Question

which sentence is punctuated correctly?

before nate did his homework, he took the dog out for a walk.
before, nate did his homework, he took the dog, out for a walk.
nate took the dog, out for a walk, before he did his homework.
nate took the dog out for a walk, before he did his homework.

Explanation:

Analyze sentence structure and dependent clauses

The sentence is a complex sentence containing an independent clause ("he took the dog out for a walk" / "Nate took the dog out for a walk") and an introductory dependent clause ("Before Nate did his homework").

Apply punctuation rules for introductory clauses

When a dependent clause starts a sentence, it must be followed by a comma to separate it from the independent clause. Conversely, when the independent clause comes first, a comma is not used before the subordinating conjunction "before".

Evaluate the given options

• Option 1: "Before Nate did his homework, he took the dog out for a walk." — Correctly places a comma after the introductory dependent clause.
• Option 2: "Before, Nate did his homework, he took the dog, out for a walk." — Incorrectly places a comma after "Before" and after "dog".
• Option 3: "Nate took the dog, out for a walk, before he did his homework." — Incorrectly places commas around "out for a walk".
• Option 4: "Nate took the dog out for a walk, before he did his homework." — Incorrectly places a comma before the dependent clause at the end of the sentence.

Answer:

• (A) Before Nate did his homework, he took the dog out for a walk. (Correct answer)
• (B) Before, Nate did his homework, he took the dog, out for a walk.
• (C) Nate took the dog, out for a walk, before he did his homework.
• (D) Nate took the dog out for a walk, before he did his homework.