Proper use of commas is becoming a lost art. Many children are not learning how to use commas. And, smartphones are not helping.

For example, dictate “How are you, gorgeous?” into the speech-to-text feature of the text-messaging app of your smartphone, and you likely will get “How are you gorgeous” instead.

Current speech-to-text technology does not detect the inflection of a question. Still, many users of this technology will resolve this by typing a question mark before sending the message.

But, many users will not insert the comma when it is needed.

“How are you gorgeous?”

This is asking the recipient to justify how he or she is gorgeous.

“How are you, gorgeous?”

This is asking the recipient how he or she is feeling or doing AND is referring to him or her as gorgeous.

Conclusion

If you want to offend a friend or relative who knows that a comma means a pause, then send a “How are you gorgeous?” text message to him or her.

If you want to compliment someone about his or her looks while asking about his or her well-being, then send a “How are you, gorgeous?” text message.