Run on sentences что это
Run-on Sentence
What Is a Run-on Sentence? (with Examples)
A run-on sentence is a common error caused by merging two sentences without suitable punctuation. The most common run-on sentence is the «comma splice» (also known as the «comma fault»), which occurs when two sentences are inappropriately separated by a comma.
Easy Examples of Run-on Sentences
Real-Life Examples of Run-on Sentences
Why Should I Care about Run-on Sentences?
The run-on sentence is undoubtedly the most common grammar mistake made by writers with otherwise sound writing skills.
Here are two writing tips to help you avoid run-on sentences.
(Tip 1) Write one sentence at a time and be disciplined.
A sentence is a group of grammatically complete words that expresses a complete thought. A sentence must contain a subject and a verb (even if one or the other is implied).
(Tip 2) Consider other punctuation to end your sentence.
(1) Use a semicolon:
(2) Use three dots:
(3) Use a colon (if appropriate, which it probably won’t be):
(4) Use a dash:
Key Points
Ready for the Test?
Here is a confirmatory test for this lesson.
See Also
Technical Help
Grammarly’s app will help with:
(1) Avoiding spelling errors
(2) Correcting grammar errors
(3) Finding better words
(This free browser extension works with webmail, social media, and texting apps as well as online forms and Microsoft Office documents, like Word and Teams.)
Download the app
Self Help
(1) «Smashing Grammar»
Written by the founder of Grammar Monster, «Smashing Grammar» has an A-Z glossary of grammar terms, a punctuation section, and a chapter on easily confused words. Each entry starts with a simple explanation and some basic examples before giving real-life, entertaining examples.
Every entry ends with a summary explaining why the grammar point matters to a writer. If you like Grammar Monster, you’ll love this book. [more. ]
Buy on Amazon
(2) «Grammar for Grown-ups»
«Grammar for Grown-ups» is an easy read. Practical rather than academic, this best seller is packed with real-life examples and great quotations from Homer the Greek to Homer the Simpson. It is a light-hearted, easily digestible grammar reference. [more. ]
Buy on Amazon
Run-on Sentences
Grammar: Run-on Sentences
Lesson 5: Run-on Sentences
What is a run-on sentence?
When you speak, you pause between sentences to let people know where each sentence ends. In writing, periods are like this pause. The pause can also be a question mark or an exclamation point. When two sentences are next to each other without any punctuation marks between them, you have a run-on sentence.
Run-on sentences are a problem because they make it difficult to tell where one sentence ends and the next one begins. As you can see in the picture below, writing without periods is like speaking very fast without stopping. Both are difficult to understand! That’s why it’s so important to fix run-ons in your writing.
How can you recognize a run-on sentence?
If you don’t signal when your sentence ends
In the example above, the horse’s speech actually has four complete sentences in it. But they don’t have periods between them, which makes this example a run-on. To fix this, you need to find the end of each sentence and mark it with a period, question mark, or exclamation point.
You can do this by reading the run-on sentence out loud to yourself. Put periods in places where you stumble or pause while you’re reading. Then look at each period and ask yourself: Is this sentence really over? Did it start in the right place? Check to make sure all of your sentences make sense and that there aren’t any words left out. Then you’ll know you’ve fixed the run-on sentence.
If you correct the horse’s run-on sentence, you’ll end up with something like this:
If two complete sentences are joined by a comma
Commas in writing are like taking a quick breath in the middle of a thought or a sentence. They don’t signal the end of a sentence. If two complete sentences are separated by a comma instead of a period, it’s a run-on sentence. Let’s look at an example:
In this example, My clothes dryer isn’t working is one complete sentence, and my clothes smell like mildew is another. This makes this example a run-on sentence. You can fix run-ons like this by replacing the comma with a period. Make sure to capitalize the letter after the period, as we’ve done here:
Here’s another example of this kind of run-on sentence:
You can correct this example by adding a period: Fruit in that store is usually rotten. You really shouldn’t shop there. Don’t confuse this kind of run-on sentence with correct sentences like this:
In this example, you should check it for mold is a complete sentence. But before you buy fruit from that store is a fragment. It’s not complete. (Want to know why? Review our lesson on Fragments.) It’s OK to connect a fragment to a complete sentence with a comma, so this example is not a run-on sentence.
