"and the animals in their boat, were saved"

**Odessa Dawn** · 30-Jan-2015, 05:04

"Only Noah, his family, and the animals in their boat, were saved."

Is the comma preceding were saved necessary, please?

**probus** · 30-Jan-2015, 05:21

It is not only unnecessary; it is wrong in my opinion.

**Matthew Wai** · 30-Jan-2015, 07:55

'Only Noah, together with his family and the animals in their boat, were saved.'
Are the commas necessary?
Not a teacher.

**SoothingDave** · 30-Jan-2015, 14:36

Originally Posted by Matthew Wai

'Only Noah, together with his family and the animals in their boat, were saved.'
Are the commas necessary?
Not a teacher.

Yes, and it needs to be "was." Your sentence is "Noah ... was saved." The rest is a prepositional phrase acting as an adjective, modifying Noah.

**MikeNewYork** · 30-Jan-2015, 17:29

Matthew, the phrases "together with" and "along with", when used after a singular subject, do not make the subject plural.

Thread: "and the animals in their boat, were saved"