Dependent Clause Examples With Commas

One of the purposes of the comma is to balance in parallel elements of like meaning and form. If you locate a run-on sentence and find where the two independent clauses "collide," you can decide how best to separate the clauses. Fixing run-on sentences is very similar to fixing comma splices.

You can make two complete sentences by inserting a period. You can use a semicolon between the two clauses if they are of equal importance; this allows your reader to consider the points together. You can use a semicolon with a transition word to indicate a specific relation between the two clauses; however, you should use this sparingly. You can use a coordinating conjunction and a comma, and this also will indicate a relationship.

Or, you can add a word to one clause to make it dependent. A compound sentence contains two or more independent clauses linked by a coordinating conjunction. Independent clauses are those that can stand alone as complete sentences. The most common coordinating conjunctions are and, but, and or. In certain cases, nor, yet, so, and for act as coordinating conjunctions.

Once you discover where the two independent clauses are "spliced," there are several ways to separate them. You can use a coordinating conjunction following the comma, and this also will indicate a relationship. In this sentence, you are late and you will fail the class are independent clauses, and if…then is the correlative conjunction. So, the above example should include a comma because the correlative conjunction links two independent clauses. A common question regarding coordinating conjunctions and commas is whether a comma should appear before or after but or and or any other conjunction. (In this instance, should there be a comma after but, or is the comma before but correct?).

The rule is that when two independent clauses are joined by a conjunction, a comma should nearly always precede the conjunction . That is, like in the example above, there should be a comma before but, but there would never be a comma after but. This is the trickiest arena in which to learn comma usage.

You really need to know the rest of your grammar rules well in order to properly use commas. Knowing dependent and independent clauses is essential – so bone up on it if you must! (These videos are a good place to start.) In today's post, I'm going to cover each of the four sentence structure types and let you know when and when not to use a comma. Writers like to sprinkle their work with subordinate clauses because they add variety to sentence structure.

A reading diet too heavy with simple sentences or even compound sentences becomes wearisome quickly. Subordinate clauses—also known as dependent clauses—used skillfully can add complexity and artfulness to writing. An independent clause is a unit of grammatical organization that includes both a subject and verb and can stand on its own as a sentence.

In the previous example, "I went running" and "I saw a duck" are both independent clauses, and "and" is the coordinating conjunction that connects them. It's there also to call out this balanced relationship between the two clauses. Using it represents the baseline and neutral approach.

Some students are unfamiliar with the definitions and rules of clauses and punctuation, the basic building blocks of sentence structure. This problem does not show itself too much when you write in the first person voice ("I remember once . . .") because that is your natural idiom. In some ways, it seems like trying to write in a foreign language. To combine two complete sentences/ independent clauses, you have two options. You can use a comma with a conjunction, or you can use a semicolon.

If you use a comma and conjunction, the acronym FANBOYS will help you remember the conjunctions . If you use a semicolon, you do not have to capitalize the first letter of the next sentence. When a semicolon is used to join two or more ideas in a sentence, those ideas are then given equal position or rank.

Some people write with a word processor; others write with a pen or pencil. Use a semicolon between two independent clauses that are connected by conjunctive adverbs or transitional phrases. When you have two independent clauses (i.e., full sentences) that are joined by a coordinating conjunction, you have a compound sentence.

Once you get used to asking yourself if the two parts of your sentence can stand alone as independent clauses, you'll be able to correct comma splices in your writing with ease. To add interest to your written work, try varying the way you correct a comma splice so your sentences don't all sound the same. When you master this trick, your English grammar will automatically improve. As you may recall from above, an independent clause has a subject and a verb and can stand on its own as a sentence. Often, a coordinating conjunction will connect two independent clauses — like the word "but." Note that not all commas are similarly up for debate.

Many follow directly from the grammar of the sentence, such as those that distinguish between restrictive and nonrestrictive elements in a sentence. But this comma that comes in to demarcate two independent clauses is entirely optional — in all contexts — if those two clauses are short and closely related. Beyond that, in fiction, if you're going for a particular voice, a particular effect, it's perfectly permissible to omit this comma even with much longer structures.

You'll see that approach more with some authors than others. Do not use a comma before the coordinating conjunctions "for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so" when they occur in the middle of a sentence that does not include independent clauses. Knowing how to distinguish a dependent clause or a phrase from an independent clause will help you to use punctuation correctly and construct proper sentences. A dependent clause or a phrase can not stand alone as a sentence. It is therefore dependent on other words being added to it to create a sentence.

To review, the English language is made up of many dependent and independent clauses. A clause is a group of words with a subject, a person doing the action, and a predicate, the action and the words that follow. Some simple sentences only have a verb as the predicate. A comma splice is the use of a comma between two independent clauses. Although this coordinating conjunction conjoins two independent clauses, they are short and closely related. And adding in the comma would change the shape of the larger structure.

A complex sentence contains an independent clause and one or more dependent clauses. A dependent clause, unlike an independent clause, cannot stand on its own as a complete sentence. The conjunctions and prepositions most commonly used to introduce a dependent clause include if, because, while, as, although, since, and unless. Many students understand that a complete sentence contains a subject and a verb, but what if that sentence does not create a complete thought?

