Confusing Comma Usage
Dear forum,
Can somebody inform me as to what the difference is between the following two sentences:
1. "A dependent clause functions within another clause, as a subject, completer, or modifier."
and
2. "A dependent clause functions within another clause as a subject, completer, or modifier."
The comma between 'clause' and 'as' has been omitted from the second sentence (by me), so my question is this: what is the comma's function in 1., and how does it omission in 2. change the interpretation of the sentence? Is it the "additional, non-essential material" rule for commas?
The original extract is from http://www.grammar-once-and-for-all.com/syntax/introducing-complex-sentences/ towards the end of the page, in case it's relevant.
Thank you for any responses I may receive in advance.
Top answer
Hi The comma's quite often used to indicate where the speaker has made a pause, to make their sentence more understandable. If I had to say that the way that a clause acts is as a subject completer or modifier, I'd probably pause three times, briefly, where the commas are in your given sentence Dave
- Hi The comma's quite often used to indicate where the speaker has made a pause, to make their sentence more understandable.
- If I had to say that the way that a clause acts is as a subject completer or modifier, I'd probably pause three times, briefly, where the commas are in your given sentence Dave
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Hi
The comma's quite often used to indicate where the speaker has made a pause, to make their sentence more understandable. If I had to say that the way that a clause acts is as a subject completer or modifier, I'd probably pause three times, briefly, where the commas are in your given sentence
Dave
0Hi
Yes, if there's a heroic-looking guy with a barrel chest and a beard, he's probably the culprit!
And, of course, I've remade your sentence there
You raise a good point and I understand it. Why aren't there straightforward rules for punctuation? I think I'd say that there's always a tension between speech and written language. It's good to know the formal rules for writing
0I think either would be perfectly natural, because when speaking the sentence makes sense and sounds natural either when pausing or not pausing after the word "clause".
0
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