common errors in writing

Common Errors1.Run-on SentenceExamples:(1)Mrs. Smith decided to stop smoking she did not want to die of lung cancer.(2)The exam was postponed, the class was cancelled as well.(3)I took lots of vitamin C, however, I still came down with the flu.(4) The river was more than a mile wide, he could not swim across.Definition: Run-on sentences are two independent clauses run together without any punctuation or conjunction between them.Ways of correcting run-on sentences:✓Make two separate sentences by using a period and a capital letter.(1)Mrs. Smith decided to stop smoking. She did not want to die of lung cancer.(2)The exam was postponed. The class was cancelled as well.(3)I took lots of vitamin C. However, I still came down with the flu.✓Use a semicolon (;) to connect the two complete thoughts.(1)Mrs. Smith decided to stop smoking; she did not want to die of lung cancer.(2)The exam was postponed; the class was cancelled as well.(3)I took lots of vitamin C; however, I still came down with the flu.✓Use connecting words, such as and, but, or, for, nor, yet, so(coordinating conjunctions), preceded by a comma (,).(1)Mrs. Smith decided to stop smoking, for she did not want to die of lung cancer.(2)The exam was postponed, and the class was cancelled as well.(3)I took lots of vitamin C, but I still came down with the flu.✓Use a conjunctive adverb, a linking word or phrase such as therefore, moreover, consequently, as a result.(1) The river was more than a mile wide; therefore he could not swim across.✓Make one of the independent clauses subordinate by using subordinate conjunctions such as because, before, after, since, while, until, if, so that, as, as if, as though, once, as long as, and so on.(1)Although I took lots of vitamin C, I still came down with the flu.2.Sentence FragmentsExamples:(1)We have to learn a foreign language. Because we need to speak to foreigners.(2)After I arrived in Beijing by bus. I checked into a room.(3)My daughter likes to make paper boats. Which she floats in the tub during her nightly bath.(4)She was at first very happy with the blue sports car she bought for only $500. Not realizing until a weeklater that the car averaged 7 miles a gallon of gas.(5)I plan on working overtime. To get this job finished. Otherwise, my boss may get angry with me.(6) To settle the tension in Tibet. Many measures are worked out.(7) She is the only woman I know who plays all kinds of card games for money. For example, poker, bridge and blackjack.(8) The class often starts late. For example, yesterday at quarter after nine, instead of at nine sharp.(9) I am always short of pocket money. Especially for everyday items like magazines and sodas.(10) One example of my father’s generosity is that he visits sick friends in the hospital. And takes along get-well cards with a few dollars folded in them.(11) Sarah looked with admiration at the stunningly attractive model. And wondered how the model looked upon waking up in the morning.Definition:Every sentence must have a subject and a verb and must express a complete thought. A word group that lacks a subject or a verb and that does not express a complete thought is a fragment.There are altogether four types of them, which are routine mistakes in students’ writing.Dependent-word fragments-ing and to fragmentsAdded-detail fragmentsMissing-subject fragmentsA. dependent-word fragmentsWhenever you start a sentence with one of these words （after, unless, even , even if, even though, since, before, when, whenever, because, if, who, whoever, while, as, as if, which, whichever, although, though, so that, where, wherever, until, that), you must be careful so that a fragment sentence does not result.The simplest way to correct a dependent-word fragment is to attach it the sentence that comes before or after it.(1)We have to learn a foreign language, because we need to speak to foreigners.(2)After I arrived in Beijing by bus, I checked into a room.(3) My daughter likes to make paper boats which she floats in the tub during her nightly bath.B. –ing and -to fragmentsWhen an –ing word or –to appears at or near the start of a word group, a fragment may result. Such fragments often lack a subject and/or part of the verb.How to Correct –ing or –to Fragments✓Attach the fragment to the sentence that comes before or after it.(4) She was at first very happy with the blue sports car she bought for only $500, not realizing until a weeklater that the car averaged 7 miles a gallon of gas.(5) To get this job finished, I plan on working overtime.. Otherwise, my boss may get angry with me.✓Add a subject and change the –ing to the correct form of the verb.(6)She was at first very happy with the blue sports car she bought for only $500. She realized only a weeklater that the car averaged 7 miles a gallon of gas.✓To settle the tension in Tibet. Many measures are worked out. (X)“To settle the tension in Tibet” is dangling for its logical subject is not the subject of the following statement. We have to add its logical subject in due place in order to make the dangling modifier attached to the statement, or to make it the infinitive of purpose.