Run-On Sentences at English-Zone.Com

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Run-On Sentences

A "run-on sentence" happens when two complete sentences are put together incorrectly with a comma. Two complete sentences must have a period in between or be joined with a conjunction.
Here are some examples:

RUN-ON: Ben is doctor of oncology, he treats patients who have cancer.
CORRECT: Ben is doctor of oncology. He treats patients who have cancer.
CORRECT: Ben is doctor of oncology, and he treats patients who have cancer.

Background information: An organization called "Serving People in Need" helped an Anaheim woman quit drugs and begin a new life. Read this story about Ms. Frank and her recovery from a drug-filled life, to a new, happier life. Pay attention to the sentence structure. Decide if the sentence is correct or a run-on, and click on the button to check yourself.

1. Nine months ago, Ms. Frank's young daughter was taken by Social Services, she decided then that she was going to clean up her life of drugs.



2. Police raiding a Buena Park motel room on Dec. 23, 2000, found her under the influence of drugs, and in possession of narcotics. She went to jail for less than 24 hours, but would not see her baby again for 18 months.



3. When Ms. Frank was 18, her parents divorced. At that point she was attending cosmetology school and working full time. Ms. Frank quit college after her parent's divorce and became heavily addicted to speed.



4. She surrounded herself with drug-addict friends, she stopped using drugs during her pregnancy but started again two months after giving birth.



5. On Sept. 17, 2001, she made the decision to become sober. She told all her addicted friends that she wasn't going to do it anymore and that she was checking into a recovery program.



6. On Oct. 26, 2001, she moved into a recovery home in Garden Grove. Ms. Frank received bus passes, during her recovery she was taught how to use the bus system. She was working within three weeks.



7. She stayed in the recovery home for nine months before leaving and regaining custody of her daughter. She hopes the Social Services case against her for failure to protect her child will be thrown out in the next three to four months, she said.



8. The organization, Serving People in Need, paid the $1,200 deposit and first month's rent for Ms. Frank's one-bedroom apartment in Anaheim. She was able to fully furnish her home with the help of friends and Social Services, now she lives there with her daughter Amber.



9. Ms. Frank checks in every week with Serving People in Need, whose employees make sure she's doing OK, the organization found a family to sponsor her daughter's Christmas wish list.



10. Ms. Frank has been working at an automotive warehouse in Anaheim since Nov. 19, 2001. She works in accounts receivable and has been promoted. Ms Frank says that it's just really good to be back at work.