B1nounlanguageeducation
US/ˈkɑː.mə/
UK/ˈkɒm.ə/
a punctuation mark (,) used to separate parts of a sentence or items in a list
In context
Put a comma after each item in the list except the last one.
A missing comma can completely change the meaning of a sentence.
In English, numbers like 2,500 use a comma, while Vietnamese uses a full stop.
Words that go with comma
verb + noun
- use a commaUse a comma before 'but' when it joins two sentences.
- add a commaYour teacher may ask you to add a comma here.
adjective + noun
- missing commaThe only mistake in her essay was a missing comma.
noun + noun
- Oxford commaWriters still argue about whether to use the Oxford comma.
noun + preposition
- comma afterThere should be a comma after 'however' at the start of a sentence.
Common mistakes
Incorrect:
The bottle holds 1,5 liters.Correct: The bottle holds 1.5 liters.