Question

Where would you place the comma(s) in the sentence below to indicate a pause or break? There are wealthy gentlemen in England who drive four-horse passenger-coaches twenty or thirty miles on a daily line in the summer because the privilege costs them considerable money?

1) Around 'in the summer'
2) Around 'twenty or thirty miles on a daily basis'
3) Before 'because the privilege ____________.'
4) Before 'who drive four-horse ____________.'

Answer 1

The correct placement of commas in the sentence is before the word 'because,' separating the main clause from the subordinate clause. No other commas are necessary as they would break up essential parts of the sentence or incorrectly separate clauses.

Step-by-step explanation:

The placement of commas in a sentence is important to indicate a pause or break and to convey the correct meaning. In the given sentence, commas should be placed as follows:

There are wealthy gentlemen in England who drive four-horse passenger-coaches twenty or thirty miles on a daily line in the summer, because the privilege costs them considerable money?

The correct placement would be option 3), Before 'because the privilege.' This separates the main clause from the subordinate clause introduced by 'because,' which provides the reason behind the preceding statement. Placing commas around 'in the summer' would be option 1), but it is not necessary since 'in the summer' is an essential part of the sentence. Option 4), Before 'who drive four-horse,' would incorrectly separate the relative clause from the sentence, and option 2) is not provided in the options, but would be incorrect as it would break up the essential information in the middle of the sentence.

A comma after a dependent clause is used when it precedes the independent clause, according to the given reference on the use of commas. Similarly, essential and nonessential information is determined by whether the meaning of the sentence changes if the information is removed.