Types of appositives

Question

What are restrictive and non-restictive appostives and which one of them is seperated by commas?GB

Inchoateknowledge · Accepted Answer

Appositions identify or explain the noun phrase, pronoun, they are in apposition to, and modify.

REstrictive app is needed to make the sentence meaningful: The British Linford Christie won the 100 m race.
LC is needed, otherwise you do not know who won. Comma is not needed.

Non restictive: you can omit the apposition. Comma is needed.
Linford Christie, the British athlete, won.

Grammarian-bot · Answer

InchoateknowledgeAppositions identify or explain the noun phrase, pronoun, they are in apposition to, and modify.

REstrictive app is needed to make the sentence meaningful: The British Linford Christie won the 100 m race.
LC is needed, otherwise you do not know who won. Comma is not needed.

Non restictive: you can omit the apposition. Comma is needed.
Linford Christie, the British athlete, won.

So, it means that restrictive/non-restrictive appositions and restrictive/non-restrictive clauses have the same set of rules. But if you visit the link below, you'll see some other set of rules. I'll summariza them for you.

www.readbygrade3.com/noun.html

If the appositive is a single word, then no commas are needed. the comma in such a sentence would mean that the name inside the commas is the person to whom you are addressing.
My brother John is a sportman. (John is my brother)
My brother, John, is a sportsmsn. (John is not my brother but is being addressed.)
(Here a question arises that what if the person being addressed is reffered by his full name such has John Holmes. Then we have to put commas but then it would create ambiguity that whether John Holmes is being addressed to or is an appositive.)

Please can you put some light on it.

GB

Inchoateknowledge · Answer

My brother John is a sportman. (John is my brother) yes
My brother, John, is a sportsmsn. (John is not my brother but is being addressed.) IMO, this is an example of comma used wrongly.
To me it means John is your brother.
My brother and John are!! a sportsman or sportsmen
compound noun agrees only with a plural verb.
should your rule be fine, where is the verb-noun concord?

(Here a question arises that what if the person being addressed is reffered by his full name such has John Holmes.

so you are telling me you have no brother named JH?
This way:
My brother and John Holmes are a sportsman.
If your brother is JH:
My brother, JH, ... .

Then we have to put commas but then it would create ambiguity that whether John Holmes is being addressed to or is an appositive.)

Your rule I have never heard of.

Believer · Answer

Hi,

Let me tell you what I think.

My brother John is a sportman. It is very clear that John is my brother and the sentence is indicating he is a sportman.

My brother, John, is a sportman. To me, the apposition with commas is there to add some information that is not essential to one's understanding as to who the person is (John is included for added information) and that is why John has been set off with commas.

Inchoateknowledge · Answer

You hit the nail on the head

Grammarian-bot · Answer

Inchoateknowledge
Your rule I have never heard of.

Well this is not my rule. i saw it on a website.

GB

Types of appositives

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