They keep on going on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on...

The uh-oh’s of English Why are run-ons such a no-no? How to identify a run-on The babbling brook babbled more like a river than anything else which was in all honesty a lot more of a run of the mouth than the simplicity of this guide that has been established to understand how to fix such running babbling sentences such as this in the simplest possible terms.

Imagine being on a remote road in the middle of nowhere. You’ve forgotten where you came from and can’t seem to figure out to where it is you’re headed. That pretty much sums up a run-on sentence. So does this: Start Finish

When you come across a run-on, it should be pretty obvious. Run-ons occur when either 2 or more main clauses are linked together without a comma, or with commas in the wrong places. The latter is called a comma splice, the topic of the next guide. Here is an example of a run-on: I thought I had finally found a way around the accident I was really excited stopped paying attention to the road, and then I got into an accident myself.

There are 3 simple steps to take in order to fix a run-on sentence: 1. Make sure you know for a fact it is a run-on. Usually it is very apparent, but sometimes it is more subtle. 2. Determine where the two sentences (main clauses) that compile the run-on aren’t properly linked. 3. Choose which type of punctuation best supports the division (period, comma, semicolon, colon, dash).

I thought I had finally found a way around the accident I was really excited stopped paying attention to the road then I got into an accident myself. Problem: The two main clauses are not properly divided and the second main clause is not properly tied with its dependent clause. The second main clause has incorrect punctuation.

I thought I had finally found a way around the accident | I was really excited | stopped paying attention to the road, and then I got into an accident myself. These are the two places that need fixing for this sentence.

I thought I had finally found a way around the accident. I was really excited, stopped paying attention to the road, and then I got into an accident myself. What to do: There is no choice but to place a period after accident, since it is separating two main clauses. A comma is not strong enough to separate them. Two independent clauses cannot live together in the same sentence. A comma is needed after excited, because the action of listing is in progress.

Although this example was a little extreme, it is not unlikely that sentences that terrible have popped up before. Again, as with fragments, do not trust your spellchecker. Spellcheckers sometimes give incorrect feedback. Use what you learned from this guide and keep an eye peeled for run-ons. They are pretty easy to find, like big ugly bruises!

Comma Splices