Use a comma…
1. To set off dates.
Example: He began working on December 1, 1999, but quit by May 1, 2000, when he broke his arm.
2.To set off items in addresses.
Example: Mail your check to Friends of Wildlife, 32 South Main, Spokane, Washington 83314, by June 2.
3.To set off an abbreviation, such as Jr., Sr., or M.D., that follows a person’s name.
Examples: 1) Until Joseph, Sr., was 15, he never had more than 3 months of piano lessons. 2) Russell E. Davis, M.D., has been elected mayor.
Stop and practice—Language Text Book, p. 716, Exercise 8, # 1, 2, 5, 9, 10. Rewrite entire sentences adding commas where necessary.
4.When directly addressing someone. (To set off a “noun of direct address.”)
Examples:1) Tyler, why do you always do that?
2) I am not sure, Mrs. Grover, how to punctuate this. 3) You may go to the dance, Brittney.
5.To set off interjections.
Examples:1) Wow, that was a cool science project! 2) Okay, now what do I do?
Stop and practice—Write 2 sentences of your own using rule 4 and 2 sentences using rule 5. (See a short list of interjections on page 429.)
6.To separate two or more adjectives (words of description) that describe the same noun (a person, place or thing) equally*.
Examples: 1) I’ve had a long, hectic, tiring day. 2) Matty was tired of working in the hot, smelly kitchen and decided to take her usual morning walk.
*The “equal” test—1) change the order of the adjectives; if the sentence is clear, the adjectives modify equally (hot & smelly in second example above, but not usual & morning). 2) insert “and” between the adjectives; if the sentence reads well, use a comma when “and” is omitted.
7.To separate items in a series. Examples: (1) The camp counselor distributed baseballs, bats, gloves, and balls. (2) I know I will pass the test if I take good notes, if I study hard, and if I get a good night’s sleep.
Stop and practice—Language Text Book, review rules on pages 700-702, then complete Exercise 3, # 1-10. Rewrite entire sentences adding commas where necessary. If a sentence is already correct, write “C.”
STOP! OPEN TO PAGE 340 AND LEARN THE FOLLOWING TERMS…
Complete sentence—must (1) have a subject, (2) have a verb, and (3) express a complete thought
Phrase—a group of words that does not contain a subject and a verb (so it’s a “sentence fragment”)
Clause—a group of words that has a subject and a verb
Independent clause—expresses a complete thought and can stand alone as a sentence
Subordinate clause—does not express a complete thought and cannot stand along as a sentence
Run-on sentence—two or more complete sentences that are written as one sentence…
Fused sentence—two or more sentences with no punctuation between them
Comma splice—2 or more sentences joined with only a comma to separate them
Coordinating conjunction—F.A.N.B.O.Y.S. (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so)
Compound sentence—contains two or more independent clauses and no subordinate clauses
Complex sentence—contains one independent clause and at least one subordinate clause
8.Between two independent clauses that are joined by a conjunction. (This creates a compound sentence.)
Example:(1) I love Utah State athletics, so I own season football and basketball tickets. (2) I ate a sandwich for lunch, and I had ice-cream for dessert.
Do not put a comma between an independent clause and a subordinate clause that combine to make up a complex sentence.
Example:(1) I love Utah State athletics and own season football and basketball tickets. (2) I ate a sandwich for lunch and ice-cream for dessert.
Stop and practice—Language Text Book, page 358, Exercise 5, #1-5. Rewrite each set of sentences by combining them with a commas and a coordinating conjunction.
9.To separate an introductory phrase or clause from the rest of the sentence.
Example: (1) The truth was, the eggplant parmesan was dry and overdone. (2) When I go to Bear Lake, I like to bring my lab puppy.
Stop and practice—Writer’s Inc. Punctuation Worksheet/Overhead, even numbers only, pages 7 (#2-6), 8 (#2-8), 9 (#2-8) and 10 (#10-14).
10.To set off a direct quotation from the rest of the sentence.
Examples: (1) “Remember that your book reports are due next month,” said Mrs. Grover. (2) “The concert tickets are sold out,” Mary said, “and I had really hoped to go.”
Stop and practice—Language Text Book, exercise 3 on page 745, rewriting sentences 1-10.
11.To set off nonessential*appositives (words that refer, identify or describe the same person or thing it is placed beside in the sentence).
Examples: (1) Thetrack star, Bryan Smith, was the teacher’s pet. (2) Have you seen the trailer for the newest Star Wars movie, Star Wars: The Force Awakens?
*Nonessential means information that is unnecessary to the basic meaning of the sentence. In other words, the meaning of the sentence is clear and complete with or without the appositive.
Stop and practice—Language Text Book, Exercise 7 on page 712, rewriting sentences 1, 5, 8-10.
12.To avoid a misreading.
Examples: (1) I chose the colors red and green, and blue was his first choice.(2) What we were hoping would happen, happened. (3) The children who can, swim laps every morning.