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Comma use with interjections

Question:

I received an email from my colleague. In her salutation, she put a comma before my name: "Hello, Josephine." Is this correct?

Answer:

Yes, this is correct. Your colleague put a comma after an interjection—an introductory interjection, to be specific.

An introductory interjection is a short exclamation that is placed at the beginning of a sentence. Here are some examples of introductory interjections followed by commas.

Hi, how are you?
Yes, we'll be attending the concert.
Oh, so that's what happened.
Well, let's see now.

But interjections don't always appear at the beginning of a sentence. They can sometimes appear at the end of a sentence, too. Here, the comma will precede the interjection.

I missed the bus, darn it all!
Ski season is over, alas.