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Punctuation Marks Part 2
6. Comma
A compound sentence should be separated by a comma and a conjunction (and, but, or, for, yet, nor or so). If the clauses are short the comma is optional. A comma should never separate a verb from its subject or a verb from its object (e.g.: He mounted a donkey[,] that carried Him along).
An adverbial phrase at the beginning of the sentence is set off by a comma. (Inspired by faith, they evangelized the world). These clauses may begin with If, when, although, etc. This comma is often omitted if the phrase is shorter than five words. Single adverbs such as however, certainly, of course, when they come between the subject and the verb or parts of the verb, get comma's before and after them. (This convention, however, must be followed.) Parenthetical expresions follow the same rule: The call to repentence, for example, mostly falls on deaf ears.
These include:
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A comma sets off a nonrestrictive clause that starts with which: On the top of the hill was a cross, which still symbolizes sin and forgiveness.
Use a comma to separate coordinate adjectives: An interesting, up-building seminar. (The comma can be replaced by and.)
Use the serial comma before the and in a series: Sin, guilt, and forgiveness will be discussed in class next week.
Introductory words that take a comma: Yes, well, Oh, no, why (exept when beginning a question): No, this is not true.
NOTE: that the decimal comma must be used throughout (except in quotations from publications in countries that still use a decimal full stop).
When writing numbers of a thousand or more, the numbers have to be grouped in threes and separated by a single space. Consequently we should write 2 560 112 and not 2.560,112. Note that when writing decimals smaller that 1 a 0 has to precede the decimal comma. Consequently we write 0,562 and 0,00521 instead of ,562 and ,00521.
Rule 1. To avoid confusion, use commas to separate words and word groups with a series of three or more.
Example:
My $10,000,000 estate is to be split among my husband, daughter, son, and nephew.
NOTE: Omitting the comma after son would indicate that the son and nephew would have to split one-third of the estate.
Rule 2. Use a comma to separate two adjectives when the word and can be inserted between them.
Examples:
He is a strong, healthy man.
We stayed at an expensive summer resort.
You would not say expensive and summer resort so no comma.
Rule 3. Use a comma when an ly adjective is used with other adjectives.
NOTE: To test if an ly word is an adjective, see if it can be used alone with the noun. If it can, use the comma.
Examples:
Felix was a lonely, young boy.
I get headaches in brightly lit rooms.
Brightly is not an adjective because it cannot be used alone with rooms.
Rule 4. Use commas to surround the name or title of a person directly addressed.
Examples:
Will you, Shirley, do that assignment for me?
Yes, Doctor, I will. (Capitalize a title when directly addressing someone.)
Rule 5a. Use a comma to separate the day of the month from the year and after the year.
Example:
I met my husband on December 5, 1985, in Sacramento.
NOTE: Some businesses no longer use the comma after the year.
Rule 5b. If any part of the date is omitted, leave out the comma.
Example:
We met in December 1985 in Sacramento.
Rule 6. Use a comma to separate the city from the state and after the state.
Example:
I lived in San Francisco, California, for 20 years.
NOTE: Some businesses no longer use the comma after the state.
Rule 7. Use commas to surround degrees or titles used with names.
Example:
Al Mooney, M.D., knew Sam Sunny, Jr.
NOTE: Sometimes people having names with Jr. attached do not use a comma before the Jr. If they do not use the comma, then you should not.
Rule 8. Use commas to set off expressions that interrupt the flow of the sentence.
Example:
I am, as you have probably noticed, very nervous about this.
Rule 9. When starting a sentence with a weak clause, use a comma after it. Conversely, do not use a comma when the sentence starts with a strong clause followed by a weak clause. (See pages 6 and 7 for more about clauses.)
Examples:
If you are not sure about this, let me know now.
Let me know now if you are not sure about this.
Rule 10. Use a comma after phrases of more than three words that begin a sentence.
Examples:
To apply for this job, you must have previous experience.
On February 14 many couples give each other chocolate and roses.
(A comma after the date is optional.)
Rule 11. If something or someone is sufficiently identified, the description following it is considered nonessential and should be surrounded by commas.
Example:
Freddy, who has a limp, was in an auto accident.
