Western Technical College
Online Writing Center
Run-on Sentences and Comma Splices
1
Run-on Sentences
A run-on consists of two or more sentences that have been written as though they are
one sentence. That is why run-on sentences are sometimes called fused sentences.
Identifying run-on (i.e. fused) sentences is a bit harder than identifying fragments
because, if you read them out loud, they are liable to sound just fine. All the elements
are there (actor, action, complete thought), but they are there two or more times.
Consider the following example:
I drove to the store Pat walked to the bank.
In the above passage, you will find two actors ("I" and "Pat"), two actions ("drove" and
"walked"). Having two actors and two actions, however, doesn't automatically mean you
have a run-on sentence. To see if you have a run-on sentence, look and see if there is a
place where you could divide the passage into two complete thoughts, without adding,
rearranging, or removing any words. If you can, you have a run-on sentence.
In the above example, you could divide the passage into the following:
I drove to the store. Pat walked to the bank.
Without adding, rearranging, or removing any words, you have created two sentences,
each with an actor, an action, and the ability to stand alone. Now consider the following
examples:
She mowed the lawn Phil watered the garden.
She mowed the lawn, and Phil watered the garden.
While she mowed the lawn, Phil watered the garden.
The first is an example of a run-on sentence. To fix this, you could divide it into two
independent clauses.
She mowed the lawn.
Phil watered the garden.
The second is a legitimate sentence. You can't divide it into two independent clauses.
The word "and" prevents you from doing this.
She mowed the lawn and. Phil watered the garden. (INCORRECT)
She mowed the lawn. And Phil watered the garden. (INCORRECT)
