Page 802 - Wordsmith A Guide to College Writing
P. 802

Fragments






               In the following paragraph, correct the fragments, run-ons, and

               comma splices.




               5 fragments


               2 run-ons


               3 comma splices



                1                                                                             2
                 Last spring, when I decided to plant a vegetable garden.  I
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               discovered that gardening has its unpleasant aspects.  Two hours in
                                                                                                   4
               the garden convinced me of one fact gardening is a dirty job.  Even
               though I wore gardening gloves, dirt found its way under my

                                                                                       5
               fingernails, my shoes and jeans were caked with mud.  After half an
                                         6
               hour of gardening.  I discovered a second unpleasant aspect of
                                     7                                                  8
               gardening—heat.  The sun beat down on me as I worked.  Causing beads
                                                                                            9
               of sweat to pop out on my forehead and run into my eyes.  Sweat stung
                                                                                                  10
               my eyes and soaked my T-shirt I was extremely uncomfortable.  The
               dirt and the heat were bad enough, pesky bugs and slimy worms were

                                11
               even worse.  The sweat attracted flies, they hovered and buzzed
                                     12
               around my head.  When I turned over the soil with my trowel, I

               unearthed slimy worms and grubs that squirmed palely in the sunlight.
               13                                                       14
                  Then burrowed back into the dark earth.  A ripe tomato from the
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               garden may taste better than one from the grocery store.  But is not
               worth the trouble it takes to grow it.
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