“Such As”

Margie Wakeman WellsGeneral, The Comma Leave a Comment

The phrase “such as” is punctuated according to the rules of essential/nonessential. …The sciences such as chemistry and physics are viewed to be… …Cars such as Ford and GM are beyond… ..He enjoys Pepsi products, such as Mug root beer, more than… Frankly, it is difficult for me to think of a good example where it does take a comma. …

Tag Clauses

Margie Wakeman WellsThe Comma, The Semicolon Leave a Comment

A recent FB answer to why the first kind of tag clauses take a comma and why there cannot be a comma before the word “right” by itself. “Didn’t you’ and “has he” echo the words of the question. They are a shortened form of the question.   …He was there early, wasn’t he [there early]? …She was not the …

The Word “Though”

Margie Wakeman WellsGeneral, The Comma Leave a Comment

The word “though,” when it is alone in the middle of the sentence, is surrounded by commas. …I think he knew, though, that this was the end. …He was standing, though, near the door. At the end of the sentence, it takes a comma in front of it. …He was leaning against it, though. …I didn’t really understand it, though. …

Run-On Sentences

Margie Wakeman WellsThe Comma 2 Comments

A frequent statement on FB by those asking for punctuation help: “The attorney keeps using run-on sentences.” Just a note of clarification: Run-on sentences are created by bad punctuation. They cannot be “said.” This is what was said: “The man came into the bank. He was alone.” A comma after “bank” or no punctuation after “bank” makes it a run-on. …

A Prepositional Phrase Beginning with “Of”…

Margie Wakeman WellsThe Comma Leave a Comment

A prepositional phrase beginning with “of” that represents where a person works or where he is from and that follows a proper noun takes commas around it. Other prepositional phrases do not take these commas. …John Jones, of Smith and Jones… …John Jones, of Buffalo… …Mary Smith, of USC, is speaking at the symposium. …Mary Smith, of Seattle, Washington, is …

“Do You Know What I Mean?” and Other Nonquestions

Margie Wakeman WellsThe Comma, The Question Mark Leave a Comment

When someone has a language “glitch” and uses a word or phrase over and over, that word or phrase is surrounded by commas. …He was, like, on the, you know, edge that day. …The company, like, you know, did not really have, like, a policy, you know, on that. When this type of element is normally a question but is …