When sentences are just too long
Sometimes sentences have the right punctuation, but they’re just too long to be easy to read. These sentences are also run-on sentences. Here’s an example:
You can fix run-ons like this by splitting them up into complete sentences, just like we did with the other run-ons in this lesson. You can also take out details that don’t help people understand the writer’s main point. In our example, information about the other cashier singing is important. Without these details, we won’t understand why the writer is grouchy. But we don’t really need to know about the characters in the cartoon.
You can also take out words and facts that repeat something the writer has already said. For example, we probably don’t need to know that this person is crazy, angry, and grouchy. We’d understand if the writer just used the word grouchy.
To correct sentences that are too long, you’ll usually want to do all three of these things. Here’s how we fixed the long sentence in our example. Click the dots to see how we decided what to take out.
We took out these words because they seemed obvious. If this writer is blaming his/her bad mood on Emily and her singing, it’s probably because the writer thinks that’s true, right?
It’s probably not important to know that Emily sits at the next cash register. It’s enough to know that she’s the writer’s co-worker and that she was probably being annoying at work.
We re-worded this part of the sentence to make it shorter. We left the exploding chicken in because it seems like the writer was making a joke. He or she will explode just like the chicken if Emily doesn’t stop singing. Notice that we also split the example into two sentences here by putting a period after chicken.
As we said in the lesson, we don’t need all these words to understand how the writer is feeling. The word grouchy is enough for us to get it.
We took out the part about the little boy because it really isn’t needed to understand what’s going on. That part of the sentence would work if the writer was mainly talking about the cartoon. But most of this sentence is about how annoying Emily’s singing is.
Here’s what our example looks like after we’ve edited it:
There are actually many different ways we could have corrected this sentence. As long as you end up with sentences that follow grammar rules, are easier to read, and stick to the main idea of the original sentence, your version is correct.
Is it OK to use run-on sentences?
It is almost never a good idea to use run-on sentences in writing. Writers and poets sometimes use them to repeat something important or to imitate the way people talk. But run-on sentences are usually incorrect. They make it too difficult to understand your writing.
Here’s a run-on sentence that contains three complete sentences. Click the dots where you think the periods should go.
Correct!
This is the end of the first sentence in this run-on. Notice how the next word switches to talk about a new person: I. That’s a hint that a new sentence is starting.
Try again!
This one is tricky. I went could be a complete sentence by itself. But if you read the next words, you’ll realize that to the wedding can’t be a sentence by itself. So the period can’t go here.
Again, this is tricky. I went to the wedding is a sentence. But if you put the period here, you’re leaving out by myself, which is part of the thought. So you can’t put the period here.
Putting a period here signals that this is the end of the man’s thought about going to the wedding. Now he will switch from talking about what he did to what people at the wedding did. That will be a new sentence.
What Are Run-on Sentences and How Do You Fix Them?
In prescriptive grammar, a run-on sentence occurs when two independent clauses have been run together without an appropriate conjunction or mark of punctuation between them. Put another way, a run-on is a compound sentence that has been incorrectly coordinated or punctuated.
Run-on sentences aren’t always excessively long sentences, but they can be confusing to readers because they tend to express more than one main idea without making clear connections between the two.
Usage guides commonly identify two kinds of run-on sentences: fused sentences and comma splices. In either case, there are five common ways of correcting a run-on sentence:
Comma Splices and Fused Sentences
Sometimes, run-on sentences occur even when a comma is present between independent clauses because of the omission of joining words and phrases. This type of error is called a comma splice and typically should be separated by either a semicolon or a period instead.
