| Home |
 |
Common Errors Workbook |
|
Punctuation and mechanics |
|
25. Comma splices |
|
Comma splices are two independent clauses that are incorrectly joined by a comma. The steps for identifying and fixing them are the same as those for spotting run-on sentences:
Find the subjects and verbs of the sentence.
Identify whether each subject and verb belongs to an independent or a dependent clause.
| Independent clauses: | Jasper was a birdwatcher. |
| Juanita enjoyed stargazing. | |
| Dependent clauses: | Since Jasper was a birdwatcher |
| When Juanita enjoyed stargazing |
If you find two independent clauses joined by a comma in the same sentence, draw an imaginary line between them.
Jasper was a birdwatcher, | Juanita enjoyed stargazing.
Fix the comma splice in one of these ways:
a. Separate the independent clauses with a period or a semicolon.
Correct: Jasper was a birdwatcher; Juanita enjoyed stargazing.
b. Use a comma before a coordinating conjunction: and, or, nor, but, for, so, yet.
Correct: Jasper was a birdwatcher, but Juanita enjoyed stargazing.
Remember: Independent clauses are mini-sentences: they can stand alone as grammatically complete units. If two or more of them are smuggled into the same sentence with only a comma separating them, they must be broken apart in one of the above ways.
|