Transcript Fragments - Thomas Nelson Community College

Fragments
By Marcus and James
What are sentence fragments
A SENTENCE FRAGMENT fails to be a
sentence in the sense that it cannot stand by
itself. It does not contain even one independent
clause. There are several reasons why a group
of words may seem to act like a sentence but
not have the wherewithal to make it as a
complete thought.
http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/frag
ments.htm
WHAT IS AN INDEPENDENT
CLAUSE
An independent clause has a subject and
a verb and can stand alone because it
expresses a complete thought.
EXAMPLES:
The prisoner was given no trial.
Democracy has its problems, too.
Fragments
There are three different types of sentence
fragments
Renamer
Adverb
-ing
Renamers
These fragments rename or give further
information about the last noun in the
preceding sentence.
Example:
Blocking my driveway was a car. A huge
SUV.
Renamers
Blocking my driveway was a car. A huge
SUV.
Correction:
Blocking my driveway was a car, a huge
SUV .
The fragment renames the noun car.
Renamers
Example
I have to commute on the beltway. The
highway from hell.
The highway from hell is the renamer
fragment.
Renamers
The correct connecter to use is a comma.
Correction: I have to commute on the
beltway, the highway from hell.
Adverb fragments
In this fragment sentence there are adverb
clauses that tell when, where, and
especially why something happened.
Adverb fragments
Example:
Yesterday’s traffic was worse than usual.
Because there was an accident.
The adverb fragment is, “Because there
was an accident.”
Adverb fragments
Don’t use a comma to connect most
adverb fragments.
Correction: Yesterday’s traffic was worse
than usual because there was an accident.
-ing fragments
These fragments begin with the –ing form
of a verb.
-ing fragments
Example:
I beeped my horn a couple of times.
Letting the driver know I had to get out.
-ing fragments
I beeped my horn a couple of times.
Letting the driver know I had to get out.
Correction:
• I beeped my horn a couple of times,
letting the driver know I had to get out.
-ing fragments
-ing fragments explain something about
the meaning of the preceding sentence. In
this example, the –ing fragment explains
why the writer beeped the horn.
I beeped my horn a couple of times, letting
the driver know I had to get out.
-ing fragments
Example:
Today, I actually left home on schedule.
Showing that I can be on time if I try.
The –ing fragment in the sentence is
Showing that I can be on time if I try.
-ing fragments
Use a comma to connect an –ing
fragment.
Correction: Today, I actually left home on
schedule, showing that I can be on time if I
try.
Correcting Fragments
If the fragments are renamers or –ing,
there is a good chance you will have to
add a comma.
Correcting Fragments
But if it is an adverb fragment, you would not
usually need punctuation to connect the two
sentences:
I got an A on my project because I put my best
effort into it.
The only time you use punctuation, like a
comma, is if and only if the fragment starts with
the adverb clause:
Because I put my best effort into it, I got an A on
my project.
Works cited
Beason, Larry. A Commonsense Guide to
Grammar and Usage. 4th. New York:
Bedford/St.Martin, 2006
Stolley, Karl . "Sentence Fragments." Owl
Online Writing Lab. 12 march 2003.
Purdue University. 3 Apr 2007
<http://owl.english.purdue.edu/>.
WORKS CITED
Marchant, Becky. "Common Causes of
Sentence Fragments." LEO: Literacy
Education Online. St. Cloud State
University. 18 August 2000. LEO. 3 Apr
2007
<http://leo.stcloudstate.edu/punct/fragment
causes.html>.
"Fragments." Handouts and Links Writing
Center, UNC at Chapel Hill. 3 Apr 2007
<http://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handou
ts/fragments.html>.