Sentence problems: Fragments
Problem: No subject or verb
Fragments, or grammatically incomplete sentences, are 'sentences' which lack an essential component of a main clause, i.e. a subject and/or a main verb, as in (4a):
Incorrect:
(4a) There are many frameworks for analysing business models. For example, the SWOT analysis.
Correct (suggestions):
(4b) There are many frameworks for analysing business models, for example, the SWOT analysis.
(4c) There are many frameworks for analysing business models. One example is the SWOT analysis.
Problem: subordinate clauses as separate sentences
Another common type of problem is when a subordinate clause is used as a separate sentence. This is also a sentence fragment, and is grammatically incorrect. The fragments in examples (5a) and (6a) are underlined, and correct revisions in examples (5b–c) and (6b–c) are in bold.
Incorrect:
(5a) It was interesting to examine the different protocols and algorithms used to construct a networking system that connects individual computers over the internet. And, how this networking system is used as a basis for communication between computers.
Correct (suggestions):
(5b) It was interesting to examine the different protocols and algorithms used to construct a networking system that connects individual computers over the internet, as well as exploring how this networking system is used as a basis for communication between computers.
(5c) It was interesting to examine the different protocols and algorithms used to construct a networking system that connects individual computers over the internet. It was also interesting to explore how this networking system is used as a basis for communication between computers.
Incorrect:
(6a) The project secured additional EU funding. Which means that it can be extended to include multiple applications.
Correct (suggestions):
(6b) The project secured additional EU funding, which means that it can be extended to include multiple applications.
(6c) The project secured additional EU funding. This means that it can be extended to include multiple applications.