Interestingly, Bryan A. Garner’s «The Oxford Dictionary of American Usage and Style» states that while there is a distinction between run-on sentences and comma splices, it isn’t typically noteworthy. However, Garner also adds «The distinction can be helpful in differentiating between the wholly unacceptable (true run-on sentences) and the usually-but-not-always unacceptable (comma splices).»
As a result, comma splices may sometimes be regarded as acceptable in certain situations. Fused sentences, on the other hand, occur when there is an error in which two sentences «are run together without a punctuation mark between them,» according to Robert DiYanni and Pat Hoy II’s «The Scribner Handbook for Writers.» Fused sentences are never accepted as grammatically acceptable.
Five Ways of Correcting Run-on Sentences
Academic writing requires grammatical accuracy in order for the work to be taken seriously; as a result, it is important for writers to eliminate run-on sentences in order to convey a professional tone and style. Fortunately, there are five common ways in which grammarians recommend fixing run-on sentences:
As an example, take the incorrect run-on sentence: «Cory loves food he has his own blog about restaurants.» To correct this, one might add a period after «food» and capitalize the word «he» to form two simple sentences or add a semicolon to imply the word «and» between «food» and «he.»
Alternatively, one might add a comma and the word «and» to join the two sentences together or reduce the sentence to: «Cory loves food and even has his own food blog» to form the two clauses into a single independent clause. Finally, one can add a subordinating conjunction like «because» to one of the clauses to form a complex sentence like: «Because Cory loves food, he has his own food blog.»
Sources
Garners, Bryan A. The Oxford Dictionary of American Usage and Style. Oxford University Press, 2000.
DiYanni, Robert and Pat Hoy II. The Scribner Handbook for Writers. 4th ed, Longman, 2003.
All You Need to Know about Run-On Sentence
A run-on sentence is composed of two or more independent clauses fused with improper conjunction or punctuation. This can be somewhat challenging to readers and hinder the author from conveying the intended message correctly. People often mistake lengthy sentences for run-on sentences which isn’t necessarily the case. There is nothing wrong with fusing multiple related concepts in one compound sentence. However, if you aren’t conversant with syntax and punctuation rules, you’re more likely to end up with a run-on sentence.
What is A Run-on Sentence?
A run-on sentence is a sentence that is not properly constituted as far as grammar is concerned. It occurs when two main clauses are joined with the wrong punctuation or conjunction.
A sentence can only contain two or more independent clauses if they are properly fused. To correctly fuse clauses, proper punctuation or conjunction must be incorporated into the sentence.
Notwithstanding their name, run-on sentences have no connection with length. In fact, some run-on sentences are pretty short. The only thing that justifies a sentence is run-on is when two or more independent clauses exist without proper punctuation or conjunction joining them.
Run-on Sentence Examples
There are two independent clauses (complete sentences) in the above example:
A comma splice is one of the typical forms of a run-on sentence. A comma splice occurs when more than one main clause is connected with just a comma and no conjunction.
Examples of a Comma Splice
Health professionals could down their tools any time, they need their grievances addressed.
The two independent clauses are complete sentences joined with just a comma to form a compound sentence.
A comma splice can exist when an author tries to use a transitional expression in between a sentence.
Comma splice examples:
Example 1
The outcome of the poll was disputed; therefore a comprehensive probe of the voting materials needs to be done to unravel what transpired.
To redress the issue of comma splice in the above example, introduce a semicolon prior to the transitional expression and a comma after it.
Revision: The outcome of the poll was disputed; therefore, a comprehensive probe of the voting materials needs to be done to unravel what transpired.
Example 2
The allegations leveled against the governor were baseless, therefore more investigations need to be done on the matter.
Transitional expression: therefore
Similar to example 1, to address this type of comma splice, add a semicolon prior to the transitional expression and comma after.
