Use commas after introductory a) clauses, b) phrases, or c) words that come before the main clause. This is why there should be a comma before or. Putting a comma before as in this sentence is a mistake.

When each element separated by or is just one or two words, the reader will have little trouble mentally sorting things out with whichever style you choose. Both of these examples are grammatical. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding. Notify your doctor if you experience dizziness, fainting spells, nausea, vomiting, weak or rapid pulse, or difficulty breathing. We can invest our savings in stocks, bonds or real estate. It’s almost always optional to put a comma before and in a list.. Comma Before And in Lists. 2. Thank you very much for your help.

Some rules for when to use commas are hard and fast (e.g., most introductory phrases), but in situations such as yours, the rules leave room for discretion in order to make your meaning clear; however, your sentences are not confusing without the commas, so there's really no need (in my opinion, of course). People often get muddled about whether to place a comma before conjunctions like and, so, because, and or. George cleaned the house as he listened to the radio. You may want to use a comma in a series of three or more things. This typically means that the relative clause adds context or additional information that would not lead people astray if it were absent from the sentence. For example, this usage of "but" does not take a comma: "To quack but to have no one hear is a sad thing for a duck." Writing, grammar, and communication tips for your inbox. It eliminates a mental “hoop” for the reader to jump through. Check out our guide to comma use. Or is a coordinating conjunction, which means that it coordinates two elements of equal syntactic importance (i.e., two things of identical grammatical weight). A lot of people have strong feelings about putting a comma before and in a list. The purdue OWL says to put a comma before "as if," if it's being used as a subordinating conjunction to join independent clauses. If the clause beginning with or were rewritten to eliminate the subject and verb, it would not be able to stand on its own, and there would be no comma. You should only put a comma before "but" when connecting two independent clauses. In short, you only need to use a comma before “where” if the information that follows it is not essential to proper understanding of the whole sentence.

Many writers (even good ones) forget to put a comma before the word as when one is needed (or they use a comma when they shouldn’t). Including the final comma in this sentence makes it much more readable. For example, both of these examples can be considered correct: We can invest our savings in stocks, bonds, or real estate. Always place a comma before or when it begins an independent clause, but if it begins a dependent clause, don’t. There's just no need for it. Didi may want to spend her roulette winnings on that Ferrari she always wanted, or she may go on a luxury vacation. In many sentences, if there is no comma before. 9 Powerful Writing Apps for Any Type of Writing Project, The 5 Best Writing Tools All Writers Need, 5 Clever Ways to Say “Nice to Meet You” in Writing.
Didi may want to spend her roulette winnings on that Ferrari she always wanted or a luxury vacation. In a series (or list) of three or more items, you can use a comma before or, but this is a preference, not a rule. Whether or not you should use it is a stylistic choice. Writers tend to make this mistake when forming sentences in which as separates two independent clauses. A further discussion and additional examples of correct comma usage can be found in Magnum Proofreading’s Guide to Proper English Grammar and Language Usage. Here's How to Know the Difference Between Miss, Mrs., and Ms. An independent clause is a clause which could stand alone as its own sentence, because it has its own subject and verb. If you are a human, do not fill in this field.

Adding the comma did not change the meaning of any words in the sentence except for one: as. Common starter words for introductory clauses that should be followed by a comma include after, although, as, because, if, since, when, while. I agree with you about your first and second sentences.

Whether or not you put a comma before and depends on how you’re using and.There’s no single rule that applies to all situations.

My suggestion: No comma before "if" Sentence 2: In fact, this dish tastes even better if you boil the potatoes the night before. The answer depends on how you are using or. You must log in or register to reply here. a. Didi may want to spend her roulette winnings on that Ferrari she always wanted, or a luxury vacation. Should you use a comma before or? Notify your doctor if you experience dizziness, fainting spells, nausea, vomiting, weak or rapid pulse or difficulty breathing. In a series (or list) of three or more items, you can use a comma before or, but this is a preference, not a rule. Would you like that martini shaken, or stirred?
The second sentence is still grammatical, but it isn’t logical. Didi may want to spend her roulette winnings on that Ferrari she always wanted. That said, advocates of the Oxford comma do have a strong argument when it comes to the clarity. Although the Oxford University Press uses it (hence the name), American English writers use it more often than British English writers. I wouldn't use commas in any of your examples. This is the much-debated Oxford comma (or serial comma). However, they do not mean the same thing, and so it is important to know how the use of a comma changes the meaning of the sentence. Consider the longer series of coordinating items in this sentence; within the series itself, there is a phrase with a necessary or. The comma is omitted in the first example and is included in the second. George cleaned the house, as he listened to the radio.

What’s more, it has a much cleaner typographical appearance. If your "if" clause is at the beginning of the sentence (as this one is), then you have to use a comma. People often get muddled about whether to place a comma before conjunctions like and, so, because, and or. Thank you for your advice, I'll do my best. Adding the comma did not change the meaning of any words in the sentence except for one: as.