The Six Comma Rules

Prof. Cecelia Galassi

Golden West College

1. After a dependent clause or intro phrase and before an

independent clause

,

If you want, you can give me a gift.

Eventually, Nhien learned her lesson.

Dependent Independent

2. Between two independent clauses with a coordinating conjunction (FANBOYS)

, and

Miguel had a habit of forgetting birthdays, so Mikki reminded him that hers was next Tuesday.

Independent Independent

More IND, cc IND…

This summer I created my own website, but the pages are not very complicated.

Yuesheng loves being an engineer, yet you will never find him working on a Saturday.

3. Enclosing a sentence interrupter

, ,

My dog, whose name is Caesar, is an Alaskan Malamute.

Interrupter

4. Between two reversible adjectives

We can’t buy that decrepit, crumbling windmill.

We can’t buy that crumbling, decrepit windmill.

Remember, not all adjectives are reversible!

Tom, go paint the white picket fence.

That little old lady is a motorcycle cop.

Destructor is one big bad monster!

5. Between items in a series

Elvis has been sighted in gas stations, restaurants, and K-marts all across the country.

You can believe me, doubt me, or ignore me.

Though the comma before “and” is technically optional, you will

find that it improves the clarity of longer sentences.

People love Halloween because it allows them to dress up fantastically, eat candy unapologetically, and scare others enthusiastically.

6. Between a quotation and its identifier

Cymetria said, “I just can’t put this book down. It’s worth every penny I paid for it.”

You need a comma whether the identifier comes before the

quotation or after it

“Some man just whistled at me,” exclaimed Jamillah.

“That man,” replied James, “was me.”

The Six Comma Rules

• DEP , INDEP

*INTRO , INDEP

• IND , fanboys IND• Enclosing a sentence

interrupter

• Between two reversible adjectives

• Between items in a series

• Between a quotation and its identifier