This document defines and provides examples of different types of sentence fragments, including fragments that begin with prepositions, dependent words, -ing verb forms, to and a verb, and examples/explanations. It explains that a fragment is missing elements like a subject or verb that are needed to form a complete thought. The document provides guidance on how to identify fragments and offers two methods for correcting them: adding the missing elements or attaching the fragment to the surrounding sentences.
2. What is a fragment?
A fragment is a group of words that is missing
parts of a complete sentence.
Remember that any sentence, in order to be
complete, must express a complete thought
and must include both a subject and a verb.
3. Sentence:
There I was, in the middle of my morning shower,
when it happened.
Sentence followed by a fragment:
There I was, in the middle of my morning shower.
When it happened.
4. How can you find a fragment?
Ask: Is there a subject in the word group? A
verb?
Ask: Does the word group express a complete
thought?
If the answer to any of these questions is “no,”
then the word group is a fragment.
5. How can you correct a fragment?
There are two basic ways to fix a fragment:
– Add what is missing (a subject, a verb, or both).
– Attach the fragment to the sentence before or
after it.
6. Fragments that start with
prepositions
What is a preposition?
A preposition connects a noun, pronoun, or verb
with other information about it.
* Remember: While phrases that begin with
prepositions usually contain a noun, this noun
cannot be the subject of the sentence.
Example: After the swim meet, I went out for
dinner.
In this sentence, I is the subject, not the swim meet.
7. How do you correct fragments that
start with prepositions?
Correct the fragment by joining it to the
sentence before or after it.
Sentence followed by a fragment:
Some parents worry. About their children’s
imaginary companions.
Corrected sentence:
Some parents worry about their children’s
imaginary companions.
8. Fragments that start with dependent
words
What is a dependent word?
A dependent word (also called a subordinating conjunction) is
the first word in a dependent clause.
* Remember: A dependent clause is not a sentence
because it does not express a complete thought, even
though it contains a subject and a verb.
Example: Since I won the meet. I have not stopped
smiling.
Since I won has a subject (I) and a verb (won), but it doesn’t
express a complete thought. (What happened since I
won?)
9. How do you correct fragments that
start with a dependent word?
Connect a fragment that starts with a dependent
word to the sentence before or after it.
Sentence followed by a fragment:
There I was, in the middle of my morning
shower. When it happened.
Corrected sentence:
There I was, in the middle of my morning
shower, when it happened.
10. Fragments that start with –ing verb
forms
What is an –ing verb form?
An –ing verb form (also called a gerund) is the form of a
verb that ends in –ing: walking, writing, running.
* Remember: Unless it comes with a helping verb (like
was), an –ing verb form cannot be a complete verb in a
sentence. It can, however, be the subject of a sentence.
Example:
Walking is good exercise.
11. How do you correct fragments that
start with –ing verb forms?
Correct a fragment that starts with an –ing verb form
either by adding the missing elements of the sentence
(such as a subject and a helping verb) or by connecting
it to the previous or next sentence.
Sentence followed by a fragment:
I was humming to myself. Walking down the road.
Corrected sentences:
I was humming to myself. I was walking down the
road.
I was humming to myself, walking down the road.
12. Fragments that start with to and a
verb
What is to and a verb?
To and a verb is also known as the infinitive form
of a verb.
* Remember: If a word group begins with to and a
verb, it must contain another verb, or it is not a
complete sentence. To and a verb can be the
subject of a sentence.
Example:
To run a complete marathon was my goal.
13. How do you correct fragments that
start with to and a verb?
Correct a fragment that starts with to and a verb
by joining it to the sentence before or after it, or
by adding the missing sentence elements.
Sentence followed by a fragment:
It was my goal. To run a complete marathon.
Corrected sentences:
It was my goal to run a complete marathon.
It was my goal. I wanted to run a complete
marathon.
14. Fragments that are examples or
explanations
This type of sentence fragment can be harder to
recognize because there is no single word or
kind of word to look for. Sometimes, fragments
like this will start with words like especially, for
example, like, or such as.
Example:
I wanted to paint my room a warm color. Like
orange or red.
15. How do you correct fragments that
are examples or explanations?
Correct a fragment that is an example or explanation by
adding the missing sentence elements or by joining it to
the sentence before or after it.
Sentence followed by a fragment:
I wanted to paint my room a warm color. Like orange
or red.
Corrected sentences:
I wanted to paint my room a warm color. I looked for
paint that was orange or red.
I wanted to paint my room a warm color like orange
or red.
