Run-on sentences

 

                            Run-on sentence

What is a run-on sentence?

Run-on sentences, also known as fused sentences, occur when two complete sentences are squashed together without using a coordinating conjunction or proper punctuation, such as a period or a semicolon. Run-on sentences can be short or long. A long sentence isn’t necessarily a run-on sentence.

Run-on sentence examples

Below is an example of two independent clauses that are structured as a run-on sentence. It fuses two complete thoughts into one sentence without proper punctuation.

Lila enjoyed the bouquet of tulips John gave her on prom night however she prefers roses.

Now, here is an example of how to write these two independent clauses correctly. A semicolon is placed between the two clauses to separate each thought. It also includes a comma after the conjunctive adverb, however, as a transition into the second clause.

Lila enjoyed the bouquet of tulips John gave her on prom night; however, she prefers roses.

Fixing and correcting run-on sentences 

To avoid run-on sentences, see if there is more than one idea communicated by two or more independent clauses. In our examples, there are two complete sentences:

Lily enjoyed the bouquet of tulips John gave her on prom night.

She prefers roses.

Both sentences are complete ideas by themselves; therefore, use a semicolon or a period to indicate that they are separate independent clauses.

Run-on sentences occur when two sentences are being incorrectly joined together without the use of a coordinating conjunction or an appropriate punctuation mark like a full stop (.) or a semicolon (;).

One misconception about run-on sentences is that these are long when in fact, the length of run-on sentences could go long or short. It does not mean that long sentences are automatically run-on sentences; you just have to make sure that it uses the correct conjunction and punctuation.

Run-on sentences happen when there are a lot of ideas that get fused into one single statement, when it can actually be broken into two or more.

Not following punctuation rules can also result you in writing a run-on sentence.

Here are the ways on how to spot a run-on sentence:

1. Check if there is more than one idea in a statement.

2. Do not only check a run-on in long statements as they can also be found in short statements.

3. See if there are comma splices. Comma splices are two independent clauses that are connected using a comma.

Here are the ways on how to correct a run-on sentence:

1. Use a semi-colon to separate two or more independent clauses. Independent clauses can stand on its own. But since you are are trying to connect two or more related independent clauses, you can still show its relation with the use of a semi-colon.

2. You can also add conjunctive adverbs after a semi-colon. The conjunctive adverbs are: therefore, nevertheless, however, as a result, in any case, consequently, and thus.

3. Separate two independent clauses by using a comma, and one of the coordinating conjunctions. Keep in mind the mnemonics of the coordinating conjunction, FANBOYS which stands for the seven coordinating conjunctions namely for, and, nor, but, or, yet, and so. These coordinating conjunctions are also useful in creating a compound sentence.

4. Break two independent clauses to form two sentences by ending the first independent clause with a period.

5. You can add a comma and a joining word to connect two sentences.

6. You can shorten the sentence in order to create one cohesive and effective sentence.

Run-on Sentences:

1. Cellular phones and laptops are used in communication everyone is using it every day.

2. Cecilia enjoys using her cellular phone and laptop, she uses it every single day.

3. Older generations think that cellular phones and laptops have more cons than pros, however, it really depends on the usage.

4. Increased usage of cellular phones and laptops is also a health risk to its users this fact is often denied by the users.

Corrected Sentences:

1. Cellular phones and laptops are used in communication, and everyone is using it every day.

2. Cecilia enjoys using her cellular phone and laptop, she uses it every single day.

3. Older generations think that cellular phones and laptops have more cons than pros, however, it really depends on the usage.

