Chapter
13:
Sentence
and
Sensibility
17
J
You
Could
Look
It Up
A
sentence
fragment is
a
group
of words
that
does not
express
a complete
thought.
A
fragment
is the
same
as a
dependent
clause.
Fragments:
Lost in Place

As
its name
suggests,
a
sentence
fragment
is a group of words
that
do not express a
complete thought. Most times, a fragment is missing a subject, a verb, or
both.
Other
times, a fragment may have a subject and a verb but still not express a complete thought.
Fragments
don't discriminate: They can be
phrases
as well as
clauses.
There are three main ways
that
fragments
occur. And here they are:
•
Fragments occur when a dependent
clause
masquerades as a sentence. For
example:
•
Because Lincoln
Logs

were in-
vented by Frank Lloyd Wright's
son.
•
Because the most common name
in
the world is Mohammed.
•
Fragments
also
happen when a phrase is
cut off from the sentence it describes.
For
instance:
•
Used to cure
fleas
and ticks.
•
Hoping to keep the ceiling from
collapsing.
•
You can
also
create a fragment if you
use
the wrong form of a verb. For
example:
•
The writer

gone
to the office.
•
The pearl being the main ingredi-
ent in many love potions.
Danger,
Will
Robinson
Don't be misled by a
capital
letter
at the beginning of
a
word
group. Starting a
group
of words
with
a capital
letter
doesn't make the
word
group
a
sentence
any more
than
putting
a
comb on a hen makes her a

rooster.
Quoth
the Maven
Experienced
writers
often
use
fragments to create realistic-
sounding dialogue. They
know
that
few people ever speak in
complete
sentences,
regardless
of
what
we'd
like
to
think.
You can correct a fragment two ways:
•
Add the missing part to the sentence
Fragment:
In the cabinet over the bookshelf.
Complete:
I keep extra supplies in the cabinet over the bookshelf.
17^
Part

3:
Usage
and
Abusaqe
•
Omit
the subordinating conjunction or connect it to another sentence.
Fragment:
When
you go to the party.
Complete:
When
you go to the party, be sure to head straight for the shrimp
and
caviar and chow down.
Run-Ons
and Comma
Splices:
It
Could Be a Stretch
A
run-on
sentence
is two incorrectly joined independent
clauses.
A
comma
splice
is a run-
on

with
a comma where the two independent clauses run together.
When
your sen-
tences run together, your ideas are garbled. For instance:
•
Most people who drink coffee don't know where it comes from it is actually the
fruit of an evergreen tree.
•
Robert Wadlow was the tallest person who ever lived he was 8 feet
11
inches
tall
when he died in 1940.
So
far, so good, but there are two important facts to realize about run-ons:
•
Run-ons are not
necessarily
long. Some can be quite short, in fact. For instance:
•
She walked he ran.
•
Birds
chirp cows moo.
•
The second clause of a run-on often begins
with
a pronoun.
•

Godzilla wants to sleep he is exhausted from destroying Tokyo.
You can correct a run-on sentence in one of four
You
Could
Look
It Up
ways
Let
»
s
use
Godzilla as our example.
A
run-on sentence
's
^
Separate the run-on into two sentences
with
end
two incorrectly joined independ-
,
.
, ,
.
,
.
i
A
i-
. punctuation such as periods, exclamation marks,

ent
clauses.
A comma splice
is
a
i
run-on
with
a comma where the
and
question
marks.
two sentences run together.
#
Godzilla wants to sleep. He is exhausted
from
destroying Tokyo.
•
Add a coordinating conjunction
{and, nor,
but,
or, for,
yet, or
so)
to create a com-
pound sentence.
•
Godzilla wants to
sleep,/or
he is exhausted from destroying Tokyo.

