{"id":618,"date":"2018-10-31T08:19:44","date_gmt":"2018-10-31T12:19:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/learning-resources\/?p=618"},"modified":"2024-01-30T15:47:17","modified_gmt":"2024-01-30T20:47:17","slug":"sentence-structure-errors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/learning-resources\/sentence-structure-errors\/","title":{"rendered":"Striking Fear in Writers: Sentence Structure Errors"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Three errors in fundamental sentence structure strike terror into the heart of any writer.   These three errors, the fragment, the comma splice, and the run-on, are occasionally referred to as \u201cThe Axis of Evil.\u201d  Luckily, a little bit of knowledge and one single phrase can help you identify these egregious errors.<\/p>\n

What you need to know is that these three errors all center on the same concept \u2013 what is a complete sentence?  The fragment is an incomplete sentence, and run-ons and comma splices are two (or more) complete sentences written as one.  Essentially, all you need to be able to correct these errors is the ability to identify whether or not a sentence (or part of a sentence) is a complete thought.<\/p>\n

To do this, all you need to do is ask, \u201cIs it true that\u2026\u201d and read the sentence (or part of a sentence) you\u2019re unsure of.  For example, if I asked, \u201cIs it true that while I was running down the street?\u201d would you be able to answer \u2018yes\u2019 or \u2018no\u2019?  In this case, the question makes no sense because \u201cWhile I was running down the street\u201d is a dependent clause, an incomplete sentence.  If I asked, \u201cIs it true that I was running down the street?\u201d you could answer, \u201cYes, you were running\u201d or \u201cNo, you were not running,\u201d which means, \u201cI was running down the street,\u201d is a complete sentence.  \u201cHow does this help me?\u201d you must be wondering.  Well, this depends on the error.  If you were worried that what you had is a fragment, this could confirm that it is or reassure you that it is not.<\/p>\n

A change in perspective is necessary if your worries are more about run-ons and comma splices.  The sentence, \u201cI was running down the street I tripped,\u201d is a run-on.  If I wanted to see if that was correct, I would simply cover one potential sentence and ask, \u201cIs it true that I was running down the street?\u201d This would tell me that yes, I have at least one complete sentence here.  I would then cover the first part and ask, \u201cIs it true that I tripped?\u201d Bingo! I have two complete sentences.  The same process works with the comma splice, \u201cI was running down the street, I tripped.\u201d  Both the run-on and the comma splice are easily corrected by inserting a period between the two sentences.<\/p>\n

For interesting and proper ways of connecting multiple sentences\/clauses, tune in next time for: Varying Your Sentences.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Three errors in fundamental sentence structure strike terror into the heart of any writer.   These three errors, the fragment, the comma splice, and the run-on, are occasionally referred to as \u201cThe Axis of Evil.\u201d  Luckily, a little bit of knowledge and one single phrase can help you identify these egregious errors. What you need to … Continue reading Striking Fear in Writers: Sentence Structure Errors<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":998,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_members_access_role":[],"_members_access_error":""},"categories":[16,18],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-618","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-learning-resources","category-tutoring"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/learning-resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/618","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/learning-resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/learning-resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/learning-resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/998"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/learning-resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=618"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/learning-resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/618\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1773,"href":"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/learning-resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/618\/revisions\/1773"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/learning-resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=618"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/learning-resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=618"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.spcollege.edu\/learning-resources\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=618"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}