Dependent clauses may look a whole lot like independent clauses, but they are only meant to complement the independent clause and not stand on their own. Listing commas can separate lists of nouns, verbs, adjectives, dependent clauses, or even complete sentences. This can mean that you can have a comma before an "and" that is followed by a dependent clause if it is the last item in a list of dependent clauses. Some authors like to join sentences with listing commas, e.g. Still another way to form a compound sentence is to use a semicolon AND a conjunctive adverb between the two independent clauses.

Fused sentences happen when there are two independent clauses not separated by any form of punctuation. The error can sometimes be corrected by adding a period, semicolon, or colon to separate the two sentences. If the dependent clause is essential, do not separate it from the rest of the sentence with commas. When an introductory phrase or clause, or any other dependent clause, equally modifies the compound structure of two independent clauses, the standard approach is not to use a comma. A simple sentence contains only one independent clause and no dependent clauses.

When a simple sentence contains a conjunction, you might be tempted to insert a comma before the conjunction, as you do with a compound sentence. With a simple sentence, however, the general rule is to omit the comma. Though not necessarily mechanical, the use of commas in lists is well established. In this usage, the comma separates a series of words, phrases, or independent clauses. Do not connect two independent clauses with a comma ("comma splice").

Two independent clauses, by definition, can each stand alone as a sentence. However, they can not be pieced together with a comma. Instead, either use a semicolon or separate the clauses out as two sentences. In this lesson, we will look at two types of clauses and how to combine them. The first type of clause is called an independent clause.

It has all the components of a complete sentence, which means it has a subject and a verb in the predicate. Thus, if an independent clause is separate from other sentences, it will be a logical simple sentence. Coordinating conjunctions are conjunctions, or joining words, that are placed between words and phrases of equal importance.

Used with coordinating conjunctions, commas allow writers to express how their complete thoughts relate to one another. They also help avoid the choppy, flat style that arises when every thought stands as a separate sentence. If the two independent clauses are very short, you can omit the comma. As noted in the intro, the trend nowadays is to omit the comma wherever possible. Note that students might be wondering how they can tell if a clause is 'short.' Remind them that if they're in doubt, use a comma because that will always be considered correct.

In fact, you may not want to mention this rule to your lower-level students—it might cause unnecessary confusion. A comma splice is when two independent clauses are incorrectly joined by a comma to make one sentence. To avoid comma splices, you first need to be able to identify an independent clause. Use commas when the appositive is nonessential information.

Many inexperienced writers run two independent clauses together by using a comma instead of a period. This results in the dreaded run-on sentence or, more technically, acomma splice. Subordinate clauses are used to add information that gives further meaning to an existing independent clause. The list of subordinating conjunctions below are all familiar words that you have used before.

This results in the dreaded run-on sentence or, more technically, a comma splice. Semicolons (;) Semicolons are used to connect two independent clauses and to separate items in complex lists. Dependent Clauses Not Constituting a Sentence ("Sentence Fragments") -- Students sometimes write a dependent clause when they think they are writing a sentence. This is one of the worst writing errors one can make. Dependent clauses left standing alone are often referred to as sentence fragments.

While they contain a subject and a verb, they nonetheless represent incomplete thoughts. Be sure that you understand the difference between a dependent clause and a sentence. The following are examples of dependent clauses that, like all such clauses, do not constitute sentences. If both the independent clauses are short then some writers may choose to omit the comma before the "and", but you will never be wrong to use it. So if you're not sure then I advise you to include it. When joining two independent clauses, or clauses that could stand on their own as full sentences, place a comma before the conjunction.

If the second independent clause is very short, or if it is an imperative, the comma can be omitted. If the conjunction is only joining parts of the independent clauses (i.e., the second subject and/or verb is dropped because it is the same), no comma should be used. If two independent clauses are joined by a conjunction , use a comma. This is true whether the subject is the same or different in both clauses. This is also true for imperative sentences where the subject is dropped.

The definitions offered here will help you with this. In cases like this, do separate the dependent clause with a comma. In the above sentence, Jane is making dinner and Josie is bringing dessert are both independent clauses . But is the coordinating conjunction joining those two independent clauses together. Therefore, you place a comma after the first independent clause, before the conjunction.

Sometimes two short and closely related independent clauses are not interrupted with a phrase or clause, but instead one precedes or follows. You would include the comma between the two independent clauses or not depending upon the desired effect of the whole. In each of the examples above, the two parts of the sentence separated by the comma could stand as full sentences by themselves.

A compound sentence contains more than one independent clause. The clauses can be joined by a semicolon, a colon, or a coordinating conjunction . Dependent clauses and independent clauses can be combined using different methods. Learn more about clauses and understand how to use a comma, conjunction, and semicolon to join dependent and independent clauses. When a sentence contains two independent clauses linked by a coordinating conjunction, a comma is usually placed before the coordinating conjunction.