4. Increased usage of cellular phones and laptops is also a health risk to its users; this fact is often denied by the users.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------4 Types of Run-on Sentences

Here are four ways in which a writer might intentionally or inadvertently craft a run-on sentence:

1. 1. When the writer joins two independent clauses by using a conjunction improperly. There are methods one can use to connect two sentences, and they involve using a conjunction (for example, “and,” “but,” or “or”) or punctuation to create compound sentences. If the writer uses neither, then it’s a fused sentence, made up of two improperly joined sentences. To help you identify this type of run-on sentence, try checking to see whether there are many different subjects (who or what the sentence is about) or more than one complete thought. An independent clause has a subject and a verb at a minimum. See if you have more than one verb or more than one complete thought or phrase.
2. 2. When the writer joins two independent clauses by using a comma improperly. When you join two complete sentences with a comma, without any additional verbiage, it’s called a comma splice. This can also occur when there is a transitional word—”to,” “and,” “like,” “as,” or “too,” for example—between the two clauses. Instead of acting as a transition, it further cements the comma splice. Both occurrences are grammatical errors.
3. 3. When the writer joins two or more incomplete sentences. Some run-on sentences contain sentence fragments, or incomplete sentences, rather than two separate independent clauses. Look for incomplete thoughts or clauses that are missing subjects or verbs in order to spot this kind of run-on sentence.
4. 4. When the writer uses multiple conjunctions to join multiple independent clauses. Called a polysyndeton, it creates a sentence that is difficult to read. Sometimes writers use polysyndetons as a stylistic choice to slow down the pace of the reader, but the structure of a polysyndeton is incorrect from a grammatical standpoint. To help you identify this type of run-on sentence, try to determine whether the sentence is attempting to accomplish too many things at once. Sentences should hold one complete thought and then transition to a second complete thought with either proper punctuation or the use of a single conjunction.

4 Examples of Run-on Sentences

Although run-on sentences are grammatically incorrect, they are still found in popular literature and are sometimes used for dramatic effect. Here are four examples of run-on sentences in well-known books:

1. 1. A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way—in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.”
2. 2. The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood: “She’s too young, it’s too late, we come apart, my arms are held, and the edges go dark and nothing is left but a little window, a very little window, like the wrong end of a telescope, like the window on a Christmas card, an old one, night and ice outside, and within a candle, a shining tree, a family, I can hear the bells even, sleigh bells, from the radio, old music, but through this window I can see, small but very clear, I can see her, going away from me, through the trees which are already turning, red and yellow, holding out her arms to me, being carried away.”
3. 3. The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemmingway: “He was an old man who fished alone in a skiff in the Gulf Stream and he had gone eighty-four days now without taking a fish.”
4. 4. Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace: “Gately’s biggest asset as an Ennet House live-in Staffer—besides the size thing, which is not to be discounted when order has to be maintained in a place where guys come in fresh from detox still in Withdrawal with their eyes rolling like palsied cattle and an earring in their eyelid and a tattoo that says BORN TO BE UNPLEASANT—besides the fact that his upper arms are the size of cuts of beef you rarely see off hooks, his big plus is he has the ability to convey his own experience about at first hating AA to new House residents who hate AA and resent being forced to go and sit up in nose-pore-range and listen to such limply improbably clichéd drivel night after night.”

How to Fix a Run-on Sentence

Create separate sentences, add punctuation, or use the proper conjunctions to keep two clauses together and you can avoid run-on sentences. Try these solutions to fix a run-on sentence:

• Break up your clauses. If you identify a run-on sentence in your work, split it into two separate sentences.
• Consider a semicolon. You can use a semicolon in many different ways, but they work well in many run-on sentences. Use one to break up the first and second clauses, keeping the related thoughts in two distinct groups.
• Put a comma and a coordinating conjunction between the two clauses. Examples of coordinating conjunctions include: “and,” “but,” “for,” “nor,” “or,” “so,” and “yet.”
• Change one clause into a dependent clause and join the two clauses with a subordinating conjunction. Two complete sentences that can stand on their own are independent clauses. A dependent clause can only stand with an independent clause because the dependent clause gives the reader further context or information. Create one sentence by placing a subordinate conjunction, such as “because,” “until,” or “when” between the independent and dependent clause.
• Combine the above rules. You can pair a conjunction with a semicolon or a semicolon with a comma. Or change one sentence to a dependent clause and use a semicolon to bring an additional independent clause into the sentence structure. However you choose to fix a run-on sentence, your goal remains to create clear, simple sentences that are easy for a reader to understand.