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a , b and c , and d

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a , b and c , and d

by ranjeetsinghissar » Sat Jul 10, 2010 9:57 am
hi guys
from high school even before tht ,, we all follow the rule that a single sentence can have multiple comma's BUT ONLY 1 AND preceeding the last choice /option mentioned in the sentence.

but irony!( wat grammer is)

i have seen many sentences being correct although having multiple ands in this pattern

A , B AND C , AND D
PLEASE throw some light:))
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by grockit_andrea » Sat Jul 10, 2010 4:57 pm
This is a common construction when an item in the list contains an "and" in its name or description. An example: "My favorite sandwiches are egg salad, peanut butter and jelly, and turkey." There are three kinds of sandwiches, and since the second kind consists of two major components, "and" is used twice in the list. Another example: "The crimes with which the defendant was charged were trespassing, breaking and entering, and arson." "Breaking and entering" is one crime, but is made up of two elements, so that sentence has the extra "and" in it as well.
Hope this answers your question!
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by r2kins » Sat Jul 10, 2010 6:40 pm
grockit_andrea wrote:This is a common construction when an item in the list contains an "and" in its name or description. An example: "My favorite sandwiches are egg salad, peanut butter and jelly, and turkey." There are three kinds of sandwiches, and since the second kind consists of two major components, "and" is used twice in the list. Another example: "The crimes with which the defendant was charged were trespassing, breaking and entering, and arson." "Breaking and entering" is one crime, but is made up of two elements, so that sentence has the extra "and" in it as well.
Hope this answers your question!
While "Breaking and entering" may be one crime, is something similar true for true for, "peanut butter and jelly" ?
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by grockit_andrea » Sat Jul 10, 2010 6:47 pm
Yes. "Peanut butter and jelly" is an extremely common sandwich combination in the U.S., but even if it wasn't, it would still be acceptable. The same principle would apply in this sentence: "I went shopping today; I purchased a blue dress, a black and white dress, and a green dress." The second dress is black AND white, so the "and" is part of the description of the dress and is perfectly appropriate.
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