{"id":9606,"date":"2020-12-04T23:10:07","date_gmt":"2020-12-04T23:10:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/?p=9606"},"modified":"2023-04-10T20:40:11","modified_gmt":"2023-04-10T20:40:11","slug":"comma-before-or-after-obviously","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-before-or-after-obviously\/","title":{"rendered":"Comma before or after &#8220;obviously&#8221;: The Definitive 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;\">Generally speaking, linguistic literacy concurrently improves with age.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This means that as we get older, we gain more ability to utilize higher forms of speech elements such as <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/academicanswers.waldenu.edu\/faq\/73142\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><b>adverbs<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Lexical competence helps people represent thoughts more accurately and cohesively, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-before-thereby\/\"><b>thereby<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> entailing reasonability and communicative literacy.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This post aims to present comma-related guidelines to the adverb &ldquo;obviously,&rdquo; as well as its usage in sentences.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<br>\n[toc]\n&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><b>Is a comma necessary before &ldquo;obviously&rdquo;?<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><strong>For the most part, a comma is not necessary before &ldquo;obviously,&rdquo; an adverb of emphasis. However, it may be required when &ldquo;obviously&rdquo; is used as the initial parenthetical expression and when it comes after a mid-sentence parenthesis. A comma may also appear in front of obviously when it subsequently follows an introductory expression in a sentence.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><b>Should there be a comma after &ldquo;obviously&rdquo;?<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><strong>&ldquo;Obviously&rdquo; should be succeeded with a comma when it is used as an introductory expression in a sentence, also known as a disjunct. Also, a post-comma should be placed when &ldquo;obviously&rdquo; is used as the last word in a parenthetical expression inserted mid-sentence.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><b>The comma before &ldquo;obviously&rdquo;: In-depth analysis<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As mentioned earlier, a comma may not necessarily be seen before &ldquo;obviously&rdquo; <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-before-except-the-definitive-guide\/\"><b>except<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> for a couple of notable cases.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A pre-comma may be placed <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-before-or-after-either\/\"><b>either<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> when it is used as an initial parenthetical component or when it comes after a parenthetical expression.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Let&rsquo;s look at each case in detail.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3><b>Parenthetical-initial<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A parenthesis, which takes the plural form &ldquo;parentheses,&rdquo; is additional<\/span> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">information inserted by the writer to create emphasis.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">These linguistic elements may be used both in oral and written discourse to assist persuasion as well as elicit humor.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Parenthetical elements are offset <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-before-with\/\"><b>with<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> commas on both sides when inserted mid-sentence, and a pre-comma only when attached at the end.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The role of parentheses in persuasive discourse is inarguable as they drive a substantial impact on readers and listeners.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As regards grammaticality, this rhetoric device is disposable, and <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-before-or-after-thus\/\"><b>thus<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, removing parenthetical components will still constitute a sensible sentence.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Commas are essentially placed around parentheses to mark their segregation from the rest of the information, as well as to signal readers that the expression is grammatically-dispensable.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Therefore, a <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/coma-vs-comma\/\"><b>comma<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> should precede &ldquo;obviously&rdquo; when it is used parenthetically.<\/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;\">Both Aristotle and Plato are prodigious rhetoricians, obviously.<\/div><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When &ldquo;obviously&rdquo; is inserted parenthetically in the middle of a sentence, the default comma must also come before it.<\/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;\">Ms. Vidal&rsquo;s life was put in danger, obviously because of her husband, yet she stayed adamantly calm and kind to him.<\/div><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Parenthetical interruptions are, again, essential in the persuasive discourse; therefore, commas are also equally-important tools that facilitate the rhetorical process.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3><b>After a parenthesis<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Now that the function of parenthetical commas has been explained, the guidelines in this section should come across effortlessly.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As parenthetical expressions necessitate a post-<a class=\"wpil_keyword_link\" href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-rules\/\" title=\"comma placement\" data-wpil-keyword-link=\"linked\">comma placement<\/a>, the same comma should precede &ldquo;obviously&rdquo; when used thereupon.