The last time I went to Florida was in May, when the weather was beautiful.

Question

http://oaadonline.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/dictionary/when
when
3
at which time; on which occasion
- The last time I went to Florida was in May, when the weather was beautiful.

May I ask why the comma is necessary?

Vorpar · Accepted Answer

It indicates a dependent clause: "when the weather was beautiful" can't a complete sentence, while "The last time I went to Florida was in May" is an independent clause, which can be. A complex sentence can be separated by a comma, though it doesn't have to be. If it is a long sentence, a comma is preferred. A shorter sentence like "I went to the store to buy some milk." doesn't usually have a comma to separate the clauses.

HUBLOT · Answer

Thank you, Vorpar.

Khan was last heard from the morning of Dec. 19 when she left her sister a troubling voicemail, saying that while she was studying for finals at an outdoor picnic table, a drunk man had been harassing her and attempted to kiss her before she hit him and took off.

Is when the same thing as "when" in "The last time I went to Florida was in May, when the weather was beautiful"?

Vorpar · Answer

Yes, it essentially means "at the same time as" in this context.

HUBLOT · Answer

Thank you, Vorpar.

May I ask why a comma is not necessary after "19"?

Vorpar · Answer

It may be. That sentence is a run-on; it has many problems.

CalifJim · Answer

- The last time I went to Florida was in May, when the weather was beautiful.

May I ask why the comma is necessary?

Because the when clause does not specify which May. Presumably we already know that. So it's not a restrictive clause.

The writer is not saying the trip to Florida was in that particular May which had beautiful weather as opposed to some other May which had bad weather.

Your other example with Dec. 19 should also have a comma - for the same reason.

When the clauses are short, however, writers sometimes leave out these commas. It is often a matter of style and taste rather than a strict adherence to rules.

CJ

Jooney · Answer

Hi, CJ.

I'd like to ask a few questions about this sentence.

The last time I went to Florida was in May, when the weather was beautiful.

Q1) So you see it as an appositive(unrestrictive) clause. Correct?

If you add a specific year right next to May, will it make the "when-clause" restrictive?

The last time I went to Florida was in May 2009, when the weather was beautiful.

Q2) In this case, the lister can identify which May the speaker is referring to without the information given in the relative clause. So I think it's still an appositive relative clause. Am I correct?

Q3) How would you modify the sentence to make it a restrictive clause?

I'd appreciate your help. Thanks.

p.s. Thanks for posting this question, HUBLOT. I hope you don't mind me posting these questions on your thread.

CalifJim · Answer

The last time I went to Florida was in May, when the weather was beautiful.

Q1) So you see it as an appositive(unrestrictive) clause. Correct? Correct.

If you add a specific year right next to May, will it make the "when-clause" restrictive?

The last time I went to Florida was in May 2009, when the weather was beautiful.

No. Quite the reverse. Now which May is made so clear that the when-clause is even less restrictive, if such a thing is possible.

Q2) In this case, the lister can identify which May the speaker is referring to without the information given in the relative clause. So I think it's still an appositive relative clause. Am I correct? Yes. That makes sense to me.

Q3) How would you modify the sentence to make it (contain) a restrictive clause?

Something like this perhaps:

The last time I went to Florida was in a month when the weather was beautiful.

Mentioning the name of a specific month makes the job of forming a restrictive clause more difficult.

The last time I went to Florida was that May when a hurricane destroyed 20% of the state.

(This works provided there was only one May in which a hurricane struck Florida, so the sentence may be anomalous from the viewpoint of matters of fact.)

CJ

Jooney · Answer

Thank you very much for your help, CJ.<img class='emoticon' style='Width:19px;Height:19px;' data-delaysrc='https://uat-englishforward-forums-backend.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/Emoticons/1.gif' src='https://uat-englishforward-forums-backend.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/Emoticons/1.gif' alt='Emotion: smile'/>

The last time I went to Florida was in May, when the weather was beautiful.

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