Since he came to New York. Because my dog loves it. Unless you see me. Is there anything wrong with these sentences? All of these sentences end too quickly. After reading these sentences, the reader asks questions because he/she needs more information.

These sentences have incomplete ideas and end too quickly. They are called sentence fragments. Sentence FragmentThe Reader Asks... Since he came to New York.Since he came, what (has he been doing)? Because my dog loves it.Because the dog loves it, (so what)? Unless you see me.Unless you see me, what (will happen)?

Take a look at the following sentences: I slept. Jim flew the plane. He cried. Are these sentence fragments? The answer is no. Now, you may ask, “These last three sentences are shorter than the first three. Why aren’t the last three sentence fragments?” That’s a great question…

A sentence fragment has nothing to do with size or amount of words. A sentence fragment is a sentence that is incomplete. A complete sentence contains: 1. Subjectthe person, place, or thing performing or doing the action (who or what the sentence is about) 2. Verbthe action 3. Complete ideathe reader isn't left waiting for another word

Take a look at this sentence: I hit the ball. Subject = I Verb = hit Is it a complete idea? Yes Therefore, this is a good sentence.

Another example: Birds fly. Subject = Birds Verb = fly Is it a complete idea? Yes Therefore, this is a good sentence.

Another example: I take. Subject = I Verb = take Is it a complete idea? No What did you take? The sentence is not a complete thought. 

What's a sentence fragment? A sentence fragment is a sentence that lacks a subject or verb, or it does not contain a complete idea. Can run to the market Eloise on the bus If you

Another possibility… Murray takes the train to school Mom rides the bus. Subject = Murray AND Mom Verb = takes AND rides Is it a complete idea? It is TWO complete ideas. Therefore, this is a run-on sentence. 

How do you fix a sentence fragment? There are 3 methods you can use…

Method 1: Attach the sentence fragment to another sentence. That other sentence could be before or after the sentence fragment. Sentence FragmentFixed and now a complete sentence After seeing the doctor.I felt much better after seeing the doctor. -or- After seeing the doctor, I felt much better.

Method 2: Add a subject, verb, or both to make the sentence complete. Sentence FragmentFixed and now a complete sentence Under the bed.I found my socks under the bed.

Method 3: Take away the word or phrase that makes it a sentence fragment. Sentence FragmentFixed and now a complete sentence While Fred was in Paris.Fred was in Paris.

Practice The following paragraph contains five sentence fragments. Find the sentence fragments and circle them. Then correct them using one of the above three methods. Write your corrections underneath the paragraph. After I had gotten up. I ate my breakfast. While I was eating breakfast. I heard a squeaking sound at my door. It was a little puppy that was crying. I wept. It was really cute. That I picked it up and took it inside in order to give the puppy a big bowl of warm milk and a soft blanket. I took the day off so that I could take him to the veterinarian. The vet told me he was fine. Because I had given him what he needed: milk and a warm blanket. He still needed a home. I asked all my friends to take him. They wanted the little guy. However, they couldn't keep pets in their apartments. By the time we got home. Now, he is my pet and friend.

Practice Possible answers: ( After I had gotten up), I ate my breakfast. (While I was eating breakfast), I heard a squeaking sound at my door. It was a little puppy that was crying. I wept. It was really cute. (That I picked it up and took it inside in order to give the puppy a big bowl of warm milk and a soft blanket.) I took the day off so that I could take him to the veterinarian. The vet told me he was fine. (because I had given him what he needed: milk and a warm blanket). He still needed a home. I asked all my friends to take him. They wanted the little guy. However, they couldn't keep pets in their apartments. (By the time we got home), he was happy. Now, he is my pet and friend.