{"id":12132,"date":"2021-04-19T15:58:12","date_gmt":"2021-04-19T15:58:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/?p=12132"},"modified":"2022-09-19T18:09:55","modified_gmt":"2022-09-19T18:09:55","slug":"comma-after-please","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-after-please\/","title":{"rendered":"Comma after &#8220;please&#8221; \u2014 A Comprehensive Guide"},"content":{"rendered":"<style>img#mv-trellis-img-1::before{padding-top:150%; }img#mv-trellis-img-1{display:block;}<\/style><p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When discussing punctuation in relation to &ldquo;please&rdquo;, it is undeniable that people have contrasting opinions on what is grammatically correct. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It is difficult to punctuate &ldquo;please&rdquo; because, like many other words, it can act as a noun, verb, interjection, or even as a conjunction. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You won&rsquo;t include &ldquo;please&rdquo; often in your writing, but when you do, we want you to be ready for it.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Linguaholic is committed to helping you improve your use of grammar and we are excited to dive into this new topic. Continue reading for more!<\/span><br>\n&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><b>Is a comma after &ldquo;please&rdquo; ever necessary?<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><b>&ldquo;Please&rdquo; can be used as a noun, a verb, a conjunction, and as an interjection. Its placement within the sentence also has a strong influence on whether or not a comma after &ldquo;please&rdquo; is necessary. When &ldquo;please&rsquo; is used as a noun, a comma should not be placed following it. The same rule will apply if &ldquo;please&rdquo; is used as a verb. Based on this pattern, one can deduct that a comma after &ldquo;please&rdquo; when it is used as a conjunction is also not recommended, unless tone needs to be emphasized. If &ldquo;please&rdquo; is placed in the middle of the sentence, it is normally used as an interjection, in which case a comma after it is also not necessary. <\/b><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-after-overall\/\"><b>Overall<\/b><\/a><b>, a comma after &ldquo;please&rdquo; is rarely necessary, but it can be at the writer&rsquo;s discretion to highlight tone.&nbsp;<\/b><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><b>&ldquo;Please&rdquo; as a noun in an essential clause<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When we use &ldquo;please&rdquo; as a noun, a comma should not be placed following it. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As a noun, &ldquo;please&rdquo;, is used to add meaning to the essential clause, adding information that will aid the reader&rsquo;s <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/thank-you-for-your-understanding\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">understanding<\/a><\/strong>:&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-note\" style=\"border-color:#e5e54c;border-radius:3px;-moz-border-radius:3px;-webkit-border-radius:3px;\"><div class=\"su-note-inner su-u-clearfix su-u-trim\" style=\"background-color:#FFFF66;border-color:#ffffff;color:#333333;border-radius:3px;-moz-border-radius:3px;-webkit-border-radius:3px;\"><strong>Example 1:<\/strong> I hope you remembered to say please when you asked Molly for help.<\/div><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-before-as-well-as\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">As<\/a><\/strong> you can see above, &ldquo;please&rdquo; is not followed by a comma. This is the correct way of structuring the <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/indigenous-in-a-sentence\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">sentence<\/a><\/strong> because it doesn&rsquo;t isolate &ldquo;please&rdquo; as a noun, unnecessarily breaking up a clause. <\/span><\/p>\n<p>When a noun is used, the general rule is that it should be followed by a comma unless it is used as part of a list.<\/p>\n<p>You should use this example as guidance when you are looking to include &ldquo;please&rdquo; as a noun in academic papers and<strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/thank-you-for-the-clarification\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">professional emails<\/a>.<\/strong>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div class=\"su-note\" style=\"border-color:#e5e54c;border-radius:3px;-moz-border-radius:3px;-webkit-border-radius:3px;\"><div class=\"su-note-inner su-u-clearfix su-u-trim\" style=\"background-color:#FFFF66;border-color:#ffffff;color:#333333;border-radius:3px;-moz-border-radius:3px;-webkit-border-radius:3px;\"><strong>Example 2:<\/strong> I hope you remembered to say please, when you asked Molly for help.<\/div><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In Example 2, &ldquo;please&rdquo; is followed by a comma, which is incorrect. As mentioned above, &ldquo;please&rdquo; shouldn&rsquo;t be followed by a comma when it is used as a noun. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You might have noticed that the readability of this <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-after-for-example\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">example<\/a><\/strong> is not as strong as the first one.&nbsp; <\/span><b>&nbsp;<\/b><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><b>If &ldquo;please&rdquo; is used as a verb&nbsp;<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-before-if\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &ldquo;please&rdquo; is used as a verb, rather than a noun, a similar rule as the one highlight will follow. The examples below will highlight this:&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-note\" style=\"border-color:#e5e54c;border-radius:3px;-moz-border-radius:3px;-webkit-border-radius:3px;\"><div class=\"su-note-inner su-u-clearfix su-u-trim\" style=\"background-color:#FFFF66;border-color:#ffffff;color:#333333;border-radius:3px;-moz-border-radius:3px;-webkit-border-radius:3px;\"><strong>Example 1:<\/strong> Jack is so fixated on pleasing his girlfriend.&nbsp;<\/div><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In this example, &ldquo;please&rdquo; is used as a verb; similarly to a noun, its function is to add meaning to an essential clause. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This is also why a comma after &ldquo;please&rdquo; has not been introduced; there simply isn&rsquo;t a need to break up <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/thus-in-a-sentence\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">the sentence<\/a><\/strong>. