Two independent clauses cannot be separated by a comma. In grammars this common writing mistake is often called the comma splice. Study the sentence given below.

• She is very sincere, I like her.

As you can see, in the above example, two independent clauses are separated by a comma. This error can be fixed in three ways.

By changing the comma to a full stop

By using a full stop instead of a comma, you can separate the two clauses into two independent sentences.

• She is very sincere. I like her.

By changing the comma to a semicolon

Semicolons can be used instead of full stops in cases where clauses are grammatically independent but the meaning is closely related.

• She is very sincere; I like her.

By connecting the two clauses with a conjunction

She is very sincere, and I like her.

OR

As she is very sincere, I like her.

OR

I like her because she is very sincere.

Rewrite the following run-on sentences using the patterns discussed above.

1. She is very intelligent, she can solve any problem.

2. It was very hot, we didn’t go out.

3. I invited her she didn’t come.

Answers

1. She is very intelligent. She can solve in problem. / She is very intelligent; she can solve any problem. / She is very intelligent so she can solve any problem.

2. It was very hot. We didn’t go out. / It was very hot; we didn’t go out. / It was very hot so we didn’t go out. / As it was very hot, we didn’t go out.

3. I invited her. She didn’t come. / I invited her; she didn’t come. / I invited her but she didn’t come.