Commas

Front

What is the purpose of a comma in a sentence?

Back

Commas are used to indicate a pause between parts of a sentence, to separate items in a list, and to clarify meaning.

Front

When should you use a comma before a conjunction?

Back

A comma should be used before a conjunction (like 'and', 'but', 'or') when it connects two independent clauses.

Front

What is an independent clause?

Back

An independent clause is a group of words that can stand alone as a sentence, containing a subject and a verb.

Front

What is a dependent clause?

Back

A dependent clause is a group of words that cannot stand alone as a sentence and usually begins with a subordinating conjunction.

Front

When should you not use a comma in a sentence?

Back

Do not use a comma to separate a subject from its verb or to separate two items that are not independent clauses.

Front

What is a series in grammar?

Back

A series is a list of three or more items, which should be separated by commas.

Front

How do you use commas in a list?

Back

Use commas to separate items in a list, placing a comma before the conjunction in a series (Oxford comma) if preferred.

Front

What is an appositive?

Back

An appositive is a noun or noun phrase that renames another noun right beside it, and it is often set off by commas.

Front

When should you use commas with adjectives?

Back

Use commas to separate two or more coordinate adjectives that describe the same noun.

Front

What is a non-restrictive clause?

Back

A non-restrictive clause adds extra information to a sentence but is not essential to its meaning and is set off by commas.