Freddy is named so the description is not essential.
The boy who has a limp was in an auto accident.
We would not know which boy is being referred to otherwise; therefore, no commas are used.
Rule 12. Using a comma is optional to separate two sentences joined by a coordinating conjunction — and, or, but, for, nor.
Example I have painted the entire house, but he is still working on sanding the doors. OR
I have painted the entire house but he is still working on sanding the doors.
Rule 13. Use the comma to separate two sentences if it will help avoid confusion.
Example:
I chose the colours red and green, and blue was his first choice.
Rule 14. If the subject does not appear in front of the second verb, do not use a comma.
Example:
He thought quickly and still did not answer correctly.
The subject does not appear after the and, so no comma is used.
Rule 15. Use a comma to introduce or interrupt short direct quotations.
Examples:
He actually said, "I do not care."
"Why," I asked, "do you always forget to do it?"
Rule 16. Use a comma to separate a statement from a question.
Example:
I can go, can’t I?
Rule 17. Use a comma to separate contrasting parts of a sentence.
Example:
That is my money, not yours.
Rule 18. Use a comma when beginning sentences with introductory words such as well, now, or yes.
Example:
Yes, I do need that report.
The comma is the most widely used punctuation mark, yet some of its uses are hardly absolute. The comma prevents confusion, although misused it can create confusion, as when a writer puts one between a subject and its verb. Here are several sentences whose meanings depend on the comma.
Robert Williams, junior chairman of the English Department, spoke about Chaucer.
Robert Williams, junior, chairman of the English Department, spoke about Chaucer.
On the platform were Victor L. Marchetti, a former CIA officer and six students.
On the platform were Victor L. Marchetti, a former CIA officer, and six students.
My wife, Karen, makes many of the children's clothes.
My wife Karen makes many of the children's clothes.
The highway project list for discretionary funds, approved by the Transportation Commission yesterday, gave link-to-link resuscitation to the Cadbury bypass.
The highway project list for discretionary funds approved by the Transportation Commission yesterday gave link-to-link resuscitation to the Cadbury bypass.
The Democrats who run Congress gave him a standing ovation.
The Democrats, who run Congress, gave him a standing ovation.
The day was, well, up in the air.
The day was well up in the air.
He was first governor of Ohio.
He was, first, governor of Ohio.
Most of her story is clear and honest, but before she's done it gets a bit fuzzy.
Most of her story is clear and honest, but before she's done, it gets a bit fuzzy.
The differences between the sentences in each set or the problems with them are discussed throughout this section.
The students studying football games asked fans, coaches, players, league officials and any other persons who were at the games to answer 15 questions.
He can, when necessary, be serious or funny, believing or cynical, even believing and cynical.
More formal punctuation conventions call for the comma to be used before the word and in a series. When the comma is placed there, would eliminate confusion, by all means use it. Here is such a sentence.
Some of the students are majoring in journalism, history and health and physical education.
A comma after history would make it clear that the italicized portion of that sentence does not belong together.
Some of the students are majoring in journalism, history, and health and physical education.
Titles After names the comma sets off titles or suffixes after names.
Miriam DeHaas, the mayor, celebrated her third year in office by holding an open house.
Suffix After Name
Robert Williams, junior, chairman of the English Department, spoke about Chaucer.
The comma in the last sentence changes both Robert Williams' name and his authority in the English Department. Without the second comma, Williams be comes junior chairman. Newspapers do not use junior and senior in those forms, but instead abbreviate to Jr. and Sr. (or jr. and sr.). Furthermore, most newspapers do not set off suffixes with commas. A reporter following the stylebook of the wire services would write:
Robert Williams Jr., chairman of the English Department, spoke about Chaucer.
Titles as Subjects
The comma also sets off titles preceding names when the title, not the name, is the subject of the sentence.
The mayor, Miriam DeHaas, celebrated her third year in office by holding an open house.
Mayor Miriam DeHaas celebrated her third year in office by holding an open house.
Secretary of State Joseph Shaw appeared before a congressional committee today.
Apposition
The comma sets off modifying words or phrases in apposition to a noun.
