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Comma SenseTwelve Recommendations

Commas DemystifiedCommas can be tricky to use. Students often have a difficult time deciding when to put them in, or when to leave them out. The following recommendations will make this decision simpler, reducing the mystery to a matter of common sense.

(1) Use a comma to separate words (or groups of words) in a series:

I went to Lance’s to buy bread, butter, and milk.

James unlatched the window, looked around stealthily, then made good his escape.

LIS

TS

(2) Use commas to separate adjectives modifying the same noun.

It was a fine, sunny day.

The large, loping hound barked furiously.

AD

JEC

TIV

ES

(3) Use a comma before the conjunction in a compound sentence:

I couldn’t see him, but I knew he was there.

He dropped his fork on the floor, so he decided to use a clean one.C

ON

JUN

CT

ION

S

(4) Use one or two commas, as needed, to set off words

which interrupt the thought of the sentence:

Simon, however, will not be going.

You are, consequently, the prize-winner.

My mother, who lives out-of-state, still considers herself a Hoosier.

INT

ER

RU

PT

ION

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(5) In direct quotations, commas are used to separate speech from commentary:

She said, “I am glad to be in Indiana.”

“I am,” she said, “so glad to be in Indiana.”

“I am glad to be in Indiana,” she said.QU

OTA

TIO

N M

AR

KS

(6) Use a comma after a mild interjection, or after introductory

words and phrases:

Oh dear, I just missed my bus.

Well, look who the cat dragged in!

In all, four houses have been sold.

INT

RO

DU

CT

ION

S

Mom, is that you?

Pete, where are you?

Come in, Nancy.

Hey, Bonehead! Whaddup?

(7) Use commas to set off nouns of direct address:

NA

ME

SWhere are you,

Frank? I’ve been worried

about you!

(8) Use a comma after a person’s last name when it precedes the first name (in an alphabetical listing, for example):

RE

VE

RS

AL

S

Dickinson, Emily

Frost, Robert

Shakespeare, William

(9) Commas separate days, months, and years:

Day and Year: November 11th, 1936

Month and Year: July, 1875

Day, Month,Year: Sunday, 13th March, 1960

She was born on November 11, 1875, in Frankfurt, Germany.

DA

TE

S

(10) A comma is customarily used after the salutation or the complimentary close of a letter:

Dear Mr. Jones,

Yours sincerely,

LE

TT

ER

S

Fort Wayne, Indiana

Paris, France

Marie drove to Brussels, Belgium,last week.

(11) The names of towns and states are separated with a comma:

CO

UN

TR

IES

(12) Use a comma to separate people’s names from their qualifications, degrees, or titles:

TIT

LE

S

Alec Coyle, DDS.

Jane Ball, RN.

Dagny Boebel, PhD.

Martin Luther King Jr.

Joseph Smith, Sr.

1. Lists between items in a list

2. Adjectives between adjectives modifying the same noun

3. Conjunctions in compouind sente nces before conj

4. Interruptions around interrupting words

5. Quotationsto separate direct speech from commentary

6. Introductions after mild interjections or introductory words

7. Names between sentences and nouns of direct address

8. Reversals after the last name in an alphabetical listing

9. Dates between days, months, and years

10. Letters after the salutation/complimentary close of a letter

11. Countries between towns and states or towns and countries

12. Titles between people’s names and their qualifications

Short Name for Each Recommendation:

When you are tempted to use a comma, ask yourself which of the Twelve Recommendations applies. If you cannot justify the use of the comma, leave it out. ,

Lists—Adjectives—Conjunctions—Interruptions—Quotations—Introductions—Names—Reversals—Dates—Letters—Countries—Titles

Brief Quiz

1. Well I really wish she hadn’t been late.

2. My sister who works at Biaggi’s is a chef.

3. I own a shotgun but I have never used it.

4. Jonathan have you seen my keys?

5. He said “Paris is one of my favorite cities.”

6. I was born in Paris France but I grew up in Brussels.

7. I saw a long low building in the distance.

8. She ironed her blouse shone her shoes and then drove quickly to work.

9. Dr. Jonathan Watson Ph.D. will be today’s guest lecturer.

10. William Shakespeare was reputedly born on April 23rd 1564.

The EndPowerPoint Presentation by Mark A. Spalding, BA, MEd, MA, 2007.

Center for Academic Excellence

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