DEFINITION
An appositive is a noun or a pronoun placed next to another noun or pronoun to identify or rename it. An appositive usually follows the word it identifies or renames; however, an appositive may also come at the beginning of a sentence.
EXAMPLES:
My friend Mia is a big fan of the singer Chaka Khan.
Chaka Khan was the lead singer of Rufus, an American funk band.
EXAMPLES:
My friend Mia is a big fan of the singer Chaka Khan.
Chaka Khan was the lead singer of Rufus, an American funk band.
APPOSITIVE PHRASE
An appositive phrase consists of the noun or pronoun functioning as an appositive, along with its modifiers.
EXAMPLES:
The 2019 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame nominees included an American rock band, Devo.
Rage against the Machine, a band from California, was also nominated.
Another nominee, John Prine is a country singer-songwriter.
EXAMPLES:
The 2019 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame nominees included an American rock band, Devo.
Rage against the Machine, a band from California, was also nominated.
Another nominee, John Prine is a country singer-songwriter.
punctuation
If the appositive phrase contains information essential to the meaning of the sentence, do not use commas. If the appositive phrase contains nonessential information, use commas.
EXAMPLES:
NONESSENTIAL A song on the Freedom of Choice album, "Whip It" was released in 1980.
ESSENTIAL The song "Whip It" brought Devo to a wider audience.
NONESSENTIAL "Whip It," Devo's best-known hit, is a new wave synth-pop song.
ESSENTIAL The music video of "Whip It" revived the song's popularity when it appeared on the television channel MTV.
NONESSENTIAL The music video of "Whip It" revived the song's popularity when it appeared on MTV, a television channel.
EXAMPLES:
NONESSENTIAL A song on the Freedom of Choice album, "Whip It" was released in 1980.
ESSENTIAL The song "Whip It" brought Devo to a wider audience.
NONESSENTIAL "Whip It," Devo's best-known hit, is a new wave synth-pop song.
ESSENTIAL The music video of "Whip It" revived the song's popularity when it appeared on the television channel MTV.
NONESSENTIAL The music video of "Whip It" revived the song's popularity when it appeared on MTV, a television channel.
![Picture](/uploads/8/6/2/9/86293172/editor/img-9640_8.jpg)
Sometimes you can sentence combine and eliminate wordiness by making a predicate nominative into an appositive.
ORIGINAL LL Cool J is an American rapper. He has been nominated several times for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
COMBINED LL Cool J, an Amerian rapper, has been nominated several times for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
COMBINED LL Cool J, an Amerian rapper, has been nominated several times for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
![Picture](/uploads/8/6/2/9/86293172/editor/img-9640_12.jpg)
Appositives are a great way to introduce the credentials of an expert.
EXAMPLE: Robert Smith, the lead singer of The Cure, reflected in 1992, "I think we're the most obvious example at the moment of a group that's been incredibly willful but has managed to attain an enormous amount, far beyond what I would ever imagine" (Sexton).
Sexton, Paul. "Smith on Cure's 'wish'-ful thinking: band's latest is real group project." Billboard, 25 Apr. 1992, p. 11+. Gale In Context: High School, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A12417639/GPS?u=rich24597&sid=GPS&xid=97549f2b. Accessed 27 July 2019.
Sexton, Paul. "Smith on Cure's 'wish'-ful thinking: band's latest is real group project." Billboard, 25 Apr. 1992, p. 11+. Gale In Context: High School, https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A12417639/GPS?u=rich24597&sid=GPS&xid=97549f2b. Accessed 27 July 2019.