English Grammar Demystified - A Self Teaching Guide

CHAPTER 8 Punctuation Builds Sentences^175

With the use of a comma, coordinating conjunctions join independent clauses to
one another, and they add meaning:

(Coord. Conj.)

[Independent Clause] ↓ [Independent Clause]

↓ ↓

[Visualization prepares athletes for success], (but) [practice is a must].

[Independent Clause] (Coord. Conj.) [Independent Clause]

↓↓↓

[My cat likes kibble], (but) [my dog eats table food only].

[Independent Clause] (Coor. Conj.) [Independent Clause]

↓↓↓

[Lenny ate all the pizza], (so) [Phil fi nished the salad].

Written Practice 8-2

Correct each of the following sentences by adding a conjunction.

1. I use only unscented products, all my friends use scented detergents.


2. Meet me at 6 P.M., we’ll have dinner together.

COMMON ERRORS

An important reminder: Complete thoughts cannot be strung together with commas. Doing

so creates a serious error called a comma fault or a run-on sentence.

Incorrect: Visualization prepares athletes for success, consistent practice is a must.

Correct: Visualization prepares athletes for success; consistent practice is a must.

Correct: Visualization prepares athletes for success. Consistent practice is a must.