This one's an easy fix: just join the two sentences together, or reiterate the subject and verb in the sentence fragment (using synonyms to avoid repetition): You can fix it by either removing the conjunction or adding an independent clause to complete the sentence.Īlthough she was nervous, she passed the exam with flying colors. The third example started with a subordinating conjunctionmaking it a dependent clause. Let's fix it:Īll sentences need a subject (except imperative sentences), so if your sentence is missing a subject, it's a fragment. This sentence doesn't contain a verb, so it's not complete. Let's use our earlier examples and fix those. Alternatively, you can give it the components it needs to be a complete sentence (subject and/or verb). Usually, it comes down to just connecting it to a nearby independent clause. The good news is that fixing sentence fragments is pretty straightforward. But if you want your writing to be grammatically correct, you should avoid them. You can even use them in informal writing. Sentence fragments are common and completely acceptable in conversational. Now you may be thinking, many of these sound like sentences people would say. Some of the behavior that was witnessed at the game last night. ❌ Looking forward to hearing from you after the tryouts. ❌īecause I was already on my way there when you called. Such as curries, soups and buddha bowls. ❌ĭespite what you might think, a sentence fragment doesn't have to be short.

I enjoy making hearty meals for my family. You can always add an afterthought but need to connect it to the original sentence or reiterate the subject and verb. The speaker wants to add detail or further information to what they just said, so they add it as a new sentence. The third thing that can create a sentence fragment is when a conjunction is added to the beginning of a clause that would have otherwise been independent, making it dependent.Īnother common type of sentence fragment occurs with afterthoughts. Now let's look at the second thing that can create a sentence fragment- a lack of subject: Let's look at the first reason first-a sentence that's missing a verb:

It starts with a conjunction, preposition, or other determiner, making it a dependent clause.

It is missing a subject or a verb, or both.

An independent clause conveys a complete thought and, therefore, can stand alone, as opposed to a dependent clause which can't.Ī sentence fragment is an incomplete sentence for one of two reasons:

If you have all these elements, you have a complete sentence, otherwise known as an independent clause. The subject tells who or what the action and a predicate describes the action (it contains the verb). In order to make a correct, complete sentence, at the very least, you need a subject and a predicate. Concluding Thoughts What Are Sentence Fragments?īefore I explain what a sentence fragment is, let me explain what a sentence is.

Sentence fragment mean