comma

noun

com·​ma ˈkä-mə 

1

: a punctuation mark, used especially as a mark of separation within the sentence

2

: pause, interval

3

: any of several nymphalid butterflies (genus Polygonia) with a silvery comma-shaped mark on the underside of the hind wings

Examples of comma in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

List as many or as few teams as you’d like, all on one line, separated by commas. —Sean McIndoe, New York Times, 15 Apr. 2026

Square Lake looks suspiciously like a comma. —Mark Glende, Twin Cities, 3 Apr. 2026

The second text has exam English capital letters, commas and spelling. —Laura Aull, The Conversation, 20 Mar. 2026

Basically, this means a long, wavy line of thunderstorms—which can be seen trailing down from the low-pressure area in a classic comma shape on weather maps. —Andrea Thompson, Scientific American, 16 Mar. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Late Latin, from Latin, part of a sentence, from Greek komma segment, clause, from koptein to cut — more at capon

First Known Use

1554, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing comma

• comma fault
• comma splice
• inverted comma

Rhymes for comma

• brahma
• chama
• dama
• drama
• gama
• lama
• llama
• mama
• mamma
• momma
• rama
• sama

Video

The Serial Comma Explained

Why don't they call it the Merriam-Webster comma?

Kids Definition

comma

noun

com·​ma ˈkäm-ə 

: a punctuation mark , used chiefly to show separation of words or word groups within a sentence