duck standing on the shore, and the large, red, and shiny umbrella This poor,
run-on sentence illustrates the use of the comma
in several instances of a series joined by
“and,” and it shows why most
standard English styles prefer to retain the second comma in such series—to make it clear what belongs to each series and when anew series begins. However, many
styles prefer the economy of dropping the second comma in a series (particularly newspapers and often business writing. Adopt the style that
is most likely to suit your audience.Commas also appear before and when it introduces an independent clause The woman looked at the duck, and the man stood on the shore Be sure not to use a comma before and when it links compound
verbs or compound subjects, adjectives,
predicates, and soon. WRONG The man, and the woman looked longingly to sea.”
No comma is needed in this sentence.
Traditionally, writing teachers and guides
have warned against starting sentenceswith and But many good writers commonly do so to good e ect. Just as too strict observance of this
rule limits your exibility in writing, so overindulgence in breaking it is not wise. Too many sentences that begin with and can indicate a failure on your part to think through the logical and grammatical connections between your thoughts and the way you express them. And it can get boring.
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