The Dreaded Comma Splice

Happy Millennium!  Although many of you may have celebrated it last year, for some of us this was the true beginning.  As 11 is the first number of a new series, so for many of us 2001 is the start of the new century.  No matter – I hope everyone had a wonderful (and safe) holiday!

At the risk of belaboring a point, I keep noticing in many professional documents two sentences separated by only a comma.  I’m certain many people think they’re writing one sentence when they’re actually writing two; I want to mention a few I’ve seen and ask that everyone check their own letters, e-mails, etc. for this type of error.

• “We’re open on Sunday, please stop in and see us.”

• “Good luck on your search, if we can help you, please let us know.”

• “We’re happy to answer any questions you might have, just call us at 123-4567.”

Each of these examples contains two sentences; each independent sentence could be ended with a period.  Joining them with only the comma is an example of the dreaded comma splice – splicing/joining two sentences together with the wrong punctuation mark.   

So, what to do?

Well, you have several options.  You can use both the comma and one of the coordinating conjunctions – and, but, or, for, nor, so, yet  – if one of them fits the sense of the sentence.

You can also substitute a semicolon for the comma; it’s a little more elegant and looks as though you know what you’re doing.  Usually the semicolon is used on its own, without the conjunctions that follow.

You can also simply end each sentence with a period and make two separate sentences.

Which is better?  Whichever one you like! 

• “We’re open on Sunday; please stop in and see us.”

• “We’re open on Sunday, so please stop in and see us.”

• “We’re open on Sunday.  Please stop in and see us.”