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Run On Sentences Notes

This document discusses run-on sentences and ways to correct them. A run-on sentence improperly combines two complete sentences without proper punctuation or conjunction. Common ways to fix run-on sentences include using a period to separate into two sentences, using a semicolon, colon, dash, or comma with a coordinating conjunction between the clauses. Examples are provided to illustrate proper and incorrect sentence structures.

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24 views

Run On Sentences Notes

This document discusses run-on sentences and ways to correct them. A run-on sentence improperly combines two complete sentences without proper punctuation or conjunction. Common ways to fix run-on sentences include using a period to separate into two sentences, using a semicolon, colon, dash, or comma with a coordinating conjunction between the clauses. Examples are provided to illustrate proper and incorrect sentence structures.

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Maripinky
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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RUN-ON SENTENCES

These are also called fused sentences. You are making a run-on when you put two complete sentences
(a subject and its predicate and another subject and its predicate) together in one sentence without
separating them properly. Here’s an example of a run-on:

My favourite Mediterranean spread is hummus it is very garlicky.

This one sentence actually contains two complete sentences. But in the rush to get that idea out, I made
it into one incorrect sentence.

You CANNOT simply add a comma between the two sentences, or you’ll end up with what’s called a
“comma splice.” Here’s an example of a comma splice:

My favourite Mediterranean spread is hummus, it is very garlicky.

WAYS TO CORRECT A RUN-ON SENTENCE.


(1) You could make it into two separate sentences with a period in between:

My favourite Mediterranean spread is hummus. It is very garlicky.

(2) Use a semicolon:

Duty is what one expects from others; it is not what one does oneself. (Oscar Wilde)

(3) Use three dots (also called ellipsis, this gives a pause for effect):

It's not true that I had nothing on … I had the radio on. (Marilyn Monroe)

(4) Use a colon (only if sentence 2 is an expansion of something in sentence 1, like an equal sign):

I have made an important discovery: alcohol, taken in sufficient quantities, produces all the
effects of intoxication. (Oscar Wilde)

A colon is like an equals sign (=). Here, "important discovery" equals sentence 2.

(5) Use a dash (it could replace the semicolon, the three dots or the colon in the 3 examples above):

Please do not shoot the pianist — he is doing his best.

(6) You can use a comma and a coordinating conjunction - FANBOYS: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so:

My favourite Mediterranean spread is hummus, for it is very garlicky.

My favourite Mediterranean spread is hummus, yet it is very garlicky.

(7) You could use a subordinating conjunction:

My favourite Mediterranean spread is hummus because it is very garlicky.

Because it is so garlicky, my favourite Mediterranean spread is hummus.


NB: Compare Spanish and English

https://www.espanolavanzado.com/gramatica-avanzada/1675-comma-splice-in-
spanish-oraciones-yuxtapuestas

INTERACTIVE EXERCISES:

https://www.grammar-monster.com/glossary/run-on_sentence.htm#exam

http://depts.dyc.edu/learningcenter/owl/exercises/run-ons_ex1.htm

http://depts.dyc.edu/learningcenter/owl/exercises/comma_splices_ex1.htm

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