The ceremony, a contrast to the policies of the past, had special meaning for Josephine M. Williams, the college's 32-year-old sociology professor.
The second photograph, a sweeping panorama shot of Viking 2's new neighborhood, showed an uneven horizon.
China's leader, Deng Xiaoping, told Japanese Prime Minister Zenko Suzuki today there will be no fundamental warming of chilly Sino-Soviet relations.
Ed Dunham, a longtime copy editor, spoke to the local chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists last night.
Clarity
The Marchetti sentence in the list at the beginning of this section easily produces confusion. The comma can decide how many people are on the platform.
On the platform were Victor L. Marchetti, a former CIA officer and six students.
(There are eight people Marchetti, a former CIA officer and six students.)
On the platform were Victor L. Marchetti, a former CIA officer, and six students.
(There could be seven people, which is what I would count, or eight, which is another possible count. By my count there is Marchetti, who is a former CIA officer, and six students.)
The following could lead the reader to believe there are three speakers.
In a speech at Kansas State, Fran Lee, a former consumer editor and a broadcaster said she warned the president against a nationwide vaccination program.
A comma after broadcaster makes it clear that editor and broadcaster modify Lee. Likewise, from a non-fiction book the numbers problem appears:
He, in turn, communicated it to two more people the Governor General, Lord Mountbatten and Field Marshall Auchinleck.
That reads like three people unless you know that Lord Mountbatten was also the governor general.
Restatement A modifying phrase is often a restatement or further explanation, only from a different perspective. It is still set off with commas.
The meeting will be held Wednesday, Nov. 10, in City Hall.
The italicized portion of that sentence defines Wednesday further.
Don't be fooled into believing that just because a sentence has a connective it doesn't need a comma. Again, the restatement guideline applies.
The Cadbury Tigers, who have not scored a touchdown in 33 straight quarters, or since the first full stop at Clive nine weeks ago, could not make a 3-0 lead stand up, despite holding Bakersfield without a touchdown.
Without the comma after quarters, the sentence would lose its clarity because it would read as though there are two different times.
The Cadbury Tigers, who have not scored a touchdown in 33 straight quarters or since the first full stop at Clive nine weeks ago, could not make a 3-0 lead stand up, despite holding Bakersfield without a touchdown.
The reader might wonder which is correct – 33 straight quarters or since the first period nine weeks ago. They are the same thing: the second being a restatement of the first from a different perspective. Only commas make that perfectly clear.
Non-essential Words, Phrases and Clauses
The comma sets off non-essential material (material that can be dropped without damaging the meaning of the main clause).
The house, built in 1857, was sold twice to family members before an outsider bought it.
My wife, Karen, makes many of the children's clothes.
All the word between the commas does is to further identify the subject of the sentence. Karen can be discarded in the sentence but she will still be my wife.
My wife makes many of the children's clothes.
In that sentence, my wife remains Karen. But in the following, with no commas, the word Karen restricts the word wife.
My wife Karen makes many of the children's clothes.
Without commas, that sentence suggests the existence of my wife Mary, my wife Sue, my wife Anne, and so on.
Here are two sentences that are identical except for two commas. The commas change the meaning.
The highway project list for discretionary funds, approved by the Transportation Commission yesterday, gave link-to-link resuscitation to the Cadbury bypass.
The highway project list for discretionary funds approved by the Transportation Commission yesterday gave link-to-link resuscitation to the Cadbury bypass.
The first sentence says a list for discretionary funds exists and that it was approved yesterday. The second suggests more than one list exists and one of them was approved yesterday.
Similarly, the Democrats are the majority party in the House; they control the House.
The Democrats, who control the House, gave him a standing ovation.
But if only some of the Democrats in the majority control the House, then the clause is essential and goes unpunctuated.
The Democrats who control the house gave him a standing ovation.
That suggests that not every Democrat stood and applauded – just the ones in power.
The misuse of a comma has caused debate in the U.S. Senate. In 1977, when Paul C. Warnke was before the Senate as President Carter's nominee to be the country's chief arms control negotiator, a comma became headline news. From the floor of the Senate, Sen. Henry M. Jackson of Washington pointed to a statement Warnke had made in 1972.
