How To Use Comma Conjunctions

It is often tempting to throw in a comma between a set of correlative conjunctions.

How to use comma conjunctions. Because it had been raised in captivity the rabbit wasn t afraid of humans. The punctuation used to mark a division in a sentence like the separation of words phrases a clause or a sequence. Let s start with a rule that everybody agrees on. Commas don t have to be confusing. Use a comma before a conjunction that joins two independent clauses an independent clause is a clause that could stand alone as a sentence.

The rules for using a comma before a conjunction like and or and but are not simple because it depends how the conjunction is being used and what writing convention you re following. After all you know what a comma is. Here s another example sentence. Notice the use of the comma when a coordinating conjunction is joining two independent clauses. The general rule of thumb is not to split the sets up.

Use a comma to join two independent clauses when two standalone sentences or independent clauses are joined together using a conjunction e g and but or the conjunction should be preceded by a comma. This article will attempt to make this issue that so many inexperienced writers struggle with somewhat easier by presenting some rules and examples of correct usage of punctuation with conjunctions. Use commas to offset appositives from the rest of the sentence. Most commonly used punctuation is certainly a comma however semicolon. This sentence contains a comma and a dependent clause because it had been raised in captivity and the subordinating conjunction is again because.

Correlative conjunctions are pairs of conjunctions that work together. When you do put a comma before the final conjunction in a series it is referred to as a serial comma or an oxford comma despite the fact that it is recommended by the oxford university press style manual most writers of british english do not use it. Some examples are either or neither nor and not only but also. When to use a comma with a subordinating conjunction. The rules for using a comma before and or any other conjunction such as and or and but depend on how the conjunction is used.

Using commas with correlative conjunctions. Using punctuation in writing can be very confusing especially in longer sentences that also include lists of items.