It's no exaggeration to say there are books upon books about how to punctuate. Every writer has their favorites. And every publishing house has an opinion about what's right and wrong. Professional writers will argue forever with their editors about such things. Most people aren't professional writers and editors, however.
Whether you are writing posts on social media about your business, trying to write a simple term paper, or have been charged with editing the church newsletter, you needn't spend hours wringing your hands over how to handle basic punctuation.
This post will provide five rules to using commas and semicolons. It won't address all your questions, but it will give you the confidence to produce pieces that read cleanly. As for those who will quibble over finer points in your writing - let 'em. There's always more to learn. Follow these rules, however, and most people will know what you mean to say most of the time.
First Things First
When talking punctuation, you need to first decide the approach you want to take. Don't sweat this. There are only two:
- Open: This school of punctuation favors less. Much less. You use punctuation only when absolutely necessary (and sometimes, not even then). It's arguably the most popular school with nonprofessional (and many professional) writers and editors
- Closed: People who believe in the Closed school never met a punctuation mark they don't like. They're akin to the shooting guard who never saw a shot he wouldn't take. In this school, the idea is to literally guide the writer through the sentence, using punctuation as sign-markers so there's absolutely no confusion about what the writer means.
There are valid reasons for both schools. I favor the Open school, most of the time. Unless you enjoy plowing through Fowler's Dictionary of Modern English Usage, chances are you'll want to be an Open School person, too.
Commas, Damn Commas ...
There are four frequent usages for commas that you need to know. Don't worry, there's no test at the end. So breathe, and soak these lessons in.
1. Connecting two complete thoughts
This use is non-negotiable. If you have two complete thoughts (read, two complete sentences) with a conjunction between them (and, but, or), you MUST use a comma.
Example: That game had me up half the night, but seeing that buzzer-beater made it worth missing my bedtime.
Easy test: Remove the conjunction from your sentence. If you can write the two clauses as complete sentences, then you need the conjunction
"That game had me up half the night." "Seeing that buzzer-beater made it worth missing my bedtime."
If you're going to using the conjunction, you have to have the comma.
2. Introductory Statements
If you begin your sentence with an introductory statement, you'll want to use a comma.
Example: Have a look at the sentence above. It begins with an adverbial clause. If the adverbial clause is short - generally less than three words - you don't usually need a comma. Anything longer needs a comma.
Easy test: These clauses usually start with After, Because, Before, Even though, If, While, or a similar term and do not stand on their own as a complete sentence. (Don't worry - I'll have a blog post coming about that.) If you see one, use the comma.
3. Modifiers and Lists
Whenever you have a series of two or more adjectives modifying one noun, you need a comma to separate the adjectives.
Example: There's a long, lean, angry tiger staring at me.
Easy test: Simply ask yourself, do each of the adjectives go with the noun? "long ... tiger"? Yes. "Lean .... tiger"? Yes. "Angry ... Tiger"? You bet. Insert commas between the adjectives. "Long, lean ...". "Lean, angry ...".
You'll also use the commas for lists. This is actually a fairly intuitive use for most people. So I kind of bury it here.
Example: There are lots of things to do at the stadium, like eating, drinking, talking with friends, and playing games on the concourse.
BIG NOTE: Some folks don't believe a comma should precede the final item in a list. This is one of the few times I agree with the Closed School. Believe me, it makes a difference. See: Eats, Shoots & Leaves for more examples than you will know what to do with.
4. Non-restrictive Elements (Here we're in the realm of 'damn commas')
Grammar books go on for days about the difference between restrictive and nonrestrictive clauses. I won't lie. It's a tough subject, and this little blurb doesn't begin to touch on the complexities. But here's the difference in a nutshell.
"Bob's wife Pat loves the beach." vs. "Bob's wife, Pat, loves the beach."
The first sentence is restrictive, and will probably get Bob in a lot of trouble. You see, the sentence means that Bob has a lot of wives, but in this instance we're only talking about one of his wives. Pat. Restrictive sentences don't use the commas.
The second sentence is nonrestrictive. And Bob probably lives a less-complicated life. He has one wife. Pat.
Confused? Relax and just ask yourself, does the word or clause restrict (or limit) the meaning of the subject? If the answer is yes, it's restrictive and no commas are needed. "Bob's wife Pat loves the beach." The name "Pat" restricts the meaning to his wife Pat, not his other wives.
If it doesn't restrict the sentence, then put the commas in. "Bob's wife, Pat, loves the beach." The word "Pat" isn't necessary. Bob only has one wife. You could remove "Pat" and still know who the sentence is talking about.
... And Semicolons
So at this point you're probably asking yourself, why in the world would he put semicolons in this blog? Well, the answer's pretty straight-forward. The most common use for the semicolon is related to the first rule we gave above for commas. So, without further ado, here's Rule ...
5. Connecting two complete thoughts that are tightly related
Sometimes two thoughts are closely related, but can't be conjoined by a conjunction. You have two options. One, write them as two separate sentences. This is usually perfectly fine. However, sometimes you want to keep the two ideas together. The semicolon makes that possible.
Example: "That game kept me up half the night; I just wish I'd had a cold Coke to help me stay awake."
You could easily write this as two sentences, but you lose a bit of the connection between the two ideas by doing so. Using a semicolon keeps the ideas together.
Want to Know More?
There are so many great books out there about punctuation and grammar. These are two of my favorites.
Line By Line: How to Edit Your Own Writing: This book is easy to read and full of excellent examples.
The Elements of Style: This book has been around for decades, and for good reason. Short, to the point, and a joy to read.