Exercises: Identifying Fragments and Run-on Sentences (Writing Errors)


Fragments and run-on sentences (especially comma splices) are common errors in academic English. To review these grammar points, see our pages on fragments, run-on sentences, and sentence types.

Once you understand independent clauses, dependent clauses, fragments, and run-on sentences, try the exercises below.

Two pencils resting on paper

Exercise Group #1: Complete Sentence or Fragment?

Decide if the below sentences are complete (i.e. complete thoughts) or fragments.

  1. On Tuesday morning last week at 8:30 a.m. 
  2. I ate breakfast with my sister. 
  3. Even though you have lived in another country. 
  4. Which is important for success in college. 
  5. This is important for success in college. 
  6. Finding someone to design your company's website is easy. 
  7. The way that people learn new skills in this modern world. 

  

Explanations

1. Fragment -- 'On...' begins a prepositional phrase because 'on' is a preposition. This phrase needs to end with a comma, and then a subject and verb should be added. E.g. "On Tuesday morning last week at 8:30 a.m, I drank some milk."
2. Complete Sentence -- This sentence has everything it needs. It has a subject (I), a verb (ate), and an object (breakfast).
3. Fragment -- This sentence is a dependent (subordinate) clause. The phrase Even though is a subordinate conjunction. To fix this fragment, you need to add an independent clause. E.g. "Even though you have lived in another country, there are still many things you haven't learned."
4. Fragment -- This is a dependent (subordinate) clause. The sentence is missing a main (independent) clause. E.g. This webpage will help you avoid errors, which is important for success in college.
5. Complete Sentence -- This is a simple sentence. It has everything a sentence needs -- a subject (the pronoun This), a verb (is), and a complement (important for success in college).
6. Complete sentence -- This is a simple sentence. "Finding someone to design your company's website" is the subject of the sentence.
7. Fragment -- The sentence has a subject ("The way that people learn new skills in this modern world"), but it is missing a verb.

Exercise Group #2: Complete Sentence, Fragment, or Run-On? (Intermediate)

Decide if the below sentences are fragments, run-ons, or complete.

  1. I ate breakfast my sister did too. 
  2. Getting up early in the morning before everyone else does. 
  3. People who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones. 
  4. If you are happy and you know it and you really want to show it. 
  5. By the time she was 20 years old. 
  6. People can do whatever they want it's up to them. 

  

Explanations

1. Run-On -- There are two sentences here. "I ate breakfast." and "My sister did too." To connect these independent clauses, you need a conjunction like "and".
2. Fragment -- This is a long subject. You need to add a verb after the subject and then finish the sentence. E.g. Getting up early in the morning before everyone else does isn't fun.
3. Complete sentence -- This is a complex sentence. The phrase "who live in glass houses" is an adjective clause and subordinate clause. The main (independent) clause is "People shouldn't throw stones."
4. Fragment -- This is a subordinate clause ("If ....."). The sentence needs a comma, and then a main (independent) clause. E.g. "If you are happy and you know it, clap your hands."
5. Fragment -- This is a dependent/subordinate clause. You need to add an independent/main clause, such as "By the time she was 20 years old, she had lived in five countries."
6. Run-on -- This should be two sentences. "People can do whatever they want. It's up to them."

 

Exercises Group #3: Complete Sentence, Fragment, or Run-On? (Advanced)

  1. Take the pizza out of the oven then let it cool. 
  2. The main reason why the leader of this country needs to be replaced immediately is obvious. 
  3. The student had tried to cheat on the test. Although, he was not successful. (focus on the underlined sentence) 
  4. Placed in a care home for the elderly where visitors could come on the weekend or on a weekday by appointment. 

  

Explanations

1. Run-on -- This should be two sentences. The word 'then' is an adverb; it cannot join two independent clauses.
2. Complete sentence -- This sentence has a long subject ("The main reason.....immediately") but the subject is followed by a verb (is). This makes it complete.
3. Fragment -- The word 'although' begins a subordinate/dependent clause. Anytime you want to use 'although' (or other subordinate conjunctions), you need to have a subordinate clause and an independent clause in the sentence. If you want to only use one clause, you can use 'However, he was not successful' because the word 'however' is not a conjunction (it is an adverb).
4. Fragment -- This is a fragment. The sentence is incomplete. It is either missing a subject ("People were placed...") or a main clause that comes afterward.

