Commas are the one thing that always confuses me. Knowing exactly where to put them and where not to put them can be a little tricky. Most comma situations are easy to use. These include commas in numbers, after dates, and after geographical locations. The tricky situations and errors arise out of the two main ways in which we use commas. Today’s article will focus on these.
Commas Separate List Items
Commas are always used to separate items in a list. These items can be real things, or places you go. Below are some examples:
- I need some bread, sugar, milk, and eggs from the shop today.
- I have lipstick, eyeliner, mascara, and eye shadow in my handbag.
- Yesterday I went to school, played soccer, went to the park, and then went home for my dinner.
- I am going to spend my holiday relaxing at the pool, walking along the beach, and shopping.
When using commas in a list situation you need to make sure that you put and between the last two items.
Don’t use commas where a full stop could be used. If the words can stand alone as a sentence then use a full stop or a joining word (and, but etc.). An example of this would be:
- Yesterday I went to school, I played soccer, I went to the pool and I went to the park.
This is incorrect comma usage as they could all stand alone as proper sentences. If you wanted to use commas you need to take the “I” out of these sentences.
Commas To Add More Information To A Sentence
If you are looking to add more information to a sentence you can use commas. An example of this could be something like:
- The book, which was very old, was an excellent read.
There is a way that you can check if your commas are right. You just check if the sentence makes sense without the words between the commas.
The book, which was very old, was an excellent read. This sentence would still make sense if it was; the book was an excellent read.
There is a great quiz that I found when researching this post. There are three levels to this quiz too. If you would like to see how much you know about commas and test your skills, click on the link below.
Until next time,
Keep writing
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{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
“Commas are the one thing that always confuses me.”
You might want to also look into subject/verb agreement.
Commas would confuse you- not confuses, but hey, we all commit typos- all the time, that’s what a good copy editor is for!
Thanks for the reminder about commas. It reminds of the book Eats, Shoots and Leaves!
Hi Amanda,
Commas are way more complex than people think. I struggle sometimes because I want to use I comma where in my mind there is a natural pause in the thought. Sometimes I’ll re-read what I’ve done and go, “Whoa! Way too many commas here!”
Thanks for the tips!
George
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Thanks Lyn,
Yes it was a typo.
Amanda