Punctuation

While there are many specific uses for commas, nearly eighty-five percent of the commas used in written English are used in a mere three situations. If you know the basic rule for these three cases, you can use commas in over four-fifths of the times you need to use commas. 1. Put a comma before

Commas are used to set off the “he said/she said” clause. The comma always goes before the quotation marks. Incorrect: Henrietta asked “Do you want to go with me?” (Comma must set off “she said” clause.) Incorrect: Henrietta asked”,Do you want to go with me?” (Comma must go before quotation mark.) Correct: Henrietta asked,”Do you

Use a comma to separate independent clauses in a compound sentence when they are separated by a conjunction. The comma goes after the first clause and before the coordinating conjunction that separates the clauses. Make sure they are independent clauses and not some other construction where commas are not required. Correct: We washed the dog,

Sometimes it is necessary to add a comma to make a sentence clear. Unclear: In the kitchen cupboards were empty. (Make it clear that the phrase is “in the kitchen,” not “in the kitchen cupboards.”) Clear: In the kitchen, cupboards were empty. Unclear: The room was full of crying babies and mothers. (Were the mothers

Use commas to separate three or more words, phrases, or clauses in a series. A conjunction goes between the last two items of the series. While some authorities say that the comma before the conjunction is optional, leaving it out may cause confusion, so it is better to include it. Words: Use commas to separate