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In academic papers and <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/basic-business-english-vocabulary\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">professional settings<\/a><\/strong>, you should follow this example as guidance.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-note\" style=\"border-color:#e5e54c;border-radius:3px;-moz-border-radius:3px;-webkit-border-radius:3px;\"><div class=\"su-note-inner su-u-clearfix su-u-trim\" style=\"background-color:#FFFF66;border-color:#ffffff;color:#333333;border-radius:3px;-moz-border-radius:3px;-webkit-border-radius:3px;\"><strong>Example 2:<\/strong> Jack is so fixated on pleasing, his girlfriend.<\/div><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This example showcases a sentence structure that is universally considered to be grammatically incorrect. In this case, a comma is placed after &ldquo;please&rdquo;, when it is used as a verb, which is not necessary. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The rhythm of the sentence is interrupted at the comma, stunting the reader in a way that is not natural. You should not use this example as guidance.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><b>What about when &ldquo;please&rdquo; is used as a conjunction?<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When &ldquo;please&rdquo; is used as a conjunction, a comma should not be placed following it, unless there is an inherent need to emphasize a certain part of the sentence. The following examples will highlight this rule:<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-note\" style=\"border-color:#e5e54c;border-radius:3px;-moz-border-radius:3px;-webkit-border-radius:3px;\"><div class=\"su-note-inner su-u-clearfix su-u-trim\" style=\"background-color:#FFFF66;border-color:#ffffff;color:#333333;border-radius:3px;-moz-border-radius:3px;-webkit-border-radius:3px;\"><strong>Example 1:<\/strong> If you go swimming, please bring back my swimsuit.<\/div><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&ldquo;Please&rdquo; acts as a conjunction in this case, as it creates a bridge between the two separate parts of the sentence. A comma is placed before it to separate the two parts, but it is not placed after it. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This is because, similarly to when &ldquo;please&rdquo; is used as noun, &ldquo;please&rdquo; is introduced to add meaning to a sentence. A comma after &ldquo;please&rdquo; when it is used as a conjunction is not necessary.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-note\" style=\"border-color:#e5e54c;border-radius:3px;-moz-border-radius:3px;-webkit-border-radius:3px;\"><div class=\"su-note-inner su-u-clearfix su-u-trim\" style=\"background-color:#FFFF66;border-color:#ffffff;color:#333333;border-radius:3px;-moz-border-radius:3px;-webkit-border-radius:3px;\"><strong>Example 2:<\/strong> If you go swimming, please, bring back my swimsuit.<\/div><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the above <\/span><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-after-for-example\/\">example<\/a><\/strong><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, a comma after &ldquo;please&rdquo; is placed, which emphasizes it. This is a stylistic choice that you can make based on how you want tone to come across.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><b>&ldquo;Please&rdquo; in the middle of the sentence&nbsp;<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the examples below, we will highlight how to use a comma when &ldquo;please&rdquo; is located in the middle of the sentence. This is probably how you have used &ldquo;please&rdquo; most often.&nbsp; <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When please is used in the middle of the sentence as an interjection, a comma should not be placed after it. Here an example highlighting this:<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-note\" style=\"border-color:#e5e54c;border-radius:3px;-moz-border-radius:3px;-webkit-border-radius:3px;\"><div class=\"su-note-inner su-u-clearfix su-u-trim\" style=\"background-color:#FFFF66;border-color:#ffffff;color:#333333;border-radius:3px;-moz-border-radius:3px;-webkit-border-radius:3px;\"><strong>Example 1:<\/strong> Could you please pick up the kids after school?<\/div><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the example above, &ldquo;please&rdquo; is used as an interjection. It is used to imply a sudden emotion or a powerful feeling. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&ldquo;Please&rdquo; is not isolated by commas because a continuous flow needs to be created to improve readability.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-note\" style=\"border-color:#e5e54c;border-radius:3px;-moz-border-radius:3px;-webkit-border-radius:3px;\"><div class=\"su-note-inner su-u-clearfix su-u-trim\" style=\"background-color:#FFFF66;border-color:#ffffff;color:#333333;border-radius:3px;-moz-border-radius:3px;-webkit-border-radius:3px;\"><strong>Example 2:<\/strong> Could you please, pick up the kids after school?<\/div><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In this case, &ldquo;please&rdquo; is also used as an interjection, but a comma is placed after it. <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/is-with-which-correct-grammar\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">This is a grammatical choice<\/a><\/strong> that is not correct. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">You can include commas in your writing, if you deem it appropriate, to allow tone to come across, however you should not use the example above as guidance in professional settings.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_12138\" style=\"width: 934px\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-12138\" class=\"wp-image-12138 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin.jpeg\" alt=\"Comma after please\" width=\"924\" height=\"1386\" srcset=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin.jpeg 320w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin-200x300.jpeg 200w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin-683x1024.jpeg 683w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin-768x1152.