An appositive, an extra word or phrase, is used to add more detail to a sentence.
*The appositive is usually found next to the word it's describing.
*Use commas to separate an appositive from the rest of the sentence.
Examples:
John Reed, an American journalist, helped found the Communist Labor Party in America.
My sister, a supervisor at Munchies, drives a company car.
I took a cookie from Gretel, who is the woodcutter's daughter.
I took a cookie from Gretel, the woodcutter's daughter.
Og, the King of Bashan, was saved from the flood by climbing onto the roof of the ark.
I once saw Margot Fonteyn, the famous ballerina.
Elkie Fern, a professional botanist, led the kids on a nature hike.
Elsa, a good country woman, has a daughter named Ulga.
Paul Revere, a silversmith and a soldier, is famous for his "midnight ride."
I read a biography of Disraeli, the 19th-century statesman and novelist.
Combine the two sentences below by turning one sentence into an appositive.
Lewis Carroll is the author of Alice in Wonderland.
Lewis Carroll was a mathematics lecturer at Oxford University.
Lewis Carroll, a mathematics
lecturer at Oxford University,
is the author of Alice in
Wonderland.
Marie was a restaurant chef.
She made the best steak I've ever eaten.
Marie, a restaurant chef, made
the best steak I've ever eaten.
John was a tall man.
He could dunk a basketball.
John, a tall man, could
dunk a basketball.
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