<\/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;\">Layla held her words back, painfully swallowing down a sob together with her pride, obviously choking at her own mistakes.<\/div><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&ldquo;Obviously&rdquo;<\/span> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">in the sentence above modifies all the subsequent words at the end of the sentence.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The parenthetical fragment, which syntactically functions as an adverbial, helps in emphatically illustrating the emotion felt by the subject.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As the parenthesis is grammatically optional, the sentence should still make sense even after its removal as presented in the succeeding example.<\/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;\">Layla held her words back, obviously choking at her own mistakes.<\/div><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The parenthetical function <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-before-or-after-now\/\"><b>now<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> transfers to the fragment introduced by &ldquo;obviously.&rdquo;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Hence, removing the fragment further would still demonstrate complete grammaticality when only using the remaining words.<\/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;\">Layla held her words back.<\/div><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To sum, commas, therefore, complement parenthetical expressions in the successful conveyance of relevant and interesting <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-before-or-after-yet\/\"><b>yet<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> grammatically-dispensable information.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3><b>Introductory-final<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The introduction of a sentence is crucial in providing background context to the reader.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It functions as a doorway to the topic that prompts the reader on what to expect later, and thus, it helps in disambiguating the writer&rsquo;s intended meaning.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Introductory statements may be words, phrases, fragments, and dependent clauses which are set off with commas at the end.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Therefore, a comma should be placed before &ldquo;obviously&rdquo; when it comes after any introductory expression.<\/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;\">Poisoned by apathy, obviously lacking any interest and enthusiasm, she did not cringe nor flinch when she heard the news.<\/div><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The fragment introduced by &ldquo;obviously&rdquo; also acts as a parenthetical device in the sentence above.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Hence, the sentence would still be well-formed despite removing the fragment.<\/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;\">Poisoned by apathy, she did not cringe nor flinch when she heard the <a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/newses-as-a-plural-of-news\/\">news<\/a>.<\/div><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><b>The comma after &ldquo;obviously&rdquo; in utmost detail<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&ldquo;Obviously&rdquo; may freely roam around the sentence just like other general adverbs.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A few syntactic and stylistic guidelines may also prompt a comma placement after &ldquo;obviously&rdquo; in sentences.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A post-comma specifically occurs when it acts as a disjunct, which syntactically functions similar to the previous explanation on introductory expressions.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Another case is when &ldquo;obviously&rdquo; is used as the last word in a parenthetical statement particularly in the middle of a sentence.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Lastly, a post-comma may also appear when &ldquo;obviously&rdquo; ends a dependent clause that introduces the sentence, followed by an independent clause afterward.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3><b>Sentence-initial Disjunct<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Disjuncts are adverbs that are used to indicate the opinion or the inner thoughts of the writer in light of the whole sentence.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Similar to the parenthesis in stylistics, disjuncts are grammatically-unrelated to the sentence but are rhetorically-essential in conveying the sentiment or mood of the writer or speaker.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When a disjunct ends the sentence, a pre-comma is necessary.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-before-or-after-however\/\"><b>However<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, when it starts a sentence, a post-comma must be used instead.<\/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;\">Obviously, miscommunication was the central source of their issue.<\/div><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Disjuncts may also be compared to a parenthetical expression positioned at the beginning of a sentence because it aims to draw attention and at the same time grammatically-omissible.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3><b>Parenthetical final<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To note once more, parenthetical commas are necessary for offsetting parenthetical elements within a sentence.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/?s=in+particular\"><b>In particular<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, a mid-sentence parenthesis should induce a post-comma placement when &ldquo;obviously&rdquo; is used as the last element.<\/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;\">Living under the radar, <a class=\"wpil_keyword_link\" href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/nonetheless-vs-nevertheless-difference\/\" title=\"nonetheless\" data-wpil-keyword-link=\"linked\">nonetheless<\/a> clearly and obviously, John is having the best time of his life.