Sentence fragments happen when a subject and/or verb is forgotten.A sentence fragment is an incomplete sentence that can't stand alone.That concludes this article on sentence fragments and how (and when) to avoid them in your writing. On what? Whether or not there are any shoelaces lying around. What if it's a very well-behaved puppy? Depends. Should you leave a puppy to its own devices? Probably not. Here is an example of sentence fragments being used appropriately. But if it's a purposeful choice and you believe it adds to the quality of your writing, go for it! Yes, sentence fragments that confuse the reader should be avoided, as should accidental fragments that are simply due to laziness or a lack of attention. Play with it, enjoy it! Making otherwise off-limits choices is part of the fun as long as you get it right. But in my humble opinion (and I'm not alone in thinking this), getting creative with language is totally okay. Strict grammarians might disagree on this and would tell you to avoid sentence fragments at all costs, whether purposeful or not. In fact, some writers use it as a stylistic choice to add dramatic effect. Guess what? There are times when it's okay to use sentence fragments. Some of the behavior that was witnessed at the game last night was appalling. ✅ Is it Ever Okay to Use Sentence Fragments? I didn't pick up the phone because I was already on my way there when you called. ✅ I'm looking forward to hearing from you after the tryouts. Let's fix our longer sentence fragments, too: I like preparing curries, soups and buddha bowls. I enjoy making hearty meals for my family. I enjoy making hearty meals for my family, such as curries, soups and buddha bowls. 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. You can always add an afterthought but need to connect it to the original sentence or reiterate the subject and verb.
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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:
![sentence fragment meaning and examples sentence fragment meaning and examples](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/oO8bei2ecOs/maxresdefault.jpg)
Let's look at the first reason first-a sentence that's missing a verb:
![sentence fragment meaning and examples sentence fragment meaning and examples](https://contenthub-static.grammarly.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/bmd-4836-grammar.png)
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.
![sentence fragment meaning and examples sentence fragment meaning and examples](https://marketing.prowritingaid.com/What-causes-sentence-fragments2.png)
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.