Fragments

A fragment is a group of words that does not express a complete thought. Correct a fragment by turning it into a complete sentence that states a complete thought.

A complete sentence (or independent clause) is a group of words that:

a) contains a subject and a verb

b) expresses a complete thought

A dependent clause contains a subject and a verb but does not express a complete thought. Dependent clauses are fragments, unless they are attached to a clause expressing a complete thought. In this sentence, "unless they are attached to a clause expressing a complete thought" is a dependent clause. If that clause were written as if it were a sentence, that would be a sentence fragment.

Run-on sentences

A run-on sentence is a group of thoughts strung together without a clear ending point. Usually, correct a run-on sentence by placing a period where the complete thought ends.

I myself felt fine because I knew that I batted fourth therefore, if in the top of the first we got out, and in the bottom of the first they scored ten runs, which was most likely to happen, I would not be up because of the ten run rule, which says that if a team leads by ten runs the game is over because the other team would most likely not come back.

A comma splice produces a type of run-on sentence. A comma splice occurs when two or more complete thoughts are joined only by a comma. For example:

He doesn't have an Irish accent, that is probably because he has been in the country for so long.

He did not notice them go by, he didn't expect anything from them.

Then there's my little group, we are the basketball players.

There are three ways to correct a comma splice:

1) Place a period after the first complete thought.

2) Place a semicolon after the first complete thought.

3) Place a comma and a conjunction (such as "and" or "but) after the first complete thought.

Apostrophes

To Show Possession

's for singular possession: the world's people, the coach's house s'; for plural possession: my friends' company

For Contractions

It's = it is

So its up to you to stop the generation.

Pronoun Reference (VR)

Pronouns must refer to a clear antecedent, a word or phrase that comes before the pronoun. Do not begin a sentence with "This" or "It," unless you are very clear about what "This" or "It" means. Correct a problem with vague pronoun reference by specifying more clearly to what the pronoun refers.

Example:

If God is telling them not to do it, they are much more likely to obey, than if it was a human ruler. It is ironic that God makes this a commandment when he does so much of it himself.

If God is telling the Israelites not to kill, they are much more likely to obey, than if the ruler commanding them were human. God's making such a commandment against killing is ironic because God himself is so murderous in avenging himself against sinful people.

Introduce quotations by giving readers a clear sense of the context of the passage you are quoting. You can give this context briefly. In your introduction, you should also seek to help the reader see the main point illustrated by the quotation.

Punctuate quotations in the following ways:

If the quotation does not follow smoothly from the words that precede, place a comma or a colon between the introductory words and the quotation.

Place quotation marks around the quotation.

Indicate the page number (or the chapter and verse, or the act and scene) of a quotation parenthetically after the quotation.

Place the period after the parentheses.

Examples:

At first, Moses is scared to take the reins of leadership. When God first summons him to leadership during the captivity of the Israelites under Pharoah, Moses tried to avoid being a leader by saying, "I am not eloquentŠI am of slow speech and of a slow tongue" (Exodus 4:10).

Subject-verb agreement

There are several different rules governing how a verb should agree with its subject:

a) A verb must agree in number with its subject, not with any of the intervening words. Most commonly errors are made because one hears a noun closer to the verb, instead of connecting the verb to a more distant subject.

See your grammar text for examples.

b) In the case of certain pronouns, such as those ending in "-one" or "-body," the verb is singular: "Everyone, anyone, everybody, anybody, each, every."

c) In the case of collective nouns, the verb is singular: "The United States is a nation," "The Board of Governors is in session."

d) In the case of some compound subjects ("neither/nor," "either/or" constructions), the verb agrees in number with the noun closest to the verb.

Example: "Neither the players nor the coach is ready to concede to the opponents." "Neither the teacher nor the students are disappointed that the test is postponed."

e) In the case of most compound subjects ("both/and"), the verb is plural.

Commas

The comma signals a pause, but not so strong a pause as to justify a semicolon or a period. The following are the most common uses of the comma to signal such a pause:

a) Place a comma before a conjunction joining two independent clauses.

Example:

"Antigone declared that her sacred duty was to bury the body of her brother, and she publically admitted doing so."

b) Place a comma after an introductory phrase or clause more than a few words long. Always place a comma after an introductory adverbial clause--that is, a group of words containing a subject and a verb that modifies the verb of the main clause.

Example:

"Whenever we write a sentence that begins with an introductory adverbial clause, we must put a comma to separate the dependant clause from the main clause."

c) Place a comma between each item in a series, including before the "and."

Example:

"Caesar came, he saw, and he conquered."

d) Place a comma around an interruptive, or non-essential, phrase or clause.

For numerous examples and further explanation, see the handout distributed about commas.

e) Place a comma between two or more adjectives that modify the same noun.

Example:

"Seth is a bright, well-mannered boy."

f) Place a comma before a name or pronoun in the case of a direct address.

Example:

"Victor, would you please listen while your classmates are talking?"

g) Place a comma to set of quoted speech from the words explaining who is speaking.

Example:

"The food for lunch is much better this year," he said.

h) Place a comma to separate days from years in dates and to separate cities from states in addresses.

Example:

"On November 22, 1963, President Kennedy was shot in Dallas, Texas."

Usage

There is a different between "there," their," and "they're."

"There" points to a place ("over there") or introduces a statement-like the one above.

"Their" is possessive, as in "Their book bags were stolen."

"They're" is a contraction for "they are."