Presented by the Writing Center

▶Determine what fragments are and how to identify them in writing.

▶Discuss how to correct fragments.

▶Include examples of fragments to practice correcting them.

A fragment is a phrase or group of words lacking a subject and/or a verb.◦ Examples:

The bird in the tree. The small house at the end of the lake with huge

pine trees. Swam across the river. Forgot to pick up groceries.

A sentence fragments is a dependent clause that is not attached to an independent or main clause.A dependent clause is incomplete because it

needs an independent clause (complete sentence) to make sense; it usually appears after the dependent clause.

◦ Examples: If it rains today. After so many years. Because we went to the last showing of the movie.

One way to check for fragments is reading the essay aloud.Read each sentence separately.Read the essay backwards from last sentence to first.Look for subordinating conjunctions such as after, although, as, because. They generate dependent clauses.

Additional Information: Complex Sentences.

Is there a verb?

YES

Is there a subject?

Is the word group merely a subordinate clause or

phrase?

NO

It is a sentence.

It is a fragment.

It is a fragment.

It is a fragment.

NO

NO

YES

YES

One way to repair sentence fragments is to add a subject and/or verb to complete the sentence.Example:

◦ The bird in the tree ◦ swam across the river.

sings every morning.My brother

Another method of correcting fragments is to join dependent clauses to a completing thought.

◦ Examples: Fragment: If it rains today. Correct: If it rains today, I will not go to

work.

Fragment: After so many years. Correct:

After so many years, I finally understood math.

While in college. Students need to learn to manage their money. Usually, they will spend their money buying unnecessary things. Like brand name clothing, MP3 players or a very expensive laptop computer. Later, when they need money for school related purchases, they find out they have none. Students with other expenses like children or financial difficulties. They may need to ask for a student loan. However, they may be tempted to borrow a large sum of money. A good rule when doing this is to always borrow conservatively, which means to only borrow the money they are really going to use in order to avoid a bigger debt when they graduate. Another sensible idea is to stick to a budget. Make a list of expenses and check how much money is available to cover them. This does not mean all money should go to school; students on a budget can set some money aside for entertainment and other non-scholastic purchases.

While in college. Students need to learn to manage their money. Usually, they will spend their money buying unnecessary things. Like brand name clothing, MP3 players or a very expensive laptop computer. Later, when they need money for school related purchases, they find out they have none. Students with other expenses like children or financial difficulties. They may need to ask for a student loan. However, they may be tempted to borrow a large sum of money. A good rule when doing this is to always borrow conservatively, which means to only borrow the money they are really going to use in order to avoid a bigger debt when they graduate. Another sensible idea is to stick to a budget. Make a list of expenses and check how much money is available to cover them. This does not mean all money should go to school; students on a budget can set some money aside for entertainment and other non-scholastic purchases.

Handouts◦ Identifying Sentence Fragments

Quizzes◦ Identifying Sentence Fragments

Thanks for visiting the Sentence Fragments Workshop!