About the use of comma, this should settle any questions...[link]
I'm quoting from Times Chambers 'Punctuation Guide'.
There is an American preference for placing a comma in lists to precede the conjunction at the end of a list of three or more items. Whereas British practice favours x, y and z, the American preference is for x, y, and z.
Yoong Liat wrote: Goodman wrote: >>I know that there isn't supposed to be a comma before the word "and". I don't know about the semicolon. That's not true. A comma before "and" is optional but it's not wrong. I had Cesar salad, pork chop with apple sauce, and a tall glass of Coke for dinner.- Perfectly acceptable; in fact may even be preferred. I've read that a comma before 'and' is AmE, while in BrE, the full stop is not necessary.
Goodman wrote: >>I know that there isn't supposed to be a comma before the word "and". I don't know about the semicolon. That's not true. A comma before "and" is optional but it's not wrong. I had Cesar salad, pork chop with apple sauce, and a tall glass of Coke for dinner.- Perfectly acceptable; in fact may even be preferred.
>>I know that there isn't supposed to be a comma before the word "and". I don't know about the semicolon.
That's not true. A comma before "and" is optional but it's not wrong.
I had Cesar salad, pork chop with apple sauce, and a tall glass of Coke for dinner.- Perfectly acceptable; in fact may even be preferred.
I've read that a comma before 'and' is AmE, while in BrE, the full stop is not necessary.
Barbara
The above sentence should be: I've read that a comma before 'and' is AmE, while in BrE, the comma is not necessary.
My apologies for the careless mistake.
I believe the sentence should read:
My favorite meal includes meat, potatoes, and gravy: a marriage of protein and starch.
Anon,
Use what you want. It‘s wrong with the colon in your sentence. Use of colon:
Main ingredient: Sliced tomato, ground beef, and tomato sauce.
Seasoning: Sugar, salt, oregano, minced garlic and chopped onion, and diced mushroom.