Under those circumstances, it seems to me, Mr. Chairman and Senator Cooper, that the continuation of the missile numbers game is in fact a mindless exercise, that there is no purpose in either side's achieving a numerical superiority, which is not translatable into either any sort of military capability or any sort of political potential [bold added].
As punctuated, what follows superiority is a non-essential clause and it can be dropped without doing damage to the meaning of the sentence. Jackson told his colleagues there was a contradiction in the 1972 statement and he asked Warnke for a clarification. Warnke replied, in writing:
I specifically stated that numerical superiority which is not translatable into either any sort of military capability or any sort of political potential has no purpose [Warnke's emphasis]."
As punctuated, the italicized portion of the preceding is an essential clause and cannot be dropped without changing the meaning of the sentence. Warnke blamed the comma problem on a sloppy typist. Jackson said it was an intentional distortion, magnified by the alteration of the original sentence. The comma aside, the statement could have been clear from the start had Warnke used that to lead off an essential clause (if that's what he intended) or which to lead off a non-essential clause (if that's what he intended). But because which is sometimes used for that, the solution for this case lies in correct punctuation.
Parenthetical Expressions
The comma distinguishes parenthetical expressions.
The day was, well, up in the air.
Without the commas, the condition of the day changes.
The day was well up in the air.
Commas also make the difference in these sentences.
"This is a good budget for our investigation," the congresswoman said; any cut, in my opinion, will weaken what we are trying to do."
"This is a good budget for our investigation," the congresswoman said; any cut in my opinion will weaken what we are trying to do."
Another way of not cutting the congresswoman's opinion is to use parentheses, although it is a second-rate approach.
"This is a good budget for our investigation," the congresswoman said; any cut (in my opinion) will weaken what we are trying to do."
Dates
The comma sets off the year in a complete date. July 4, 1776, is the birthday of the United States.
However, a comma is not needed in month-year combinations, such as July 1776.
Addresses and Ages
Addresses, names of towns, and ages, when placed immediately after a person's name, are set off with commas.
William Marconi, 39, of 310 March St., Cairo, Ill., died today of congestive heart failure.
Transition Markers
The comma sets off standard transition words at the beginning of sentences and in the middle of sentences.
Nevertheless, the president's change of heart on foreign aid will do little to endear him to his party.
The president's change of heart on foreign aid, nevertheless, will do little to endear him to his party.
However is also set off by a comma when its meaning indicates that a contradiction or contrary information is to follow.
This car is just the right size for our family. However, I don't like the colour.
But when however means no matter how, it is not set off by a comma.
However great he may have been, historians will never rank him with the greatest.
No matter how great he may have been, historians will never rank him with the greatest.
Here is one final example of transitional markers with commas. In this case as in many other examples – the absence of commas changes the meaning.
He was, first, governor of Ohio.
The story goes on to explain that he was later a senator and then a newspaper publisher – all within recent history. But the absence of commas sends the time back approximately two centuries.
He was first governor of Ohio.
Introductory Phrases
A comma sets off long introductory phrases at the beginning of a sentence.
In an attempt to learn more about the crowds at football games, the students conducting the study asked fans, coaches, players, league officials and any other persons who were at the games to answer 15 questions.
Introductory Modifiers
The same principle applies to introductory modifiers, such as a verbal, verb clause or prepositional phrase (which begins the preceding example).
Running through the woods, Jack tripped over a rock in the middle of the path. (verb clause)
With much less fear than we had expected, Tracey bravely entered the hospital for an ear operation. (prepositional phrase)
Blindfolded, the kidnap victim could not tell where his abductors drove him. (verbal)
By using three steps, we can get to the room before they do. (prepositional phrase)
Here are four more sentences whose italicized portions are misleading or unclear because of a missing comma. Correct versions follow in parentheses.
To eat the survivors of the plane crash had to dig up roots. (To eat, the survivors of the plane crash had to dig up roots.)
After the large coal mines closed the economies of the towns died. (After the large coal mines closed, the economies of the towns died.)
If I published my mask would disappear. (If I published, my mask would disappear.)
