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b3g4.htf
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1997-03-31
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B3G4
Essential vs. Nonessential
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Essential (restrictive) clauses or phrases are essential to the
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meaning of the sentence. Nonessential (nonrestrictive)
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clauses or phrases can be removed without changing the
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meaning of the sentence; they give additional or incidental
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information.
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Nonessential
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: Jasper, who is sitting down, is well-liked.
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Essential
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: The boy who is sitting down is our neighbor.
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Note the difference in meaning:
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Nonessential
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: The girl, who is wearing a very odd hat,
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stood indecisively before the classroom door.
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Essential
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: The girl who is wearing a very odd hat
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stood indecisively before the classroom door.
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In the first example above, the girl who is the subject of the
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sentence is the only girl standing in front of the door, and we
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are given incidental information about her. In the second
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example, there are other girls standing in front of the door,
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and we are given information to help us identify the girl to
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which the sentence refers.
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To test a phrase or clause to see whether it is essential or
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nonessential, imagine that the commas are handles that you
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can use to lift the phrase or clause out of the sentence. If
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the basic meaning of the sentence does not change, then
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the phrase or clause is nonessential and should be set off
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with commas. If the basic meaning of the sentence
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changes, then the phrase or clause is essential and should
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not be set off with commas.
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More information
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Trends with Commas
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B5C3a.htf
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