Skip to main content
Common Core ELA8th GradeLanguage

L.8.2: Commas, Ellipses, Dashes and Spelling

Also written as CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.8.2 · Cluster: Conventions of Standard English.

Build a Spelling SheetAll 41 8th Grade ELA Standards

The Official Wording

Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.

Common Core State Standards, Grade 8, Language · Read it at the source · Checked October 14, 2026

What L.8.2 Means in Plain English

Eighth graders use three marks for a pause or break in a sentence: a comma for a light one, an ellipsis for a trailing or hesitant one, a dash for a sudden one. They shorten quotations with an ellipsis without changing the meaning, and they spell correctly.

Seventh graders (L.7.2) learned the comma between coordinate adjectives, as in a long, quiet afternoon. Eighth grade adds marks that control rhythm and the honest shortening of a quote. In grades 9 and 10 (L.9-10.2), the semicolon and the colon join the set.

L.8.2 I Can Statements

  • I can choose a comma, ellipsis or dash to show a pause.
  • I can shorten a quotation with an ellipsis and keep its meaning.
  • I can find and fix misspelled words in my own writing.

L.8.2 Worked Example

A quotation to shorten and a line of dialogue to pace. In both, one small mark decides what the reader hears.

Prompt

Shorten the quotation with an ellipsis without changing its meaning, show Grandpa’s pause, and fix the spelling. The source: “The river, which had flooded the valley twice in ten years, finally receded on Tuesday.”

Not YetThe article said, “The river … flooded the valley … on Tuesday.” Grandpa said, “Well I supose we start over again.”The ellipses cut so much that the river now seems to flood the valley on Tuesday, the opposite of the source. Grandpa’s line runs straight past his hesitation, and suppose is missing a p.
Meets the StandardThe article said, “The river … finally receded on Tuesday.” Grandpa said, “Well… I suppose we start over again.”The ellipsis now drops only the side clause, so the quotation still says what happened on Tuesday. The second ellipsis marks Grandpa’s pause before he goes on, and suppose has both its p’s.
Moves to Use
Cut words with an ellipsis only where the sentence still means what the source meant.Read the shortened quotation against the original: same facts, same order?Use an ellipsis for a trailing or hesitant pause in dialogue.Use a dash for a sudden break or interruption, and a comma for a light pause.Check the words you often miss, like suppose, definitely and necessary.

Common Mistakes with L.8.2

An ellipsis that changes the meaning

“The plan is popular … this year,” cut from “The plan is popular, but the costs make it impossible this year”

Try this: Have students read the shortened quotation and the original aloud back to back, and ask whether a stranger would learn the same thing.

Ellipses everywhere

Every pause in a story becomes three dots, until the dialogue reads like a text message

Try this: Limit students to one ellipsis per page of dialogue, and ask what kind of pause each one marks: trailing off or hesitating.

A comma where the break is sudden

“Don’t open the,” for a character cut off before finishing, where a dash belongs

Try this: Have students read the sentence aloud: a light pause takes a comma, a trailing one an ellipsis, a sudden break a dash.

Where L.8.2 Fits

Comes BeforeL.7.2Put a comma between coordinate adjectives, and spell correctly.
AlongsideW.8.8Quote and paraphrase sources with citations, where an ellipsis shortens a quotation honestly.W.8.3Write narratives with dialogue, where an ellipsis or a dash shows how a line is spoken.
Comes NextL.9-10.2Join related clauses with a semicolon, introduce a list or quotation with a colon, and spell correctly.

Practice L.8.2

Spelling Worksheet GeneratorFree ToolTurn the words students keep missing in their drafts, like definitely, necessary and suppose, into a practice sheet for the week.Words from draftsGrade 8
Make a Worksheet

Quick Check

  1. Why is the first ellipsis in the weak version a problem?
  2. What does the ellipsis after Well show in the strong version?
  3. Which mark fits a speaker who is cut off mid-sentence: a comma, an ellipsis or a dash?

L.8.2: Other Names

L.8.2CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.L.8.2

Common Core State Standards © Copyright 2010. National Governors Association Center for Best Practices and Council of Chief State School Officers. All rights reserved. Official wording from the Common Core State Standards PDFs at corestandards.org, last checked October 14, 2026. The explanation, I can statements, example, mistakes and practice on this page are EMStudio’s own, written beside the official wording. They are not part of the standard.