Comma confusion
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- Mary WhiteFace
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Comma confusion
For example: Jade blushed and flipped back her hair. Then she made her way over to where Savi stood in front of the girls’ cabin assignments.
Should there be a comma after the word then? Why or why not?
- Mary WhiteFace
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Two issues: 1. Commas after introductory words, and 2. Commas with coordinating conjunctions.Tiny_Turtle wrote: ↑29 Nov 2018, 19:40 I've been looking at multiple punctuation guides and am still a little confused about comma usage after the words then, and, or but when used at the beginning of a sentence. From my understanding, a comma would be sometimes used and sometimes not. I just can't differentiate between the two circumstances.
For example: Jade blushed and flipped back her hair. Then she made her way over to where Savi stood in front of the girls’ cabin assignments.
Should there be a comma after the word then? Why or why not?
Generally, you would not use a comma when using a coordinating conjunction (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so) to begin a sentence. "But I decided not to go." For most other introductory words, including "then," you would use a comma if used at the beginning of a sentence. "Then, we left the house." "Finally, it started to rain." So learning the coordinating conjunctions is good (FANBOYS is a helpful mnemonic.).
In the first sentence of your example, it is correct as written. You would not use a comma. Commas are used before coordinating conjunctions (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so) when they connect two independent clauses (complete sentences). If the phrases were both independent clauses, you would use a comma before and: "Jade blushed, and she flipped back her hair." In your example "flipped back her hair" is not an independent clause. So no comma.
-Nayyirah Waheed
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Thank you so much for your clarifying comment. Your explanation of the use of commas with introductory words was simple and easy to understand.
I have not seen an explanation that was so simple and to the point. Do you have any guideline sources that can referenced if my non-use of a comma with FANBOYS at the beginning of a sentence were to be questioned?Generally, you would not use a comma when using a coordinating conjunction (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so) to begin a sentence. "But I decided not to go." For most other introductory words, including "then," you would use a comma if used at the beginning of a sentence.
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This is a good piece about coordinating conjunctions, in general. At the very end is the section that explains about using them at the beginning of a sentence. http://www.chompchomp.com/terms/coordin ... nction.htmTiny_Turtle wrote: ↑30 Nov 2018, 06:52 @Eva Barrington
Thank you so much for your clarifying comment. Your explanation of the use of commas with introductory words was simple and easy to understand.
I have not seen an explanation that was so simple and to the point. Do you have any guideline sources that can referenced if my non-use of a comma with FANBOYS at the beginning of a sentence were to be questioned?Generally, you would not use a comma when using a coordinating conjunction (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so) to begin a sentence. "But I decided not to go." For most other introductory words, including "then," you would use a comma if used at the beginning of a sentence.
-Nayyirah Waheed
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Thank youEva Darrington wrote: ↑30 Nov 2018, 10:40This is a good piece about coordinating conjunctions, in general. At the very end is the section that explains about using them at the beginning of a sentence. http://www.chompchomp.com/terms/coordin ... nction.htmTiny_Turtle wrote: ↑30 Nov 2018, 06:52 @Eva Barrington
Thank you so much for your clarifying comment. Your explanation of the use of commas with introductory words was simple and easy to understand.
I have not seen an explanation that was so simple and to the point. Do you have any guideline sources that can referenced if my non-use of a comma with FANBOYS at the beginning of a sentence were to be questioned?Generally, you would not use a comma when using a coordinating conjunction (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so) to begin a sentence. "But I decided not to go." For most other introductory words, including "then," you would use a comma if used at the beginning of a sentence.
- jgraney8
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Then is a troublesome word for me. However, if we look at use according to COCA (Corpus of Contemporary American English, https://corpus.byu.edu/coca/, then is rarely followed by a comma when it begins a sentence. The statistics show Then, [then with comma] was found 18147 times versus Then [then without a comma] was found 768699 times.Tiny_Turtle wrote: ↑30 Nov 2018, 11:14Thank youEva Darrington wrote: ↑30 Nov 2018, 10:40This is a good piece about coordinating conjunctions, in general. At the very end is the section that explains about using them at the beginning of a sentence. http://www.chompchomp.com/terms/coordin ... nction.htmTiny_Turtle wrote: ↑30 Nov 2018, 06:52 @Eva Barrington
Thank you so much for your clarifying comment. Your explanation of the use of commas with introductory words was simple and easy to understand.
I have not seen an explanation that was so simple and to the point. Do you have any guideline sources that can referenced if my non-use of a comma with FANBOYS at the beginning of a sentence were to be questioned?
― Michel de Montaigne, The Complete Essays
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I will defer to jgraney8 on this. Clearly there is some gray area with this particular issue. To me, it is now clear as mud. Sorry Tiny Turtle. I will say that I think using the link jgraney8 provided would get you out of any editing discrepancy with "then."jgraney8 wrote: ↑30 Nov 2018, 13:50Then is a troublesome word for me. However, if we look at use according to COCA (Corpus of Contemporary American English, https://corpus.byu.edu/coca/, then is rarely followed by a comma when it begins a sentence. The statistics show Then, [then with comma] was found 18147 times versus Then [then without a comma] was found 768699 times.Tiny_Turtle wrote: ↑30 Nov 2018, 11:14Thank youEva Darrington wrote: ↑30 Nov 2018, 10:40
This is a good piece about coordinating conjunctions, in general. At the very end is the section that explains about using them at the beginning of a sentence. http://www.chompchomp.com/terms/coordin ... nction.htm
-Nayyirah Waheed