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Commas with Appositives

The definition of an appositive is a word or word group that defines or further identifies the noun or noun phrase preceding it.

Rule: When an appositive is essential to the meaning of the noun it belongs to, don’t use commas. When the noun preceding the appositive provides sufficient identification on its own, use commas around the appositive.

Example: Jorge Torres, our senator, was born in California.

Explanation: Our senator is an appositive of the proper noun Jorge Torres. Our senator is surrounded by commas because Jorge Torres is a precise identifier.

Example: Our senator, Jorge Torres, was born in California.

Explanation: Our senator is still a relatively precise identifier so Jorge Torres is not considered essential.

Example: CEO Julie Minsky will be our featured speaker.

Explanation: Julie Minsky is necessary to help identify CEO, so no commas are used.

Example: Julie Minsky, CEO, will be our featured speaker.

Explanation: Julie Minsky is a precise identifier so the appositive is surrounded by commas.

Example: The girl who received a scholarship is my sister.

Explanation: The girl is not a precise identifier.

Example: My sister, who received a scholarship, will attend Harvard.

Explanation: My sister is a relatively precise identifier.

Example: My friend Harvey is an animal lover.

Explanation: My friend is not a precise identifier because one may have numerous friends.

Example: Harvey, my friend, loves animals.

Explanation: Harvey is a precise identifier.

Pop Quiz

1. Ella my little sister will escort you to your seat.
2. My little sister Ella will escort you to your seat.

Answers:

1. Ella, my little sister, will escort you to your seat.
2. NO COMMAS

Posted on Sunday, September 2nd, 2007 at 7:11 pm

6 Comments

6 Responses to “Commas with Appositives”

  1. Ed Hirsch says:
    July 7, 2011 at 3:45 pm

    Question about comma placement in the following sentence:

    “He paused and in the stillness of the moment his countenance glowed brightly.”

    What do you think of:

    “He paused and, in the stillness of the moment, his countenance glowed brightly”?

    Thank you very much!

    Reply
    • Jane says:
      July 8, 2011 at 4:04 pm

      I would include the commas since the phrase in the stillness of the moment interrupts the sentence flow and is non-essential, but adds more information to the meaning of the sentence.

      Reply
  2. Kaja says:
    November 13, 2011 at 9:14 pm

    This is very helpful. Thank you. If I were to write “Brett lives in Denver with his wife Leena and three sons.” should I use commas around ‘Leena’? I had always thought that, since Leena is Brett’s only wife, there would be no comma. If I read the rule above correctly however, then there should be commas. Thank you for clarifying.

    Reply
    • Jane says:
      November 14, 2011 at 7:21 pm

      Unless Brett is a polygamist, the term his wife is a precise identifier. Since Leena is not essential to the meaning of his wife, use commas around the appositive.

      Brett lives in Denver with his wife, Leena, and three sons.

      Reply
      • Pama says:
        January 10, 2012 at 11:24 pm

        Hello,

        First of all, I would like to thank you for this wonderful explanation. I have a question:

        “Brett lives in Denver with his wife, Leena, and three sons.”

        If so then this means Brett lives with: his wife, Leena, and three sons (a total household of 6 people).

        Am I correct?

        Kaja did point out that Leena is Brett’s wife. Shouldn’t it be no comma after wife?

        Grammar’s complicated!

        Cheers =D

        Reply
        • Jane says:
          January 11, 2012 at 11:26 pm

          That’s a good observation, Pama. Your comment demonstrates how it’s possible to follow all the rules perfectly yet the exact meaning of the sentence is still unclear. Rule 11 in the “Commas” section of Grammarbook.com states, “If something or someone is sufficiently identified, the description following it is considered nonessential and should be surrounded by commas.” Since Brett only has one wife, the word “Leena” is nonessential to the meaning of the word “wife.” Further, as Rule 1 states, “To avoid confusion, use commas to separate words and word groups with a series of three or more.” In theory, this sentence could be interpreted exactly as you did, with the series of three being his wife, Leena, and three sons. Therefore, depending on whether Brett’s wife is named Leena or whether Leena is some other member of the household, this sentence needs restructuring in order to be clear. Here are three possibilities (you can probably construct more):
          1. Brett lives in Denver with his three sons and his wife, Leena.
          2. Brett lives in Denver with his wife, three sons, and his cousin Leena.
          3. Brett lives in Denver with his wife, Delores; three sons; and his cousin Leena. (Rule 4 of Semicolons: Use the semicolon to separate units of a series when one or more of the units contain commas.)

          Reply

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