comma
Brief written pause
A comma is a punctuation mark (,) indicating a pause or separation between elements in a sentence.
Commas set off clauses, separate items in lists, and clarify meaning: Let's eat, Grandma versus Let's eat Grandma.
In numbers, commas mark groups of three digits: 1,000,000.
A comma can also be a brief pause or interval in music or speech.
Air taken in
- hesitationDelay from uncertainty
- beatRhythmic pulse or strike
- restCessation of activity
- caesuraPause within a line
break · silence · gap · moment · intonation · phrasing · cadence · inflection
Punctuation joining related clauses
- colonLarge intestine section
- periodPunctuation ending sentences
- apostropheMark showing ownership
- ellipsisMark indicating omitted words
dash · hyphen · quotation mark · exclamation point · question mark · full stop · ampersand · interrobang
Ordered set of related items
- enumerationSequential listing of items
- itemsIndividual units or objects
- sequenceOrdered succession of elements
- elementsFundamental parts or substances
separation · delimiter · inventory · catalogue · itemization · tabulation · listing
Clause requiring another clause
- independent clauseSelf-sufficient grammatical unit
- conjunctionWord joining clauses together
- coordinatingArranging for unified action
- nonrestrictiveNot defining or limiting
restrictive · appositive · modifier · relative clause · compound sentence · complex sentence · dependent clause · parenthetical
Mark softening consonants
- TurkishOf Anatolia's republic
- RomanianPerson from Bucharest's country
- FrenchOf or from Paris's nation
- PortugueseOf a western Iberian nation
Catalan · hook · tail · accent mark
breath
Air taken in
- hesitationDelay from uncertainty
- beatRhythmic pulse or strike
- restCessation of activity
caesura · break · silence · gap · moment · intonation · phrasing · cadence · inflection · timing
semicolon
Punctuation joining related clauses
- colonLarge intestine section
- periodPunctuation ending sentences
- apostropheMark showing ownership
ellipsis · dash · hyphen · quotation mark · exclamation point · question mark · full stop · ampersand · interrobang · solidus
series
Ordered set of related items
- enumerationSequential listing of items
- itemsIndividual units or objects
- sequenceOrdered succession of elements
elements · separation · delimiter · inventory · catalogue · itemization · tabulation · listing
subordinate clause
Clause requiring another clause
- independent clauseSelf-sufficient grammatical unit
- conjunctionWord joining clauses together
- coordinatingArranging for unified action
nonrestrictive · restrictive · appositive · modifier · relative clause · compound sentence · complex sentence · dependent clause · parenthetical · interrupter
place value
Digit worth by position
- decimal pointFractional value separator
cedilla
Mark softening consonants
Portuguese · Catalan · hook · tail · accent mark
- languagelanguage, word, words, grammar, spelling
- marksmark, blemish, blotch, stroke, seal of approval
- punctuationperiod, colon, apostrophe, semicolon, question mark
- symbolssymbols, runes, symbol, asterisks, national symbol
- curved shapescrescent, arc, horseshoe, parabola, bend
- small marksdot, speck, spot, fleck, pip
commafull stop
Terminal punctuation mark
period · chapter break · paragraph break · section break · semicolon
commaperiod
Punctuation ending sentences
full stop · exclamation point · exclamation mark · question mark
- comma spliceMisjoined clauses with punctuation
- inverted commasPunctuation enclosing quotations
- Oxford commaFinal list separator
- comma placementWhere to put pauses
- misplaced commaIncorrectly positioned pause mark
- comma usageGuidelines for pause marks