hello everybody and welcome back to my
channel sparkle english where i teach
you how to improve your level of english
one of my most popular videos on this
channel is my video on eight different
comma rules in today's video i'm going
to give you a quick lesson on the most
basic comma rules that you need to know
this will help you pass your english
exams or tests where you need to have
excellent punctuation
make sure to subscribe to my sparkle
english youtube channel if you want more
lessons on how to improve your level of
english
so the basic comma rule number one
is we use commas to separate a series of
words like nouns adjectives or verbs in
a sentence
for example
i invited mark
comma serena comma lauren comma and jack
to my party
here we have four different nouns
and we have to separate these nouns by
adding a comma after each one her
boyfriend made salmon comma rice comma
and salad for dinner
now let's look at an example using
adjectives my mom is beautiful comma
generous comma kind comma and selfless
we went jet skiing hiking and swimming
at the resort last summer
comma rule 2 we use a comma to separate
a series of phrases in a sentence
this is similar to rule number one
but instead of separating individual
words in a list
we have to separate a series of phrases
for example
jose cleaned the bathroom comma did the
laundry comma and read a book before bed
we have to separate these three series
of phrases by adding a comma after each
one
i have to go to the bank comma go
grocery shopping comma and take the kids
to school in the morning
note that we only add commas after the
phrases before the conjunction and not
the phrase after the conjunction
rule three
use a comma to separate independent
clauses when they are joined by the
following conjunctions
for
and nor
but or
yet so
an independent clause is a sentence that
is a complete thought it is a
stand-alone sentence
for example
dad is renovating the kitchen
this is an independent clause it's a
complete sentence
and mom is painting the living room is
also a complete sentence
so we have to use a comma to separate
these sentences when they are joined
by the conjunction and
they want to get married one day
comma but they need to work on their
relationship first
so again we use a comma to separate
independent clauses
when they're joined by any of these
conjunctions here
rule number four
use commas after introductory clauses
phrases or words that come before the
main clause
examples
while i was watching tv
comma the doorbell rang
the main clause is the doorbell ring
this is an independent clause
but while i was watching tv introduces
the main clause so we have to use a
comma
to lose weight before summer
comma
jane started a diet and exercise plan
both of these are dependent clauses and
we have to use a comma after the
dependent clause
before joining it with the independent
clause
after thinking long and hard comma
tony decided to break up with bethany
fortunately comma no one was injured in
the car accident
sadly comma i won't be able to attend
your graduation
in all of these examples
you can see that the main clause is an
independent clause and the sentence can
function by itself
so we have to add a comma after these
introductory clauses phrases and words
to combine it with
the independent clause
rule number five
use a comma after yes and no when they
begin a statement
no comma i didn't break the window
yes comma i'm coming to the club tonight
rule number six
use a comma when directly addressing
someone in a sentence
mr jones comma may i use the washroom
mom comma can you make spaghetti for
dinner
bob comma i won't be able to make it to
your party
rule number seven
use a comma to separate a quotation from
the rest of a sentence
so in american english commas always go
before closing quotation marks
she can't come tomorrow
comma
he said
we would not put a period here
if we have he said or she said
we have to use a comma instead of a
period or full stop
jessie exclaimed comma
quotation mark you're the best aunt ever
so remember to use a comma to separate a
quotation from the rest of a sentence
rule number eight
use commas to separate multiple
adjectives that describe or modify the
same noun when the word and can be
placed between them
for example
she is a funny intelligent woman
because we can say she is a funny and
intelligent woman
we have to separate
these two adjectives
by adding a comma
it was a long hard day
again
because we can say it was a long and
hard day
we have to use a comma to separate
these adjectives because they're
describing the same noun
rule number nine
use a comma to separate the name of a
city from a country or state
example
they are spending their holidays in
toronto comma ontario
have you ever been to paris comma france
now let's look at these two answers
if you said i went to paris comma france
last year
you have to put two different commas
the comma
after the city and also after the
country or state
however if you answered i went to paris
last year
because this is just one word we do not
have to use a comma
and if we ended it i went to paris
france it would just be a period but
because we have last year
we have to add a comma after the country
as well
and finally rule number 10
use a comma to separate the day of the
week the day of the month and the year
today is tuesday comma october 5th comma
2021
the concert is on january 1st comma 2022
so make sure to
add a comma to separate
the day of the week the day of the month
and the year
so that is it for my basic comma rules
lesson
i'm going to create another video for a
practice quiz on these 10 different
basic comma rules so stay tuned for my
next lesson
i hope this video helps you pass your
english test or english exam and helps
you to become a better english writer
thanks again for watching and i'll see
you in my next lesson