Most of her story is clear and honest, but before she's done it gets a bit fuzzy. (Most of her story is clear and honest, but before she's done, it gets a bit fuzzy.)
In all four examples a verb or verbal is involved. Because the reader might read the word after the verb or verbal as the object of the verb or verbal, the comma is necessary.
Sometimes clauses not appearing in their normal place in a complex sentence are set off by a comma, although the decision to use them should depend on clarity, not convention.
If I were you, I'd take the job.
If I were you I'd take the job.
When we were young, we played stickball.
When we were young we played stickball.
Modifiers in a Series Modifiers in a series take a comma if you can substitute and without changing the meaning. In such cases, the modifiers have equal rank.
The long, drawn-out meeting ended when the chairman collapsed.
That sentence could also be written:
The long and drawn-out meeting ended when the chairman collapsed.
In the following a comma is not needed between modifiers because they are not equal.
The boys wanted to spend a five-week summer vacation with their father.
When you have doubt, insert and and see if the sentence still makes sense.
The boys wanted to spend a five-week and summer vacation with their father.
That sentence makes no sense so the modifiers of vacation need no punctuation. Commas also substitute for and in other places.
Go and see it.
Go, see it.
Try more and shorter stories.
Try more, shorter stories.
The last sentence would be non-standard usage without the comma. The comma-for-and convention also applies to headlines.
TROJANS, RAMS
FACE TOUGH TEAMS
Contrasting Ideas
Contrasting ideas are set off with a comma or commas.
Sometimes, clauses not appearing in their normal place in a complex sentence are set off by a comma, although the decision to use them should depend on clarity, not convention.
The mayor, not the vice president of the council, will preside at tonight's meeting.
The student wants to study literature, not grammar.
Natural gas, not oil, may provide the richest payoff in the Atlantic Ocean.
Connectives
Newspaper style usually omits the comma before a connective in a short compound sentence.
The president eats breakfast alone and his wife eats with the children.
The congressman would like to visit our town but his schedule for that day is full.
Long Compound Sentences
However, as in the case of items in a series, the comma should always be used for clarity, especially when you are connecting sentences with and, or for reader convenience when you are connecting long sentences.
At all evening meals, the mayor serves the wine and his wife serves the meat.
The reader may have to read that sentence twice to understand that the mayor does not serve the wine and his wife. The description of a movie on television provides another example.
Chicago underworld boss Al Capone plots to kill Bugs Moran and the famous St. Valentine's Day Massacre in which seven of Moran's men are gunned down in a warehouse is recreated [bolds added].
The problem develops because of a verb followed by its object, then a connective, and then a noun that could be read as another object of the verb. It reads as a compound object. These don't:
At all evening meals, the mayor serves the wine, and his wife serves the meat.
Chicago underworld boss Al Capone plots to kill Bugs Moran, and the famous St. Valentine's Day Massacre in which seven of Moran's men are gunned down in a warehouse is recreated.
Usually a comma is not used in a simple sentence with a compound predicate, as it is in the following misuse.
The judge found that the husband has assumed parental responsibility, and has shown an interest in his children.
There is no need for a comma in compound modifiers joined by and.
The home of the husband and his girlfriend is normal, and morally satisfactory in every respect except for the absence of a marriage certificate.
Elliptic Use
The comma is used in place of a verb to show the verb is being repeated.
Williams had 35 marbles; Smith had 10, Jones had 5, and Wentzel had 2. Williams had 35 marbles; Smith, 10; Jones, 5, and Wentzel, 2.
Direct Address
Direct address is set off from the rest of the sentence by a comma. Try the first example without.
It's time to eat, Amy.
Amy, it's time to eat.
Placement With Quotation Marks
Commas always appear inside quotation marks.
"This is a very austere budget," the city manager said.
Attribution Tag
A comma gets a lot of use in direct and indirect quotations by setting them off from the speech or attribution tag.
Kusion said, "We need a vote on this proposal tonight or it will be too late."
"We need a vote on this proposal tonight," Kusion said, "or it will be too late."
"We need a vote on this proposal tonight or it will be too late," Kusion said.
"City Council must vote on this proposal tonight," Kusion said.
According to Kusion, City Council must vote on this proposal tonight.
