proving ground, the new motor failed to meet our expectations.
Comma – To Separate
Items from each other Commas should be used to separate words
in a series.
Example Basically, plants control the wind by
obstruction, guidance, deflection, and filtration.
It is well known that plants absorb noxious gases, act as receptors of dust and dirt particles, and cleanse the air of other impurities.
Comma – To Separate
Subordination A comma separates the subordinating clause
from the main clause
Example While the test ramp was being checked a final
time, the driver reviewed his checklist.
Comma – To Separate
For clarity and emphasis Two contrasting thoughts or ideas can be
separated by commas
Example The project was finished on time, but not within
the cost limits. It was Bill, not Matt, who suggested the names
be changed.
Comma Splice
Comma Splice is a grammatical error in which two independent clauses are joined by only a comma
Example The new medical plan was comprehensive, the
union negotiator was pleased. Revision?
Sentence Fragment
An incomplete grammatical unit that is punctuated as a sentence.
Example Especially the outdoor cats. Enough of this stuff. Because of their dramatic effect.
Exercises
Handout in groups