RAME
sson 10.6.3
pp. 121-122
In addition to
starting with a
capital letter and
closing with end
punctuation, a
complete sentence
must have a
subject and a
verb, and it must
express a complete
thought.
Grade 10
Grammar
Writing
Correcting Sentence Fragments
EXERCISE 1 Identifying Sentence Fragments
A classmate has asked you to review the rough draft of a report about the California
Gold Rush. Read the text, and underline each sentence fragment. Hint: There are five
fragments.
EXAMPLE Even though prospectors take a huge risk.
¹On January 24, 1848, carpenter James Marshall accidentally discovered gold
near present-day Sacramento. Found a nugget the size of a dime while at work on
a sawmill owned by pioneer John Sutter. Even though the initial find was small,
it led to the greatest gold rush in U.S. history. Called the California Gold Rush, It
helped build the state's population and economy. Word spread, and prospectors
flooded the area. Especially in 1849. These people were named "forty-niners" after
the year. Traveled by boat or covered wagon in search of California gold. "In the
two years following Marshall's discovery, nearly 100,000 people moved to California.
10 While San Francisco became a thriving city during the gold rush. "Some found
prosperity during this period, but many did not. 12 When the gold ran out. Many
mining towns turned to ghost towns nearly overnight. However, a lot of people
who did not strike it rich in California found work as farmers or merchants. ¹5 The
California gold rush was a tumultuous period that helped develop the state.
EXERCISE 2 Correcting Sentence Fragments
Rewrite three of the sentence fragments you underlined in the report above. Following
each revised sentence, note the problem (incomplete thought, lacks verb, or lacks subject)
and the strategy you used to fix it (attach it, add words, or drop words).
EXAMPLE Prospectors take a huge risk. (incomplete thought, drop words)