Q. I'll often write sentences such as this: "My friend Michael is having a party." Should I place a comma before Michael's name? Like your column! — Blaine Greenfield, Asheville, N.C.
A. Truth to be told, I'm often uncertain about this choice myself. And I'm supposed to be the Word Guy!
In these situations, I always ask this question: Is the person mentioned the ONLY person who fits the category (friend, wife, uncle, grandchild), or does the category include others?
Thus, if Michael were your ONLY friend, then you'd place a comma before and after his name. The comma would indicate that "Michael" is an appositive — a word that further defines the preceding noun or pronoun.
But I'll take a wild guess here, Blaine, and assume you have more than one friend. If that's the case, omitting the comma before Michael's name indicates that he's one of several friends.
Consider these sample sentences:
1. Sheila and her husband, Tim, enjoy sailing.
Presumably, Sheila has only one husband, so "Tim" is an appositive further describing "husband." Thus, "Tim" needs to be set off by commas.
2. Sheila and her colleague Nancy enjoyed lunch.
Presumably, Sheila has more than one colleague, so there's no need for commas.
But problems arise when you don't know whether the person mentioned is the only person in the category.
Consider this sentence:
1. Sheila and her niece, Grace, enjoy sailing.
If Sheila has only one niece, include the commas. But if Sheila has more than one niece, drop the commas: "Sheila and her niece Grace enjoy sailing."
2. Sheila and her professor, Jane, enjoyed lunch.
If Sheila has only one professor, include the commas. But if Sheila has more than one professor, drop the commas.
When you don't know for sure whether the person mentioned is a "one-sie," it's usually better to simply omit the commas.
Think you've got it? Let's try this quick quiz. Which sentences are correctly punctuated?:
1. Travis and his boss, Miranda, collaborated on the project. 2. Abby and her granddaughter Barbara visited Spain. 3. Tom and his best friend, Monty, went fishing. 4. Tonya and her son George visited us. 5. My husband, Archie, and I played golf.
Answers: 1. Correct, if Travis has only one boss. 2. Correct, if Abby has more than one granddaughter. 3. Correct (you can have only one best friend) 4. Correct, if Tonya has more than one son. 5. Correct, but confusing. It sounds as if Archie played golf with you and your husband. Better: I played golf with my husband, Archie.
Rob Kyff, a teacher and writer in West Hartford, Connecticut, invites your language sightings. Send your reports of misuse and abuse, as well as examples of good writing, via e-mail to [email protected] or by regular mail to Rob Kyff, Creators Syndicate, 737 3rd Street, Hermosa Beach, CA 90254.
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