Commas in a list
What punctuation mark is used to separate three or more items in a list?
Comma
What is the optional comma placed before "and" or "or" in a list?
Oxford comma?
When should you use a comma between adjectives?
when the adjectives are coordinate adjectives (meaning they equally describe the noun and can be reversed or separated by "and")
Identify the missing comma: "I bought apples bananas and oranges."
"I bought apples, bananas, and oranges."
What is wrong with this sentence? "I love my parents, Lady Gaga and Batman."
"Without the Oxford comma, it sounds like my parents are Lady Gaga and Batman. It should be: 'I love my parents, Lady Gaga, and Batman.'"
Which sentence is incorrect?
A) She is a smart, talented artist.
B) He wore a bright blue jacket.
C) It was a cold, windy, rainy day.
B ("Bright blue" are not coordinate adjectives, so no comma is needed.)
What is the name of the optional comma placed before "and" or "or" in a list?
Oxford comma
Is this sentence correct or incorrect? "For dinner, we had pasta, chicken, and salad."
correct
Fix this incorrect sentence: "We walked down the long narrow winding path."
"We walked down the long, narrow, winding path."
What is wrong with this sentence? "She packed socks shoes, and a jacket."
The comma should come after 'socks' instead of 'shoes'—'She packed socks, shoes, and a jacket.'
Fix this incorrect sentence: "She thanked her friends, the president and the vice president."
"She thanked her friends, the president, and the vice president." (Without the Oxford comma, it sounds like her friends are the president and vice president.)
Which sentence correctly separates adjectives?
A) He gave me a sweet, juicy apple.
B) He gave me a sweet juicy apple.
A (The adjectives "sweet" and "juicy" are coordinate, so they need a comma.)
Rewrite this sentence with proper commas: "For lunch I had a turkey sandwich with lettuce tomato and mayo chips and a soda."
For lunch, I had a turkey sandwich with lettuce, tomato, and mayo, chips, and a soda.
Choose the correct version:
A) "I had eggs, toast and juice."
B) "I had eggs, toast, and juice."
B (B correctly uses the Oxford comma.)
Which of these sentences is correct?
A) It was an exciting, action-packed movie.
B) It was an exciting action-packed movie.
A (You can say "exciting and action-packed," so they need a comma.)