How To Use Commas With And
Comma rules are the subject of much confusion and even heated debate such as whether or not to use the oxford comma.
How to use commas with and. On monday we ll see the eiffel tower and on tuesday we ll visit the louvre. Use commas to separate two or more coordinate adjectives that describe the same noun. Learning how to use commas correctly will make your writing clearer easier to read and more professional looking. That last comma is called the oxford comma and we ll talk about that in more detail later. Use a comma to separate the elements in a series three or more things including the last two.
The word and is a conjunction and when a conjunction joins two independent clauses you should use a comma with it. Use commas when you have a list with more than two items. Use a comma before and after certain introductory words or terms such as namely that is i e e g and for instance when they are followed by a series of items. When an adverbial phrase begins a sentence it s often followed by a comma but it doesn t have to be especially if it s short. Don t use commas.
I love chocolate cookies and ice cream omitting the last comma. Be sure never to add an extra comma between the final adjective and the noun itself or to use commas with non coordinate adjectives. Only use a comma to separate a dependent clause at the end of a sentence for added emphasis usually when negation occurs. Use a comma before a coordinating conjunction and but yet so or nor for when it joins two complete ideas independent clauses. He hit the ball dropped the bat and ran to first base you may have learned that the comma before the and is unnecessary which is fine if you re in control of things.
You may be required to bring many items e g sleeping bags pans and warm clothing. Use a comma near the end of a sentence to separate contrasted coordinate elements or to indicate a distinct pause or shift. I love chocolate cookies and ice cream however we could also say. Therefore we should say. Use commas to separate coordinate adjectives.
Use commas to offset appositives from the rest of the sentence. As a rule of thumb if the phrase is longer than about four words use the comma. Comma before and that joins two independent clauses. The proper place for the comma is before the conjunction. When you re describing something with two or more adjectives you can use a comma between them if those adjectives are coordinating.