Those of you asking for the final rule in a series of comma placement rules and not finding it in the last column will have it in this one. Before getting to it, however, you may wish to try your hand at discerning the correct usage in the four examples below, for, as this column frequently has noted, hundreds of words appearing similar in meaning are actually dissimilar.

Underlined words in the following sentences below are troublesome ones.  If they are incorrect, do you know the correct parenthetical replacement?

1.      "(Due to / Because of) a sudden onset of pneumonia last spring, we had to cancel our travel plans."

2.      "We were standing in (proximity / close proximity) to the tree felled by lightning."

3.      "The sports and hardware departments intend to close (awhile / for a while) so that the contractors can complete the renovations."

4.      "Because she didn't want to work (everyday / every day), she applied for a part-time job."

Answers:

• The first sentence should read this way: "Because of a sudden onset of pneumonia last spring, we had to cancel our travel plans." Because "due to" never has a proper place at the beginning of a sentence, the expression deserves a brief explanation, to wit: "Due to" is an adjectival phrase that must modify a subject (either a noun or pronoun).  As such, it cannot substitute for "because of," an adverbial preposition answering "why."  The expression "due to" is always acceptable, however, following a linking "to be" verb form as the following example illustrates: "James' cancellation of his travel plans was due to his illness."  This sentence is correct because the adjectival phrase "due to" complements the noun "cancellation."  In short, even if you don’t grasp immediately the grammatical rule behind the usage, you can avoid committing usage errors with these words by avoiding constructing sentences beginning with the words "Due to."
• Corrected, the second sentence should read this way: "We were standing in proximity to the tree felled by lightning."  The word "proximity" already means nearby or close, therein rendering redundant the addition of "close."
• Depending on a writer's stylistic bent, either of the parenthetical choices is correct in the third sentence. The word "awhile" is an adverb not requiring the preposition "for."  However, should a writer prefer using the noun "while" as a prepositional object instead of the adverb "awhile," then the words "for a" must precede the word "while."  Another sentence may help clarify the rule: “I stayed awhile” is just as correct as “I stayed for a while.”
• The misuse of this pair of words often crops up in publications, yet learning their differences is actually easy once you understand a couple of points about how our parts of speech function. The word "every" by itself is an adjective describing the word "day."  When you join the two words, however, you have created a new adjective: "Because she didn't want an everyday schedule, she applied for a part-time job."  In this example, "everyday" modifies the word "schedule." A simple way to remember the differences here is to use the words "each day" as a test.  If they work, then "every day" is the correct choice (writing or saying "She didn't want an 'each day' schedule" is clearly wrong).

Now, as promised, this column concludes with the seventh standard comma placement rule, which includes six of the most common parenthetical examples.  (The most frequent violator of this rule is the failure to include the SECOND comma; the following examples correctly include the commas):

Clarifying phrases (includes appositives): "Jane Smith, our student representative, is transferring to UTD soon."

           
Names and titles of people you address directly: "Excuse me, Mr. Penny, for not recognizing you."

           
Abbreviations of titles/degrees: "Susan Easley, Ph.D., will host the charity event."

           
Echo questions: "The student recognizes, doesn't he, that he won the contest?"

           
Contrast phrases ("not" phrases): "I like margarine, not butter, on my toast."

           
Adjectives that follow the words they modify (also known as post-positives): "The Harley House, old and dilapidated, needs immediate restoration."

As always, I welcome suggestions from students, staff, and faculty for these monthly columns and shall try to use their contributions in future columns. Should you have a topic you’d like discussed here, please write me at jmiller@ccccd.edu or call 972.881.5981. Students wishing improved writing skills will find useful links to a dozen or so English grammar sites at http://iws.ccccd.edu/jmiller/jmiller.htm .