The
comma , form the Greek κόμμα
komma, is a
punctuation mark, and it appears in several variants in various languages. It has the same shape as an
apostrophe or single closing
quotation mark in many typefaces, but it differs from them in being placed on the baseline of the text. Some
render it as a small line, slightly curved or straight but inclined from the vertical, or with the appearance of a small, filled-in number 9. It is used to separate parts of a
sentence such as
and lists of three or more things.
The comma is used in many contexts and languages, mainly for separating things. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the word comma comes directly from the Greek komma (κόμμα), which means something cut off or a short clause. A comma can also be used as a diacritic when combined with other characters.
Comma variants
The basic comma is defined in Unicode as but many variants by typography or language are also defined.
|
| , | U 002C | COMMA | Prose in European languages, decimal separator in Continental Europe, Brazil and other Latin American countries. |
| ʻ | U 02BB | MODIFIER LETTER TURNED COMMA | used as ʻOkina |
| ʽ | U 02BD | MODIFIER LETTER REVERSED COMMA | Indicates weak aspiration |
| ، | U 060C | ARABIC COMMA | Also used in other languages |
| ᠂ | U 1802 | MONGOLIAN COMMA | |
| 、 | U 3001 | IDEOGRAPHIC COMMA | Used in Japanese and Chinese languages |
| ︐ | U FE10 | PRESENTATION FORM FOR VERTICAL COMMA | Used in vertical writing |
| ︑ | U FE11 | PRESENTATION FORM FOR VERTICAL IDEOGRAPHIC COMMA | Used in vertical writing |
| ﹐ | U FE50 | SMALL COMMA | |
| ﹑ | U FE51 | SMALL IDEOGRAPHIC COMMA | |
| ， | U FF0C | FULLWIDTH COMMA | |
| ､ | U FF64 | HALFWIDTH IDEOGRAPHIC COMMA | |
| ፣ | U 1363 | ETHIOPIC COMMA | |
| ̒ | U 0312 | COMBINING TURNED COMMA ABOVE | Latvian diacrtic cedilla above |
| ̓ | U 0313 | COMBINING COMMA ABOVE | Greek psili, smooth breathing mark |
| ̔ | U 0314 | COMBINING REVERSED COMMA ABOVE | Greek dasia, rough breathing mark |
| ̕ | U 0315 | COMBINING COMMA ABOVE RIGHT | |
| ̦ | U 0326 | COMBINING COMMA BELOW | Romanian, Latvian, Livonian |
| ꓾ | U A4FE | LISU PUNCTUATION COMMA | |
| ᠈ | U 1808 | MONGOLIAN MANCHU COMMA | |
| ߸ | U 07F8 | NKO COMMA | |
| ꘍ | U A60D | VAI COMMA | |
| ՝ | U 055D | ARMENIAN COMMA | bowt |
| ꛵ | U A6F5 | BAMUM COMMA | |
History
In the 3rd century BC,
Aristophanes of Byzantium invented a system of single
dots (
distinctiones) that separated verses (colometry), and indicated the amount of breath needed to complete each fragment of text, when
reading aloud.
[ ξ1 ] The different lengths were signified by a dot at the bottom, middle, or top of the line. For a short passage (a
komma), a
media distinctio dot was placed mid-level (
· ). This is the origin of the concept of a comma, although the name came to be used for the mark itself instead of the clause it separated.
The mark used today is descended from a diagonal slash, or virgula suspensiva ( / ), used from the 13th to 17th centuries to represent a pause. The modern comma was first used by Aldus Manutius.[ Reading Before Punctuation – Introduction to Latin Literature pamphlet, Haverford College][ Manuscript Studies, Medieval and Early Modern – Palaeography: Punctuation glossary]
Uses in English
In general, the comma is used where ambiguity might otherwise arise, to indicate an interpretation of the text such that the words immediately before and after the comma are less closely or exclusively linked in the associated
grammatical structure than they might be otherwise. The comma may be used to perform a number of functions in
English writing. It is used in generally similar ways in other languages, particularly European ones, although the rules on comma usage – and their rigidity – vary from language to language.
