SMITHTOWN HIGH SCHOOL - Britton-Nix



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Comma Rules

1. Use commas to separate words or phrases in a series.

Example: Please remove your coat, gloves, hat, and shoes before entering.

Example: John went fishing, washed the car, and did laundry.

*If all items in a series are joined by and or or, do not use commas to separate them.

Example: The weather forecaster predicted rain or sleet or snow.

*Do not use a comma if there are only two items being joined.

Example: I love to cook and eat food on the weekends.

*Independent clauses in a series are usually separated by a semicolon. Short independent clauses, however, may be separated by commas.

Example: We walked, we played, we ate, and we gained weight.

2. Use a comma before for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so (coordinating conjunctions) when they join independent/main clauses, unless the clauses are very short.

Example: The first two acts were slow moving, but the third act was full of action and suspense.

Example: I love vanilla ice cream, but chocolate is my favorite flavor in an ice cream cake.

3. Use a comma after a dependent/subordinate clause (introductory adverb clause). The clause will usually begin with the word since, because, as, although, if, when, or similar words (subordinating conjunctions).

Example: When John was ill, he went to the doctor’s office.

Example: Tom cleaned the kitchen while his mother washed the bathroom.

*If the dependent clause follows the independent clause, it is not introductory, so no comma is used.

Example: His mother washed the bathroom while Tom cleaned the kitchen.

4. Use commas to separate an appositive if the sentence would be clear and complete without it. (An appositive is a noun or pronoun – often with modifiers – set beside another noun or pronoun to explain or identify it.)

Example: Ruth Harris, a prominent lawyer, became a judge.

Example: John Kennedy, the popular US president, was known for his eloquent and inspirational speeches.

*In some cases the noun being explained is too general without the appositive; the information is essential to the meaning of the sentence. When this is the case, do not place commas around the appositive; just leave it alone.

Example: The popular US president John Kennedy was known for his eloquent and inspirational speeches.

5. Use a comma after certain introductory elements:

a. After words such as well, yes, no, and oh, when they begin a sentence.

Example: Yes, we could be in the city soon.

b. After an introductory participial phrase. (A participle is a form of a verb that can function independently as an adjective. A participial phrase such as walking down the street or having finished her homework are commonly used to modify nouns or pronouns)

Example: Washing and polishing the car, I developed sore muscles.

Example: Running in the rain, I slipped and fell in the mud.

c. After a prepositional phrase of more than four words or two or more prepositional phrases in a row.

Example: During the very long game, it started to snow.

Example: In the middle of the game, it started to rain.

6. Use commas to set off nonessential clauses and nonessential participial phrases (not necessary for making the meaning of a sentence clear).

Example: Peary, who had tried to reach the North Pole before, reached the Pole in September of 1909.

Example: Mr. Thompson, who is my principal, spoke to me about the dress code.

Example: My little brother, playing in the street, was struck by a car.

7. Use a comma to set off expressions that interrupt the sentence:

a. Appositives

Example: A syndicated column by Max Marsh, the noted writer, will appear in the Times News, a local paper.

b. Words in a direct address

Example: Sarah, please come here

c. Parenthetical expressions (I believe, I am sure, on the contrary, on the other hand, after all, by the way, incidentally, in fact, indeed, naturally, of course, in my opinion, for example, however, nevertheless, to tell the truth)

Example: My parents will, I am sure, let me have the car tonight.

8. Use a comma to separate two or more adjectives preceding a noun.

Example: We sat through the long, dull music recital.

9. Use a comma in certain conventional situations:

a. To separate items in dates, addresses, and geographical names.

Example: Peter was born on March 15, 1994, in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

b. After the salutation of a friendly letter and after the closing of every letter.

Example: Dear Ms. Britton,

Example: Sincerely yours,

c. After a name followed by Jr., Sr., PhD.

Example: Ken Griffey, Jr.

