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Is my usage of parenthetical phrase correct int the following sentence? I think as it can be removed from the sentence, can be placed in parenthesizes or commas.
We return the whole context structure, including the context node, to the calling point in the ``for" loop.
Although including looks like a verb form, it's actually a preposition in your sentence. Here's how the Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English defines this particular preposition:
including (preposition)
used to introduce something or someone that is part of a larger group or amount you have just mentioned [≠ excluding]:
- The price is £25.50, including postage and packing.
- You'll need a variety of skills, including leadership and negotiating.
We can tell it's a preposition and not a verb in this sentence because it doesn't predicate on anything. In other words, it has no subject. And that's okay—preposition phrases can function as adjuncts without predicating on anything, and that's exactly what's going on in your sentence.
So your sentence is fine.
For more information about prepositions derived from participial verb forms such as including and counting, please see The Cambridge Grammar of the English Language, starting on page 610.
Yes, it is correct usage.
It is a free modifier.
- Free modifier: A free modifier is an unspecialized interruption of additional information: “I stood up and, brushing off my pants, continued along my way.”
You're just commenting extra information/clarification in.
This article looks like it could be a good resource for future reference on parenthetical phrases.
