Sentences and Fragments

The Sentence For a sentence to be complete, it needs to have: A subject A verb At least one independent clause If you cannot tell if a clause is independent, try reading it out loud. It should sound finished, like it expresses a complete thought. If it leave you hanging at the end, it’s probably a fragment. A sentence does not have to be long in order to be complete. A complete sentence can be as long as “I am,” or “I do.” In the case of a command, a sentence may even be one word, because the subject is implied: “Sit!”

Fragments A fragment is a group of words that cannot function as a sentence, because it may be missing a subject, a verb, or both. A subordinate (dependent) clause cannot stand alone as a sentence, so it can also be labeled as a fragment. Examples The class that I took last semester at the local college. (Yes, it’s pretty long, but it still doesn’t make sense by itself. There’s no verb that tells anything about the class. The class that you took at the local college … what?) Beside the old truck at the old gas station. (No subject, no verb. This contains a couple prepositional phrases, at that’s it.) Because you are special. This is a dependent clause. It has a subject and verb, but it does not express a complete thought.

Professional writers can do whatever they want. Teaching sentences and fragments is difficult nowadays because all of you are exposed to fragments all over the place – in books, on the ‘net, in conversation, etc. Basically, modern writing encourages use of fragments because it sounds natural in dialogue. Consider the following example: Joe Shmoe: “Yo, what’s up?” Dan the Man: “Not much. You?” Joe Schmoe: “Just chillin’.” Dan the Man: “Yup. COD later?” Joe Schmoe: “Can’t. Grounded.” Dan the Man: “Stinks to be you.” Joe Schmoe: “I guess. You?” Dan the Man: “If I get the lawn mowed, then yeah.” Fragments galore!

The “other” version Joe Schmoe: “Hello, good friend, what are you doing today?” Dan the Man: “Greetings to you, Mr. Schmoe. I am simply relaxing and not doing much. How about yourself? Joe Schmoe: “I too am enjoying some relaxing time in my residence.” Dan the Man: “I concur. Will you happen to be enjoying some Call of Duty later on tonight?” Joe Schmoe: “My apologies, friend, but my parents have banned my use of technology due to some unfortunate choices that I have recently made.” Dan the Man: “I am saddened by your plight.” Joe Schmoe: “Will you be partaking in some video game delights later” Dan the Man: “If I finish trimming the yard, I will have a chance to play.” Bottom line: any author who tried to make a living off this type of writing would starve to death.