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Craft of Writing

Sandra Ferguson

Exploring the Basics of the Common Comma

According to the Liberty Edition, English Grammar and Composition, “The comma—the most frequently used mark of punctuation—is used mainly to group words that belong together and to separate those that do not.”

Uh-oh, did you think the comma was some mystical, magical creation that defied explanation? If you peruse the twenty-something pages in the Chicago Manual of Style, then you certainly might believe that no mere mortal is ever meant to truly delve the sneaky little comma.

Hold on. Help is on the way. Broken down in bite sizes, the comma can be understood and effectively utilized.

Based on the above definition, the comma’s nutshell purpose is to separate or to group. Think of that old bra commercial — to lift and separate. Okay, so I’m older than most of you, but that phrase sticks with me. If words can be lifted, or removed, from a sentence without upsetting the meaning, taking them out completely, then a comma is used to offset those very words. NOTE the previous sentence.

More common examples of lifting out are:

John, the preacher’s son, was always in trouble at school. Being the preacher’s son might be important to John and his father, but the phrase “the preacher’s son” can be removed from this sentence. The casual reader will still understand who’s in hot water with the school.

On the night in question, June 18th, 2001, the preacher’s son ran away from home. The specific date might be important in a court of law proceeding, yet it can be completely lifted from this sentence without disturbing the basic meaning. So the date can be set off with commas.

Also, if words need to be listed separately, then employ a comma. We ate red beans and rice, spicy blackened grouper, and cream pudding. NOTE the previous sentence.

There are two things to note when separating a listing:

First, there is the common journalism thought that the last comma is not needed when separating the list. For example: Sally ate red, yellow and blue jelly beans. As opposed to Sally ate red, yellow, and blue jelly beans. The dilemma is one of clarity. Did Sally eat jelly beans that were a combined color of yellow and blue? Or did Sally eat yellow jelly beans and blue jelly beans? As all aspiring writers know, getting the words RIGHT for the reader can be tough. If utilizing a comma adds clarity to the sentence, then make sure to place the last comma in your list.

Second, words that are commonly thought of together are listed together and separated only by the conjunction “and.” The above example is red beans and rice. As red beans and rice go together the way bread and butter, Bonnie and Clyde, oil and vinegar . . . well, you get the point, then they are grouped together. Two items that are intimately related in our thought process should be listed together and not separated with a comma.

The comma certainly holds other intrinsic, and oftentimes, complicated purposes in our writing. After all, if the Chicago Manual of Style devotes twenty pages to comma usage, then there are additional needs for this ubiquitous form of punctuation. But if you will stick to the rules concerning “lifting and separating,” then your work will be on more solid comma ground.

About the Author
Sandra Ferguson, a free-lance writer, calls Texas home. Her love of family and the Lone Star state influence her writing of romantic suspense, non-fiction articles and fillers, and anything else she can pen to paper that will pay the bills.