Sentence Fragments

Fragments – dependent clauses posing as whole sentences Not necessarily short Bracket all “fluff” (prepositional phrases & appositives) and you are left with only a subject but no verb, or only a verb and no subject Example of no subject Example of no verb With the ultimate effectof all advertisingis to sell. The girlwith the blonde hairin my biology classon Tuesday nights.

Helping Verbs of all kindsthrown everywhere. Toys Sometimes after bracketing fluff, you are left with a subject and a verb, but it is still not a sentence. In these sentences, the verbs cannot stand on their own. They need helping verbs. For example subject verb CORRECT: Toys of all kinds were thrown everywhere. There are toys of all kinds thrown everywhere. “thrown” needs a helping verb (i.e. are, were)

There are 23 helping verbs… maybedoshouldhavewill mightbeingdoescouldhadcan mustbeendidwouldhasshall am are is was were (main) *3 of those helping verbs may stand alone and may be used as the main verb of the sentence There may be 1, 2, or even 3 helping verbs before a main verb. Consider: 1. She may have been running late. 2. I could’ve been doing the laundry instead of wasting time. (helping verbs = could, have, been)

More examples of fragments - helping verbs needed… A recordof accomplishmentbeginningwhen you were first hired. subjectverb A record of accomplishment began when you were first hired. I noticed a record of accomplishment beginning when you were first hired. or CORRECT: A storywith deep thoughts and emotionswritten for a mature audience. subjectverb CORRECT: A story with deep thoughts and emotions was written for a mature audience.

Test Your Knowledge of Helping Verbs

Now you try. Write “S” if it is a sentence and “F” if it is a fragment. If it is a fragment, correct it by adding a subject, verb, or helping verb. For all numbers, label your subject and verb. Bracket “fluff” (prep phrases & appositives) to help you. 1.You should see the clothes people wore in the Middle Ages. 2.Patterns of floral or geometric shapes popular. 3.Liked clothes that were half one color and half another. 4.Might have one green leg and one red leg. 5.People often heavy leather belts decorated with metal and jewels.

Now you try. Write “S” if it is a sentence and “F” if it is a fragment. If it is a fragment, correct it by adding a subject, verb, or helping verb. For all numbers, label your subject and verb. Bracket “fluff” (prep phrases & appositives) to help you. 1.Edges of clothing into shapes called “dagges.” 2.Shoes had long toes that were padded to retain their shape. 3.Might wear a short-sleeved tunic over a long- sleeved tunic, with a sleeveless mantle over all. 4.The usual head covering for men a hood with an attached shoulder cape and a long, extended point, like a tail. 5.Women wore a neckcloth pinned to their braids, hiding their hair. 6.In the later Middle Ages, women wore jeweled metal nets over their coiled braids. 7.When clothes were edged and lined in fur.