 

Exercises Group #4: Focus on Punctuation (Advanced)

Test your knowledge of commas, semi-colons, colons, and periods with these exercises.

  1. The company didn't make money, therefore, it went out of business. 
  2. The company didn't make money, so it went out of business. 
  3. Please bring the following to the event: water, some comfortable shoes, and ten dollars.
  4. The man said something quite interesting to me: The longer you live, the less you care about yourself. 
  5. The volunteers were divided into two groups, the first group received the medicine and the second group did not. 
  6. I like to sing in the shower; it's my favorite part of the day. 
  7. Whenever you need help, just give me a call, I'll be there for you. 

  

Explanations

1. Run-on (Comma splice) -- The word 'therefore' is not a conjunction. This means it cannot join two clauses.
2. Complete sentence -- Here we have two independent clauses joined by a coordinating conjunction (FANBOYS). This is a compound sentence.
3. Complete sentence -- This is a complete sentence. The colon at the end of the independent clause ('Please bring the following to the event') is used to introduce a list. This is a correct way to use a colon.
4. Complete sentence -- After an independent clause or complete sentence, a colon can be used to introduce another sentence.
5. Run-on (Comma splice) You cannot put a comma between two independent clauses. You either need to use a period after the first independent clause, or join the two independent clauses with a conjunction.
6. Complete Sentence -- A semi-colon functions like a period. Here we have two independent clauses joined by a semi-colon, which is correct.
7. Run-on (Comma splice) -- There are three clauses here. The first clause is a subordinate clause, and the last two are independent clauses. The last two independent clauses cannot be joined by a comma. A conjunction is needed or a period.

If you had problems with the punctuation exercises, please see these pages on colons, semi-colons, and comma-splices.


I hope you have found these exercises useful. If you find a mistake or have a question, please leave a comment below.

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55 comments on “Exercises: Identifying Fragments and Run-on Sentences (Writing Errors)

  1. mckenziegaddis (Posted on 3-24-2021 at 06:08) Reply

    how do you see your answers?

    1. mb Post author (Posted on 3-24-2021 at 16:08) Reply

      Click on “Answers & Explanation”.

      1. Simranjeet kaur (Posted on 8-8-2022 at 17:53) Reply

        It is very helpful to understand these sentences.
        Thank you

    2. Khloe A'slinger (Posted on 3-25-2021 at 14:40) Reply

      I dont know! Also how do you turn this in?

      1. mb Post author (Posted on 3-25-2021 at 22:27) Reply

        Hello. I’ve added buttons for you to check your answers to make the page easier to use.

        1. Gulbarchin (Posted on 12-4-2021 at 07:24) Reply

          Its the best exercise I have seen!

    3. Mansour (Posted on 2-4-2023 at 11:46) Reply

      It helps me a lot to learn such kind of sentences.

    4. Mansour (Posted on 2-4-2023 at 11:48) Reply

      Very good, I know the meaning.

    5. Cassandra (Posted on 4-12-2023 at 19:08) Reply

      I see the answers as a guide, it helps to understand what your saying.

    6. Sherita THOMAS (Posted on 5-16-2023 at 18:08) Reply

      I THINK I DID PRETTY GOOD. THIS EXERCISE WAS VERY HELPFUL

  2. jeff (Posted on 4-8-2021 at 12:16) Reply

    #4.1. Is correct because it is a conjunctive adverb that joins together two independent thoughts.

    1. mb Post author (Posted on 4-8-2021 at 14:50) Reply

      As you stated, ‘therefore’ is a conjunctive adverb (i.e. it is an adverb). It is not a conjunction, which means it cannot conjoin (join) two independent clauses. If you want to join two independent clauses, you need a coordinating conjunction (not an adverb).

    2. Aya obeid (Posted on 4-8-2022 at 06:01) Reply

      English homework
      8- April-2022

      1. Cassandra (Posted on 4-12-2023 at 19:10) Reply

        I get them confuse time to time, I wish there was a way it identify by what you are saying to the reader.

