Grammar Guide

1. Grammar Guide Releasing our Inner Grammarian…

2. Fragments When a group of words fails to tell us: Who or what did something (the subject), What happened (the verb), Or both (the subject and the verb), We have what is known as a sentence fragment.

3. What's Missing? Sat behind me in science class. The bag of groceries on the kitchen table. After the rain stopped. My sister and I swam in the lake.

4. Run-ons and Comma Splices A run-on is two complete sentences put together without any punctuation between them. A comma splice is two complete sentences separated only by a comma.

5. Run-ons and Comma Splices There are three ways to correct run-ons: Put a semicolon between the sentences. Put a comma and a coordinating conjunction. Put a period and capitalize the first letter of the second sentence.

6. Fix these Run-ons and Comma Splices She went to the store they were out of her favorite chips. The boys wouldn’t stop talking, the girls were even worse than the boys. The candy was stolen, and it was hard to tell who did it. The dogs were barking, they wouldn’t stop.

7. Apostrophes Apostrophes are used to: Show possession (the girl’s book; the boys’ books) Take the place of letters (didn’t) Beware of the It’s and Its problem: (It’s=It is Its=possessive)

8. Fix the Apostrophe Mistakes The boys books are missing. You cant see the candy from here. Its such a long way to the store. The school wouldnt talk about its new rules.

9. True and False Fragments are incomplete sentences. Fragments are often missing a subject, verb, or preposition. A run-on sentence is two sentences put together with no punctuation between them. A comma splice is two complete sentences with a semicolon between them. 9

10. True and False 5. A comma is strong enough to separate two complete sentences. 6. Semicolons are stronger then commas and can fix either a run-on or a comma splice. 7. You can also fix a run-on sentence by putting a semicolon and a coordinating conjunction. 8. Separating sentences with a period is the final way to correct run-ons. 10

11. True and False 9. Apostrophes are used to show possession. 10. Apostrophes are also used to take the place of nouns. 11

12. Multiple Choice 11. Although he had been an often decorated soldier during World War II and had fought many battles for the losing cause of liberation in Congress. A . Fragment: just add a subject B. Run-on: put a comma after World War II C. Run-on: put a semicolon after World War II D. Fragment: put a comma after Congress and finish the sentence. E. There is nothing wrong with this sentence. 12

13. Multiple Choice 12. This is going to be the most difficult exam of your college career, you had better start studying for it immediately. A . Comma splice: put a semicolon after career B. Run-on: put a period after career C. Run-on: put a semicolon after studying D. Comma splice: put a period after start E. There is nothing wrong with this sentence. 13

14. Multiple Choice 13. Coach Espinoza really wants this job with Notre Dame University she is very excited about returning to the college she graduated from. A . Comma splice: put a semicolon after University B. Run-on: put a comma after University C. Run-on: put a semicolon after University D. Comma Splice: put a period after college E. There is nothing wrong with this sentence. 14

15. Multiple Choice 14. Its right after the Christmas holidays and during those three weeks before class begins in January. A . Fragment: just add a subject B. Apostrophe: put an apostrophe after the “s” in Christmas C. Apostrophe: put an apostrophe after the “t” in Its D. Fragment: put a comma after January and finish the sentence E. There is nothing wrong with this sentence. 15

16. Multiple Choice 15. She ran. A . Fragment: just add a verb B. Run-on: put a comma after ran and end the sentence C. Fragment: add both a subject and a verb D. Fragment: add a prepositional phrase at the end of the sentence E. There is nothing wrong with this sentence. 16

17. Multiple Choice 16. Annabel realizes what she is doing, I think, but she doing it anyway. A . Comma Splice: put a semicolon after doing B. Fragment: missing part of a verb C. Comma Splice: put a semicolon after think D. Fragment: add another subject E. There is nothing wrong with this sentence. 17

18. Multiple Choice 17. The ten girls hats were all hanging on the pegs by the door. A . Fragment: add a prepositional phrase at the end B. Apostrophe: add an apostrophe after the “s” in girls C. Fragment: put a comma at the end of the sentence and finish it D. Apostrophe: add an apostrophe after the “l” in girls E. There is nothing wrong with this sentence. 18

19. Multiple Choice 18. Perplexed by the rising rates of inflation, and alarmed by the decline in major construction projects. A . Fragment: put a comma at the end of the sentence and finish it B. Comma Splice: change the comma after inflation to a semicolon C. Comma Splice: put a semicolon after decline D. Fragment: add a subject at the beginning of the sentence E. There is nothing wrong with this sentence. 19

20. Multiple Choice 19. He didn’t have any way of helping her; she didnt want his help anyway. A . Run-on: change the semicolon to a comma B. Apostrophe: put an apostrophe after the “t” in didnt C. Run-on: add a period after help D. Apostrophe: add an apostrophe after the “n” in didnt E. There is nothing wrong with this sentence. 20

21. Multiple Choice 20. Which is the best way to fix this sentence? The girls and boys wouldnt listen to the teacher the teacher was very frustrated, but determined to teach them, anyway. A . The girls and boys wouldnt listen to the teacher, the teacher was very frustrated, but determined to teach them, anyway. B. The girls’ and boys’ wouldn’t listen to the teacher; the teacher was very frustrated, but determined to teach them, anyway. C. The girls and boys wouldn’t listen to the teacher. The teacher was very frustrated. But determined to teach them, anyway. D. The girls and boys wouldn’t listen to the teacher; the teacher was very frustrated, but determined to teach them, anyway. E. There is nothing wrong with this sentence. 21

22. Multiple Choice 21. Whew! The girls love to talk fast to anyone who will listen. What part of speech is the highlighted word? A . Verb B. Preposition C. Pronoun D. Noun E. Interjection 22

23. Multiple Choice 22. Whew! The girls love to talk fast to anyone who will listen. What part of speech is the highlighted word? A . Verb B. Preposition C. Pronoun D. Noun E. Interjection 23

24. Multiple Choice 23. Whew! The girls love to talk fast to anyone who will listen. What part of speech is the highlighted word? A . Verb B. Preposition C. Pronoun D. Noun E. Interjection 24

25. Multiple Choice 24. Whew! The girls love to talk fast to anyone who will listen. What part of speech is the highlighted word? A . Verb B. Adverb C. Pronoun D. Adjective E. Interjection 25

26. Multiple Choice 25. Whew! The girls love to talk fast to anyone who will listen. What part of speech is the highlighted word? A . Verb B. Adverb C. Pronoun D. Adjective E. Interjection 26

27. Final Quiz Label all of the parts of speech in the following sentence and fix the errors. Ms. Schaefer loves the students in her class its made up of some very interesting students. 27