Commas with Dates and Series
The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation
Commas with Dates and Series
There are many uses for the comma in English grammar. Let’s look at a couple of them.
Rule 1: To avoid confusion, use commas to separate words and word groups with a series of three or more.
Examples:
John likes to eat a hearty breakfast of pancakes, sausage, toast, and chocolate!
(Omitting the comma after toast might cause a reader to think that toast and chocolate together formed one food item rather than two separate items that John enjoyed eating at breakfast.)
Sally danced in ballet classes, school productions, and community shows.
Rule 2a: Use a comma to separate the day of the month from the year, and also place one after the year.
Examples:
Jim Thompson gave his historic speech on March 3, 2002, in Chicago, Illinois.
Kathleen met her husband on December 5, 2003, in Mill Valley, California.
Rule 2b: If any part of the date is omitted, leave out the comma.
Example:
They met in December 2003 in Mill Valley.
Quiz:
Choose the sentence with the correct punctuation.
1A. Mr. Baker teaches high school courses in history, math, and physical education.
1B. Mr. Baker teaches high school courses in history, math and physical education.
2A. The couple’s vacation is scheduled to end on January 2 2010.
2B. The couple’s vacation is scheduled to end on January 2, 2010.
3A. The vice president of the group was elected back in March 1998.
3B. The vice president of the group was elected back in March, 1998.
Answers:
1A. Mr. Baker teaches high school courses in history, math, and physical education.
2B. The couple’s vacation is scheduled to end on January 2, 2010.
3A. The vice president of the group was elected back in March 1998.
If the article or the existing discussions do not address a thought or question you have on the subject, please use the "Comment" box at the bottom of this page.
Thank you so much for the information on the comma, a little punctuation mark that is so useful and so much abused!
While I agree with your punctuation of the Rule 1 examples, I disagree with the rationale for including the final comma in the sequence. If the sentence were intended to mean that toast and chocolate comprised a single item, you would need another ‘and’: John likes to eat a hearty breakfast of pancakes, sausage, and toast and chocolate! Do you agree?
Also, the commonest mistake I come across is one that is hard to explain, as in: You may enter, however, you may not be able to leave. I’d love to see that clearly explained.
The comma before and in a series is sometimes called the Oxford comma, and I’m sure you could find plenty of articles written about it on the internet. I agree with you on how the sentence should be written if we really intended toast and chocolate to be a single item. Really, the rationale is simply for ease of reading and eliminating any potential misunderstandings.
The punctuation for the second sentence is covered on the GrammarBook.com website and in the book in Rule 2 of the chapter on Semicolons, where it says:
Rule 2
It is preferable to use a semicolon before introductory words such as namely, however, therefore, that is, i.e., for example, e.g., or for instance when they introduce a complete sentence. It is also preferable to use a comma after the introductory word.
Therefore, your sentence could be punctuated like this: “You may enter; however, you may not be able to leave.”
Thanks for the comma lesson…can’t wait for part 2 (and 3, 4?). After all, as the t-shirt I recently saw in a catalogue proclaims: “Let’s eat Grandma.” and “Let’s eat, Grandma.” Commas save lives.
Yes, indeed. We are sure our readers will take note of this point, and the lives of many grandmas around the world will be saved as a result!
I think I answered Question 2 of Commas Quiz 1 correctly:
2. Choose the correct sentence.
Correct Answer: B While you’re at the store, please pick up milk, bread, eggs, and orange juice.
Explanation: When starting a sentence with a dependent clause, use a comma after it.
Your Answer: A While you’re at the store, please pick up milk, bread, eggs and orange juice.
I believe it’s unnecessary to insert a comma before “and” near the end of the sentence. And I DID use a comma after the independent clause.
Our Rule 1 of Commas advises that we should use the comma before and (the Oxford comma) to avoid confusion. Up to now we’ve taken a pretty hard line stance on this issue. However, omitting the Oxford comma is quite prevalent in newspapers and magazines anymore. The next edition of The Blue Book of Grammar and Punctuation will advise that you should choose your own approach on this issue and simply be consistent.
We are having an office discussion in relation to the use of comma’s.
Can you tell me if in your view a comma should be used after the date in the following sentence?
“In June 2013, Senior Constable Smith reported to Parramatta LAC management of being followed in his vehicle by OMCG members.”
or
“In June 2013 Senior Constable Smith reported to Parramatta LAC management of being followed in his vehicle by OMCG members.”
In the case of just the month and year, it’s a judgment call. “In June 2013, Senior Constable Smith reported …” and “In June 2013 Senior Constable Smith reported …” are both perfectly acceptable.
I KNEW that a comma before the second to the last item in a list should be there. And yet so often it’s not. The Oxford comma, being its official as I learned from using your site, has been a bugaboo for me for years! If nothing else, it should be there in those instances to pause the reader and thus make the separation between the items in the list. But no one seems to do that anymore…as if the word “and” is separation enough.
I’m so happy to have found your site. Thank you!
We’re glad you found us, too.
What if I am discussing a time-span in a sentence, such as:
the investigation began on January 1, 2019, and ended on January 10 2019.
I was always told that a comma goes after full date, even in a sentence. Does a comma belong after each date?
As the post states, “Use a comma to separate the day of the month from the year, and also place one after the year.”
The investigation began on January 1, 2019, and ended on January 10, 2019. (The period takes precedence over the comma at the end of the sentence.)
Is it “during the December 14, 2015 court hearing” OR “during the December 14, 2015, court hearing”?
Our Rule 8 of Commas says, ” Use a comma to separate the day of the month from the year, and—what most people forget!—always put one after the year, also.”
Could you please tell me if a comma should be used before “and” like I have it in the following sentence?
“This season premiered on March 5, 2013, with “Big Bro”, and ended with “Totem Pole” on May 20, 2013, for a total of ten episodes.”
I almost feel like a bachelors in “comma usage” should be required for anyone wishing to submit or edit articles on wikipedia. Fandom pages are even worse.
Thanks in advance!
Our Rule 3b. of Commas says, “In sentences where two independent clauses are joined by connectors such as and, or, but, etc., put a comma at the end of the first clause.” Since what you have written after “and” is not an independent clause, a comma is not necessary. Therefore, the following is correct:
This season premiered on March 5, 2013, with “Big Bro” and ended with “Totem Pole” on May 20, 2013, for a total of ten episodes.
I believe the correct way of writing date/month/year on a paper is March 21, 2023, for example.
However, someone wrote as March 21st 2023 (without a comma and with an ordinal number). Please advise me why the aforementioned is not accepted.
I also wonder if it is okay to write “March 21 2023” (without a comma).
Our Rule 10 of Writing Numbers says, “The following examples are typical when using figures to express dates.
Examples:
the 30th of June, 1934
June 30, 1934 (no -th necessary)”
In addition, our Rule 8 of Commas says, “Use a comma to separate the day of the month from the year, and—what most people forget!—always put one after the year, also.”
Therefore, the following are grammatically correct:
March 21, 2023, or
the 21st of March, 2023,
See our post Writing Dates and Times for more information.
How do you write the date without the year? I can never find examples of that. For instance: Thursday, October 19 at Noon ET.
Should there be a comma after the 19?
As the post states, “If any part of the date is omitted, leave out the comma.” Since you have no year, a comma is not necessary.
What if you mention two consecutive dates in the middle of a sentence?
The training was held on January 2 and 3, 2024, from 8 AM to 5 PM in Makati City.
Your treatment is fine. You could also write it as:
The training was held on January 2-3, 2024, from 8 AM to 5 PM in Makati City.