Chapter
13:
Sentence
and
Sensibility
175
•
Add a subordinating conjunction to cre-
ate a complex sentence.
•
Godzilla wants to sleep,
because
he is
exhausted from destroying Tokyo.
•
Use a semicolon to create a compound
sentence.
•
Godzilla wants to sleep; he is
exhausted from destroying Tokyo.
Seventh-Inning
Stretch
Take a few minutes to fix the fragments and run-ons in these two anecdotes.
1.
In the late
1900s,
the man who was shot out of the cannon every day. At the
Barnum
and
Bailey

Circus decided to quit his wife had asked him to find a
less
risky
way of making a living
P.
T Barnum hated to lose a good man. So he sent
him a
message,
"I beg you to
reconsider—men
of your caliber are hard to find."
2.
In
1946,
Winston Churchill traveled to Fulton, Missouri, to deliver a speech.
Which
turned
out to be his famous Iron Curtain address. And to be present at
the dedication of
a
bust in his honor. After his speech, a rather attractive and
ample woman approached the wartime prime minister of
England
and
said,
"Mr.
Churchill, I traveled more than a hundred miles this morning. For the unveiling
of
your bust." Churchill, who was known far and wide for his quick wit, replied,
"Madam, I assure you, in

that
regard I would
gladly
return
the favor."
Answers
Possible
responses:
1.
In the late 1900s, the man who was shot out of the cannon every day at the Barnum
and
Bailey
Circus decided to quit because his wife had asked him to find a
less
risky
way of making a
living.
P. T Barnum hated to lose a good man, so he sent
him a
message,
"I beg you to
reconsider—men
of your caliber are hard to find."
2.
In
1946,
Winston Churchill traveled to Fulton, Missouri, to deliver a speech,
which
turned
out to be his famous Iron Curtain address, and to be present at the

dedication of
a
bust in his honor. After his speech, a rather attractive and ample
woman approached the wartime prime minister of
England
and
said,
"Mr.
Churchill, I traveled more than a hundred miles this morning for the unveiling of
your bust." Churchill, who was known far and wide for his quick wit, replied,
"Madam, I assure you, in
that
regard I would
gladly
return
the favor."
h^_Jy
Quoth the
Maven.
Be
sure to use a comma
before
the
coordinating
conjunc-
tion
in a compound sentence,
unless
the two independent
clauses

are very short.
More
on
this in Chapter
1
6.
176
Part
3:
Usage
and
Abusage
The
Least
You Need to Know
• A
sentence has a subject and verb and expresses a complete
thought.
•
There
are four types of
sentences:
simple, compound, complex, and compound-
complex.
•
There
are four sentence functions: declarative, exclamatory, interrogative, and
imperative.
•
Fragments are parts of

sentences;
run-ons are incorrectly joined independent
clauses.
Chapter
Coordination and
Subordination:
What to
Say
When
the
Cops
Come
In
This
Chapter
•
Learn how to coordinate ideas
•
Explore subordination
•
Achieve parallel structure
When
you write effective sentences, you move beyond mere correctness to
writing
with
style and
grace.
It's like moving from Martha Washington to
Madonna,
or from a Ford to a Ferrari. This chapter introduces you to the

nitty-gritty of writing well. First you learn how to coordinate and subordi-
nate clauses to communicate relationships between two or more
ideas.
Then I show you how to use parallel structure to make sure your ideas are
expressed in a
logical
way.
178
Part
3:
Usage
and
Abusage
Coordination: All the Right Moves
You coordinate your outfits, home furnishings, and dance moves. So why not coordinate
your sentences to
give
them
some style as well? In the previous chapter, you learned
how to connect the parts of a sentence. There, I touched on coordinating independent
clauses.
Let's kick it up a notch and get into the nitty-gritty of coordinating independ-
ent clauses.
Sometimes you want to show
that
two or more ideas are equally important in a sentence.
In such
cases,
you're looking to coordinate. Sentence
coordination

