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THE COMMA
Use a comma for 'appositives' (to re-name something mentioned before)
An appositive is a noun or noun phrase that renames a previous noun by identifying, defining, or explaining it.
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The core of this paper is a case analysis of how a large UK retailer, J. Sainsbury, used VCA to manage the supply chain in cooperative relationships with suppliers.
Nokia, the world's top cell phone maker, on Tuesday launched the first pre-commercial 3G network in Toulouse, France.
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When you give a title or 'label' a person, concept, or thing, formal written English requires commas before and after its descriptor.
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During a recent visit by the Finnish President, Tarja Halonen, Japan experienced a very serious earthquake.
However:
During a recent visit by President Tarja Halonen, Japan experienced a very serious earthquake.
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Appositives commonly present examples, explanations, and definitions that help to identify or explain a concept.
In the examples below, notice how leaving out the words enclosed in commas would not
change the message.
Often the appositive is introduced by namely, for example, that is, such as, including, i.e., or e.g..
Examples in academic English are typically expressed as appositives which take a comma both before and after the example(s).
(See also "Superordinate terms")
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In the future, those non-energy sectors most dependent on energy, such as the chemical and steel industries, will suffer the greatest loss in production.
Music has been used by other community agencies, including a health center and church groups, as a vehicle for promotion of community projects and events.
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In science, variables are often defined as appositives:
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By maintaining a constant current, Io , through the inductor, Li , a high overall input power factor can be obtained.
Rogers, et al. [11] obtained all the electrical parameters using an aggregate model developed based on two mechanical parameters, slip and inertia constant, to optmise the step response match between the model and the actual subsystem.
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Although appositives are normally enclosed in commas, when the appositive phrase itself contains internal commas, dashes (or parentheses) can help to avoid confusion about where the appositive begins and ends. The following sentence contains examples of both types of appositives.
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No internal punctuation:
Electromagnetic radiation, or in modern terminology the photons hν, always travels in free space with the universal speed c — i.e., the speed of light.
With internal comma:
Electromagnetic radiation, or in modern terminology the photons hν, always travels in free space with the universal speed c — i.e., the speed of light.
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