In lists
Commas are used to join items in lists, as in
They own a cat, a dog, two rabbits, and six mice. Some English style guides require a comma be used before the final
conjunction (
and,
or,
nor) in a list of more than two elements. A comma used in such a position is variously called a
serial comma, an Oxford, or a Harvard comma (after the
Oxford University Press and
Harvard University Press, both prominent advocates of this style). In some contexts, use of such a comma may serve to avoid ambiguity:
-
The sentence I spoke to the boys, Sam and Tom, could mean either I spoke to the boys and Sam and Tom (I spoke to more than three people) or I spoke to the boys, who are Sam and Tom (I spoke to two people);
-
I spoke to the boys, Sam, and Tom. – must be the boys and Sam and Tom (I spoke to more than three people).
The serial comma can cause confusion. Consider the following sentence:
-
I thank my mother, Anne Smith, and Thomas. This could mean either my mother and Anne Smith and Thomas (three people) or my mother, who is Anne Smith, and Thomas (two people).
-
I thank my mother, Anne Smith and Thomas. The writer is thanking three people: the writer's mother and Anne Smith (who is not the writer's mother) and Thomas.
As a rule of thumb, The Guardian Style Guide
If the individual items of a list are long, complex, affixed with description, or themselves contain commas, may be preferred as separators, and the list may be introduced with a colon.
Separation of clauses
Commas are often used to separate
. In English, a comma is used to separate a
dependent clause from the
independent clause if the dependent clause comes first:
After I fed the cat, I brushed my clothes. (Compare this with
I brushed my clothes after I fed the cat.) A
relative clause takes commas if it is non-
restrictive, as in
I cut down all the trees, which were over six feet tall. (Without the comma, this would mean that only those trees over six feet tall were cut down.)
Some style guides prescribe that two joined by a coordinating conjunction ( for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so) must be separated by a comma placed before the conjunction.[ ξ2 ]
-
Mary walked to the party, but she was unable to walk home.
-
Designer clothes are silly, and I can't afford them anyway.
-
Don't push that button, or twelve tons of high explosives will go off right under our feet!
In the following sentences, where the second half of the sentence is not an independent clause (it cannot stand alone), those guides prescribe that the comma be omitted (Note that it is dependent upon the subject's presence in the sentence's second phrase):
-
Mary walked to the party but was unable to walk home.
-
I think designer clothes are silly and can't afford them anyway.
-
Don't push that button that'll set off the twelve tons of high explosives sitting right under our feet.
However, the comma may be omitted if the second independent clause is very short, typically when the second independent clause is an
imperative.
In the following sentence, it is sometimes considered acceptable to omit the comma, even though the second clause is independent:
Long coordinating clauses are usually separated by commas:
-
She had very little to live on, but she would never have dreamed of taking what was not hers.
In some languages, such as German and Polish, stricter rules apply on comma usage between clauses, with dependent clauses always being set off with commas, and commas being generally proscribed before certain coordinating conjunctions.
The joining of two independent sentences with a comma and no conjunction (as in "It is nearly half past five, we cannot reach town before dark.") is known as a comma splice and is often considered an error in English; in most cases a semicolon should be used instead. A comma splice should not be confused, though, with asyndeton, a literary device used for a specific effect in which coordinating conjunctions are purposely omitted.
Certain adverbs
Commas are always used to set off certain
adverbs at the beginning of a sentence, including
however,
in fact,
therefore,
nevertheless,
moreover,
furthermore, and
still.
-
Therefore, a comma would be appropriate in this sentence.
-
Nevertheless, I will not use one.
If these adverbs appear in the middle of a sentence, they are followed and preceded by a comma. As in the second of the two below examples, if the two sentences are separated by a semicolon and the second sentence starts with an adverb, then it is preceded by a semicolon and followed by a comma.
-
In this sentence, furthermore, commas would also be called for.
-
This sentence is similar; however, a semicolon is necessary as well.
Using commas to offset certain adverbs is optional, including then, so, yet, instead, and too (meaning also).
-
So, that's it for this rule. or
-
So that's it for this rule.
-
A comma would be appropriate in this sentence, too. or
-
A comma would be appropriate in this sentence too.
Parenthetical phrases
Commas are often used to enclose
parenthetical words and phrases within a sentence (
i.e., information that is not essential to the meaning of the sentence). Such phrases are both preceded and followed by a comma, unless that would result in a doubling of punctuation marks, or the parenthetical is at the start or end of the sentence. The following are examples of types of parenthetical phrases:
-
Introductory phrase: Once upon a time, my father ate a muffin.
[ Garner's Modern American Usage, (Oxford: 2003, p. 655)]
-
Interjection: My father ate the muffin, gosh darn it!
-
Aside: My father, if you don’t mind me telling you this, ate the muffin.
-
Appositive: My father, a jaded and bitter man, ate the muffin.