links ideas of equal
importance. This process
gives
your writing harmony by bringing together related
independent
clauses.
There are four main ways to
You
Could
Look
It
Uo
coordinate independent
clauses.
You can use:
Sentence
coordination
inks ideas of equal importance.
Quoth
the Maven
Remember
to use a comma
between
coordinating
conjunc-
tions
that
join
two independent
clauses,

unless
the
clauses
are
very
short.
Coordinating
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
for
and
nor
but
or
yet
so
conjunctions
•
Correlative conjunctions
•
either or
•
neither nor
•
not only but

also
•
both
and
•
Semicolons and conjunctive adverbs. As you learned in Chapter
4,
there
are many
different conjunctive adverbs. Here are some examples:
•
; furthermore,
•
; therefore,
•
; for example,
•
; however,
•
A semicolon
Chapter
\k:
Coordination
and
Subordination:
What
to
Say
When
the

Cops
Come
179
Mix
and
Match
Coordination isn't just slapping on a black tie
with
a
white
shirt or
putting
some
pars-
ley
on a leg of
lamb.
No siree; coordination involves using the right word or mark of
punctuation to show different relationships between
ideas.
For example, each of the
coordinating
conjunctions has a different meaning, as the following table shows.
Coordinating Conjunctions and Their
Shades
of Meaning
Coordinating
Conjunction
Meaning
for

and
nor
but
or
yet
so
Function
because
also
negative
however
choice
however
therefore
to show cause
to link ideas
to reinforce negative
to contrast ideas
to show possibilities
to contrast
to show result
Correlative conjunctions convey balance,
while semicolons and conjunctive adverbs
indicate relationships such as
examples,
contin-
uation,
and
contrast.
A semicolon alone shows

that
the ideas are of equal importance.
Strictly
Speaking
A
coordinate
sentence
is
also
known as a compound
sentence.
You
learned all about compound
sentences
in Chapter
1
3.
Dancing
Cheek-to-Cheek
Follow
these steps when you coordinate independent
clauses:
1.
Decide which ideas can and should be combined.
2.
Select the method of coordination
that
shows the appropriate relationship
between
ideas.

Each
way to form compound sentences establishes a slightly different relationship
between
ideas.
Often, there's no "right" answer when you're choosing which conjunc-
tions and punctuation to use to coordinate
ideas.
With
practice, you'll discover
that
some sentences sound smoother and more
logical
than others. Here are some examples
to help you get your ear in tune:
180
Part
3:
Usage
and
Abusâge
Uncoordinated:
Years ago most baseball players were recruited right out of high school
or from the minors. Today, most play college baseball and
then
move on to the major
leagues.
Coordinated:
Years ago most baseball players were recruited right out of high school or
from the minors, but today most play college baseball and
then

move on to the major
leagues.
Coordinated:
Years ago most baseball players were recruited right out of high school or
from the minors;
however,
today most play college baseball and
then
move on to the
major leagues.
But and
however
are used to show contrast.
Danger,
Will
Robinson
Be
careful not to
con-
nect
unrelated
ideas, establish a
vague connection among ideas,
or connect too many ideas in
one sentence. The
first
and
sec-
ond errors confuse your readers;
the

third
causes
"stringy
sen-
tences."
Uncoordinated:
Star
Trek
was very successful in syndi-
cation. It was not a big hit during its original run
from 1966 to 1969.
Coordinated:
Star
Trek
was very successful in syndica-
tion, yet it was not a big hit during its original run
from 1966 to 1969.
Coordinated:
Star
Trek
was very successful in syndica-
tion;
nevertheless,
it was not a big hit during its
origi-
nal
run from 1966 to 1969.
Yet
and
nevertheless

are used to show comparison.
Don't
Strinq Me
Alonq
What
happens if you go coordination crazy? You end up
with
a
stringy
sentence.
A
stringy
sentence
contains too many ideas connected by coordinating conjunctions or
then.
Repetitious and
hard-to-follow,
stringy sentences are as annoying as stringy cel-
ery
or stringy cheese. Here's an example of
a
stringy sentence:
•
Mount
Everest is in the Himalayas and it is the world's tallest mountain
and
so
climbing it is very difficult
so
Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Horgay first climbed

