Commas: PracticeRule 1: Comma after introductory element: dependent clause, participle, participial phrase, long prepositional phrase, transitional element
1. Whenever I tried to put chains on a tire the car would maliciously wrap them around a rear axle.
2. To prevent a scene in the restaurant Geraldine changed plates with her mother.
3. When I see robins on the lawn I know that spring is here.
4. While the committee was studying the problem more information became available.
5. After they check the company manual secretaries follow the recommended format for reports.
6. Because I didn't do too well in intramurals I didn't think I'd do well in varsity sports.
7. Looking at my family in the audience I felt more confident.
8. Because I was not too quick at understanding calculus she showed me I had to work slowly.
9. Although others were faster than I was I tried harder.
10. Despite the fact that I spent six years in college I graduated with a 3.8 grade point average.
11. Before you compare those two poets you should be sure you're familiar with their work.
12. Before the discovery of insulin in 1921, manydiabetics suffered.
13. While you sit there talking and wasting time I'm trying to finish this project.
13.Because he had to change diapers the baby-sitter considered walking out on the job.
14. When Sue finished her last exam she went out to dinner with friends.
15. Showing modesty most successful men rarely speak of their own achievements.
16. Having reached the age of discretion she was no longer supervised.
17. To win fame he gave up his friends and left home.
18. Irritated by our resistance the sergeant called double-time.
19. With hardly a trace of emotion Inspector Barnes continued his inspection of the scene of the crash.
20. In the folklore of America Harlem has long been considered exotic as well as dangerous territory.
Rule 2: Join two independent clauses with a comma AND a coordinating conjunction (FANBOYS).
21 . Many people today desperately want children ______they are unable to conceive a child.
22. For many of these people, adoption is the answer ______a lot of them will choose international adoption.
23. Children adopted by Americans frequently come from orphanages in poor countries _____ starting a new life in the United States is not always easy for these children.
24. Loving parents and a stable home may seem like luxuries ______the child is also leaving a familiar world behind.
25. Before the 1980s, adoption experts told adoptive parents to ignore their children’s background ______most children adopted internationally had no sense of their culture.
26. For example, either the Korean War orphans arriving in the United Sates in the 1950s were too young to remember Korea ______they were urged to abandon any memories they had.
27. These Korean children were given American names ____ they often ended up living in towns where there were no other Asian children.
28. Today, adoptive parents usually try to find out all they can about their children’s native country and language ______teaching adopted children about their native culture is considered essential.
29. Adoptive parents often form support groups for adopted children from a particular country _____ in these groups, their children can meet others who have similar backgrounds.
30. He trimmed the shrubbery very carefully for he hoped to keep the hedge alive for the entire summer.
31. Night falls quickly in the mountains yet the cabin is comfortable and wam.
32. Judy picked vegetables and Bob mowed the lawn.
Rule 3: (LIST) Use commas to separate words phrases or clauses in a series.
- Most children enjoy playing games riding bicycles and engaging in make-believe.
- Harry will need more nails screws and glue to finish that bookcase.
- That thick warm rug looks really cozy in front of the fireplace.
- Frank packed the books in boxes sealed them up and took them to the post office.
- Jim and Joan will be visiting Amsterdam Copenhagen Paris and London on their trip this fall.
- Have you had chicken pox mumps or measles?
- He worked quickly quietly and accurately.
- Her silent cold eyes revealed nothing.
Rule 4: Interrupters: Use a comma before and after an interrupter.
The pizza by the way is going to be from Papa John’s.
He is after all the president so he should have the final say in the club’s decision.
Some of the most common include the following:
after all / generally speaking / first of allin the first place / at least / indeed
Perhaps / However / then
for example / I believe / I think
in other words / on the other hand / of course
to say the least / unfortunately / I hope
Use a comma before and after an appositive (renames a noun).
My favorite sport the rodeo is not very popular in this part of the country.
Samuel Clemens the author of Tom Sawyer used a pen-name.
This shampoo the best on the market is very expensive.
Highway 73 the only direct route through the city is crowded with traffic several hours a day.
The crown of thorns a member of the cactus family grows well in Florida.
It's his dishonesty not his cheapness that disturbs me.
Put your feet on the floor not on the coffee table.
Negligence not mechanical failure caused the accident.
It's the hot water not the detergent that makes my hands red.
It was the excitement from the party not the coffee that kept me from sleeping.
Rule 5: Nonrestrictive Practice:
- The man who owns the bank is a grandson of the one who founded it.
- James Lee who owns the bank and five others is one of the wealthiest men in the state.
- The coach called out to Higgins who got up from the bench and trotted over to him.
- Coach Jones who chewed on cigars but never lit them threw one away and reached for another.
- Anyone who saw him could tell that something was troubling him.
- All banks which fail to report by the following Saturday will be closed.
- All banks failing to report will be closed.
- Henry betrayed the man who had helped him build his fortune.
- William White who helped Henry build his fortune died yesterday.
- My father hoping that I would remain at home offered me a share in his business.
Rule 6: Two or More Adjectives Modifying Same Noun Rule:
A comma is used between coordinate adjectivesnot linked bya coordinating conjunction. Study the use of commas in the following sentences. Notice that a comma is not placed between the last adjective in the series and the word modified.
- It was a dreary depressing gray day.
- Thomas proved to be a competent responsible assistant.
- Do you like your steak rare medium or well done?
- The jury was addressed by a mature poised and seasoned attorney.
- Jane was calm steady and good-natured.
- The writhing slashing gnawing river looked like an angry maggot.
- The hero is a shallow irresponsible likable clown of a fellow.