    3. Econ harmoush (Posted on 4-10-2022 at 07:29) Reply

      Love it! thank

    4. Batoul (Posted on 4-18-2022 at 05:11) Reply

      Thank you

  3. Soobin Lee (Posted on 6-17-2021 at 11:21) Reply

    useful

    1. Shahzanan nasser al deen (Posted on 4-8-2022 at 10:48) Reply

      Interesting exercises

  4. Amani Saif (Posted on 11-20-2021 at 08:52) Reply

    It is very helpful, thank you.

  5. Rafael Melendez (Posted on 11-30-2021 at 13:40) Reply

    I found it helpful these exercises

  6. Rafael Melendez (Posted on 11-30-2021 at 13:41) Reply

    Now I understand better thanks to this exercises

  7. Ilyass korhchi (Posted on 12-31-2021 at 07:23) Reply

    Love it! thank

  8. Abdeljawad Alarayshi (Posted on 2-25-2022 at 06:58) Reply

    This was challenging, and makes for a great pop quiz

    1. Evon harmoush (Posted on 4-10-2022 at 07:30) Reply

      Love it! thank

  9. Alexander harris (Posted on 2-25-2022 at 09:09) Reply

    It was challenging, makes a good pop quiz

  10. Anonymous (Posted on 3-28-2022 at 11:35) Reply

    Is easy

  11. Aya fahes (Posted on 4-8-2022 at 04:10) Reply

    Fragmet : pepole who have sense of entitlement
    Complete sentence pepole we have a sense of entitlement

  12. Jeff (Posted on 5-2-2022 at 14:16) Reply

    quite helpful for me, thanks.

  13. Fatima (Posted on 5-2-2022 at 23:50) Reply

    I like these practices and help me to get more practice.

  14. Carlos (Posted on 5-9-2022 at 07:31) Reply

    Very helpful, thanks.

  15. Tamanna akter (Posted on 6-27-2022 at 02:09) Reply

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  16. Ridouane (Posted on 6-27-2022 at 09:35) Reply

    good exercise, thanks

  17. Yuridia Vargas (Posted on 8-20-2022 at 17:31) Reply

    It was very helpful.

  18. Willow (Posted on 8-25-2022 at 11:45) Reply

    this helps a lot

  19. random person (Posted on 9-28-2022 at 08:28) Reply

    it was fun to take

  20. Anthony u (Posted on 9-28-2022 at 08:29) Reply

    it was fun and easy

  21. Finley (Posted on 10-2-2022 at 12:26) Reply

    I enjoy the practice

  22. MD (Posted on 10-3-2022 at 07:58) Reply

    Richard I believe you uwu

  23. Richard (Posted on 10-3-2022 at 08:09) Reply

    I do not understand this part

  24. lisa (Posted on 10-11-2022 at 11:00) Reply

    i think i can get this concept fast with more practice

  25. Nate (Posted on 10-11-2022 at 11:00) Reply

    I did pretty good

    1. Esmeralda (Posted on 10-26-2022 at 22:11) Reply

      I love the practice

  26. Lisa schneider (Posted on 10-11-2022 at 11:01) Reply

    i think i can get this concept fast with more practice, i find it a lot easier if i have the option in front of me to see witch one looks and sounds correct

  27. Nguyễn Thị Nhật Lệ (Posted on 10-31-2022 at 03:27) Reply

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  28. Harper Isom (Posted on 11-16-2022 at 11:17) Reply

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  31. Alice Benvegnù (Posted on 1-17-2023 at 06:16) Reply

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  32. Sammie Reynolds (Posted on 1-17-2023 at 08:30) Reply

    I found that the excise was very helpful.

  33. Patricia Nicole A. Baylon- Eng 102 (section 5) (Posted on 1-26-2023 at 10:11) Reply

    Thank you, prof! This exercise can help me understand more.

    1. Mansour (Posted on 2-4-2023 at 11:49) Reply

      Thank you for this kind of exercise.

  34. Anonymous (Posted on 3-17-2023 at 21:45) Reply

    For me it was very useful to practice

  35. Aulia (Posted on 3-27-2023 at 08:09) Reply

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  36. Cassandra (Posted on 4-12-2023 at 19:12) Reply

    Over all I thought this exercise was great, it gave you the opportunity to express ideals in you mind about writing.

  37. anahi (Posted on 4-29-2023 at 16:48) Reply

    I really enjoy this assignment I feel that it helps me more to understand what are the complete sentences.

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