Revision: The allegations leveled against the governor were baseless; therefore, more investigations need to be done on the matter.
Correcting Run-On Sentences
A run-on sentence can be addressed by fusing its main clauses correctly. There are multiple ways to join main (independent) clauses appropriately. They include:
Use of a period
The most appropriate way to address run-on sentences is to break them into small sentences using a full stop. This technique is ideal for lengthy sentences. However, take note so that this remedy doesn’t lead to short, choppy sentences.
Use a Semicolon
When a semicolon is added between two main clauses, it addresses the issue of run-on sentences. The use of a semicolon is a stylistic choice that creates a close connection between two independent clauses.
Use a comma and a conjunction
Another way to fix a run-on sentence is to pair a comma with a coordinating conjunction like “and,” “or,” “but”, etc. This technique underlines the connection between clauses.
Use a subordinating conjunction
This method works by converting one of the two clauses into a dependent. A subordinating conjunction joins the two clauses to form a complex sentence. The strategy works to glue the connection between the two clauses and may enhance the flow of the two parts of the sentence.
Always remember to fix run-on sentences to make your writing clear and fascinating for your audience.
What is a Run-On Sentence? Definition, Examples of Run-on Sentences
Home » The Writer’s Dictionary » What is a Run-On Sentence? Definition, Examples of Run-on Sentences
Run-on sentence definition: A run-on sentence exists when two or more independent clauses are not joined with the proper conjunction or punctuation.
What is a Run-on Sentence?
A run-on sentence is poor grammar. It exists when two independent clauses (also called main clauses) are incorrectly joined.
More than one independent clause cannot exist in a sentence unless they are properly combined. To properly combine clauses, correct conjunctions or punctuation must be added to the sentence.
Despite their name, run-on sentences have nothing to do with length. Run-on sentences can be quite short, in fact. The only thing that determines a run-on sentence is when more than one independent clause exists without the proper tools to combine them.
Run-on Sentence Examples:
What is a Complete Sentence?
A complete sentence exists when an independent clause is created. An independent clause includes a subject and a verb or verb predicate.
Complete Sentences:
A sentence fragment and a run-on sentence are not the same. A sentence fragment does not include one or more of the necessary elements to make a full sentence, whereas a run-on sentence has too many elements in one sentence.
Sentence Fragments:
Fixing Run-on Sentences
Since run-on sentences are grammatically incorrect, they need to be corrected. In the next few paragraphs, I will go over the various ways you can correct a run-on sentence.
Add End Punctuation:
Depending on the types of clauses that are incorrectly joined in run-on sentences, end punctuation could serve to separate the two clauses. Typically, a period will work.
Example:
Now, the two clauses function as two separate sentences.
Use a Comma and Conjunction:
Adding a comma alone does not fix a run-on sentence. In fact, it creates what is known as a comma splice. But, adding a comma and the appropriate conjunction can join the clauses appropriately.
Example:
Not every conjunction will work for every run-on sentence. The writer needs to choose the best conjunction to communicate his meaning.
Use a Semi-Colon:
Adding a semicolon between the two clauses can join two clauses in a run-on sentence.
Example:
Note that semicolons should not be used instead of periods. Semi-colons should only be used when the two clauses are of equal weight, length, and importance.
Finding a Run-on, How to Avoid Run-on Sentences
Run-on sentences occur frequently among novice writers. This is usually because the writer tries to create a detailed sentence and accidentally creates a run-on sentence.
Finding run-on sentences can be tricky. In order to find them, a writer should identify his sentences with two independent clauses (subjects and verbs).
Once identified, the writer should decide if those sentences are properly joined. That is, do they have a comma and a conjunction? Does a semicolon or period need to be added?
Asking these questions while thoroughly editing will help writers correct run-on sentences.
Summary: What are Run-on Sentences?
Define run-on sentence: the definition of a run-on sentence is two or more independent clauses improperly joined together.
In summary, a run-on sentence: