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GRAMMAR TIPS: TEN WRITING DO’S
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1. Do Look for Fragments. A fragment is an incomplete sentence; one that is missing either a
subject or a verb. To determine if your sentence is a fragment, apply the “It is true that” test.
Say “it is true that” right before the sentence in question. If your sentence expresses a
complete thought, it is correct. If, however, it does not express a complete thought, it is a
fragment, which can be corrected in a variety of ways. (Please visit the Communications Lab for
further information.) The underlined statements below contain fragments:
a. After the rain had stopped falling. Betsy took her dog for a walk.
b. At Tasty Subs, Gina ordered a chicken salad on a Kaiser roll. Which is her favorite item
on the menu.
Fragments like those in the preceding examples can often be corrected by changing the
punctuation. For instance:
a. After the rain had stopped falling, Betsy took her dog for a walk.
b. At Tasty Subs, Gina ordered a chicken salad on a Kaiser roll, which is her favorite item on
the menu.
2. Do Watch for Comma Splices. A comma splice is an error that occurs when a comma is
placed between two sentences. The following underlined portions of these sentences contain
comma splices:
a. Harris recently bought a red Chevy Cavalier, he loves driving it.
b. Last month Barbara moved from Jacksonville to Holland, her friends miss her dearly.
To correct a comma splice, try one of the following strategies:
1. Use a period to separate the two sentences.
Ex. Harris recently bought a red Chevy Cavalier. He loves driving it.
2. Use a comma plus a coordinating conjunction.
Ex. Harris recently bought a red Chevy Cavalier, and he loves driving it.
3. Use a semicolon to separate the two sentences.
Ex. Harris recently bought a red Chevy Cavalier; he loves driving it.
4. Use a semicolon plus a transition (ex: however, therefore, consequently, in addition,
nevertheless) plus a comma.
Ex. Last month Barbara moved from Jacksonville to Holland; as a result, her friends
miss her dearly.
5. Rewrite the sentences containing the comma splice.
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Ex. After Barbara moved from Jacksonville to Holland last month, her friends missed
her dearly.
3. Do Avoid Fused Sentences. A fused sentence, otherwise known as a run-on, occurs when
there is no punctuation between two complete sentences. To illustrate,
a. The phone rang Judy let the answering machine take the call.
b. The friendly dog loves to chase tennis balls on the beach he frequently loses them.
You can correct a fused sentence in the same ways that you correct a comma splice. For example,
a. The phone rang; however, Judy let the answering machine take the call.
b. The friendly dog loves to chase tennis balls on the beach, but he frequently loses them.
4. Do Use Commas Carefully. Although the guidelines for using commas are too extensive to cover
in this document, one’s understanding of commas will improve if three simple rules are followed.
Rule 1: Use a comma before a coordinating conjunction (F.A.N.B.O.Y.S.) that joins two
sentences:
Ex. Dan worked in a bookstore during the week, and he worked in a restaurant on the
weekends.
Ex. James devoured many books, for he was an avid reader.
Rule 2: Use commas to separate items in a series:
Ex. The teacher advised her students to write, revise and proofread their
compositions. (Note: the comma before “and” is optional.)
Rule 3: Use a comma after an opening statement:
Ex. After Alexia retired from the military, she became a social worker.
For additional guidelines on comma usage, please check out the lessons in the Grammar section of
the Communications Lab carousel, or ask one of our English tutors for assistance.
5. Do Make Your Subject and Verb Agree in Number. Remember that the subject of a
sentence is who or what that sentence is about; the verb is the action word (ex., swim, read,
work, smile) or the state of being word (am, is, are, was, were, be, being, been). In English,
subjects (which are nouns – persons, places, or things) are plural when they end in –s, and singular
when they do not. Verbs, however, are different. Singular verbs in the present tense end in –s; plural
verbs do not. For example,
a. The girl waves to her friends.
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The verb “waves” is singular, agreeing in number with the subject “girl,” which is
likewise singular.
b. All the employees hold an M.B.A.