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin-735x1103.jpeg 735w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin-223x335.jpeg 223w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin-231x347.jpeg 231w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin-347x520.jpeg 347w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin-427x640.jpeg 427w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin-512x768.jpeg 512w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin-640x960.jpeg 640w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin-720x1080.jpeg 720w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 924px) 100vw, 924px\" data-pin-media=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin.jpeg\"><\/noscript><img loading=\"eager\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-12138\" class=\"wp-image-12138 size-full eager-load\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns='http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg'%20viewBox='0%200%20924%201386'%3E%3Crect%20width='924'%20height='1386'%20style='fill:%23e3e3e3'\/%3E%3C\/svg%3E\" alt=\"Comma after please\" width=\"924\" height=\"1386\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 924px) 100vw, 924px\" data-pin-media=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin.jpeg\" id=\"mv-trellis-img-1\" data-src=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin.jpeg\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin.jpeg 320w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin-200x300.jpeg 200w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin-683x1024.jpeg 683w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin-768x1152.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin-735x1103.jpeg 735w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin-223x335.jpeg 223w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin-231x347.jpeg 231w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin-347x520.jpeg 347w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin-427x640.jpeg 427w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin-512x768.jpeg 512w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin-640x960.jpeg 640w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/04\/Comma-after-please-Pin-720x1080.jpeg 720w\" data-svg=\"1\" data-trellis-processed=\"1\"><p id=\"caption-attachment-12138\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Comma after please: The Definitive Guide<\/p><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><b>&ldquo;Please&rdquo; at the end of the sentence&nbsp;<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When &ldquo;please&rdquo; is located at the end of the sentence, the rule of thumb is that you will need to place a comma preceding it. As an adverb, &ldquo;please&rdquo; should be isolated from the rest of the sentence. The examples below will showcase this:<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-note\" style=\"border-color:#e5e54c;border-radius:3px;-moz-border-radius:3px;-webkit-border-radius:3px;\"><div class=\"su-note-inner su-u-clearfix su-u-trim\" style=\"background-color:#FFFF66;border-color:#ffffff;color:#333333;border-radius:3px;-moz-border-radius:3px;-webkit-border-radius:3px;\">\n<p><strong>Example 1:<\/strong> Can you pass me the salt, please?<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In this example, &ldquo;please&rdquo; has been used at the end of the sentence and a comma has been correctly placed preceding it. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The aim of &ldquo;please&rdquo; within this context is to allow politeness to come across in tone. &ldquo;Please&rdquo; is not providing any important information to the reader, which is why it has been isolated.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"su-note\" style=\"border-color:#e5e54c;border-radius:3px;-moz-border-radius:3px;-webkit-border-radius:3px;\"><div class=\"su-note-inner su-u-clearfix su-u-trim\" style=\"background-color:#FFFF66;border-color:#ffffff;color:#333333;border-radius:3px;-moz-border-radius:3px;-webkit-border-radius:3px;\">\n<p><strong>Example 2:<\/strong> Can you pass me the salt please?<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Example 2 is incorrect. You should always place a comma before &ldquo;please&rdquo; when please is placed at the end of the sentence. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you want to come across as professional in your writing, you should never follow this example as guidance.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Conclusion<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As you might have been able to deduct, a comma after &ldquo;please&rdquo; is <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-before-rarely\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">rarely<\/a><\/strong> recommended, and almost never necessary. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In finalizing your understanding of <a class=\"wpil_keyword_link\" href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-rules\/\" title=\"comma placement\" data-wpil-keyword-link=\"linked\">comma placement<\/a> in relation to &ldquo;please&rdquo;, we hope that you were able to end this piece with a better comprehension of punctuation. Until next time!<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>When discussing punctuation in relation to &ldquo;please&rdquo;, it is undeniable that people have contrasting opinions on what is grammatically correct. It is difficult to punctuate &ldquo;please&rdquo; because, like many other words, it can act as a noun, verb, interjection, or even as a conjunction. You won&rsquo;t include &ldquo;please&rdquo; often in your writing, but when you &hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12137,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"disable-in-feed":false,"article-schema-type":"Article","disable-critical-css":false,"_convertkit_action_broadcast_export":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[35,1119,1116],"tags":[80,509],"class_list":["post-12132","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-english","category-comma-rules","category-grammar","tag-comma","tag-comma-after-please"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12132","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12132"}],"version-history":[{"count":21,"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12132\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24157,"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12132\/revisions\/24157"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12137"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12132"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12132"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12132"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}