Worked examples
Two examples
Example 1
Which is correct? Mr. Okafor the owner of the bakery opens at six.
- Find the words that could be taken out: the owner of the bakery. Without them, Mr. Okafor opens at six is still clear.
- So those words are extra. Extra information in the middle of a sentence gets a comma on both sides.
Answer: Mr. Okafor, the owner of the bakery, opens at six.
Example 2
Which is correct? The woman who lives upstairs fixes bicycles.
- Try taking out who lives upstairs: The woman fixes bicycles. Which woman? Now we cannot tell.
- The words are needed to tell which woman. Needed words get no commas.
Answer: The woman who lives upstairs fixes bicycles. (No commas.)
Where this is taught: Punctuation: Start Here, Part 1: Commas
More practice: Quiz 43, Commas · In your Kaplan book: Unit 1, Chapter 9, Lesson 1, “Comma Use”
The drill
Ten questions
How many:
Tap your answer to each one, then press Check my answers at the bottom.Circle your answer to each one. The answer key, with the reasoning, is on the last page.