COMBINING SENTENCES
HANDY REMINDERS TO IMPROVE THE
SOPHISTICATION AND CLARITY OF YOUR WRITING
PHRASES AND CLAUSES
• Phrases: Two or more
words that go together
but do not contain both
a subject and a verb
• Prepositional Phrase:
“in my house”
• Noun Phrase: “the ball
on the floor”
• Verb Phrase: “jump up
and down”
• Adjectival Phrase: “full
of toys”
• Adverbial Phrase:
“very carefully”
• Clauses: Groups of
words that contain a
subject and a verb There are two types:
• Independent Clauses:
can stand alone as a
sentence
• Dependent or
Subordinate Clauses:
can not stand alone as
a sentence
FRAGMENTS AND COMMA SPLICES
• Sentence fragments are groups of words that look
like a sentence but aren’t really a complete
sentence.
• Often, sentence fragments are dependent clauses
(also called subordinate clauses) that have been
left hanging.
• Because I love apples.
• Although it is Wednesday.
• Comma splices occur when two independent
clauses are incorrectly joined with a comma.
• Your hair is blue, I see you dyed it.
• He bakes cakes, he bakes pies.
CONJUNCTION JUNCTION!
• Coordinating Conjunctions join together EQUAL
elements of a sentence (words, phrases, or clauses).
• FANBOYS – for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so
• Subordinating Conjunctions join together UNEQUAL
clauses in a sentence (if you are subordinate to
something you aren’t equal to it).
• Subordinate clause is another name for a dependent
clause.
• Common subordinating conjunctions: because, although,
while, if, since,
CORRECTING FRAGMENTS
• Once spotted, fragments are pretty easy to fix…
• Make sure they have a subject and a predicate (verb)…
• And make sure they are a “complete thought.”
• Watch out for subordinating conjunctions (because, if,
although, as, since, etc.). While you can start a
sentence with them, you must make sure you follow the
dependent (subordinate) clause with an independent
clause. (See what I did there?)
HANDY TO REMEMBER…
• Independent clause. Independent clause.
• I like dogs. I like cats.
• Independent clause, (coordinating conjunction)
independent clause.
• I like dogs, and I like cats.
• Independent clause; independent clause.
• I like dogs; I like cats.
• Dependent clause, independent clause.
• Because they are cute, I like dogs.
• Independent clause dependent clause.
• I like dogs because they are cute.
HOW DOES THE MEANING CHANGE?
• “Text messaging
may offer tweens a
quick way to send
notes to friends and
family, but it could
lead to declining
language and
grammar skills.”
• “Text messaging
may offer tweens a
quick way to send
notes to friends and
family. It could lead
to declining
language and
grammar skills.”
HOW DOES THE MEANING CHANGE?
• “Writing was only
invented 5,500
years ago, whereas
language probably
traces back at least
80,000 years. Thus
talking came first;
writing is just an
artifice that came
along later.”
• “Writing was only
invented 5,500
years ago.
Language probably
traces back at least
80,000 years.
Talking came first.
Writing is just an
artifice that came
along later.”
HOW DOES THE MEANING CHANGE?
• “As such, the first
writing was based on
the way people talk,
with short sentences –
think of the Old
Testament. However,
while talk is largely
subconscious and
rapid, writing is
deliberate and slow.”
• “As such, the first
writing was based on
the way people talk,
with short sentences –
think of the Old
Testament. Talk is
largely subconscious
and rapid. Writing is
deliberate and slow.”