According to Diana Hacker, "a sentence fragment is a word group that pretends to be a sentence." Sentence fragments are easier to detect when they appear out of context than when they appear next to related sentences. A complete sentence must contain at least one full clause. Basically, a complete sentence must have a subject and a verb. If the sentence begins with a subordinate clause like And or Because it is more than likely going to be a fragment. There are two main ways that you can repair a fragment sentence. One is to pull the fragment into a nearby sentence. The other is to turn the fragment into a sentence.
"Subordinate clauses function within sentences as adjectives, as adverbs, or as nouns. They cannot stand alone." Sometimes you can turn a subordinate clause into a sentence. You can do this easily by replacing the opening word or words of the subordinate clause. Phrases can also function in sentences as adjectives, adverbs, or nouns, just like subordinate clauses. Most times fragmented phrases can be pulled into nearby sentences, but when they cannot you can turn that phrase into a sentence. The easiest way to fix a fragment of any kind is to either pull it into a nearby sentence or reword it so that it becomes its own sentence. There is an exception to fragments. Sometimes they are used deliberately to create an effect. They can be used for emphasis, to answer a question, as a transition, exclamations, and in advertising.
In my own writing it is hard for me to uses this information because I am pretty good about not having fragment sentences in my writing. I will, however, use this information to help out my classmates when I comment on their writing. I have noticed a few classmates using fragment sentences. I will use this information to give them tips on how to fix those fragments.
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