- The mayor complimented the student leaders on their objective serious responsible approach to solving the gang fights.
- That tired haggard overworked teacher finally retired.
Comma Worksheet: ALL Rules
Using your notes on comma rules, place the commas in the appropriate place in the examples
below.
1. Ted wants to study this morning but he plans to jog first.
2. The high school baseball season ends in late July and football practice begins in early August.
3. The tall dark-haired and exotic-looking young star captured the hearts of the audience.
4. The limping exhausted runner could hardly finish the marathon.
5. In front of the long column of troops on the field the general introduced his successor.
6. I simply do not agree you realize with your argument.
7. State Highway 101 expanded to two lanes in 1953 needs to be widened to at least four lanes
now.
8. I plan to spend the weekend at the lake and return to the city on Monday.
9. The nets were full of fish but we were too exhausted to haul them in.
10. On May 1 2007 he began work as a landscaper and she started as a dental hygienist.
11. When I asked my father for advice he told me I was old enough to make my own decisions.
12. Reaching the platform Congressman Brooks the featured speaker waved to the crowd.
13. Unfortunately four Americans were killed this week in Libya.
14. W. H. Auden the noted poet was born in York England on February 21 1907.
15. In spite of the large number of items I can consider your suggestions by the end of the
week.
16. If you see my mother the woman who usually sits at the receptionist’s desk please tell her I
will be home late.
Extra! Extra!
Name ______Date ______
Comma Practice Worksheet
Directions:
• Add commas where necessary in the following sentences.
• Next to the number, write the letter code(s) for the comma rule(s) in that item.
Codes:
A = IC, one of the fanboys IC.
B = DC, IC.
C1 = Transitional Element, IC.
C2 = I . . . , Transitional Element, . . . C.
C3 = IC, Tag-on Element.
D = Items in a series (item 1, item 2, and item 3)
E = Coordinate Adjectives (adjective 1, adjective 2 Noun)
1. Maria Rodriguez was born in Puerto Rico but she moved to Atlanta with her family.
2. Although Maria spoke only Spanish before the move she learned English very
quickly.
3. Many Latin American children were in Maria’s new school so she felt comfortable.
4. Even though Eastwood Elementary was small it was well-funded and well-managed.
5. Ms. Karr Mr. Rivera and Mrs. Johnson were Maria’s fourth grade teachers.
6. Because Maria made high grades the principal asked her parents about allowing
Maria to go directly to the sixth grade.
7. Despite the fact that Mr. Rodriguez thought the idea was a good one his wife
convinced him that Maria was better off staying in class with her friends.
8. Maria’s mother was concerned that Maria would have been anxious about skipping a
yearthat she still needed to adjust to the area and that she would have been a year
younger than most of her classmates.
9. Maria was happy and she proceeded to do even better in fifth grade.
10. One class Maria found difficult however was physical education.
11. Children like Maria who was small for her age are likely to find physical competition
difficult.
12. Maria who would undergo a growth spurt in seventh grade tried to be patient.
13. Math class Maria’s favorite passed by quickly.
14. On the other hand the hour-long gym class seemed to take forever.
15. “Everything” Mrs. Rodriguez said “will work out for the best.”
16. To be honest many children hate mathematics.
17. Maria found math intriguing nevertheless.
18. Her friend April believed math biology and English to be ridiculously difficult.
19. Young students who develop an aversion to a subject are likely to carry that aversion
throughout their academic career so April will likely continue to dislike those three
classes.
20. Maria liked Atlanta very much but her family moved to Florida when she was twelve.
21. When Maria first saw the junior high she disliked it, but she eventually
came to like it.
22. Andrea Walsh Maria’s biology teacher was born in Minneapolis Minnesota on July 7
1951 and moved to Clickville Florida on August 3 1978.
23. On February 5 1989 Ms. Walsh took her biology class on a field trip to the Reynolds
Wildlife Preserve in Gidneyville a nearby town.
24. When Maria was studying she took short restful breaks and sometime short walks.
25. Recent reports incidentally have shown that regular exercise improves brain flow.
26. Because her father was getting physical therapy the family did not travel the
following summer.
27. Since Maria had so much free time she decided to stimulate her mind by reading
some good literature.
28. Also Maria wrote to her grandmother each week that summer.
29. Finally her grandmother came to live with Maria and her family on July 20 1989 in
Clickville Florida.
30. Maria’s grandmother’s arrival capped an exciting year full of changes many that
Maria would long remember.
31. If you understand the rules of comma usage study the arrangement of words in each
sentence and keep from going comma crazy you should be able to insert the
necessary commas in these thirty-one sentences.
21. Soon after the end of the War of the Spanish Succession Bolingbroke was impeached and fled to France.
22. Since he is a key man on his team an injury is often insufficient to keep him on the sidelines.
23. During the long winter of 1881 the king suffered a severe illness.
Lingering at the window Emily watched the last sailboat sink beneath the horizon.
24. Expecting to see some of her former pupils she looked down the line of soldiers.
25. To make the pose more appealing the photographer told the model to turn her face slightly to the left.
26. In spite of his training it was difficult to keep the sarcasm out of his voice.
27. Warned by the shot the wild horses stampeded across the valley.
28. Satisfied by what he saw he took off his hat and wiped his brow.
29. Nevertheless he continued to work toward his goal.
30. To earn a small amount of money Miss Susan opened a studio for china painting.
31. After completing that business psychology course salesmen are always enthusiastic.
32. In preparing such department notices officials must use appropriate forms.
33. Indeed we can't afford to lose this game.