City Council must vote on this proposal tonight, according to Kusion.
City Council, according to Kusion, must vote on this proposal tonight.
(Attribution tags are not normally placed between a subject and its verb.)
A comma is not needed, though, in an indirect quotation when the attribution tag is the beginning and (really) the main clause in a complex sentence.
Kusion said City Council must vote on this proposal tonight.
If you remember that the preceding is a complex sentence – a main clause and a subordinate clause – you won't put in a comma. Reporters often discard the pronoun that would begin the clause in more formal writing.
In a similar vein, a comma is not used to separate a partial quotation from the rest of a sentence.
According to Lee, dogs give humans, "a present they'll never be able to get rid of."
That sentence does not need the comma after humans.
According to Lee, dogs give humans "a present they'll never be able to get rid of."
The partial quotation is the object of the verb. A comma is not placed between a verb and its subject or object. The quotation marks don't change anything.
If the direct quotation is a question or (perish the thought) an exclamatory sentence, the appropriate mark is used without a comma.
"Do you honestly believe we need this bypass?" council member Williams asked the mayor.
"Yes!" the mayor screamed.
The unnecessary comma would appear as such:
"Do you honestly believe we need this bypass?", council member Williams asked the mayor.
"Yes!", the mayor screamed.
If the order of the sentence quoting council member Williams is reversed, a comma or a colon could be used.
Council member Williams asked the mayor: "Do you honestly believe we need this bypass?"
Council member Williams asked the mayor, "Do you honestly believe we need this bypass?"
Masquerade
Sometimes the comma masquerades as a punctuation mark in a series when it is really setting off a phrase in apposition. How many people were arrested in the following?
Scotland Yard today announced the arrest of 10 alleged slayers, seven Irish terrorists and three Palestinians.
If you said 20, you are wrong. Try 10. Also try a dash or a colon.
Scotland Yard today announced the arrest of 10 alleged slayers – seven Irish terrorists and three Palestinians.
A similar example:
Bulgaria has already concluded friendship treaties with at least two other Western countries, the United States and Canada. (That's four countries.)
Bulgaria has already concluded friendship treaties with at least two other Western countries: the United States and Canada. (That's two.)
Clarity
There are countless examples of how a dropped comma can change or fuzz the meaning of a sentence. I misread the following sign in my oral surgeon's office.
Because of the nature of oral surgery appointments are for the approximate time only.
Because of the nature of oral surgery, appointments are for the approximate time only
The place of a person's death can hinge on a comma.
The American Legion Auxiliary of Mapleville Post 261 will hold a memorial service for Mrs. Mary C. Linn, who died Sunday at the T.F. Williams Funeral Home in Mapleville today at 7:30 p.m.
The American Legion Auxiliary of Mapleville Post 261 will hold a memorial service for Mrs. Mary C. Linn, who died Sunday, at the T.F. Williams Funeral Home in Mapleville today at 7:30 p.m.
A comma can make a difference to a vote-counter.
The tally shows Carter with 1,526 delegates more than the 1,505 needed to win the nomination.
(That gives Carter 3,031 delegates, but he really had 1,526 – or 21 more than needed to win the nomination.)
The tally shows Carter with 1,526 delegates, more than the 1,505 needed to win the nomination.
Erroneous Omission
Sometimes reporters write such involved sentences they forget to punctuate non-essential clauses at both ends.
TMSA's decision apparently ends more than three years of on-again off-again negotiations among several parties, including TMSA, the county commissioners and the hospital authority (which owns Sunbank) aimed at finding an answer to the problem of how best to use Sunbank.
A comma is needed after the parenthetical phrase. But because that is such a long sentence, it should be made into two.
TMSA's decision apparently ends more than three years of on-again off-again negotiations among several parties, including TMSA, the county commissioners and the hospital authority (which owns Sunbank). The negotiations were aimed at finding an answer to the problem of how best to use Sunbank.
Instead of a Semicolon
Usually a semicolon is used in a compound sentence when a connective is not used. But when both sentences are very short and their forms are similar, a comma suffices.
The people lost, the bureaucracy won.
If the door is closed, don't knock, don't bother me.
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