-
Absolute phrase: My father, his eyes flashing with rage, ate the muffin.
-
Free modifier: My father, chewing with unbridled fury, ate the muffin.
-
Resumptive modifier: My father ate the muffin, a muffin which no man had yet chewed.
-
Summative modifier: My father ate the muffin, a feat which no man had attempted.
Between adjectives
A comma is used to separate
coordinate adjectives; that is,
adjectives that directly and equally modify the following noun. Adjectives are considered coordinate if the meaning would be the same if their order were reversed or if
and were placed between them. For example:
-
The dull, incessant droning but the cute little cottage.
-
The devious lazy red frog suggests there are lazy red frogs (one of which is devious), while the devious, lazy red frog does not carry this connotation.
Before quotes
A comma is used to set off quoted material that is the grammatical object of an active verb of speaking or writing, as in
Mr. Kershner says, "You should know how to use a comma." Quotations that follow and support an assertion should be set off by a
colon rather than a comma.
In dates
Month, day, year
When a date is written as a month followed by a day followed by a year, a comma separates the day from the year: December 19, 1941. This style is common in American English. The comma is necessary because of the otherwise confusing consecutive numbers, compare December 19 1941.
Additionally, most style manuals, including
The Chicago Manual of Style[Chicago Manual of Style:
"It’s conventional to put a comma after the year. The commas are like parentheses here, so it doesn't make sense to have only one."]
and the
AP Stylebook,
[
"When a phrase refers to a month, day and year, set off the year with commas... Feb. 14, 1987, was the target date." ]
recommend that the year be treated as a parenthetical, requiring a second comma after it:
"Feb. 14, 1987, was the target date."
However, one exception to this general rule is that you do not include a comma after the year where the date is serving as a specifically identifying adjective - almost as a title: "The September 11, 2001 attacks on the WTC brought a renewed feeling of patriotism."
If just month and year are given, no commas are used:[ Top 5 comma errors] "Her daughter April may return in June 2009 for the reunion."
Day month year
When the day precedes the month, the month name separates the numeric day and year, so commas are not necessary to separate them: "The
Raid on Alexandria was carried out on 19 December 1941."
In geographical names
Commas are used to separate parts of geographical references, such as city and state (
Dallas, Texas) or city and country (
Kampala, Uganda). Additionally, most style manuals, including
The Chicago Manual of Style[
"Mary traveled to Seattle, Washington, before going on to California.” ]
and the
AP Stylebook,
[
"Acme Pens was founded in Padua, Italy, in 2004." ]
recommend that the second element be treated as a parenthetical, requiring a second comma after:
"The plane landed in Kampala, Uganda, that evening."[
Chicago Manual of Style, 14th ed., §5.67.]
The United States Postal Service[ USPS – Send Mail - Addressing Tips] and Royal Mail[[5]] recommend writing addresses without any punctuation.
In numbers
In representing large numbers, English texts usually use commas to separate each group of three digits. This is almost always done for numbers of six or more digits, and often for five or four digits. However, in much of Europe, Southern Africa and Latin America,
period or spaces are used instead; the comma is used as a decimal separator, equivalent to the use in English of the
decimal point. In addition, the comma may not be used for this purpose at all in some number systems, e.g. the
SI writing style;
[ Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc.] a space may be used to separate groups of three digits instead.
In names
Commas are used when writing names that are presented surname first, generally in instances of alphabetization by surname:
Smith, John. They are also used before many titles that follow a name:
John Smith, Ph.D.
Ellipsis
Commas may be used to indicate that a word has been omitted, as in
The cat was white; the dog, brown. (Here the comma replaces
was.)
Vocative
Commas are placed before, after, or around a noun or pronoun used independently in speaking to some person, place or thing:
-
I hope, John, that you will read this.
Differences between American and British usage
The comma and the
quotation mark pairing can be used in several ways. In
American English, the comma is commonly included inside a quotation, regardless of whether the comma is part of the original quotation.
[See, for example, The Chicago Manual of Style] For example:
-
My mother gave me the nickname "Bobby Bobby Bob Bob Boy," which really made me angry.
However, in
British English, punctuation is placed within quotation marks only if it is part of what is being quoted or referred to. Thus:
-
My mother gave me the nickname "Bobby Bobby Bob Bob Boy", which really made me angry.
The use of the serial comma, also known as the Oxford comma, Harvard comma, or the series comma, is sometimes perceived as overly careful or an Americanism, but usage occur within both American and British English.
