A comma is the punctuation mark , which is used to separate parts of a sentence or itemsin a list.
English Easy Learning GrammarThe comma ( , )The comma marks a short pause between elements in a sentence. Separating main clauses Main clauses that are joined together with and or but do not normally ... Read more
comma in British English
(ˈkɒmə)
noun
1.
the punctuation mark(,) indicating a slight pause in the spoken sentence and used where there is a listing of items or to separate a nonrestrictive clause or phrase from a main clause
2. music
a minute interval
3. short for comma butterfly
Word origin
C16: from Latin, from Greek komma clause, from koptein to cut
comma in American English
(ˈkɑmə)
noun
1.
a mark of punctuation (,) used to indicate a slight separation of sentence elements, as in setting off nonrestrictive or parenthetical elements, items in a series, etc.
2.
a slight pause
Word origin
L < Gr komma, clause in a sentence, that which is cut off < koptein, to cut off < IE base *(s)kep-, to cut, split > capon, shaft
Examples of 'comma' in a sentence
comma
Use decimal points but not dollar signs or commas.
Christianity Today (2000)
What if they don't like commas or full stops or capital letters?
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
Roman is meticulous about that, where to put the comma.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
I do hope that was safely ensconced in inverted commas.
Times, Sunday Times (2007)
Sometimes I might put a comma in the morning and take it out again at night.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
The inverted commas around good and peacetime, by the way, are his.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
Set dashed underscore When the dependent clause comes first in the sentence, a comma is necessary.
Bachmann, Susan (editor) & Barth, Melinda Between Worlds: A Reader, Rhetoric and Handbook (1995)
New is in inverted commas because its platform, engine and gearbox can all be traced directly back to the original DB9 launched a decade ago.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
In other languages
comma
British English: comma /ˈkɒmə/ NOUN
A comma is the punctuation mark (,).
American English: comma
Arabic: فَاصِلَة
Brazilian Portuguese: vírgula
Chinese: 逗号
Croatian: zarez
Czech: čárka interpunkce
Danish: komma
Dutch: komma
European Spanish: coma gramatical
Finnish: pilkku
French: virgule
German: Komma
Greek: κόμμα
Italian: virgola
Japanese: コンマ
Korean: 쉼표
Norwegian: komma
Polish: przecinek
European Portuguese: vírgula
Romanian: virgulă
Russian: запятая
Latin American Spanish: coma Signo ortográfico
Swedish: komma
Thai: เครื่องหมายลูกน้ำ
Turkish: virgül
Ukrainian: кома
Vietnamese: dấu phẩy
All related terms of 'comma'
comma fault
the use of a comma , rather than a semicolon, colon , or period, to separate related main clauses in the absence of a coordinating conjunction : often considered to be incorrect or undesirable , esp. in formal writing
comma splice
Grammar See comma fault
Oxford comma
a comma between the final items in a list , often preceding the word 'and' or 'or', such as the final comma in the list newspapers , magazines , and books
serial comma
See series comma
series comma
a comma used after the next-to-last item in a series of three or more items when the next-to-last and last items are separated by a conjunction . In the series A, B , C, or D , the comma after C is the series comma
comma bacillus
a comma-shaped bacterium , Vibrio comma , that causes cholera in humans : family Spirillaceae
comma butterfly
an orange-brown European vanessid butterfly , Polygonia c-album, with a white comma-shaped mark on the underside of each hind wing