Suppose You Need To Verify How To Correctly Use Commas

This is "Specific Revision Points to Consider", department 7.2 from the book Advice for Concern Success (Canadian Edition) (5. 1.0). For details on it (including licensing), click here.

This book is licensed under a Artistic Commons by-nc-sa 3.0 license. See the license for more details, but that basically ways you can share this book as long as you lot credit the author (but meet below), don't make money from it, and do go far available to anybody else under the aforementioned terms.

This content was accessible as of December 29, 2012, and it was downloaded then by Andy Schmitz in an effort to preserve the availability of this book.

Unremarkably, the author and publisher would be credited here. However, the publisher has asked for the customary Creative Commons attribution to the original publisher, authors, title, and book URI to exist removed. Additionally, per the publisher's asking, their name has been removed in some passages. More information is available on this project's attribution page.

For more data on the source of this book, or why information technology is bachelor for free, delight meet the projection's habitation page. You can browse or download additional books at that place. To download a .goose egg file containing this book to use offline, merely click here.

Has this book helped you? Consider passing it on:

Creative Commons supports free civilization from music to instruction. Their licenses helped make this book available to you.

DonorsChoose.org helps people like you help teachers fund their classroom projects, from fine art supplies to books to calculators.

seven.2 Specific Revision Points to Consider

Learning Objective

List six specific elements of every document to check for revision.

When revising your document, it can be helpful to focus on specific points. When you consider each bespeak in turn, y'all volition be able to pause down the revision process into manageable steps. When you accept examined each betoken, yous tin can be confident that you lot have avoided many possible areas for errors. Specific revision requires attention to the following:

Format
Facts
Names
Spelling
Punctuation
Grammar

Let'southward examine these characteristics one past one.

Format

Format is an important part of the revision process. Format involves the design expectations of author and audience. If a alphabetic character format unremarkably designates a date at the peak, or the sender's accost on the left side of the page before the salutation, the information should be in the correct location. Formatting that is messy or fails to conform to the company mode volition reverberate poorly on you earlier the reader fifty-fifty starts to read information technology. By presenting a document that is properly formatted co-ordinate to the expectations of your organization and your readers, you will start off making a good impression.

Facts

Another cardinal role of the revision process is checking your facts. Did y'all know that news organizations and magazines employ professional fact-checkers? These workers are responsible for examining every commodity before it gets published and consulting original sources to make certain the data in the article is accurate. This tin involve making phone calls to the people who were interviewed for the commodity—for example, "Mr. Diaz, our report states that you are thirty-9 years old. Our commodity will be published on the fifteenth. Volition that exist your correct age on that date?" Fact checking also involves looking facts up in encyclopedias, directories, atlases, and other standard reference works; and, increasingly, in online sources.

While you lot tin't be expected to accept the skills of a professional fact-checker, you do need to reread your writing with a critical middle to the data in it. Inaccurate content tin can expose you and your organization to liability, and volition create far more work than a simple revision of a document. So, when you revise a certificate, ask yourself the following:

Does my writing contain any statistics or references that need to be verified?
Where tin can I get reliable information to verify it?

It is frequently useful to do independent verificationLooking upward facts in a different source from the ane where you got information technology. —that is, look up the fact in a different source from the one where you first got information technology. For example, perchance a colleague gave you a list of closing averages for the Toronto Stock Commutation on certain dates. You still accept the list, so you can make sure your certificate agrees with the numbers your colleague provided. Simply what if your colleague made a mistake? The Spider web sites of The Globe and Mail and other major newspapers list closings for "the TSE," then it is reasonably piece of cake for you to look upwards the numbers and verify them independently.

Names

Figure 7.1

Always spell a person's name correctly.

At that place is no more embarrassing error in business writing than to misspell someone's proper name. To the writer, and to some readers, spelling a proper noun "Michelle" instead of "Michele" may seem like a minor matter, but to Michele herself it will brand a large deviation. Attribution is one style we often involve a person'due south name, and giving credit where credit is due is essential. There are many other reasons for including someone's proper noun, just regardless of your reasons for choosing to focus on them, y'all need to make certain the spelling is correct. Incorrect spelling of names is a quick mode to undermine your credibility; it can as well have a negative touch on on your organization's reputation, and in some cases information technology may fifty-fifty take legal ramifications.

