Phrases, Clauses, and Sentences
Common Sentence Errors
A phrase is any group of related words that, unlike a sentence, has no subject-predicate combination. The words in a phrase act together so that the phrase itself functions as a single part of speech. For example, some phrases act as nouns, some as verbs, some as adjectives or adverbs. Remember that phrases can't stand alone as sentences.
The chance that you'll ever be asked to differentiate between a gerund phrase and an infinitive phrase or a participial phrase and a prepositional phrase is small. So why learn about these phrases? First, if you understand how they work, you can avoid mistaking them for sentences. Second, you can avoid misplacing them or leaving them dangling in sentences. Third, you can learn to use them effectively in combining sentences. A series of short, choppy sentences can be turned into a more mature, effective sentence by using phrases and clauses.
