4 ms·

>Lost, mislaid and abandoned are technically distinct classifications. Love that missing comma... Lost, mislaid, and abandoned are *three technically distinct

• btkthrowaway1 4y ago
  the comma and adding "three" make this sentence worse imo. Don't care what the "proper" grammar rules say
• mod 4y ago
  In context, with the explanatory sentences following, it's pretty much impossible to misread the idea.
• hurflmurfl 4y ago
  I think that reading this sentence as "lost" and "mislaid and abandoned" is not likely. I believe most people would not use comma when they're enumerating 2 categories. E.g. "banana and apple are fruits" vs "banana, apple are fruits". Serial comma isn't really required [in all dialects], and its use is mostly mandated where it resolves some ambiguity.