Opinions among writers and editors differ on whether to use the serial comma. In American English, a majority of style guides mandate use of the serial comma, including The Chicago Manual of Style, Strunk and White's Elements of Style,4 and the U.S. Government Printing Office Style Manual. The Associated Press Stylebook for journalistic writing advises against it. It is used less often in British English,5 but some British style guides require it, including the Oxford University Press style manual6 and Fowler's Modern English Usage. Some writers of British English use it only where necessary to avoid ambiguity.7
Barbara Child claims that in American English there is a trend toward a decreased use of the comma (Child, 1992, p. 398). This is reinforced by an article by Robert J. Samuelson in Newsweek.
In his 1963 book Of Spies and Stratagems, Stanley P. Lovell recalls that, during the Second World War, the British carried the comma over into abbreviations. Specifically, "Special Operations, Executive" was written "S.O.,E.". Nowadays, even the are frequently discarded.
In other languages
Punctuation has been added to many languages which originally developed without it, including a number of different comma forms.
European languages like German, French, Italian, Spanish, and Portuguese use the same comma as English with similar spacing.
Japanese punctuation normally requires the '、' (tōten, 読点, literally ‘reading point’, ) in native text. However, in documents that mix Japanese and Latin alphabet, a full-width comma '，' () is employed.
Chinese punctuation normally calls for '，' () but has the "enumeration comma" '、' (, ) for lists. The comma is used to join together clauses that deal with a certain topic or line of thinking. As such, what would appear to an English speaker to be a comma splice is very commonly seen in Chinese writing. An entire paragraph, regardless of length, can consist of clauses joined by commas, with the sole period coming only at the end. Unlike in English, a comma is allowed between a subject and its predicate.
The comma in the Arabic script (used by Arabic, Urdu, and Persian, etc.) is inverted, upside-down: '،' (), in order to distinguish it from the Arabic diacritic (ُ ) that is similarly comma-shaped.[ ξ3 ]
In Arabic texts, Western-styled comma (٫) is used as a decimal point.
Hebrew script is also written from right to left. However, Hebrew punctuation includes only a regular comma (,).
Korean punctuation usage sees both commas and being used for lists.
Languages such as Tamil and its major branch-languages (Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam) also use the punctuation mark in similar usage to that of European Languages with similar spacing.
Computing
In the common
character encoding systems
Unicode and
ASCII, character 44 (
0x2C) corresponds to the comma symbol. The
HTML numeric character reference is
,
In many computer languages commas are used to separate arguments to a function, to separate elements in a list, and to perform data designation on multiple variables at once.
In the C programming language the comma symbol is an operator which evaluates its first argument (which may have side-effects) and then returns the value of its evaluated second argument. This is useful in for statement and macros.
In Smalltalk, the comma operator is used to concatenate collections, including strings.
The comma-separated values (CSV) format is very commonly used in exchanging text data between database and spreadsheet formats.
Diacritical usage
The comma is used as a
diacritic mark in
Romanian under the
s (, ), and under the
t (, ). A
cedilla is occasionally used instead of it (notably in the
Unicode glyph names), but this is technically incorrect. The symbol (
d with comma below) was used as part of the
Romanian transitional alphabet (19th century) to indicate the sounds denoted by the Latin letter
z or letters
dz, where derived from a
Cyrillic ѕ (). The comma and the cedilla are both derivative of a small cursive
z () placed below the letter. From this standpoint alone,
ș,
ț, and
d̦ could potentially be regarded as stand-ins for
sz,
tz, and
dz respectively.
In Latvian, the comma is used on the letters ģ, ķ, ļ, ņ, and historically also ŗ, to indicate palatalization. Because the lowercase letter g has a descender, the comma is rotated 180° and placed over the letter. Although their Adobe glyph names are commas, their names in the Unicode Standard are g, k, l, n, and r with a cedilla. They were introduced to the Unicode standard before 1992, and their name cannot be altered. For input Ģ use Alt 290 and Alt 291 sequences, for Ķ use Alt 310 and Alt 311, for Ļ use Alt 315 and Alt 316, for Ņ use Alt 325 and Alt 326.
In the Czech and Slovak languages, the diacritics in the characters ď, ť, and ľ resemble superscript commas, but they are modified because they have ascenders. Other ascender letters with carons, such as letters ȟ (used in Finnish Romani and Lakota) and ǩ (used in Skolt Sami), did not modify their carons to superscript commas.
See also
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External links
References
