The Appositive
A lesson in a great writing
technique
What is an appositive?
• It is the part of a sentence that gives more
information about the subject or object of a
sentence.
• It can come at the beginning, middle, or
end of a sentence.
Example
• My sister, an annoying little person,
always gets her way.
• The mailman ran past the dog, an
enormous St. Bernard with blood stained
teeth.
• I love going to San Francisco, the most
beautiful city by the bay.
Don’t Forget the Comma
• If your appositive is at the end, you only
need one comma
• I love going to San Francisco, the most beautiful city by the bay.
Don’t Forget the Comma
• If your appositive is in the middle, you
need two commas
• My sister, an annoying little person, always gets her way.
Find the Appositives
• Rudolph’s cousin, a deranged reindeer
with a blue nose, eats schnozberries.
• They opened Safeway, a grocery store
with everyday low prices.
• My aunt cried after watching Shrek, a
movie about a green ogre.
• My father, a secret agent from Mars, must
wear a rocket belt.
Now write your own
• Take five minutes to write however many
sentences you can that use an appositive.
Example:
• They opened Safeway, a grocery store
with everyday low prices.
• My father, a secret agent from Mars, must
wear a rocket belt.
Now let’s share.
• I will project a few of our best sentences
and the class must find the appositive.