Comments on: Harnessing the power of the serial comma https://writegroup.io/harnessing-the-power-of-the-serial-comma/ Better business outcomes with clear, effective writing. Tue, 12 Nov 2024 22:07:50 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.7.1 By: melissamebus https://writegroup.io/harnessing-the-power-of-the-serial-comma/#comment-296 Thu, 13 Aug 2015 21:46:11 +0000 http://writeclearlyblog.com/?p=967#comment-296 In reply to Stephen Christie.

Thanks for your comment Stephen and you’ve made a really good point.

With the English language being what it is, ambiguity can strike when we least expect it! It’s true that when writing it’s essential to always apply your brain as well as your grammar rules.

But, as mentioned in this post, I believe you can help reinforce meaning by sticking to your guns. Once you’ve chosen the serial comma as part of your writing style, your readers will come to recognise it. And once they’re familiar with your style, they won’t have to search for clues elsewhere in your document to work out meaning.

]]> By: Stephen Christie https://writegroup.io/harnessing-the-power-of-the-serial-comma/#comment-295 Wed, 12 Aug 2015 22:34:13 +0000 http://writeclearlyblog.com/?p=967#comment-295 I largely agree. However, adding the serial comma in the example still leaves two possible meanings. It could mean either
1. They visited two people: Theresa, who is my aunt, and a friend.
2. They visited three people: Theresa and my aunt and a friend.

It might be better to reword the sentence to clarify who they visited.

]]>