Last week in this column, we discussed how to apply commas to introductory phrases. Among the applications we discussed were sentences that start with oh and ah, yes and no, and direct addresses. Well, commas should be used to set off yes and no, direct addresses, interrogative tags, and interjections wherever they occur in the sentence.
Two weeks after my grandmother’s funeral, yes, I returned home again for my All-School Reunion over the Fourth of July.
While there, dear readers, I attended my fifteen-year class reunion, a joint sixtieth-birthday party for my parents, and a wedding shower for my cousin.
It sounds like a busy week, doesn’t it?
Well, we are rarely all together in one place at the same time.
Do you have a question about the comma? Let me know, and I’ll include it in a future installment of Mots Justes’ ongoing series.
The Mots Justes Series on Commas
Part I—To Serialize or Not to Serialize
Resources
Chicago Manual of Style, The. 15th ed. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 2003.
This seems like a silly question, but I’ve had people remove the comma when I’ve written a sentence like this:
I went to the store, too.
Is it incorrect to insert a comma before the word “too” or the phrase “as well”? Also, if the word “too” is inserted mid-sentence, would the comma come before and after?
For example: He went, too, but there was no reason for him to go.
Help!
Teresa, I think you’re not the only one who might be confused—info on this scenario is scarce and varied. I’ve addressed it in this week’s punctuation post: http://motsjustes.wordpress.com/2009/09/29/tuesday-afternoon-punctuation-commas-part-xvi%E2%80%94as-well-too/ Thanks for visiting! -ae