comma before and after 'please' [adverb]: Can you, please, provide

[Karen123456]

Can you, please, provide me with some examples of this use?

I told a friend of mine that there should be no comma after 'you' and after 'please' in the above sentence.

He told me, "Sometimes what choice of words/punctuation an author uses in certain expressions is completely at his discretion. This means if I ever say the sentence in real life I would like to take a little pause before and after please. I don't think I'm flouting any of the grammar rules by doing this."

Is he correct? What he said seems logical. However, is that how a native would speak or punctuate?

Many thanks in advance.

 

[JulianStuart]

He certainly can choose to make a pause (where the commas are) when he speaks, if he wishes to make the question have a specific meaning , such as begging or sarcasm, for example. To record accurately that spoken sentence would then require some punctuation: commas would work, as would dashes of some kind. No punctuation there would, in my opinion , not accurately capture what was said. It also follows the rules in that "please" is an "incidental" whose removal has no impact on the rest of the sentence and can therefore be set off by commas as in your example.

 

[Voellf]

Can you, please, provide me with some examples of this use?

Generally, if you are an author and you are writting dialogue, the rules are very flexible. Some (most) people would find fault with seperating the word 'please' out with commas. The author has to ask himself what is he trying to convey by doing so. Is the speaker pausing before and after the word 'please'? If so, the generally acceptable way would be to use the dash -- (forms a single long dash on most word processors). He could also use what is called a dialogue tag.

"Can you," he paused, "please provide me with some examples of this use?"

"Can you - please - provide me with some examples of this use?"

"Can you... please provide me with some examples of this use?"

"Can you," and then he said sarcastically, "please provide me with some examples of this use?"

It all depends on what the author wishes his characters to say. As you can see, pausing before and after the word 'please' would be somewhat strange in most settings, but if there is a reason for it, there is a way to express it.

 

[aparis2]

Can you, please, provide me with some examples of this use?

I told a friend of mine that there should be no comma after 'you' and after 'please' in the above sentence.

He told me, "Sometimes what choice of words/punctuation an author uses in certain expressions is completely at his discretion. This means if I ever say the sentence in real life I would like to take a little pause before and after please. I don't think I'm flouting any of the grammar rules by doing this."

Is he correct? What he said seems logical. However, is that how a native would speak or punctuate?

Many thanks in advance.

Like the others have said, you can choose to pause. I also am not sure what the proper rules are for commas with please. The only times I use a comma in my writing, or pause in my speech, with please are when it comes at the beginning or end of the sentence, i.e. Please, come home. -or- Come home, please.
This is kinda similar with the word too. Technically, I'm pretty sure you should always put a comma before too. I usually don't use a comma, even though I know it's incorrect, because in speech I've rarely, if ever, heard a pause before it. Yeah, I know − grammer-whores would probably freak out.

 

[Cagey]

Please used this way is considered an adverb, so its normal position is near the verb it modifies - the verb that says what you want the person to please do. In this sentence, that would be "provide". Here please is next to provide, in the normal position. I agree that you do not need commas, unless you want an effect such as Veollf describes.

However, if you move please away from its verb, you would use commas:

Can you provide me with some examples of this use, please?
​

For the same reason, I would put a comma if you moved please to the front of the sentence. My reason is that can is a modal (=be able to) and not the favor you want the person to do. So my sentence would be:

Please, can you provide me with some examples of this use?
​

However, some people would not use a comma here.

Commas also appear near please when the name or title of the person addressed comes between please and its verb.

Please provide me with examples. (No comma.)
​

But:

Please, Sir, provide me with examples.
​

Voellf posted while I was writing this. That post shows how the regular pattern may be altered for rhetorical effect; I agree.

 

[Basil Ganglia]

He told me, "Sometimes what choice of words/punctuation an author uses in certain expressions is completely at his discretion. This means if I ever say the sentence in real life I would like to take a little pause before and after please. I don't think I'm flouting any of the grammar rules by doing this."

Is he correct? What he said seems logical. However, is that how a native would speak or punctuate?

Many thanks in advance.

The use of a comma in an sentence does not automatically mean there would be a pause if the sentence were spoken. Thus, if your friend is intending to convey in writing the pauses he would use in speaking, the sentence with the commas does not accomplish that well, if at all.

The options offered below by Voelf all indicate ways to express those pauses in written language.

Generally, if you are an author and you are writting dialogue, the rules are very flexible. Some (most) people would find fault with seperating the word 'please' out with commas. The author has to ask himself what is he trying to convey by doing so. Is the speaker pausing before and after the word 'please'? If so, the generally acceptable way would be to use the dash -- (forms a single long dash on most word processors). He could also use what is called a dialogue tag.

"Can you," he paused, "please provide me with some examples of this use?"

"Can you - please - provide me with some examples of this use?"

"Can you... please provide me with some examples of this use?"

"Can you," and then he said sarcastically, "please provide me with some examples of this use?"