Why comma before name

Erin Brenner is the founder of Right Touch Editing , a customizable editing service. She has been an editing professional for over 15 years and is sought after for her expertise in language mechanics. She works on a variety of media in all levels of editing. In addition, she provides bite-sized lessons to improve your writing on her blog The Writing Resource and is the editor of Copyediting.

Follow her on Twitter at ebrenner or on Facebook. Recently, this cartoon made the rounds of language mavens: The comma rule depicted here is simple: use a comma with the name of a person you are directly addressing. If the name comes first, it is followed by a comma: Children, please stop jumping on the beds. If the name comes at the end of the sentence, the comma precedes the name: Stop jumping on the beds, boys.

And if the name or names comes in the middle of the sentence, surround it with commas: What I said, Sean and Duncan, was to stop jumping on the beds! Are they necessary at the beginning of a letter or email? Share your thoughts in the comments! However, I too realise that I run the risk of looking like an idiot if I pen a passage that is technically incorrect, as it veers concentration and interrupts the flow of reading, which is the last thing I want from a reader.

I want to ensure I completely understand vocative commas and the correct way to use them, but too feel that I have a valid contention to the aforementioned rules. If you are addressing a person whose name is in title case, how can there be any doubt that you are addressing them? Hi, Marcel. This is a great question. Omitting the comma can slow comprehension. I have used it many times but now many of my peers do not. And sometimes it feels pointed in reply to my usage!

It also feels unnecessary when you reply to someone directly, but I could be wrong. Hi, Shirley. Please continue to use the vocative comma to enhance readability. You might assume that George, the friend you are addressing, understands what you mean, but even George is going to read that sentence and stumble on it for a second before comprehending fully.

So, yes, vocative case really does matter! I am fairly confident and consistent in my use of the vocative comma for the reasons already noted, but I see it so frequently not used in emails at work that include many recipients that I finally took to looking it up this morning.

Thank you, Britainy, for confirming that sometimes taking that extra second to tap a comma can just clarify a lot!

Good question. I want it to say who it is for, as well as who it is from. Thanks for this! I see so many examples of authors not using this clause, whose name I did not know until Google led me to your article. And how it bugs me! Your email address will not be published. Give us your email address to learn more about how we can create high-quality content for you. What Is a Vocative Comma? Why Is the Vocative Case Necessary? You, my sweet, are the most gorgeous car on the block!

Good morning, readers! Without the vocative comma, the sentence appears like this: Good morning readers! Joe, what do you know? What do you know, Joe? What, Joe, do you know? What do you know? Author Recent Posts. Britainy Sorenson. Britainy Sorenson has been freelance writing since in between time spent with her best friend and husband and caring for three active and amazing little boys. The opposite of direct speech which utilizes the direct address is known as the indirect or reported speech format.

This is done when we restate, report, or describe what someone says instead of talking directly to this person. Furthermore, indirect speech is not limited to the act of reporting quoted information alone. It is also the basis of literary writing and casual texts that merely aims to describe the occurrence of events.

Similarly, no commas must be placed before, after, and around the name Elliot in the example above. Despite comma rules being alarming and confusing at times, their salience in writing is rather unquestionable. This is especially because commas are punctuation marks that regularly appear in written texts. Additionally, understanding these sets of rules makes communication more effective, thereby decreasing the chances of misinformation in the process.

Thus , knowing comma-related rules by heart not only increases writing efficiency but also saves us from unnecessary research time. Hey fellow Linguaholics!

I am the proud owner of linguaholic. Languages have always been my passion and I have studied Linguistics, Computational Linguistics and Sinology at the University of Zurich.

It is my utmost pleasure to share with all of you guys what I know about languages and linguistics in general. Contents 1 Should we place a comma before or after a direct address? Do you know where she is, John? Dear John, My dearest Bob,. Hey, Fiona, are you coming with us this weekend? Excuse me, sir, would you mind moving a little bit? Jane asked Sarah to cook some lasagna. As Elliot was heading towards the woods, she agonizingly recalled all the pain she had suffered in the hands of her captor.