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I can't seem to find a definitive answer for this, and my colleague and I are disagreeing on it:

Your next obsession, found.

Your next obsession found.

It was an advertisement, as in something like "we found your next obsession: this product."

To me, the statement without the comma reads as an incomplete one: your next obsession found what? It changes the subject-verb agreement entirely. However, if the comma isn't necessary but just suggested for clarity, what does the sentence without the comma mean if not just an incomplete thought?

Thanks

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  • Grammar is about speaking not writing.
    – tchrist ♦
    Commented Jan 30 at 22:44
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    Neither is a sentence. But sentence fragments that can be clearly understood aren't wrong in certain contexts; they just don't conform to sentential grammar. That said, I'd say the variant with the comma better reflects speech patterns.
    – Edwin Ashworth
    Commented Jan 30 at 23:03
  • The comma replaces the missing words: Your next obsession [is hereby] found.
    – Yosef Baskin
    Commented Jan 30 at 23:26
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    Compare Paradise Lost.
    – Kate Bunting
    Commented Jan 31 at 8:07
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    Without the comma it seems like found has the subject "your next obsession" and should have an object like "Your next obsession found your address". Having said that, it depends on the use; it reads like a slogan and if used as an advertising slogan on a poster, the comma might be considered ugly.
    – Stuart F
    Commented Jan 31 at 14:13

3 Answers 3

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Because the phrase gives the appearance of, as you noted, "obsession" as the subject of an incomplete sentence with the transitive verb "found," the comma is almost a necessity to ensure a clear meaning. Some vagueness is not uncommon in an ad slogan (nor is proper language or usage a requirement), but in this case, the vagueness would merely serve to confuse.

On the other hand, with the comma, the meaning is quite clear. In addition, because the word "found" is taking the place of an understood phrase (e.g., "Your next obsession [has been] found"), a comma is needed to signify to the reader/listener that they should fill in the blanks in their head. "We, the big company selling you this obsession, have found it for you! Here it is! Your obsession, found . . ." In both speech and writing, a marker is needed so we don't just rush to the end and say, "Huh? Where's the rest of it?" The comma does that. It's equivalent to phrases like, "Your next big game, approaching," "Your car, fixed," "Your dog, walked," etc.

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You could also argue that both are incorrect and should read "Your next obsession- found." or "Your next obsession: found.

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    – Community Bot
    Commented Jan 30 at 23:29
  • Yes; though colons are rather old-fashioned in many usages, they license all sorts of stringings together of words. 'Used to introduce something' is the most general 'definition' I've seen, and 'Your next obsession: found' certainly qualifies. Compare ''Spare shirts: tick. Passport: tick. Travel-sickness pills: tick...."
    – Edwin Ashworth
    Commented Jul 7 at 9:32
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The expression is not a sentence, obviously. It is a slogan. There are no rules for slogans, partly because (perhaps fortunately) they have not been studied by grammarians (or logicians). They could be so studied, but I hope will not be.

It is fairly obvious that the slogan in question could be classified as a kind of promise or, perhaps, offer.

Two of the most important requirements of a slogan are brevity and clarity, and the O.P. slogan fully meets both. The full sentence mightbe something like

If you are desperately looking for an (exceptional?/ fashionable?) article of fashion, design or furniture ... come in here and we can find it for you."

In fact, the slogan is vaguer than than and that has teh merit of 'inclusiveness'. It suggests that the people inside are brilliant at finding desirable or desired 'stuff'. The slogan casts the net as widely as possible.

But what about the comma? It serves no purpose. The normal purpose of a comma is to mark a small pause between conjoined clauses or phrases, as much to guide the rhythm of reading as the meaning.

The comma between obsessions and found has no such function. Well, perhaps the writer wants to make the reader pause and make of the "found" a climax (or more of a climax). But the advantage of slogans is that the standard norms applied to sentencesdo not apply. If it is a climax you want you could, for example use three dots:

Your next obsession ... found

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