Why comma is important

Rule 9: use commas for dates that include the year , addresses, geographical places and titles in names. Example: The girl forgot her laptop in her hometown , Lewisville, TX. Example 2: The girl forgot her laptop on March 20, Example: John Doe , M. Rule use commas when speaking directly to someone or if two names are right beside one another.

Example: Jane, why did you forget your laptop? Example 2: To Mary, Jane had always been forgetful. And there you have it! However, I think if I drag on anymore, you might never forgive me. But there are plenty of online sites and blogs you can check out for more information such as Purdue OWL , Copyblogger , Grammarly and many more. But I would use one. Am I off base? Because you are addressing Jane directly, there should be a comma right before her name.

Thank you for your comment! I agree with you percent, Susan. And I hope you enjoyed my blog entry! Feel free to share any more comments, corrections or additions here in the comment section. This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed. In this case, abstinence might make this situation worse. Rule 2: introduce or end a quote with a comma.

Commas help prevent confusion. Admit to being useless and inferior. You have ruined me. For other men, I yearn. For you, I have no feelings whatsoever. Will you let me be? So now you should fully understand the importance of punctuation. If you think you could benefit from learning more about punctuation, please see our free punctuation guides. Absolutely true. I am an English to French translator and I can tell you that sometimes, texts are so badly punctuated that you do not know what the original writer means!

Look at the big lack of punctuation at the end of this sentence meant to be translated for a High official in a government.

If I had translated as it is written this would be catastrophic as this would mean nothing! Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Not convinced? Dear John: I want a man who knows what love is all about. Jane What happens to the letter if there were some punctuation mistakes and it was punctuated in an entirely different fashion? Dear John, I want a man who knows what love is. Coordinating conjunctions are conjunctions, or joining words, that are placed between words and phrases of equal importance.

Used with coordinating conjunctions, commas allow writers to express how their complete thoughts relate to one another. They also help avoid the choppy, flat style that arises when every thought stands as a separate sentence.

When joining two independent clauses, or clauses that could stand on their own as full sentences, place a comma before the conjunction.

If the second independent clause is very short, or if it is an imperative, the comma can be omitted. Both clauses are independent and could stand on their own as complete sentences.

When they are joined in the same sentence, however, they must be connected with a comma and a coordinating conjunction. Sometimes a dependent clause can be used to introduce a sentence. In this situation, use a comma after the dependent clause. The first phrase could not stand on its own as a sentence, but when joined to the independent clause by the comma, the sentence is complete. Note that a dependent clause can come later in the sentence, but in that case, you would not use a comma:.

Only use a comma to separate a dependent and independent clause if the dependent clause is first! Writers can give readers information that limits or otherwise modifies a main idea that follows. To do so, writers can use introductory words or introductory phrases. These introductory elements can be one word or several. Common introductory elements include transition words and statements about time, place, manner, or condition.

Often, introductory words are also adverbs. Commas are always used to set off certain adverbs, including the following:. If one of these adverbs appears in the middle of a sentence, within one clause, it should be set off by a pair of commas.

For some adverbs, using a comma is optional. In these situations, say the sentence to yourself. If you think a pause makes your sentence more clear or emphasizes what you want to emphasize, use the comma; otherwise, drop it. Modifiers are words or phrases that are added to sentences in order to make their meaning more specific. Some modifiers are nonrestrictive, meaning that the sentence would still have essentially the same meaning, topic, and structure without them.

They simply add a little extra information. The sentence without them would be grammatically correct and have essentially the same meaning. They do not require any commas. Restrictive modifiers, on the other hand, are those whose use is essential to the overall meaning of the sentence. In other words, if you dropped a restrictive modifier from a sentence, the meaning of the sentence would change. An appositive is a grammatical construction in which two noun phrases are placed side by side, with one identifying the other.

Nonrestrictive appositives do require commas. On the other hand, a restrictive appositive provides information essential to identifying the noun being described.