Fragments & run ons

Major Sentence Errors

Fragments and Fused Sentences

ByRonald Speener

Grammar - Fragments and Run-ons 2

FRAGMENTSIncomplete Sentences

Rev 3/2016


Objectives

• Identify and correct fragment sentences• Identify and correct comma splices and

run-on sentence

Rev 3/2016


Fragment Definition

Since the sentence is the basic unit in writing, a fragment is considered a major error.

• A fragment is an incomplete sentence• A fragment is missing

– A subject– A verb– Or both

• A fragment may be a dependent clause by itself

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Fragment Correction – Subject

Identify the missing subject and supply it.• When the power went out, was stuck in the shower with

no lights.

• Because the rain, the streets were flooded and impassable.

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When the power went out, I was stuck in the shower with no lights. (missing subject in main clause)

Because the rain was very heavy, the streets were flooded and impassable (missing verb in dependent clause)


Fragment Correction – Verb

Identify the missing verb and supply it• Hilda driving the SUV to work today.

• Samuel to Paris to see his aging aunt.

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.

Hilda is driving the SUV to work today. (-ing verbs requires a helping.

Samuel went to Paris to see his aging aunt. (no verb.

Fragment Correction – Both

Identify the missing subject or verb and supply them.• Driving to work one day.

• Lying through her teeth after I caught her with the stolen phone in her purse.

Rev 3/2016 Grammar - Fragments and Run-ons 7

Driving to work one day, I saw a deer in the road (Driving to work one day is a participle phrase. It needs an independent clause)

She lied through her teeth even after I caught her with the stolen phone in her purse. (The participle phrase “lying through her teeth needs a subject. After starts a dependent clause.


Fragment Correction – Dependent Clause

Add an independent clause.• Although she was a big fan of basketball.

• After the movie while walking home.

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Although she was a big fan of basketball, she never attended a professional game. (The dependent clause needs an independent clause

After the movie and while walking home, we saw a shooting star. (Dependent clause needs an independent clause.

Fragment Correction – Dependent Clause

Make sure the dependent clause has a subject and verb.• Before sends an e-mail to a friend, the

boss writes it out on paper.

• Since Monday is a holiday, going to the beach.


Before she sends an e-mail to a friend, the boss writes it out on paper. (Missing a subject in the dependent clause

Since Monday is a holiday, the family is going to the beach.(The independent clause needs a subject

Fragment Correction – 1

• Although it was a perfect gift selected with much thought, she returning it immediately.

• Although it was a perfect gift selected with much thought, she was returning it immediately.


Adding a helping verb (was) to the sentence.


• A University of Manchester astronomer, who thrilled sky watchers when he reported the discovery of a planet around a neutron star.

• A University of Manchester astronomer thrilled sky watchers when he reported the discovery of a planet around a neutron star.


The original is a series of dependent clauses. Need to supply a subject by eliminating who and making the astronomer the subject


• Eating Hershey Kisses. Alexander satisfied his chocolate craving.

• Eating Hershey Kisses, Alexander satisfied his chocolate craving.


Replace the period with a comma.


• When the moon rose over the mountain. The valley was filled with soft white light.

• When the moon rose over the mountain, the valley was filled with soft white light.


Replace the period with a comma


• When the moon rose over the mountain. The valley was filled with soft white light.

• The moon rose over the mountain. And the valley was filled with soft white light.


This is the same error as in 4. The correction here is to make the dependent clause independent by eliminating the word When.


FUSED SENTENCES

Run-on SentencesComma Splices

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Run-on Definition

• A run-on is connecting two or more independent clauses with no separation between them.

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Jack liked Mary but Mary did not like Jack.


Comma Splice Definition

• A comma splice is connecting two independent clauses with only a comma.

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Jack liked Mary, Mary did not like Jack.

Types

• Since both a run-on sentence and a comma splice are caused by faulty joining of two independent clause, we shall consider both problems as coordination errors

• There are three variations• There are four ways to correct



Three variations

Sentences can have three variations of coordination errors

• No punctuation– She went to the store he stayed home.

• Joined by only a conjunction– She went to the store and he stayed home.

• Joined by only a comma– She went to the store, he stayed home.

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Correction 1

Separate the independent clauses into two individual sentences.• She went to work he

stayed home.• She went to work and he

stayed home. • She went to work, he

stayed home.

• She went to work. He stayed home.

Use when the ideas are not closely related and of equal importance.


Correction 2

Separate the independent clauses with a comma and a conjunction• She went to work he



stayed home.

• She went to work, and he stayed home.

Use when the ideas are of equal importance.


Correction 3

Separate the independent clauses with a semi-colon.• She went to work he



stayed home.

• She went to work; he stayed home.

• She went to work; therefore, he stayed home.

Use to emphasize the contrast of the ideas


Correction 4

Make one of the independent clauses a dependent clause.• She went to work he



stayed home.

• Although she went to work, he stayed home.

• She went to work while he stayed home.

Use when one idea is less important than the other—the less important idea must be in the dependent clause.


Practice

It was a lazy day by the river people moved as slowly in the heat as the brown, muddy water of the Mississippi. Sleepy children with cane poles fished along the banks. With fringed parasols and baskets on their arms, ladies went in and out of the general store, men leaned slovenly against carriages awaiting their women folk to finish in the store before a leisurely ride back to their farms.


Practice

It was a lazy day by the river run-on people moved as slowly in the heat as the brown, muddy water of the Mississippi. Sleepy children with cane poles fished along the banks. Sentence is correct. With fringed parasols and baskets on their arms, ladies went in and out of the general store, comma splice men leaned slovenly against carriages awaiting their women folk to finish in the store before a leisurely ride back to their farms.



More Practice

Suddenly, Tommy Smudge ran jubilantly down the street yelling, “It is coming it’s just around the bend.” The lackadaisical men raised their heads, the women in the store set aside bolts of calico to rush to the door. The children dropped their fishing poles and ran up and down the bank, their arms raised and waving like pinwheels. Soon the whole town moved with rare alacrity to the small dock protruding into the turbid water a riverboat was coming!

Rev 3/2016

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=www.c-magic.com/boonvill/riverboat.gif&imgrefurl=http://www.c-magic.com/boonvill/&h=311&w=374&prev=/images?q=riverboat+gif&svnum=10&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&sa=G


More Practice

Suddenly, Tommy Smudge ran jubilantly down the street yelling, “It is coming Run-on it’s just around the bend.” The lackadaisical men raised their heads, comma splice the women in the store set aside bolts of calico to rush to the door. The children dropped their fishing poles and ran up and down the bank, their arms raised and waving like pinwheels. Sentence is correct. Soon the whole town moved with rare alacrity to the small dock protruding into the turbid water run-on a riverboat was coming!

Rev 3/2016

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=www.c-magic.com/boonvill/riverboat.gif&imgrefurl=http://www.c-magic.com/boonvill/&h=311&w=374&prev=/images?q=riverboat+gif&svnum=10&hl=en&lr=&ie=UTF-8&sa=G


Summary

• Fragments are a major grammar error because it is an incomplete sentence.– Subject or verb is missing

• Fused sentences join independent clause incorrectly– Run-on sentence has no punctuation

between independent clauses– Comma splices use weak punctuation

between independent clauses

Rev 3/2016

Self Improvement

Fragments & run ons