Commas & Sentence Boundaries

HOW TO WRITE CLEARLY IN ENGLISH:
Using commas in English writing

with special attention to 'because'

--> Here, we will pay particular attention to how to use commas in sentences to divide up information for  your readers. 

•    Commas help make meaning clear in writing.  Compare:

            

            a) Stop Anne!

            b) Stop, Anne!

            In which sentence is the speaker telling Anne that she must stop? In which one is the speaker saying to others that they have to stop Anne from leaving?

•    Commas can clear up confusing sentences that contain connector words like for, yet, though, and, but, or, nor, so.  Compare: ('for' in the examples below means 'because')

            a) We ran as fast as we could for the train was leaving.

                 We ran as fast as we could, for the train was leaving.

            b) The driver had not seen us yet he stopped.

                 The driver had not seen us, yet he stopped.

•     Use commas with coordinating conjunctions, of which there are seven:  for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so.  Sometimes they are called the fan boys because the fist letter of each word spells 'fan boys.'  Make sure they connect words in similar grammar categories (nouns with nouns, verbs with verbs, etc.). 

            a). Chicken, rice, tomatoes, and onions are the main ingredients for this soup.

•    Lists:  when you have a series of things in a sentence (of 2+ items) the last item is always preceded by and / or / nor with a comma before the coordinationg conjunction as in the soup sentence.

•    Commas can clear up confusing sentences that contain connector words like for, yet, though, and, but, or, nor, so. Nota Bene:  because  is not a 'conjunction'; it is a subordinating conjunction that introduces information explaining the cause of something.  (We cancelled our picnic because it was raining). The information introduced by because is an explanation - not information that needs to be divided up to help readers understand better. Its explanation is directly linked to the independent clause, so it must not be set off by commas.  If you switch the order of the clauses, you may use a comma after  the because clause, but not the word because.  ( Because it was raining, we cancelled our picnic ). 

•    Compound sentences: This means there are two parts that include an independent clause and a subordinate one.

            a) John and Susan needed more money to buy a house, so they both got second jobs.

            b) Whenever I travel, I don't like to take a lot of luggage with me.

            c) Did they want to stay for dinner, or did they also want to sleep at our place?

Commas after introductory words & phrases:

Words:  Generally / However / furthermore / moreover / in addition / additionally , etc

Phrases:  For example / During my last trip to London/ While driving from Heathrow airport/ To tell the truth, etc

Dependent clauses:  

            a) Because Americans drive on the right side of the road, they may have problems driving in England.

            b). Especially when American drivers make a turn, they must remember to stay left.

Exception:  commas are usually not used after a small group of time words which include:  then, now, soon, today, and tomorrow.

            a) Then we got on the plane and left.

            b). Today class began ten minutes late because the bus was late. 

Extra information modifiers:  use commas around extra information regarding the word it modifies, but where it is not necessary to the meaning of the sentence.

            a) Laughing and joking, the students entered the classroom.

            b) The teacher, a patient person, invited them to take their places.

            c)  Robbie, who was making the most noise, could not stop laughing.

Practice: Insert commas where necessary.

1. Tonight my mother is making soup with zucchini, carrots, onions, potatoes, and celery.

2.  Whenever I go for a walk in the center of Rome, I feel better.

3. My sister, who lives in San Francisco, comes to visit us only once a year.

4.  Smiling and laughing, the kids arrived at the birthday party.

5. After consulting the online comments on his Instagram account, Zac Posen decided to listen to his followers and incorporate some of the colors from his vacation photos into his spring collection.

6. Because social media and design continue to blur the lines between customer and designer, it is important to pay attention to this trend.

7.  However, many designers use social media only as a secondary source of inspiration.

8. Julie Tainor, a designer in New York, did not have the time to research her collection at  a museum, so she decided to use Instagram as her inspiration.

9. In Julie’s case, it was a real time saver.

10. Jon Quince likes Instagram as a source of inspiration, but he says his preferred method is to walk around trendy neighborhoods and sketch ideas.