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* A comma may be included before a quotation embedded within a sentence (see {{section link||Quotation marks}} above). | * A comma may be included before a quotation embedded within a sentence (see {{section link||Quotation marks}} above). | ||
=== Serial commas === | |||
A [[serial comma]] (also known as an ''Oxford comma'' or a ''Harvard comma'') is a comma used immediately before a conjunction (''and'' or ''or'', sometimes ''nor'') in a list of three or more items: the phrase {{xt|ham, chips, and eggs}} includes a serial comma, while {{xt|ham, chips and eggs}} omits it. Editors may use either convention so long as each article is internally consistent; however, there are times when the serial comma can create or remove confusion: | A [[Wikipedia:Serial comma|serial comma]] (also known as an ''Oxford comma'' or a ''Harvard comma'') is a comma used immediately before a conjunction (''and'' or ''or'', sometimes ''nor'') in a list of three or more items: the phrase {{xt|ham, chips, and eggs}} includes a serial comma, while {{xt|ham, chips and eggs}} omits it. Editors may use either convention so long as each article is internally consistent; however, there are times when the serial comma can create or remove confusion: | ||
*Sometimes omitting the comma can lead to ambiguity: | *Sometimes omitting the comma can lead to ambiguity: | ||
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* Use paragraph breaks, bullet lists, or numbered paragraphs to clarify. | * Use paragraph breaks, bullet lists, or numbered paragraphs to clarify. | ||
*Recast the sentence (first example above): | *Recast the sentence (first example above): | ||
** To list four people: {{xt|The author thanked President Obama, Sinéad O'Connor, and her parents.}} | ** To list four people: {{xt|The author thanked President Obama, Sinéad O'Connor, and her parents.}} | ||
** To list two people (the commas here set off non-restrictive [[apposition|appositives]]): {{xt|The author thanked her father, President Obama, and her mother, Sinéad O'Connor.}} | ** To list two people (the commas here set off non-restrictive [[Wikipedia:apposition|appositives]]): {{xt|The author thanked her father, President Obama, and her mother, Sinéad O'Connor.}} | ||
**: Clearer (but wordier): {{xt|The author thanked her father and her mother, who are President Obama and Sinéad O'Connor respectively.}} | **: Clearer (but wordier): {{xt|The author thanked her father and her mother, who are President Obama and Sinéad O'Connor respectively.}} | ||
*Recast the sentence (second example above): | *Recast the sentence (second example above): | ||