How to Avoid and Fix a Comma Splice

A comma splice is one of the most commonly made errors when writing in the English language. Any teacher or professor will cringe at the mention of them. Nothing shows off a lack of grammatical skills quite like a comma splice. To avoid this common error, just follow these simple steps.

Difficulty: Moderate

Instructions

1. First off, you have to know what a comma splice is. A comma splice is when you connect two independent clauses using a comma without a coordinating conjunction. In laymen terms, you connect two sentences that can stand on their own with a comma and you don't use one of these connecting words: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so.

2. Here are a few examples of comma splices:
   --- He ran into the wall, he fell down.
   ---Jason didn't like to eat French fries, however he loved to eat baked potatoes.
   --- Shakespeare never had to learn how to use a typewriter, he wrote everything by hand.

3. If you need to determine if something is a comma splice there is an easy solution. Look at the two parts of the sentence that you have connected with a comma. Say each half of the sentence. If both parts of the sentence can stand alone as their own separate sentence, then you have a comma splice on your hands.

4. Now if you have a comma splice, there are a few ways you can fix it. The easiest way is to replace the comma with a period. If both sentences make sense on their own, and don't need the each other to make sense, this is the easiest option. Your other option is to connect the two clauses with one of the connecting words that I mentioned above.

5. Here are the corrected comma splices from above:
   --- He ran into the wall, and he fell down.
   --- Jason didn't like to eat French fries. However, he loved to eat baked potatoes.
   --- Shakespeare never had to learn how to use a typewriter, so he wrote everything by hand.

Tips & Warnings

• Even if you use connecting words like furthermore, however, and moreover it is still a comma splice. Only the seven connecting words I listed in step one can connect two independent clauses by using a comma.