<\/div><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The parenthetical statement containing &ldquo;obviously&rdquo; necessitates commas around as it more likely serves as an accidental thought included by the writer to create an emphatic effect.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-9610\" src=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Commas-With-Obviously.jpg\" alt=\"Commas With Obviously\" width=\"1000\" height=\"1500\" srcset=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Commas-With-Obviously.jpg 320w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Commas-With-Obviously-200x300.jpg 200w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Commas-With-Obviously-683x1024.jpg 683w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Commas-With-Obviously-768x1152.jpg 768w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Commas-With-Obviously-735x1103.jpg 735w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Commas-With-Obviously-223x335.jpg 223w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Commas-With-Obviously-231x347.jpg 231w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Commas-With-Obviously-347x520.jpg 347w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Commas-With-Obviously-427x640.jpg 427w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Commas-With-Obviously-512x768.jpg 512w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" data-pin-media=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Commas-With-Obviously.jpg\"><\/noscript><img loading=\"eager\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-9610 eager-load\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns='http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg'%20viewBox='0%200%201000%201500'%3E%3Crect%20width='1000'%20height='1500'%20style='fill:%23e3e3e3'\/%3E%3C\/svg%3E\" alt=\"Commas With Obviously\" width=\"1000\" height=\"1500\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" data-pin-media=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Commas-With-Obviously.jpg\" id=\"mv-trellis-img-1\" data-src=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Commas-With-Obviously.jpg\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Commas-With-Obviously.jpg 320w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Commas-With-Obviously-200x300.jpg 200w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Commas-With-Obviously-683x1024.jpg 683w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Commas-With-Obviously-768x1152.jpg 768w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Commas-With-Obviously-735x1103.jpg 735w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Commas-With-Obviously-223x335.jpg 223w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Commas-With-Obviously-231x347.jpg 231w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Commas-With-Obviously-347x520.jpg 347w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Commas-With-Obviously-427x640.jpg 427w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/12\/Commas-With-Obviously-512x768.jpg 512w\" data-svg=\"1\" data-trellis-processed=\"1\"><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><b>Commas before and after &ldquo;obviously<span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&rdquo;<\/span><\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As &ldquo;obviously&rdquo; may also be used as a single-word parenthesis, this means that two commas should single this word out from the rest of the sentence.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This particularly happens when it interrupts the sentence somewhere in the middle as a result of an exceedingly overt emphatic purpose.&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;\">He&rsquo;s not coming back, obviously, so you had better pull yourself together.<\/div><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Stylistically speaking, the parenthetical use of &ldquo;obviously&rdquo; in the sentence above serves as a double-edged sword as it already is an empathic adverb per se.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><b>The inessential comma on both sides<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&ldquo;Obviously&rdquo; is as flexible as other general lexical adverbs which means that it can be liberally placed almost anywhere in the sentence.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It can be used to modify verbs, adjectives, adverbs, and even an entire sentence or clause depending on the intention of the writer.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Furthermore, a pre-comma is not used when it serves its adverbial function minus the emphatic effect induced by parenthesized ideas.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Without commas, the statement&rsquo;s prosody would be reduced to a more formal and neutral as opposed to a persuasive and emphatic tone.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When &ldquo;obviously&rdquo; behaves in such manner, a post comma is inessential, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-before-or-after-although\/\"><b>although<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> a post-comma placement may be necessary when it serves as a disjunct at the beginning of the sentence.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Let&rsquo;s tackle these instances one by one in the following sub-sections.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3><b>Modifying a verb<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When we want to imply certainty towards the main verb used in the sentence, we may add an intensifier before it.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The proximal distance of an intensifier to the verb draws out the focus that the intensifier aims to modify the verb instead of another constituent in the sentence.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With this, readers could then understand that the writer undoubtedly aims to highlight the action done as opposed to other sentence elements.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We need <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-before-not\/\"><b>not<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> place a pre-comma in this case.<\/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;\">Rodney obviously realized that his egotistical words had offended Jane.