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Difficulty: HardCommas with Lists, Clauses, and Coordinate Adjectives

To optimize the acoustics of the newly constructed concert hall, the sound engineer analyzed the performance of various wall panels. During the sound test, she measured the rich, clear, reverberations, but she discovered that the high-frequency notes decayed much too quickly. Consequently, she recommended installing diffusers along the rear wall to balance the sound.

Which choice best punctuates the underlined portion of the sentence?

  1. A
    NO CHANGE
  2. rich, clear reverberations, but she discoveredAnswer
  3. C
    rich clear reverberations but she discovered
  4. D
    rich, clear reverberations; but she discovered

Answer

rich, clear reverberations, but she discovered
The correct option properly places a comma between the coordinate adjectives 'rich' and 'clear' without putting a comma between the final adjective 'clear' and the noun 'reverberations'. It also correctly places a comma before the coordinating conjunction 'but' to separate the two independent clauses.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Determine if the adjectives modifying the noun are coordinate or cumulative.
The adjectives 'rich' and 'clear' are coordinate because they can be reordered ('clear, rich reverberations') and can be joined with 'and' ('rich and clear reverberations'). Thus, a comma is needed between them.
Coordinate adjectives require commas separating them, while cumulative adjectives do not.
2
Check if a comma should be placed between the final adjective and the noun.
There should be no comma between 'clear' and 'reverberations'.
A comma must never separate the final adjective in a series from the noun it modifies.
3
Examine the clause boundary following the noun.
The clauses before and after 'but' are both independent: 'she measured the rich, clear reverberations' and 'she discovered that the high-frequency notes decayed much too quickly'. A comma is required before the coordinating conjunction 'but'.
Coordinating conjunctions (FANBOYS) joining two independent clauses must be preceded by a comma.

Key Concept

Distinguishing coordinate adjectives from cumulative adjectives and properly separating independent clauses with a coordinating conjunction.
Estimated Time:1m 0s
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Topics

Commas with Lists, Clauses, and Coordinate Adjectives

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