Tell me more ×
English Language & Usage Stack Exchange is a question and answer site for linguists, etymologists, and serious English language enthusiasts. It's 100% free, no registration required.
up vote 3 down vote favorite

Is a comma required after the date (year only or day of week only) that is in a prepositional phrase before the subject of the sentence? For example:

In 1966 I began college.

share|improve this question
It's just an inversion of the "default" sequence for such clauses in English - "I began college in 1966". If the relocated Modifying Phrase is really short, you certainly don't need the comma to maintain legibility. – FumbleFingers Sep 20 '12 at 21:44

1 Answer

up vote 4 down vote

You have to ask how strong an interruption to the sentence the prepositional phrase makes. I would say that in that case the answer was not very, and that consequently no comma was needed.

share|improve this answer
I think it just changes the emphasis a bit. With the comma, there's a stronger emphasis on the year because of the pause. – David Schwartz Sep 20 '12 at 21:06

Your Answer

 
discard

By posting your answer, you agree to the privacy policy and terms of service.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.