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COMMAS

Commas are sometimes hard to learn because they are used differently than in other languages.

To understand some rules of grammar use, it may be useful to first remember what an independent clause is. An independent clause is clause that can stand alone as a sentence: it has a subject and a verb and is a complete thought. For example:

I plan to quit smoking.

My doctor told me to quit smoking.

EXERCISE C: Underline the independent clauses in the following sentences:

1. I plan to quit smoking because my doctor told me to.

2. She has a good job, yet she is always broke.

3. They were tired, so they went home early.

If you can identify independent clauses, it is easier to know where to put commas.

There are many comma rules in English, which can be broadly categorized into four groups: introducers, coordinators, inserters, and tags.

INTRODUCER COMMAS

An introducer comma follows any element that comes in front of the first independent clause in a sentence.

INTRODUCER COMMAS

after introductory words Therefore, I plan to quit smoking.

Nervously, I threw away my cigarettes.

First, we need to kill all the lawyers.

Indeed, that would be the best idea.

after dependent clauses Because I have a bad cough, my doctor told me to quit smoking.

after phrases Having smoked for 16 years, I find it difficult to quit.

In other words, I think we should do it.

after direct quotations “Stop smoking today,” he advised.

COORDINATOR COMMAS

Together with a coordinating conjunction (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so), a comma links coordinate (equal) elements in a sentence.

COORDINATOR COMMAS

compound sentences with two independent clauses She has a good job, yet she is always broke.

They were tired, so they went home early.

Series of three or more words

BUT NO COMMA WITH TWO ITEMS!

He does not enjoy skiing, ice-skating, or sledding.

Cecille speaks English, Spanish, French, and Creole.

Hower speaks Mandarin and Taiwanese.

Series of three or more phrases A nurse has to work at night, on weekends, and on holidays.

We ran into the airport, checked our luggage, raced to the boarding gate, gave the attendant our boarding passes, and collapsed in our seats.

INSERTER COMMAS

An inserter comma is used before and after any element that is inserted into the middle of an independent clause.

INSERTER COMMAS

words My uncle, however, refused to come to dinner.

phrases My father, on the other hand, never misses a meal.

There is no point in living, my brother always says, if you can’t do what you enjoy.

nonrestrictive clauses and phrases My aunt, his wife, died young.

The car, which was brand new, was totaled in the accident.

My cousins, grieving over their mothers death, were all at the funeral.

reporting verbs in direct quotations “I have been to Italy many times,” she said, “but I prefer Switzerland.”

TAG COMMAS

A tag comma is used when adding certain elements to the end of a sentence.

TAG COMMAS

words after an independent clause My uncle believes in drinking a daily glass of wine, too.

He’s still in great health, however.

phrases after an independent clause He swims for an hour every day, for example.

He also plays tennis, beating me most of the time.

tag questions It isn’t fair, is it?

direct quotations He laughed as he said, “I will outlive all of you.”

EXERCISE D: COMMAS

Add commas wherever they are necessary. (Not all sentences need them, and some sentences need more than one.) Then name the function of each comma: introducer, coordinator, inserter, and tag. The first one has been done for you.

1. INSERTER The advertising industry, which is one of the largest industries in the United States, employs millions of people and spends billions of dollars a year.

2. _____________ A company that wants to be successful must spend a great deal of money to advertise its products.

3. _____________ Advertising is essential to the free enterprise system yet it can sometimes be very annoying.

4. _____________ Every minute of the day and night people are exposed to ads on television on billboards in the newspapers and in magazines.

5. _____________ You cannot even avoid advertising in the privacy of your own car or your own home for advertisers have begun selling their products in those places too.

6. _____________ In the last few years advertising agencies have started to hire young people to hand out advertising

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