Oxford comma

These actually appeared in print without the Oxford comma and therefore without the intended meaning:

  1. From http://languagelog.ldc.upenn.edu/nll/?p=2730, “A Merle Haggard documentary was filmed over three years. Among those interviewed were his two ex-wives, Kris Kristofferson and Robert Duvall”.
  2. From http://itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/languagelog/archives/002932.html, “This book is dedicated to my parents, Ayn Rand and God”. (possibly apocryphal)
  3. From http://itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/languagelog/archives/002932.html, “The highlights of his global tour include encounters with Nelson Mandela, an 800-year-old demigod and a dildo collector.”
  4. Lack of an Oxford comma cost $5M: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/02/09/us/oxford-comma-maine.html

These are some made up examples:

From http://fxdiebold.blogspot.com/2016/01/strippers-jfk-stalin-and-oxford-comma.html. “We invited two strippers, JFK and Stalin.”

From: http://thewritepractice.com/why-you-need-to-be-using-oxford-commas/

“Amanda found herself in the Winnebago with her ex-boyfriend, an herbalist and a pet detective.”

“Amanda found herself in the Winnebago with her ex-boyfriend, an herbalist, and a pet detective.”

One comma makes the difference between an awkward road trip with two people and a potentially hilarious road trip with four people. Make sure you’re punctuating the story you want people to read”.

© John G. Harris 2023