[Revised] The government tries to settle the tension in Tibet. Many measures are worked out.Or The government takes many measures to settle the tension in Tibet.C. added-detail fragmentsAdded-detail fragments lack a subject and/or a verb. They often begin with one of the following words: for example, also, except, such as, including, especially.How to correct added-detail fragments?✓Attach the fragment to the preceding sentence.(7) She is the only woman I know who plays all kinds of card games for money, for example, poker, bridge and blackjack.(9) I am always short of pocket money, especially for everyday items like magazines and sodas.✓Add a subject and a verb to the fragment to make it a complete sentence.(8) The class often starts late. For example, yesterday it began at quarter after nine instead of at nine sharp.D. missing-subject fragments(10) One example of my father’s generosity is that he visits sick friends in the hospital and he takes along get-well cards with a few dollars folded in them.(11) Sarah looked with admiration at the stunningly attractive model. She wondered how the model looked upon waking up in the morning.3.Faulty ParallelismExamples:(1)Our new car is not only more economical but also it is more comfortable than the old one.(2)When we arrived home, we unpacked our suitcases, took showers, and then we went to sleep after eatingour lunch.(3)Many people choose air transportation because it is fast, offers convenience, and it is not very expensive.(4)You should strive to cooperate with your colleagues to bring about change, for improvingcommunication, and professional development.(5)The growth rate of house purchasing in China is lower than the world.(6)I cannot decide whether I should remain in school or to withdraw.The vital problem with parallelism is that people fail to deal with the logic of grammatical relationship. When words or groups of words are placed in a series, they must be parallel in both meaning and structure. When handling a series of parallels, it is easy to produce unequal elements.Examples:(1)Our new car is not only more economical but also it is more comfortable than the old one.[Revised] Our new car is not only more economical but also it is more comfortable than the old one.(2)When we arrived home, we unpacked our suitcases, took showers, and then we went to sleep after eatingour lunch.[Revised] When we arrived home, we unpacked our suitcases, took showers, ate our lunch, and went to sleep.(3)Many people choose air transportation because it is fast, offers convenience, and it is not very expensive.[Revised] Many people choose air transportation because it is fast, convenient, and inexpensive.(4)You should strive to cooperate with your colleagues to bring about change, for improvingcommunication, and professional development.[Revised] You should strive to cooperate with your colleagues to bring about change, to improve communication, and to further professional development.(5)The growth rate of house purchasing in China is lower than the world.[Revised] The growth rate of house purchasing in China is lower than that of the world.(6)I cannot decide whether I should remain in school or to withdraw.[Revised] I cannot decide whether to remain in school or to withdraw.4.Misplaced ModifiersExamples:(1)Bill yelled at the howling dog in his underwear.(2)Charlotte returned the hamburger to the supermarket that was spoiled.(3)Techniques have taken on a new look in long-range communication.Misplaced modifiers are words that, because of unknown placement, do not describe the words the writer intended them to describe, thus confusing the meaning of a sentence. To avoid this problem, place modifiers (especially like “only, just, almost, nearly”) as close to as possible to what they modify.5.Dangling modifiersExamples:(1) Looking up at the sky, the sun went under a cloud.(2) After finishing the research, the paper was easy to write.(3)To write well, good books must be read.(4)When only a small boy, my father took me with him to Chicago.A serious and frequently ridiculous error in the use of modifiers is labeled dangling, which occurs if the modifiers: do not have a word to modify, or are placed incorrectly in the sentence.Ways to revise:Put modifiers correctly, and be close to the words they are intended to modify;Making them dependent clauses by adding a subject and a verb.Four kinds of dangling modifiers:a.Dangling Participle. 悬垂分词[Example 11] Looking up at the sky, the sun went under a cloud.[Revised] Looking up at the sky, he saw the sun went under a cloud.b.Dangling Gerund. 悬垂动名词[Example 12] After finishing the research, the paper was easy to write.[Revised] After finishing the research, I found that the paper was easy to write.c.Dangling Infinitive. 悬垂动词不定式[Example 13] To write well, good books must be read.[Revised] To write well, I good books must be read.d.Dangling Elliptical Clause. 悬垂省略从句[Example 14] When only a small boy, my father took me with him to Chicago.[Revised] When I was only a small boy, my father took me with him to Chicago.。