<\/div><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3><b>Modifying an adjective<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Similarly, when a writer aims to draw focus on the adjectival complement, the intensifier may be placed before it.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This adverb placement transfers the emphasis to the adjective instead of the other parts of the sentence.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/unnecessary-commas\/\"><b>Commas are not mandatory<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in this type of construction as well.<\/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;\">Jane was obviously perplexed by how Rodney talked to her.<\/div><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3><b>Modifying another adverb<\/b><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Thirdly, adverbs <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-before-or-after-also-the-definitive-guide\/\"><b>also<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> have the ability to modify other adverbs in the sentence.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This typically happens toward the end of the sentence, although not limited to, when the writer aims to delay the emphasis.<\/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;\">Jane and Rodney were not on the same page rather obviously.<\/div><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&ldquo;Obviously&rdquo; may also be found in another sentence such as in the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-after-e-g\/\"><b>example<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> below wherein it modifies a spatial adverb in a dependent clause.<\/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;\">Since they are obviously here, then we can start the session.<\/div><\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><b>Obviously:<\/b> <b>A lexical background on&nbsp;<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">&ldquo;Obviously&rdquo; is an adverb of emphasis formed by adding a suffix to its adjectival and nominal form, &ldquo;obvious.&rdquo;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The word is etymologically based in Latin and a result of combining &ldquo;ob-&rdquo; and &ldquo;via&rdquo;, which means &ldquo;before&rdquo; and &ldquo;way&rdquo; respectively.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It can also be negatively turned into &ldquo;unobviously&rdquo; <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-before-or-after-or\/\"><b>or<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> &ldquo;non-obviously,&rdquo; with the latter being the more widely-accepted version.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Semantically categorized as an adverb of emphasis, or intensifier, &ldquo;obviously&rdquo; is used to modify and highlight another lexical item, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/clauses-vs-phrases\/\"><b>phrase, or clause<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in a statement.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As adverbs <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-before-per-se\/\"><b>per se<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> are internally heterogeneous and regularly derived from adjectives, language experts have referred to this word category as a &ldquo;rag-bag&rdquo; or &ldquo;dustbin.&rdquo;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The heterogeneity of adverbial types and syntactical function somehow contributes to a learner&rsquo;s rather late acquisition and mastery compared to more functional categories like nouns and verbs.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Put more simply, the ability to effectively use adverbs entails higher-order thinking and communicative competence.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><b>Conclusion<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The English language may or may not come across easily to native and non-native users alike.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The complex learnability of both the syntactic and stylistic functions of words <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-after-and\/\"><b>and<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> punctuation marks are the culprits of this controversy.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">One thing&rsquo;s for certain, <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-before-though\/\"><b>though<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, is that linguistic literacy builds on through time, for as long as constant exposure and usage are practiced.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Hence,<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-before-no-matter\/\"><b> no matter<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> how confusing English may seem at some point, learners should just get it over with instead of speculating <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/comma-before-too-the-definitive-guide\/\"><b>too<\/b><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> much.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Generally speaking, linguistic literacy concurrently improves with age. This means that as we get older, we gain more ability to utilize higher forms of speech elements such as adverbs. Lexical competence helps people represent thoughts more accurately and cohesively, thereby entailing reasonability and communicative literacy. This post aims to present comma-related guidelines to the adverb &hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9609,"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":[80,229,228],"class_list":["post-9606","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-english","category-comma-rules","category-grammar","tag-comma","tag-comma-after-obviously","tag-comma-before-obviously"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9606","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=9606"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9606\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24728,"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9606\/revisions\/24728"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/9609"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9606"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9606"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9606"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}