Spelling

Correct spelling is some other element essential for your brownie, and errors will be glaringly obvious to many readers. The negative impact on your reputation as a writer, and its perception that yous lack attending to detail or do non value your work, will be hard to overcome. In improver to the negative personal consequences, spelling errors tin can become factual errors and destroy the value of content. This may lead yous to click the "spell bank check" button in your word processing program, but computer spell-checking is non enough. Spell checkers have improved in the years since they were first invented, merely they are non infallible. They can and practise make mistakes.

Typically, your incorrect word may in fact exist a give-and-take, and therefore, co-ordinate to the programme, right. For example, suppose you wrote, "The major will nourish the coming together" when you lot meant to write "The mayor will nourish the coming together." The program would miss this error because "major" is a word, just your pregnant would be twisted beyond recognition.

Punctuation

Punctuation marksThe traffic signals, signs, and indications that allow us to navigate the written discussion. are the traffic signals, signs, and indications that allow us to navigate the written discussion. They serve to warn us in advance when a transition is coming or the consummate thought has come up to an end. A menstruation indicates the thought is complete, while a comma signals that additional elements or modifiers are coming. Correct signals will help your reader follow the thoughts through sentences and paragraphs, and enable you to communicate with maximum efficiency while reducing the probability of error.Strunk, W., Jr., & White, E. B. (1979). The elements of way (3rd ed.). New York, NY: Macmillian.

Tabular array 7.1 "Punctuation Marks" lists twelve punctuation marks that are commonly used in English in alphabetical guild along with an example of each.

Table 7.1 Punctuation Marks

	Symbol	Case
Apostrophe	'	Michele's report is due tomorrow.
Colon	:	This is what I call back: you need to revise your paper.
Comma	,	The report advised us when to sell, what to sell, and where to find buyers.
Dash	—	This is more than difficult than it seems—buyers are deficient when credit is tight.
Ellipsis	…	Michaëlle Jean (former governor general) stated, "Empower women and you will encounter a decrease in poverty…"
Exclamation Point	!	How exciting!
Hyphen	-	The question is a many-faceted one.
Parentheses	( )	To answer it (or at least to begin addressing it) we will need more information.
Catamenia	.	The answer is no. Menstruum. Full finish.
Question Mark	?	Tin I talk you into changing your listen?
Quotation Marks	" "	The manager told him, "I volition make sure Renée is bachelor to assistance you."
Semicolon	;	Theresa was late to the meeting; her computer had frozen and she was stuck at her desk until a tech rep came to gear up information technology.

It may be daunting to realize that the number of possible punctuation errors is every bit all-encompassing as the number of symbols and constructions available to the author. Software programs may catch many punctuation errors, but once more it is the committed writer that makes the deviation. Here we volition provide details on how to avoid mistakes with three of the nigh commonly used punctuation marks: the comma, the semicolon, and the apostrophe.

Commas

The comma is probably the virtually versatile of all punctuation marks. This means you as a writer can use your judgement in many cases as to whether you lot demand a comma or not. It likewise ways that the possible errors involving commas are many. Commas are necessary some of the time, but careless writers ofttimes identify a comma in a sentence where information technology is just not needed.

Commas are used to separate ii contained clauses joined past a conjunction like "and," "but," and "or."

Example
The ad department is effective, just don't await miracles in this concern climate.

Commas are non used simply to bring together ii independent clauses. This is known as the comma splice error, and the mode to correct information technology is to insert a conjunction after the comma.

Examples
The advertisement department is effective, the sales section needs to produce more results.
The advertising department is effective, but the sales department needs to produce more than results.

Commas are used for introductory phrases and to offset clauses that are not essential to the judgement. If the meaning would remain intact without the phrase, it is considered nonessential.

Examples
Subsequently the summary of this year's sales, the sales section had good reason to gloat.
The sales section, last yr'south winner of the nigh productive award, celebrated their stellar sales success this twelvemonth.
The sales department celebrated their stellar sales success this twelvemonth.

Commas are used to offset words that help create unity beyond a judgement similar "however" and "therefore."

Examples
The sales department discovered, however, that the forecast for next year is challenging.
However, the sales department discovered that the forecast for adjacent yr is challenging.