Punctuation Rules

Semi-colons ( ; )

Use a semi-colon to link closely related independent clauses if the word and, for or but has been left out.

|Every Wednesday my family has game night; my favorite is Scrabble™. |

|Cutting class is against the rules; you can get suspended. |

Use a semi-colon to separate two independent clauses joined by the adverbs however, nevertheless, therefore, moreover, and consequently.

|He played the best game of his life; however, his opponent played better. |

|The judge said that he sympathized with the man; nevertheless, he found him guilty. |

Use a semi-colon to separate items in a series when the items themselves require commas.

|My favorite cities to visit are Atlanta, Georgia; Phoenix, Arizona; and Houston, Texas. |

|The best players on the team are Sue, the goalie; Nicole, a striker; and Erin, who plays defense. |

Colons ( : )

Use a colon to separate two sentences when the second explains the first.

|We now knew what to expect from the new teacher: She was going to be strict. |

|I relax the only way I know how: I read a book. |

Use a colon to signal to the reader that a series (list) of words, phrases or clauses follows a complete sentence.

|You must bring all materials to class: text, notebook, agenda, and a pen. |

| |

|The baseball coach claimed that the team’s success stemmed from four things: consistent hitting, solid pitching, good fielding, and excellent |

|teamwork. |

Use a colon to signal the reader that a name or description follows a complete sentence when you want to put a lot of emphasis on that item.

|The local anglers had a nickname for the large muskie that had cruised the lake’s shoreline for years without being caught: Old Mossback |

| |

|The preoccupied burglar didn’t notice who was standing right behind him: a smiling police officer. |

Use a colon to introduce a long quotation after a complete sentence.

|In his book, Language is Sermonic, rhetorician Richard Weaver described how language may influence us: |

|Sophistications of theory cannot obscure the truth that there are but three ways for language to affect us. It can move us toward what it good;|

|it can move us toward what is evil; or it can, in hypothetical third place, fail to move us at all (60). |

Use a colon to express time, to cite a law or biblical passage, to separate titles and subtitles, to separate the place of publication and the publisher in a bibliographic entry, and to end a salutation.

|11:23 P.M. |

|Deuteronomy 17:2-7 |

|Mr. Gunsel: the Man, the Myth, the Legend |

|New York: Random House [separates the city of publication from the publisher] |

|Dear Rachel: |

Quotation Marks (“)

Use quotation marks to signal a direct quotation.

|“Your physical prowess,” he replied, “is no match for my superior intellect.” |

Use quotation marks to signal dialogue.

| The two friends took a walk, slowly strolling past the monument where they had met years before. His heart knocked furiously against his |

|ribcage. |

|“Say, I’ve been thinking,” he mumbled. |

|“About what?” |

|With that he bent down onto one knee. “Will you marry me?” |

Use quotation marks to indicate titles of

- poems

- short stories

- articles

- essays

- chapters

- songs

|“The Raven” |

|“By the Waters of Babylon” |

|“Man Trapped in Refrigerator, Eats Own Foot” |

|“A Study in Symbolism” |

|“Beast From the Air” |

|“Scenes From an Italian Restaurant” |

Use quotation marks to indicate irony or a made-up word.

|You can’t play today? That’s just “great.” |

|I’m feeling a little “Fridayish” today. |

Apostrophe (’)

Use an apostrophe to show possession/ownership.

➢ singular noun or indefinite pronoun

|The teacher’s word is final. |

➢ plural noun

|The women’s bathroom is out of order. |

|The twins’ first day of school was yesterday. |

➢ compound words

|The mother-in-law’s advice was not welcomed. |

➢ two or more nouns (individual possession)

|Mr. Smith’s and Mrs. Jones’ styles of teaching are similar. |

➢ two or more nouns (group possession)

|Sosa and McGwire’s home run race was unprecedented. |

Use an apostrophe to indicate omission of a letter(s).

|Contractions |can’t = cannot let’s = let us |

| |wouldn’t = would not it’s = it is |

Use an apostrophe to indicate the plural of letters, numbers, symbols, and words used as terms

|I received three C’s and a D on my report card. |

|Three .22’s were found at the scene of the crime. |

|Do not use &’s in your typed work. |

|The three there’s are there, their, and they’re. |

*The plural of years (decades) should be written without an apostrophe.

|1980s |

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Punctuation

Rules

Notes to Self:

“A panda walks into a cafe. He orders a sandwich, eats it, then draws a gun and fires two shots in the air.

"Why?" asks the confused waiter, as the panda makes towards the exit. The panda produces a badly punctuated wildlife annual and tosses it over his shoulder.

"I'm a panda," he says, at the door. "Look it up."

The waiter turns to the relevant entry and, sure enough, finds an explanation.

Panda. Large black-and-white bear-like mammal, native to China. Eats, shoots and leaves.” 

 Lynne Truss, Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation

― Lynne Truss, Eats, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation

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