• Commas, Dashes, and Parenthesis

• Commas

• As mentioned above, a comma in the wrong place can change the meaning of a whole sentence.  This is because a comma's job is to clarify relationships within a sentence.  Here are some ways commas are used correctly:
• Lists:  Use commas between items in a list, including before the "and".
• I love students who are responsible, timely, and honest.
• Coordinate Adjectives: Use a comma between coordinate adjectives.  (These modify the same noun):
• Jared was a responsible, honest student.
• Introductory phrases: one of the most comma errors I see is students not using commas in this way.  You must use a comma after an introductory phrase of a dependent clause.  Consider these examples:
• To ensure I had the best chance for the job, I dressed professionally.
• After we went to the store, I prepared an elaborate dinner.
• Use a comma before coordinating conjunctions in a compound sentence.  (A helpful teacher once referred to these by the acronym "fanboys" which stuck with me: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so.)
• Jared was a really honest student, so I didn't mind letting him make up the test.
• Use commas around nonrestrictive or nonessential clauses.  In other words, if the clause can be taken out of the sentence without confusing the meaning of the sentence, commas go around the clauses; however, if the meaning would be changed, the commas need to be avoided.  Here is an example of each instance:
• Nonrestrictive:  Jared, who has red hair, works very hard.
• Restrictive:  Jared who needs a scholarship works very hard.
• Here's an important tip:  the relative pronoun which always introduces a nonessential clauses, so commas always will go around a which clause.  For example:
• The conference, which I had to pay eighty dollars for, was spectacular. Vs.
• The conference that I attended was crucial to my work
• Participial and Appositive phrases : use commas around them.  These modify nouns or pronouns by describing them in different words.
• Jared, having worked as hard as he could, earned his scholarship. (participial)
• Jared, the best student she'd ever had, graduated in the spring. (appositive)
• Interrupters and Attributions:  use commas around phrases that interrupt a sentence and around attributions in quotations.
• Other students, however well-intentioned they may be, can't seem to perform as well as Jared.
• "I'm proud of Jared," the instructor said proudly, and she showed the class his work.
• Use commas to help your reader avoid confusion and provide clarity.
• To his classmates, Jared was a teacher's pet.
• Commas can also be used in the following ways:
• In openings and closings of letters
• Dear Jen,
• Sincerely,
• In direct address
• Jared, are you listening?
• In addresses and names of geographical places
• I am originally from Denver, Colorado.
• To separate a name from a degree or title and with Jr. and Sr.
• Martin Luther King, Jr., changed the course of history.
• At the conference I heard Beth Jennings, P.H.D.
• In dates
• October 10, 1071
• With figures with more than four digits
• $5,244.00

 

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