The comma is such a trickster. So, I will skip the introductory line and cut to the chase.

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1 When you have a list of more than two items in a sentence, use a comma. Yes, this comma has a name. In fact, it has many names. It is called the Serial comma, the Oxford comma, the Listing comma, the Harvard comma, or the Series comma. Did I just use one?

The Americans swear by it and the British don’t insist on using it.

2 Oh, follow the same rule when describing something with more than just one adjective. For example, I'm funny, sarcastic, and a typochondriac.

3 The next one in line is the Parenthetical comma. When you want to splice out non-essential information from a sentence, feel free to use this comma. Did you know that the em dash, an alternative for the Parenthetical comma, can be used to set off non-essential information in an informal way?

4 I repeat—did you know that the em dash, which is an alternative for the Parenthetical comma, can be used to set off non-essential information in an informal way? And this is how you use a comma before the clause, "which".

5 When you make introductions, use the comma lest it should feel left out. No, this comma doesn't have a name! Folks, I hope the list of usages isn't overwhelming because… 6 it is time to say "hello" to Compound and Complex sentences! I will not dwell on what these sentences are, I promise, but here are a few tips.

  • Use a comma before coordinating conjunctions such as but, yet, and so.
  • Use a comma after a phrase that begins with if, because, while, as, although, since, and unless.
  • Use a bit of common sense when applying these two rules, please.

7 Did I forget the times when commas are used for tag questions and after thoughts?

“You will stop now, won't you? We have had enough of this grammar lesson, already!”

Yes, I will.

There you go—the most frequent scenarios when a comma is used. And while we are at it, why don’t you find the appearance of the trickster in this write-up?

Let me tell you—the em dash can be such a drama queen! It enhances the readability of a sentence and also keeps it less formal. It brings in interruptions to the flow of thought under the guise of being emphatic. What's worse? It’s quite easy to confuse the em dash (—) with a shorter en dash (–) or an even shorter hyphen (-). And when you mix these three up, the result is a bad (read as awkward) copy.

So, here’s an easy way to get rid of that confusion. Always remember that em dashes are commonly used to replace

  • Parenthetical commas or parentheses which are usually used when a part of a sentence can be omitted without changing the meaning of the sentence itself. (Tch. Tch. Too technical!)

For example, let's look at this sentence—Mars, named after the Roman god of war, is often called the Red Planet.

 Now, go ahead and remove the text within the parenthetical commas to read Mars is often called the Red Planet.

Has this altered the meaning of the sentence? No. Well, that's the role of parenthetical commas. But should you want to add emphasis to the text within the parenthetical commas, then replace the commas with em dashes. Simple!

Mars—named after the Roman god of war—is often called the Red Planet.

What if the parenthesis is used at the end of the sentence, you ask? Simply apply a little common sense and use just one em dash instead of the opening parenthesis.

Take for instance the sentence, Earth is the planet we live on, the only planet which is not named after a Roman or Greek god.

Use an em dash instead and it will read Earth is the planet we live on—the only planet which is not named after a Roman or Greek god.

  • Colons which are usually used when followed by an explanation or a list. In the case of the former, replace the colon with an em dash to add emphasis to the explanation. Voilà!

For example, take a look at this sentence—The sun is a star: it is a burning sphere of gases. The second half of the sentence is an explanation of the first. To make it emphatic, I only need to replace the colon with an em dash.

The sun is a star—it is a burning sphere of gases.

If I were to introduce a list of items, then here's how the sentences would read with a colon and an em dash respectively.

There are eight planets in our solar system: Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune.

 There are eight planets in our solar system—Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune.

I hope you do know the rule to using a colon! (winks)

You also need to remember that

  • Spaces don’t precede or follow an em dash but it doesn't necessarily have to be a rule of thumb.
  • Usage of the em dash is restricted to two in a sentence for the sake of clarity. Nothing else, I promise.
  • And did I mention that an em dash is less formal than a colon or comma?

Phew! Now you are all set to take over the drama queen.

*There are other uses of the em dash which we will look at in another post. 

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