When it comes to commas, the thing that people seem to struggle with most is whether or not to put a comma before the conjunctions "and," "but," and "or."  I just want you to know that knowing when to put a comma before a conjunction is not one of those mysterious skills that normal people will never grasp; I learned this in elementary school.  Like with many things, there is a simple trick to it that you were simply never shown.

When I was in high school, I once heard a student ask the English teacher about when it is appropriate to put a comma before a conjunction.  Her response?  "It's a judgement call."  Several students in the room jotted this down in their notes hastily, like she had just imparted the secrets of the universe.  WRONG.  She was so wrong, and my whole being was screeching against it on the inside.  Needless to say, they fired her two years later.

Okay, here's the trick:
A comma is appropriate and required before a conjunction if the second half of the sentence, which occurs to the right of the conjunction, makes sense when separated and placed by itself. The way I was taught was to cover the first half of the sentence (including the conjunction) and read what is left aloud to determine whether it is a fragment or a whole sentence that makes sense.  If it is a fragment, no comma. If it is a whole sentence by itself, yes comma. 

Here's an example of a sentence that uses a comma before a conjunction correctly:

That woman was supposed to be an English teacher, but she didn't know jack.

If we "cover" the first half (conjunction included)... 

That woman was supposed to be an English teacher/, but she didn't know jack.

...we get this:

She didn't know jack.

This sentence has a subject and a verb and makes sense by itself.  Therefore, a comma is appropriate.  Now let's look at a sentence that doesn't require a comma before the conjunction:

The student raised his hand and asked a question.

 And then we cover the first half and get this:

Asked a question.

Notice that the second sentence makes no sense by itself, because it is a fragment.  There is no subject performing the action.  There is not even an implied "you" performing the action, such as in the sentence, "Do your homework."  The subject of the sentence is still the student from the first half, so the second half can't exist without the first half.  Because of this, it must be attached and not separated by a comma.

Here are a couple more correct example sentences to which the trick has been applied, just in case you're still confused.:

We could go to KFC for some fried chicken, or we could go to Church's.
We could go to KFC for some fried chicken/, or we could go to Church's.
We could go to Church's. 
Complete sentence; yes comma.

NASA is funding research for a food printer and plans to print pizza first. (True, btw)
NASA is funding research for a food printer/ and plans to print pizza first.
Plans to print pizza first.
Fragment; no comma. 


I don't like Kim Kardashian, but I love her clothing line at Sears. (Also true)
I don't like Kim Kardashian/, but I love her clothing line at Sears.
I love her clothing line at Sears.
Complete sentence; yes comma.

I tried to get some work done around the house but accidentally took a nap instead.
I tried to get some work done around the house/ but accidentally took a nap instead.
Accidentally took a nap instead.
Fragment; no comma.

Now that you've got this down, go forth and use your newfound comma skills for good!  Or evil.  Just as long as you use them, really.

While some would like to think themselves smart, well-rounded people that are completely prepared for the world at large, no one can really claim this until they've learned a little about English.  It's the language we all speak and write in North America, and the lingua franca of many other industrialized nations.  I know it's not everyone's favorite subject, but when you're about to send off an important letter or document, bad spelling and especially improper usage or confusion can often give off a bad impression to the person reading it.  Think about it for a moment: how does your letter, document, or resume reflect on you or the company you work for?

One thing that people commonly get confused about is homophones: words that sound the same but are spelled differently and mean different things.  It's always the most common words that seem to be confused this way (and noticed!) rather than more complicated things like "capital" and "capitol" or "complement" and "compliment."  Here's a few clarifications to help anyone purge their writing of homophone errors, seem more educated in the process, and just make the world a slightly better place!  Enjoy!


Accept - to receive
ex. He accepted the award.
Except - to take or leave out
ex. Please shred all of these files except those filed under W.

Affect - to influence
ex. He was greatly affected by the loss of his brother.
Effect - n. result; v. accomplish
ex. Sunlight has the added effect of aiding in vitamin D production.
ex. Can the school effect such a change without disrupting classes?

A lot - (two words) many
ex. There are a lot of birds in the corn field.
Alot - (one word) this isn't even a word
Allot - to distribute by portion; to appropriate for a special purpose
ex. Each month, I allot a certain portion of my paycheck toward retirement.

Breath - n. air inhaled or exhaled
ex. I could see my breath in the cold air.
Breathe - v. to inhale or exhale
ex. It hurts your lungs to breathe secondhand smoke.

Cite - to quote or document
ex. I cited Chaucer in my term paper.
Site - position or place
ex. Bob made a preliminary visit to the construction site.
Sight - vision
ex. The eye doctor said I have perfect sight.

Its - of or belonging to; possessive of the pronoun it
ex. The dog loves its bone.
It's - contraction for it is
ex. It's not feasible to go through with this plan.

Than - use with comparissons
ex. John is taller than me.
Then - at that time or next
ex. Stop at the hardware store first, then go to the grocery store.

There - indicates location
ex. I saw the man you described over there.
They're - contraction for they are
ex. They're out for the evening.
Their - possessive form of they
ex. Their car broke down.

Through - by means of; finished; into or out of
ex. I had to go through a toll both.
Threw - past tense of thrwo
ex. His dad threw him the baseball.

To - toward
ex. I am going over to Jerrome's house.
Too - also; excessively
ex. He had too many beers and couldn't drive home.

Waist - the middle section of a person's body
Vivian Leigh had an 18 inch waist.
Waste - n. discarded material or refuse; v. to wear away; to fail or neglect to use
ex. Recycle plastic bottles instead of putting them in the waste basket.
ex. Don't waste your natural talent.

Who's - contraction of who is
ex. Who's going to the park with me?
Whose- the possessive of who used as an adjective
ex. Whose umbrella is this?


Your - possessive of you
ex. Your fly is unzipped.
You're - contraction of you are
ex. You're a very pretty girl.