The verb “hold” is plural, agreeing in number with the plural subject “employees.”
6. Do Make Your Pronouns Agree with Their Antecedents. Pronouns are words like I, me, we,
us, he, she, him, her, they, you, your, etc. Antecedents, which can be nouns or pronouns, are
the words that pronouns refer to. Writers use pronouns to avoid repetition. Strive to make
your pronoun agree with the noun or other pronoun that it refers to. The sentences below
contain pronoun agreement errors.
a. Joe called the company to see if they had any available positions.
b. Almost anyone can succeed in math if they try hard enough.
The problem in the first example is that the pronoun “they,” which is plural, refers to the antecedent
(the noun in this case) “company,” which is singular. To correct this mistake, we use the pronoun
“it” instead of “they,” because it (singular) agrees in number with company (also singular).
a. Joe called the company to see if it had any available positions.
In the second example, the plural pronoun “they” refers to the antecedent pronoun, “anyone.”
However, “anyone” is a singular pronoun, and so does not agree in number with “they.” To correct
this problem, choose “he or she” instead of they. Remember to also make the verb “try” agree
with the new pronoun.
b. Almost anyone can succeed in math if he or she tries hard enough.
7. Do Become Aware of Pronoun Case. Pronoun case refers to the role that a pronoun plays in
a sentence. Pronouns may serve as subjects, objects, or terms of possession (ownership). If a
pronoun is the subject of a sentence, it will be in the subjective case; if it is the object, it will be
in the objective case. If it shows ownership, it will be in the possessive case.
a. Who/Whom is attending the party?
Note: wherever you can use him, her, or them – two of which end with –m, you will
use “whom,” which also ends with –m. Conversely, wherever you can use he, she, or
they, you will use “who.” In this case, because you can answer question “a” by
saying “He is attending the party,” you should use “who.”
b. You and me/You and I make an excellent team.
Note: if you are uncertain about which pronoun to select, ask yourself this question:
Would you say “Me make” or “I make”? You would choose “I,” which is in the
subjective case. Therefore, “You and I make an excellent team” is correct.
8. Do Listen for Parallelism (or Rhythm) in Your Writing. Just as good music has rhythm, so
also does good writing. Strive to create sentences that produce rhythm by using the same parts of
speech when you mention two or more related ideas. For instance,
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a. He not only teaches but also writes. (Note that “not only teaches” and “but also writes”
represent the same pattern of speech, thereby creating rhythm or parallelism.)
b. To lose weight, closely monitor your carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. (Note the
similarity in structure among “carbohydrates, proteins, and fats.” All three terms are plural.)
9. Do Capitalize Proper Nouns. Capitalize all proper nouns – that is, the names of particular
persons, places, and/or things when writing your essay. For example,
a. Katie studied Spanish for seven years.
b. The family celebrated Easter Sunday early.
Note: Capitalize the names of relatives such as “mom,” “dad,” “grandfather,” etc. only when you
refer to them without a possessive adjective such as my, his, her, our, etc.
a. Have you heard Mom’s news?
b. Have you heard my mom’s news?
10. Do Use the Apostrophe (‘) to Show Ownership. The apostrophe, which resembles an
upside-down comma, shows possession or ownership in a sentence. If the word that shows
ownership is singular, the apostrophe comes before the –s in this way: ‘s. If the word that
shows possession is plural, the apostrophe comes after the –s in this way: s’.
a. The boy’s football is still on the field. (One boy owns the football; therefore, you write
boy + ‘s = boy’s.)
b. All the boys’ jerseys are in the locker room. (Many boys own jerseys; therefore you write
boys + ‘ = boys’.)
Some nouns are already plural: men, women, and children. You do not have to add an –s to make
them plural. To make these words show ownership, add an apostrophe plus –s. For example,
a. The women’s clothes are delightfully fashionable this year.
b. The children’s toys are entertaining as well as educational.
More writing instruction is available through the tutors in the Communications Lab. We would love
to help you as you write your essays, so please visit us regularly throughout your college career here
at FSCJ.
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