Sentence Fragments

Front

What is a sentence fragment?

Back

A sentence fragment is a group of words that does not express a complete thought. It is missing a subject, a verb, or both.

Front

Identify a complete sentence.

Back

A complete sentence has a subject and a verb and expresses a complete thought. Example: 'The dog barked loudly.'

Front

Identify a sentence fragment: 'Because Odysseus defeated the cyclops.'

Back

This is a sentence fragment because it does not express a complete thought.

Front

Identify a complete sentence: 'It left without me!'

Back

This is a complete sentence because it has a subject ('It') and a verb ('left') and expresses a complete thought.

Front

Identify a sentence fragment: 'While waiting at my gate, an old friend from high school.'

Back

This is a sentence fragment because it lacks a main verb and does not express a complete thought.

Front

What is the purpose of identifying sentence fragments?

Back

Identifying sentence fragments helps improve writing clarity and ensures that all sentences convey complete ideas.

Front

Identify the fragment in this passage: 'Richie loves to walk his friends' dogs at Lake Eola Park. For example, Kim's Labrador retriever Murphy or Gary's bulldog Kembo.'

Back

The fragment is 'For example, Kim's Labrador retriever Murphy or Gary's bulldog Kembo.' It does not stand alone as a complete thought.

Front

Identify the fragment in this passage: 'Chewing the dry, tough, whole-grain bread bought from the health food store. Lorena tried to enjoy her lunch.'

Back

The fragment is 'Chewing the dry, tough, whole-grain bread bought from the health food store.' It lacks a subject and verb.

Front

What is a complete thought?

Back

A complete thought is a statement that can stand alone as a sentence, containing a subject and a verb.

Front

How can you fix a sentence fragment?

Back

You can fix a sentence fragment by adding the missing subject or verb or by connecting it to a complete sentence.