I have a great love for commas. If I can add a comma somewhere, I most likely will. This causes me to sometimes write sentences that, although grammatically correct, can stretch on for way too long, losing the interest of the reader, and dishonouring my family. I love comma’s so much it has become a running joke in my friend group; to the point where there is a picture of me in front of some shop called comma. I have lectured my grammatically incorrect friend on his usage of comma’s, or lack thereof, to the point that he started using them… wrongly. The gesture is appreciated though?

Throughout my time on this planet, I have noticed that comma’s overall have been used wrongly by my fellow students, and, to my shame, sometimes by me as well. Therefore, I thought I’d create this hopefully helpful guide on how to use comma’s since they are very important. Especially since we study at an international school, where professional communication is gravely appreciated.

The comma I see being misused the most is when the word ‘and’ is involved. In school, most of us have been taught that when the word ‘and’ is used, there should never be a comma. This lesson is wrong, for there are a lot of situations where this advice is wrong.

One example of this is the Oxford comma. I can safely say that the Oxford comma is my favourite. It doesn’t necessarily do a lot. Actually, it barely does anything at all. It is used when something is being summed up. So, for example in the sentence: I want to thank my teacher, my mother, and my girlfriend. The comma used before the ‘and’ is the Oxford comma. It can, however, only be used when there is a sum-up of three or more. When only giving two examples a comma should not be used.

This is not the only time a comma can be used when ‘and’ is involved. A comma before the word ‘and’ can also be used when a sentence drags on, or when the sentence consists out of two independent clauses. An example would be: On Monday I’m going book shopping, and on Tuesday I’m going to read the books.

I’ll be honest with you; more often than not I place a comma based on gut feeling, but these rules really helped me. I hope they help you as well. Now go and write sentences that drag on way too long, to the point of being low key annoying and confusing to the reader, but still grammatically correct!