comma

American  

[kom-uh] / ˈkɒm ə /

noun

1. the sign (,), a mark of punctuation used for indicating a division in a sentence, as in setting off a word, phrase, or clause, especially when such a division is accompanied by a slight pause or is to be noted in order to give order to the sequential elements of the sentence. It is also used to separate items in a list, to mark off thousands in numerals, to separate types or levels of information in bibliographic and other data, and, in many European countries, as a decimal point.

2. Classical Prosody.

   1. a fragment or smaller section of a colon.

   2. the part of dactylic hexameter beginning or ending with the caesura.

   3. the caesura itself.

3. Music. the minute, virtually unheard difference in pitch between two enharmonic tones, as G♯ and A♭.

4. any of several nymphalid butterflies, including the North American Polygonia comma, having a comma-shaped silver mark on the underside of each hindwing.

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comma British  

/ 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

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comma Cultural  

1. A punctuation mark (,) used to indicate pauses and to separate elements within a sentence. “The forest abounds with oak, elm, and beech trees”; “The bassoon player was born in Roanoke, Virginia, on December 29, 1957.”

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Usage

What is a comma? The comma (,) is a punctuation mark that indicates a pause in a sentence, sets off words, phrases, or clauses, separates items in a list, and performs many other functions.The comma is one of the most versatile and commonly misused punctuation marks in English. It serves many different functions in English, such as:

• Indicating a pause in speech: I was walking down the street and, um, I was hit with a pie by a clown. 
• Separating items in a list: I put my shirts, pants, and socks into my suitcase.
• Separating adjectives: LaShona has a big, hairy dog. 
• In numbers larger than 999: I bought a computer for $1,300.
• In dates and addresses: I visited Des Moines, Iowa, on October 17, 2005.

There are many more jobs commas do. For more detailed information on how to properly use commas, read our thorough guide on them.

Etymology

Origin of comma

First recorded in 1520–30; from Late Latin: “mark of punctuation,” Latin: “division of a phrase,” from Greek kómma “piece cut off” (referring to the phrase so marked), equivalent to kop- (base of kóptein “to cut, gnaw, strike”) + -ma, noun suffix

Example Sentences

In a letter to critic George Jean Nathan, he described the conclusion as “merely the comma at the end of a gaudy introductory clause, with the body of the sentence still unwritten.”

From Los Angeles Times

But, comma, we also are doing that for the queer experience.

From Los Angeles Times

How barmy is it to fly thousands of people half-way around the world to sit in giant air-conditioned tents to argue about commas, and interpretations of convoluted words?

From BBC

It’s less jarring than parentheses but a bigger interruption than commas.

From The Wall Street Journal

Alongside one picture of Lord Mandelson with two women, whose faces are obscured, he writes about meeting Epstein's interesting – in inverted commas – friends.

From BBC