22 Sentence Errors: Fragments and Run-Ons
This chapter will help you identify and correct two common sentence errors (fragments and run-ons).
Fragments
A sentence fragment is a piece of a sentence; it is either missing the subject, the verb, or the complete thought. You can fix a fragment by adding the missing subject, verb, or complete thought.
Sometimes the missing part of a sentence fragment can be found in the sentence before or after the fragment. If this is the case, you can correct the fragment by joining it to the sentence that completes it.
Learning Check
Determine if the following sentences are complete or fragments.
Once you have finished the Learning Check Quiz, read about run-on sentences.
Run-Ons
Run-on sentence consist of multiple complete sentences that have been incorrectly joined or not properly separated. There are two types of run-on sentences: fused sentences and comma splices.
Watch this video to review what you’ve learned about fragment and run-on sentence errors:[1]
Learning Check
Determine if the following sentences are run-ons or complete sentences.
Once you have finished the Learning Check Quiz, read about how to correct run-on sentences.
Correcting Run-on Sentences
Tip: When editing your writing for run-on sentences, ask yourself these questions:
- Are there two complete sentences?
- Are they joined or separated properly?
There are several ways to correct run-on sentences.
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Separate the complete sentences by inserting the following forms of punctuation:
2. Joining the two sentences by using a comma and a coordinating conjunction (FANBOYS)
You must have independent clauses before and after a coordinating conjunction in order to correct a run-on sentence.
Some sentences contain the words for, and, not, but, or, yet, so; however, a complete thought is missing before and after them in a sentence. If this is the case, you do not have a run-on sentence since two independent clauses are improperly joined or separated.
Watch this video to review what you’ve learned about correcting run-on sentences:
Watch this video to learn how you can avoid sentence errors (run-ons) and create sentence variety in your writing:[2]
Learning Check
Determine how to correct the following run-on sentences. Select all appropriate options.
Once you have finished the Learning Check Quiz, read about how to correct run-on sentences.
Additional Resources
To learn more about run-ons and fragments
- Read the second part of Chapter 2.1 (Sentence Writing) of Writing for Success [3].
To practice identifying and correcting fragments
- Try these online activities from OWL Purdue; complete the exercise and then compare your responses with the answer key:
- Shannon, D. (2021, March 28). Fragments and run-ons [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/1Gr35gD7aWc ↵
- Shannon, D. (2021, March 31). Sentence variety [Video]. YouTube. https://youtu.be/-dacQbooTNo ↵
- Writing for Success is adapted from a work produced and distributed under a Creative Commons license (CC BY-NC-SA) in 2011 by a publisher who has requested that they and the original author not receive attribution. This adapted edition is produced by the University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing through the eLearning Support Initiative. ↵
