Examkin

Question

Difficulty: EasyCommas with Lists, Clauses, and Coordinate Adjectives

The museum is a popular destination for tourists visiting the city. Although the galleries are normally quiet, a tour group of energetic children arrived at noon today. Their laughter and chatter echoed through the large marble halls.

Which choice is the best version of the underlined portion of the sentence?

  1. quiet, a tour groupAnswer
  2. B
    quiet; a tour group
  3. C
    quiet. A tour group
  4. D
    quiet, a tour group,

Answer

The correct punctuation is to use a comma after the word 'quiet' and no punctuation after 'group'. This correctly separates the introductory dependent clause from the main independent clause.
The sentence begins with the dependent clause 'Although the galleries are normally quiet', which is followed by the independent clause 'a tour group of energetic children arrived at noon today'. When a dependent clause precedes an independent clause, they must be separated by a comma. Therefore, the option with a comma after 'quiet' and no comma after 'group' is correct.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the clause boundary and structure of the sentence.
The sentence begins with the subordinating conjunction 'Although', indicating that 'Although the galleries are normally quiet' is a dependent clause. The second part of the sentence, 'a tour group of energetic children arrived at noon today', is an independent clause.
Understanding clause types is necessary to determine the appropriate punctuation between them.
2
Apply the punctuation rule for introductory dependent clauses.
When a dependent clause introduces a sentence, a comma must be placed immediately after it to separate it from the main independent clause.
This separation helps prevent run-on sentences and guides the reader's flow.
3
Evaluate the choices to find the one that places a comma after 'quiet' and avoids unnecessary punctuation elsewhere.
The version with a comma after 'quiet' and no extra punctuation after 'group' is correct. The versions with a semicolon or a period create fragments, and the version with a trailing comma after 'group' incorrectly interrupts the subject-verb flow.
This ensures the sentence is grammatically correct and flows naturally.

Key Concept

Commas with introductory dependent clauses
Rate this question

Topics

Commas with Lists, Clauses, and Coordinate Adjectives

More questions from this topic