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Fragments and Run-on
sentences
Basmah & 最暖WB (Ray).
Fragments
What does the “Fragments” mean in English
grammar?
A fragment is only a piece of a complete
thought that has been punctuated like a
sentence.
Three Kinds of Fragments:
1)Phrases
2）Dependent Clauses
3）Any Incomplete Word Group
Examples of fragments
Phrases:
Ann walked all alone. To the store.
Walking to the store. She saw a car accident.
Dependent Clauses:
Because his car was in the shop(What did he do?)
After the rain stops (What then?)
When you finally take the test (What will happen?)
Since you asked (Will you get the answer?)
If you want to go with me (What should you do?)
How to Correct A
Fragment?
Example
Fragment: Ann walked all alone. To the store.
Corrected: Ann walked all alone to the store.
Remember the basics: subject, verb, and
complete thought. If you can recognize those things,
you’re halfway there. Then, scan your sentences for
subordinating conjunctions. If you find one, first
identify the whole chunk of the dependent clause
(the subject and verb that go with the subordinator),
and then make sure they’re attached to an
independent clause.
Three Common Ways to
Fix the Fragments
• Removing words to make a complete sentence
• Adding words to make a complete sentence
• Connecting two fragments to make a complete
sentence
• Connecting two fragments is a special one more
complicated than the other two, because it needs
to recognize the subordinating conjunctions.
Subordinating
Conjunctions
The thoughts of these fragments are incomplete
because of the subordinating conjunctions. What is
subordinating conjunctions？
Example: Because, After, When, Since, If
Functions:
1)join two sentences together
2)make one of the sentences dependent on
the other for a complete thought (make one
a
dependent clause)
3)indicate a logical relationship
Recognizing of the
Subordinating Conjunctions
• Cause / Effect: because, since, so that
• Comparison / Contrast: although, even though,
though, whereas, while
• Place & Manner: how, however, where, wherever
• Possibility / Conditions: if, whether, unless
• Relation: that, which, who
• Time: after, as, before, since, when, whenever,
while, until
The subordinating conjunction (and the whole
dependent clause) doesn’t have to be at the
beginning of the sentence. The dependent clause
and the independent clause can switch places, but
the whole clause moves as one big chunk.
Try to Correct A Fragment
By Yourself
Exercises
1）Because she exercises regularly. She is in excellent
condition.
2）Walking to the store. She saw a car accident.
3）John took the bus. Because his car was in the shop.
Key of the Exercises
1） She exercises regularly. She is in excellent
condition.（ remove words ）
& She feels great because she exercises regularly.
She is in excellent condition.（add words）
2）Walking to the store, she saw a car accident.
（connecting）
3）John took the bus because his car was in the shop.
More Exercises for the
Quiz
• Purdue offers many majors in engineering. Such as
electrical, chemical, and industrial engineering.
• Coach Dietz exemplified this behavior by walking
off the field in the middle of a game. Leaving her
team at a time when we needed her.
• I need to find a new roommate. Because the one I
have now isn't working out too well.
• The current city policy on housing is incomplete as it
stands. Which is why we believe the proposed
amendments should be passed.
More Exercises for the
Quiz
• Purdue offers many majors in engineering. Such as
electrical, chemical, and industrial engineering.
• Coach Dietz exemplified this behavior by walking
off the field in the middle of a game. Leaving her
team at a time when we needed her.
• I need to find a new roommate. Because the one I
have now isn't working out too well.
• The current city policy on housing is incomplete as it
stands. Which is why we believe the proposed
amendments should be passed.
The Website to Find the
Key at Home
• http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/620/01
/
• There are more methods and orientations for fixing
the fragments on this website
• Practice More!
Run-On Sentences
• What is a complete sentence?
1.a subject (the actor in the sentence).
2. a predicate (the verb or action).
3. a complete thought (it can stand alone and make
sense—it’s independent).
Examples
• Some sentences can be very short, with only
two or three words expressing a complete
thought, like this:
 John waited.
• It can be expanded to contain a lot more
information, like this:
 John waited for the bus all morning.
 John waited for the bus all morning in the rain
last Tuesday.
 Wishing he’d brought his umbrella, John waited
for the bus all morning in the rain last Tuesday.
Run-On Sentences
A run-on sentence :
is a sentence with at least two independent
clauses (complete thoughts) which are forced
together instead of being properly connected.
Example:
o We have test we have studied hard.
o She is beautiful she is consumed with her self.
o We are all humans we have the same locus.
•
How to fix RO
•
To correct these sentences, you have several options:
• 1) Separate clauses using punctuation.
• 2) Separate clauses using a conjunction.
• 3) Rearrange the sentence (you may add or remove words).
Correcting
•
•
•
•
•
Joe was happy about the raise he felt like celebrating. (fused
sentence)
Joe was happy about the raise. He felt like celebrating.
Joe was happy about the raise, he felt like celebrating. (comma
splice)
Joe was happy about the raise, so he felt like celebrating.
Joe was happy about the raise he felt like celebrating.
Joe was happy about the raise; he felt like celebrating.
Because Joe was happy about the raise, he felt like celebrating.
Joe, who was happy about the raise, felt like celebrating.
Examples
Run-on sentence:
He put on sunscreen, the sun was extremely hot,
and he wanted to go inside.
• “He put on sunscreen” 1st clause
• “the sun was extremely hot” 2nd clause
• “he wanted to go inside” 3rd clause
Corrected sentence: use the three ways
He put on sunscreen because the sun was
extremely hot. He wanted to go inside.
How to recognize run-on
• As you can see, fixing run-ons is easy once you see
them—but how do you find out if a sentence is a
run-on if you aren’t sure?
1. Turn them into yes/no questions.
2. Turn them into tag questions
Finding RO
• My favorite
Mediterranean spread
is hummus.
• My favorite
Mediterranean spread
is hummus, isn’t it?
• Is my favorite
Mediterranean spread
hummus?
• Is my favorite
Mediterranean spread
hummus? Is it very
garlicky?
• My favorite
Mediterranean spread
is hummus, isn’t it?
but not:
• Is my favorite
Mediterranean spread
hummus is it very
garlicky?
It can be:
Is my favorite
Mediterranean spread
hummus is it very
garlicky?
• My favorite
Mediterranean spread
is hummus, isn’t it?
But never:
• My favorite
Mediterranean spread
is hummus it is very
garlicky, isn’t it?
Note
Just because a sentence is long does not necessarily mean it
is a run-on. Some long sentences are grammatically correct,
while some short sentences are run-ons.
• E.g. I like learning English it makes me tired.
•