Commas are perhaps the most widely used and abused form of punctuation. Their function is simple: to separate various parts of a sentence so the message is clear. Unfortunately, most businesspeople go one of two ways — they either avoid commas completely or saturate every line.
Which is correct?
a. We would like to send you the information you requested, but we do not have the necessary records in our files.
b. We would like to send you the information you requested but we do not have the necessary records in our files.

Answer: a.Why: Be sure to include a comma when joining two sentences that contain an actor and an action with “and,” “or,” “nor,” “for,” “but,” “yet,” or “so.” If you’re joining two short sentences, don’t bother with the comma:

We reviewed the proposals and Accounting calculated the fee.

Which is correct?
a. On Friday, I received your letter.
b. On Friday I received your letter.
Answer: Both.Why: You have a choice here. Some rule books say you should add a comma after one introductory word, others say after three, and still others after five. They all agree that you should use a comma if the introductory word or words contain a verb. My advice: always use a comma to ensure that you’re consistent.
Which is correct?
a. We are looking for an employee who is smart, articulate and can work well under pressure.
b. We are looking for an employee who is smart, articulate, and can work well under pressure.

Answer: Both.

Why: Again, you have a choice. When writing a list, you can add a comma after the last item and before the “and,” or omit one. Here’s another example:

In Europe, we have customers in Spain, Italy, Greece and France.

In Europe, we have customers in Spain, Italy, Greece, and France.
Which is correct?
a. . Their graphics design chain — GraFix — is not as sophisticated as ours.
b. . Their graphics design chain, GraFix, is not as sophisticated as ours.

Answer: a and b.

Why: You can use either a dash or a comma to set off information that is not important to your sentence. The main difference is that commas are more formal than dashes.

Two constant comma problems. Check your writing for these two comma problems:

1. The comma splice, when you connect two sentences with a comma. The problem: the comma is simply not strong enough to hold them. Look at this example of a comma splice:

We must discuss the plan with the president, she’ll have plenty of helpful comments.

Now look at these possible revisions:

We must discuss the plan with the president: she’ll have plenty of helpful comments.

We must discuss the plan with the president. She’ll have plenty of helpful comments.

We must discuss the plan with the president since she’ll have plenty of helpful comments.

2. A comma separating a noun and a verb:

Customers who order before this offer expires at the end of the year will receive two extra pieces of cheese.

When reading this sentence aloud, many people would make a slight vocal pause after “year.” Therefore, some people believe they should place a comma there. But that’s analogous to writing:

Customers, will receive two extra pieces of cheese.

Clearly, this is wrong. If seeing the sentence without a comma bothers you, try rewriting it:

Receive two extra pieces of cheese by ordering before the end of the year.

If you order before the end of the year, we’ll send you two extra pieces of cheese.



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