Commas are often used to carve up more than one describing word modifying a noun.

Case
The sales department discovered the troublesome, challenging forecast for side by side year.

Commas are used to separate addresses, dates, and titles; they are besides used in dialogue sequences.

Examples
John is from Ancud, Republic of chile.
Katy was born on Baronial 2, 2002.
Mackenzie McLean, D. V., is an excellent veterinary.
Lisa said, "When writing, omit needless words".

Semicolons

Semicolons have two uses. Commencement, they bespeak relationships among groups of items in a series when the individual items are separated past commas. Second, a semicolon can be used to bring together 2 independent clauses; this is another way of avoiding the comma splice fault mentioned higher up. Using a semicolon this mode is often constructive if the meaning of the ii independent clauses is linked in some mode, such every bit a cause-effect relationship.

Examples
Merchandise on lodge includes women's wear such as sweaters, skirts, and blouses; men'due south clothing such as shirts, jackets, and slacks; and outerwear such as coats, parkas, and hats.
The sales campaign was successful; without its contributions our bottom line would have been dismal indeed.

Apostrophes

The apostrophe, similar the semicolon, has two uses: it replaces messages omitted in a contraction, and it often indicates the possessive.

Considering contractions are associated with an informal style, they may not be appropriate for some professional writing. The business writer will—as e'er—evaluate the expectations and audience of the given assignment.

Examples
It'southward groovy news that sales were up. It is also practiced news that we've managed to reduce our advertizement costs.

When you indicate possession, pay attention to the placement of the apostrophe. Nouns commonly receive "'s" when they are made possessive. Just plurals that end in "southward" receive a hanging apostrophe when they are made possessive, and the word "it" forms the possessive ("its") with no apostrophe at all.

Examples
Mackenzie's sheep are ready to be sheared.
The parents' coming together is scheduled for Thursday.
We are willing to prefer a dog that has already had its shots.

Grammar

Learning to utilize good, correct standard English language grammar is more than of a practise than an outcome, or even a process. GrammerThe written construction of meaning from words, involving community that evolve and suit to usage over time. involves the written structure of meaning from words and involves community that evolve and conform to usage over fourth dimension. Because grammar is always evolving, none of u.s.a. can sit down back and rest bodacious that we "know" how to write with proper grammer. Instead, it is important to write and revise with close attention to grammar, keeping in listen that grammatical errors can undermine your credibility, reflect poorly on your employer, and crusade misunderstandings.

Jean Wyrick has provided a list of common errors in grammar to lookout man out for, which we have adjusted here for easy reference.Wyrick, J. (2008). Steps to writing well (10th ed.). Boston, MA: Thomson Wadsworth. In each case, the error is in italics and the [correct grade] is italicized within square bracket.

Subject-Verb Agreement

The subject and verb should hold on the number under consideration. In faulty writing, a singular discipline is sometimes mismatched with a plural verb class, or vice versa.

Examples
Sales have non been consistent and they doesn't [practise not] reflect your hard work and effort.
The CEO appreciates your hard work and wish [wishes] to thank you.

Verb Tense

Verb tenseRefers to the betoken in fourth dimension where action occurs. refers to the indicate in fourth dimension where activeness occurs. The most mutual tenses are past, nowadays, and future. In that location is zippo wrong with mixing tenses in a judgement if the activity is intended to have place at different times. In faulty or careless writing, however, they are often mismatched illogically.

Examples
Sharon was nether pressure level to end the study, and so she uses [used] a shortcut to paste in the sales figures.
The sales department holds a status meeting every week, and final week'southward coming together volition exist [was] at the Garden Inn.

Split up Infinitive

The infinitiveForm of verb without a reference to time; in its standard form it includes the auxiliary give-and-take "to". form of verb is one without a reference to time, and in its standard form it includes the auxiliary give-and-take "to," as in "to write is to revise." It has been customary to keep the "to" next to the verb; to identify an adverb between them is known as splitting the infinitive. Some modern writers do this all the time (for example, "to boldly go…"), and since all grammar is essentially a set of customs that govern the written discussion, you volition demand to understand what the custom is where you work. If you are working with colleagues trained beyond the last fifty years, they may detect split infinitives annoying. For this reason, it'south ofttimes all-time to avoid splitting an infinitive wherever you can practise so without distorting the significant of the judgement.

