Comma splice. A must-read for 'thus' and 'therefore' fans.

Comma splice

I feel compelled to write this post because I find myself correcting and explaining this mistake over and over again. The mistake is so common it has a special name - comma splice.

Comma splice is joining two independent sentences with a comma. For example, "I liked the bag, I bought it." This is wrong because commas don't join sentences. Conjunctions do. You could write, "I liked the bag, so I bought it," or "I bought the bag because I liked it." So and because are conjunctions. They join the sentences. Comma splice is child's play. 

Not so fast. Look at these sentences and think to yourself if they are correct.
  1. Universities give theoretical knowledge, therefore graduates suffer from a lack of real work experience.
  2. Young people want to look older, thus they copy adults’ behavior.
  3. This research needs to be done urgently, however, it requires a vast amount of money.
They are also examples of a comma splice. "How come?!" you exclaim, "They contain thus and therefore and however!" Here is the kicker - these are not conjunctions! 'Thus, therefore, however, similarly, consequently' etc are adverbs and can therefore not join sentences, hence the comma splice.

There are two types of conjunctions:

#1 Coordinating conjunctions
There are only seven of them: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so. Use the abbreviation FANBOYS to remember them.

#2 Subordinating conjunctions
There are really many of them. I will list the most common ones and the idea they express:
- Time: after, before, since, until, when, while;
- Cause/effect: as, because, since;
- Condition: if, since, unless;
- Concession/contrast: although, even though, despite, in spite of, while, whereas;
- Identification (relative clauses): that, which, who.

So, "This research needs to be done urgently, however, it requires a vast amount of money," is not correct because however is an adverb, not a conjunction. But "This research needs to be done urgently, but it requires a vast amount of money," is correct because but is a conjunction.

Thus and Therefore

So far, so good. I now want to focus on thus and therefore - by far the top favorites in students' exam essays (and rightfully so). These two follow several patterns, which all fall within the rules outlined above, but I would still like to list them to make sure you can use them correctly in a wide variety of sentence structures.
  • Their car was bigger and therefore more comfortable.
(One subject + verb: car was; 'and' joins the adjectives.)
  • I have therefore decided to resign.
(One subject + verb; 'therefore' is used as an adverb between them, as in 'I have already decided.')
  • This is a binding contract. Therefore, we recommend that you review it with a lawyer.
(One subject + verb; 'therefore' is used as an introductory element.)
  • I tried to tell her that the words made little sense and therefore lacked any depth.
(One subject + two verbs joined by 'and': words made and lacked.)
  • Interest rates rose; therefore, real estate prices declined.
(Two subjects and two verbs separated with a semicolon; 'therefore' is used as an introductory element.)
  • No decision had been made, and thus the situation remained unclear.
(Two subjects and two verbs joined by ‘and’ and separated with a comma.)
  • Someone had removed all the evidence. Thus, it was now impossible for the police to continue their investigation.
(One subject + verb; 'thus' is used as an introductory element.)
  • The oil producers will raise prices, thus increasing their profits.
(One subject + verb + -ing clause.)
  • Obtaining food and drink thus became a tricky balancing act.
(One subject + verb; 'thus' is used as an adverb between them, as in 'quickly became.')
  • The roof was stripped in the same year and thus spelt the demise of the milling industry in Durrow.
(One subject + two verbs joined by 'and': roof was stripped and spelt.)


I think you are all set to avoid comma splice. In short, there is one simple rule - join sentences with conjunctions, not commas or adverbs.

PS: Two other ways to fix a comma splice are using a semicolon or a period, but these are usually no good in exam essays. Complex or compound sentences are a better choice.
PPS: A comma splice can be used as a stylistic device, but this use is better left to professional writers. In EFL contexts, it’s usually a mistake.


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If you are working on your writing skills, why don't you check out this post about the most common cases of comma use: https://iraluts.blogspot.com/2018/02/the-common-comma-rules-and.html 


Image credit: Photo by Brett Jordan on Unsplash

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