it in 1963 and everyone applauded their achievement.
To correct a stringy sentence, place closely related ideas in one sentence, and
less
closely related ideas in their own sentences. Here's a variation
that
achieves
logic
as well as emphasis of
ideas:
•
Because
Mount
Everest, in the Himalayas, is the world's tallest mountain, climb-
ing
it is very difficult. It was not until 1963
that
the
first
explorers, Edmund
Hillary
and Tenzing Horgay, conquered the mountain to great acclaim.
Chapter
\k:
Coordination
and
Subordination:
What
to
Say
When

the
(ops
(ome
181
Why
Not
Give
It
a Shot?
Take a few minutes to link the following simple sentences by adding coordinating
conjunctions,
correlative conjunctions, conjunctive adverbs and semicolons, or semi-
colons
alone.
1.
In the Great Fire of London in 1666
half
of London was
burnt
down. Only six
people were injured.
2.
New York stockbroker
Bill
Wilson and Ohio surgeon Robert Smith
both
had a
drinking
problem. They joined forces and started Alcoholics Anonymous.
3.

Most people don't keep their New
Year's
resolutions for more than a few weeks.
They don't make resolutions in the first place.
4.
The oldest female elephant in the herd usually leads the other elephants. The
other female elephants are ranked below her in age.
5.
The puppy pulled all the slippers from under the bed. She shredded all the toilet
paper.
Answers
Possible
responses:
1.
In the Great Fire of London in 1666
half
of London was
burnt
down, but only
six
people were
injured,
(shows contrast)
182
Part):
Usage
and
Abusage
2.
New York stockbroker

Bill
Wilson and Ohio surgeon Robert Smith
both
had a
drinking
problem,
so
they joined
forces
and started
Alcoholics
Anonymous,
(shows result)
3.
Most people don't keep their New
Year's
resolutions for more than a few weeks
or
they don't make resolutions in the first
place,
(shows choice)
4.
The oldest female elephant in the herd
usually
leads
the other elephants; the
other female elephants are ranked below her in
age.
(semicolon shows
closely

linked
ideas)
5.
The puppy pulled all the slippers from under the bed,
and
she shredded all the
toilet
paper,
(coordinating conjunction shows ideas of
equal
importance)
Subordination:
What
I
Did for Love
Coordination shows the relationship among equal independent
clauses;
subordination,
in
contrast, shows the relationship between ideas of unequal rank.
Subordination
is
connecting two unequal but related
clauses
with
a subordinating conjunction to form
a
complex sentence.
When
you subordinate one part

of a
sentence to another, you make the dependent
clause
develop the main
clause.
Subordination can
help your sentence in many
ways.
Here are three
biggies:
You
Could
Look
It Up
Subordination
is
con-
necting two unequal but related
clauses
with
a subordinating
con-
junction
to
form
a complex
sen-
tence.
Quoth
the Maven

,
As
you learned in Chapter
3,
subordinating conjunctions
link
an independent
clause
to a
dependent
clause.
There are
many subordinating conjunctions,
including
offer,
although,
because,
before, if,
though,
since,
when,
till,
unless,
wherever, and where.
A more complete list appears in
Chapter
1
2.
•
To trace ideas unfolding

•
To show specific relationships among ideas
•
To stress one idea over another
As
a result, subordination can
give
your writing and
speech greater
logic,
coherence, and unity.
As
with
sentence coordination, sentence subordina-
tion
is
more than random switcheroos. Subordination
requires
logic
and thought. Follow these four steps to
subordinate sentence
ideas:
1.
Decide which idea or clause is the most impor-
tant.
It will be the information you most want
to emphasize in the reader's mind.
2.
Designate this as the "main clause."