When a gerund phrase is written alone, it is a gerund phrase fragment. ( Running in a marathon is the subject of the sentence, and Running is the simple subject.) Example: Running in a marathon can cause permanent knee injury. ( Running is the subject of the sentence.) A gerund phrase is a group of words beginning with a gerund. #1 Gerund Phrase FragmentĪ gerund is a word that looks like a verb but acts like a noun, and it ends in –ing. A verbal can be a gerund, participle, or infinitive, and each of those can have its own type of fragment. Some terminology first: A verbal phrase is a group of words beginning with a word that looks like a verb but functions as something else. I go DEEP into sentence structure, so that’s where I’m taking this post. You can break the rule once you can follow it.īecause our students’ speech will be judged first on their agreement (specifically, subject-verb) and their writing on their sentence structure, I like to spend significant time there. I joke with students that they are allowed to use fragments stylistically (outside of formal analysis and exposition) when and only when they can prove to me their control of syntax. As a stylistic device, I use the former a lot. I’m fully aware (and teach) that language is a fluid, constantly evolving thing and that the rules themselves have their own cozy little home in classism, racism, and misogyny but sometimes, a sentence fragment is a sentence fragment, and I like teaching students what that means.īefore I tell you about the technical way I group fragments, let’s start with the two main categories: ones we mean to create and ones we don’t. Count how many times the word fragrant is used during commercial breaks.Because grammar has boundaries and rules, teaching it is actually a reprieve from the subjectivity of analysis.Commands are the only grammatically correct sentences that lack a subject, because the subject is implied: If you start a sentence with a coordinating conjunction, make sure that it is followed by a complete clause, not just a phrase.Īs you’re identifying fragments, keep in mind that command sentences are not fragments, despite not having a subject. Coordinating conjunctions (FANBOYS) can also cause problems. Relative pronouns, like “that” and “which,” do the same type of thing as those listed above. As his girlfriend chased him down the hall screaming her head off.Because the one I have isn’t working too well.This class of word includes the following: after For example “I was a little girl in 1995” is an independent clause, but “Because I was a little girl in 1995” is a dependent clause. Words like “since,” “when,” and “because” turn an independent clause into a dependent clause. In order for these to be clauses, they would need an additional verb that acts as a verb in the sentence. Let’s look at a few examples of these:Įven though all of the above have non-finite verbs, they’re phrases, not clauses. Since non-finite verbs don’t act like verbs, we don’t count them as verbs when we’re deciding if we have a phrase or a clause. Non-finite verbs (gerunds, participles, and infinitives) can often trip people up as well. However, there is a difference between writing and speech, and it is important to write in full sentences. One of the reasons we write in fragments is because we often speak that way.
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