It even proofreads your text, so your work is polished wherever you write. Here’s a tip: Want to make sure your writing shines Grammarly can check your spelling and save you from grammar and punctuation mistakes. I would go for a walk, but it’s raining outside. It can lead to a train wreck like this:Įxample: Mark Twain's book, Tom Sawyer, is a delight.īecause of the commas, that sentence states that Twain wrote only one book. You should put a comma before but only when but is connecting two independent clauses. In the second sentence, Bill is nonessential information-whom else but Bill could I mean?-hence the commas.Ĭomma misuse is nothing to take lightly. Why? In the first sentence, Bill is essential information: it identifies which of my two (or more) brothers I'm speaking of. The commas in the second sentence mean that Bill is my only brother.

Now, see how adding two commas changes that sentence's meaning:Ĭareful writers and readers understand that the first sentence means I have more than one brother. We do not know which boy is meant without further description therefore,no commas are used. The boy who has a limp was in an auto accident. If we already know which Freddy is meant, the description is not essential. If something or someone is sufficiently identified, the description that follows is considered nonessential and should be surrounded by commas.įreddy, who has a limp, was in an auto accident. If such a phrase contains more than one preposition, a comma may be used unless a verb immediately follows the phrase.īetween your house on Main Street and my house on Grand Avenue, the mayor's mansion stands proudly.īetween your house on Main Street and my house on Grand Avenue is the mayor's mansion. When an introductory phrase begins with a preposition, a comma may not be necessary even if the phrase contains more than three or four words.Įxample: Into the sparkling crystal ball he gazed. However, if the introductory phrase is clear and brief (three or four words), the comma is optional.īut always add a comma if it would avoid confusion.Įxample: Last Sunday, evening classes were canceled. When starting a sentence with a dependent clause, use a comma after it.Įxample: If you are not sure about this, let me know now.įollow the same policy with introductory phrases.Įxample: Having finally arrived in town, we went shopping.

Hopefully in a sentence comma