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What's the difference between a semicolon and a comma?: Difference between revisions
What's the difference between a semicolon and a comma? (view source)
Revision as of 01:38, 13 July 2006
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equal grammatical rank (Hacker250). The word ''semi'' means half. | equal grammatical rank (Hacker250). The word ''semi'' means half. | ||
The comma is a valuable, useful punctuation device because it separates the structural elements of sentences into manageable segments (OWL at Purdue | The comma is a valuable, useful punctuation device because it separates the structural elements of sentences into manageable segments (OWL at Purdue University). The comma was invented to help readers. | ||
Without it, sentence parts can collide into one another unexpectedly, causing misreadings.(Hacker235) | Without it, sentence parts can collide into one another unexpectedly, causing misreadings.(Hacker235) | ||
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*between all items in a series | *between all items in a series | ||
*use commas to set off nonrestrictive elements | *use commas to set off nonrestrictive elements | ||
For camp the children needed sturdy shoes, ''which were expensive.'' | "For camp the children needed sturdy shoes, ''which were expensive.''" | ||
*use a comma to set off transitional and parenthetical expressions,absolute phrases, and contrasted elements | *use a comma to set off transitional and parenthetical expressions,absolute phrases, and contrasted elements | ||