Grammar: Appositive

Posted December 13, 2014 by Kathy Davie in Author Resources, Self-Editing, Word Confusions, Writing

Revised as of
27 Jan 2023

A single word or a phrase, appositives modify a noun by providing more information about the noun. It could be identifying, explaining, describing, and more.

Such information is usually nonessential, but creates a bigger picture for the reader. As nonessential information, it requires parentheticals to set the appositive apart from the rest of the sentence.

Sometimes the appositive is essential and the sentence would have no meaning without it, in which case, don’t use parentheticals.

Grammar Explanations is . . .

. . . an evolving list of the structural rules and principles that determines where words are placed in phrases or sentences as well as how the language is spoken. Sometimes I run across an example that helps explain better or another “also known as”. Heck, there’s always a better way to explain it, so if it makes quicker and/or better sense, I would appreciate suggestions and comments from anyone on an area of grammar with which you struggle or on which you can contribute more understanding.

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Appositive
Definition: A noun or pronoun frequently modified/defined/identified by another noun or pronoun. POST CONTENTS Appositive Phrase Appositives usually: Appear AFTER the noun Can appear BEFORE the noun When the noun is TOO GENERAL or UNCLEAR When the noun is CLEAR, COMPLETE without the appositive
Appositive Phrase
Definition: The phrase usually follows the noun; sometimes it may precede the noun. Rule: Nonessential phrases are set off with commas or some type of parenthetical.
Legend: Yellow indicates the nonessential appositive phrase The best quilt in the show, a Baltimore Album wedding quilt, was stolen last night. My favorite exercise, canoeing along a river, is too chilly to enjoy in the winter. We saw the most incredible horses at the stock show — Tennessee Walkers. Henry’s girlfriend, Anne, came along for the ride. Well, Henry has only the one girlfriend.
Appositives are…
After the Noun	Definition: The appositive comes AFTER the noun it explains. Rule: Whether a comma is used to separate the appositive from the sentence depends upon if the information it provides is essential or not.
Return to top or post contents	Legend: Yellow indicates the nonessential appositive Green indicates the essential appositive Bold indicates the noun/pronoun Your friend Bill is in trouble. He has more than one friend so it is essential for the friend to be named. My brother’s car, a sporty red convertible with bucket seats, is the envy of my friends. Describing “my brother’s car” is nonessential information. The chief surgeon, an expert in organ-transplant procedures, took her nephew on a hospital tour. This sentence is about taking a relative on a tour; the surgeon being an expert is nonessential information.
Before the Noun	Definition: The appositive comes BEFORE the noun it explains. Rule: Use a comma to set off the appositive when it comes before the noun.
Return to top or post contents	Legend: Yellow indicates the nonessential appositive Bold indicates the noun/pronoun A bold innovator, Wassily Kadinsky is known for his colorful abstract paintings. The first state to ratify the U. S. Constitution, Delaware is rich in history. A beautiful collie, Skip was my favorite dog.
Too General, Unclear	Definition: The noun is TOO GENERAL and additional information is required to make it clear. Rule: Needed information, the appositive, is essential and commas are not used.
Return to top or post contents	Legend: Green indicates the essential appositive Bold indicates the noun/pronoun The popular US president John Kennedy was known for his eloquent and inspirational speeches. Without “John Kennedy”, we wouldn’t be able to pinpoint which president was “The popular US president known for his eloquent and inspirational speeches.” John Kennedy the popular US president was quite different from John Kennedy the unfaithful husband. Both appositives are necessary otherwise we wouldn’t understand the sentence—it would just be John Kennedy was quite different from John Kennedy. We wouldn’t know what qualities of John Kennedy were being referred to without the appositive.
Complete, Clear	Definition: The noun is CLEAR and COMPLETE without the appositive. Rule: When the appositive contains nonessential information, the appositive must be encased in commas.
Return to top or post contents	Legend: Yellow indicates the nonessential appositive Bold indicates the noun/pronoun John Kennedy, the popular US president, was known for his eloquent and inspirational speeches. Without “the popular US president”, we’d still know that “John Kennedy was known for his eloquent and inspirational speeches”.

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