College Composition / Unit 3 CMP 0056 short lesson, about 20 seconds
Comma Splices
Captions available
The idea
A comma splice joins two complete sentences with only a comma.
In practice
"The survey closed on Friday, the results arrive next week." Each side could stand alone, so a comma is not strong enough to join them.
Where people slip
Comma splices sound natural when read aloud, which is why they survive drafting; check every comma that sits between two clauses.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
Something wrong in this lesson? Flag it · Sources for College Composition