Day 217: Don’t use a comma before because when joining two independent clauses.

“I don’t want to go” is an independent clause. It has a subject and predicate, and it can stand alone as a complete sentence. “I am busy now” is another independent clause.

In previous tips, we discussed using a comma before coordinating conjunctions that join two independent clauses, as in “She was fired, but she hasn’t left the building.” Based on this rule, some people will place a comma before because when because joins two independent clauses. This is not correct because because is not a coordinating conjunction.

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Wrong: “I don’t want to go, because I am busy now.”
Right: “I don’t want to go because I am busy now.”