Examples
The Marketing Department needs assistance to accurately sympathise our readers [to understand our readers accurately].
David pondered how to all-time revise [how best to revise] the judgement.

Double Negative

A double negativeA phrase or sentence construction that employs ii negatives to point a positive. uses 2 negatives to communicate a single thought, duplicating the negation. In some languages, such as Spanish, when the main activity in the sentence is negative, information technology is correct to limited the other elements in the sentence negatively likewise. However, in English language, this is incorrect. In improver to sounding incorrect (you can often hear the error if you read the judgement out loud), a double negative in English causes an fault in logic, because two negatives cancel each other out and yield a positive.

Examples
John doesn't need no [any] assistance with his sales presentation. [Or John needs no assistance with his sales presentation.]
Jeri could not discover no [any] reason to approve the request. [Or Jeri could find no reason to approve the asking.]

Irregular Verbs

Most verbs represent the by with the addition of the suffix "ed," as in "ask" becomes "asked." Irregular verbsVerbs that change a vowel or convert to another word when representing the by tense. change a vowel or catechumen to another give-and-take when representing the past tense. Consider the irregular verb "to become;" the by tense is "went," not "goed."

Examples
The demand arised [arose] to seek additional funding.
Katy leaped [leapt] onto the phase to introduce the presentation.

Commas in a Serial

A comma is used to separate the items in a series, but in some writing styles the comma is omitted between the final two items of the series, where the conjunction joins the last and adjacent-to-last items. The comma in this position is known as the "serial comma." The serial comma is typically required in academic writing and typically omitted in journalism. Other writers omit the series comma if the final 2 items in the serial have a closer logical connexion than the other items. In business writing, you may use it or omit it co-ordinate to the prevailing fashion in your organization or industry. Know your audience and be aware of the rule.

Examples
Lisa is an amazing wife, mother, teacher, gardener, and editor.
Lisa is an amazing married woman, mother instructor, gardener and editor.
Lisa is an amazing instructor, editor, gardener, wife and mother.

Faulty Comparisons

When comparison two objects by degree, there should exist no mention of "est," as in "biggest" as all y'all can really say is that one is bigger than the other. If you are comparing three or more objects, so "est" will accurately communicate which is the "biggest" of them all.

Examples
Between the twins, Mackenzie is the fastest [faster] of the two.
Amidst our three children, Mackenzie is the tallest.

Dangling Modifiers

ModifiersDescribes a subject area in a sentence, or indicates how or when the subject carried out the action. describe a subject in a sentence or point how or when the subject carried out the activeness. If the subject area is omitted, the modifier intended for the subject is left dangling or hanging out on its own without a clear relationship to the sentence. Who is doing the seeing in the first sentence?

Examples
Seeing the low-cal at the terminate of the tunnel, celebrations were in guild.
Seeing the calorie-free at the cease of the tunnel, we decided that celebrations were in order.

Misplaced Modifiers

Modifiers that are misplaced are not lost, they are simply in the wrong identify. Their unfortunate location is often far from the word or words they draw, making it easy for readers to misinterpret the sentence.

Examples
Trying to avoid the deer, the tree striking my car.
My motorcar striking the tree when I tried to avoid a deer in the road.

Primal Takeaway

Past revising for format, facts, names, spelling, punctuation, and grammar, yous can increment your chances of correcting many common errors in your writing.

Exercises

Select a news article from a news Web site, paper, or magazine. Find as many facts in the article equally you can that could require fact-checking. Then check as many of these facts every bit you lot tin can, using sources available to you in the library and on the Internet. Did you find any errors in the article? Discuss your findings with your classmates.
Find an case of an assertion without attribution and share it with classmates.
Discover an example of an fault in a published document and share it with classmates.
Interview a coworker or colleague and specifically ask them to share a story where an error got past them during the revision procedure and made it to impress or publication. How did they handle it? How much time did it take to correct? What did they learn from the experience? Compare your results with classmates.

Source: https://2012books.lardbucket.org/books/communication-for-business-success-canadian-edition/s11-02-specific-revision-points-to-co.html