Is the following sentence missing semicolons or commas? If so, where?: The house was clean the table set and the porch light on everything was ready for the guests' arrival.
1 Answer
Yes.
Explanation:
The house was clean
Commas: The first clause in the sentence is a list of things that make the house "ready for the guests' arrival." Since it is a list, each item must be separated with a comma (though some people argue that the last comma is unnecessary, it's not incorrect, and it can help to clarify the sentence, so I always keep it).
Semicolon: There are two independent clauses in the sentence (each half is a full sentence that can stand by itself with a subject (or subjects) and verb): the house was clean, the table set, and the porch light on and everything was ready for the guests' arrival. Therefore, in order to keep this sentence from being a run-on, we put a semicolon between the clauses.