A Comma Before And or But in a Compound Sentence
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A Comma Before And or But in a Compound Sentence
A comma in a compound sentence: decide which sentences join two whole sentences with and or but and need a comma, spot a sentence joined with a comma alone, and join two sentences with a comma and but. With an answer key.
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Teach it first
A Comma in a Compound SentenceA teaching handout to hand out before this sheet: the rule, worked examples and common mistakes.- Skill
- Comma Worksheets
- Pages
- 1
- Last updated
- Time
- About 15 minutes
- Answer key
- Included
- Printing
- Tinted accents, also fine in black and white
- Related curriculum
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Put commas in dates, addresses, letters and lists, before and or but in a compound sentence, after an opening word or phrase, and around words that add extra information.
Reviewed by Mrs. Sarah Thompson, Teacher and Ms. Rachel Wilson, Teacher. How we check worksheets
How to use this sheet
- Read each sentence aloud and listen for the pauses and the tone.
- Have the child give a reason for each punctuation mark: the end of a question, a list, a pause after an opening word.
- Have the child check their own writing for one mark at a time, rather than every mark at once.
- For times, have the child say the hour, then the minutes, with the colon between: 3:15.
Common mistakes
- Putting a comma wherever they would pause, even between a subject and its verb.
- Joining two complete sentences with a comma. Use a period, a semicolon, or a comma and a conjunction.
- Using an exclamation mark for every sentence that is not a question.
- Putting a colon straight after a verb, as in "We need: eggs and milk." The words before a colon should be a complete sentence.
