What's the difference between a semicolon and a comma?

Lakeisha Williams Dr. Lucas English 1101 July 10, 2006

                    ==The Difference Between a Semicolon and a Comma===

The number one difference in semicolons is the fact it is outside quotations and

commas are inside quotations. "The semicolon is used to seperate major sentence elements of

equal grammatical rank; Use a semicolon between items in a series containing internal

punctuation, between closely related independent clauses not joined with a

coordinating conjunction, and between independent clauses liked with a transitional expression."

"When related independent clauses appear in one sentence, they are ordinarily connected with a

comma and a coordinating conjunction (and, but, or, for, so, yet). The conjunction expresses

the relationship between the clauses" ( Hacker 251).

An example is :"In 1800, a traveler needed six weeks to get from New York City to Chicago; in

1860, the trip by railroad took two days" (Hacker 251).

- H.L. Mencken stated "Injustice is relatively easy to bear; what stings is justice" (HACKER 251).

A comma is the most used punctuation. A comma help readers to understand to pause in between

their reading. "Use a comma between coordinate adjectives not joined by and. "Do not use a

comma between cumulative adjectives" (Hacker 238). Just like semicolons commas seperate items

in a series, except the comma is only keeping the words from colliding. An example of the use

of commas is: Kim bought rice, corn, and grits at the store. Another example is in the date and

year: Today is July 10, 2006. "A comma is used to set off nonrestrictive elements. Do not use

commas to set off restrictive elements. Restrictive is: For camp the children needed clothes

that were washable. Nonrestrictive is: For camp the children needed sturdy shoes, which

were expensive" (Hacker 239).