句子结构常见错误

句子结构常见错误

Sentence Structure Problems

英语句子是受严格的语法规则制约的，在写作中如果违背这些规则，

那么写出的句子就会使人无法理解，或引起歧义。要想避免发生这

些情况，在写作时就必须处理好句子结构方面的几个问题。我们对

常犯的写作错误进行了归纳。残缺句、接排句、误置修饰语和悬垂

修饰语是句子结构中最常见的错误。我将对这些问题逐一进行分析，

以帮助大家弄清写作中出现这些问题的原因，并掌握纠正错误的方法

残缺句(Sentence Fragments)

所谓残缺句，顾名思义，就是指不能独立成句的一个不完整的

句子片断。尽管残缺句在形式上像句子一样是以大写字母开头，

并在结尾处带有标点，然而在逻辑上并不能单独表达一个完整

的意思,仅是一组词而已。请看下列句子：

Fragment Wondering what his son was going to do．

Revised Sentence Mr．Smith had been wondering what his son was

going to do．

Fragment Some errors in writing are serious．For example，

fragments and run—on sentences．

Revised Sentences Some errors in writing are serious，for example，

fragments and run—on sentences．

OR Some errors in writing are serious，among which are

fragments and run-on sentences

虽然句子的残缺以各种形式出现，但最常见的形式是被分隔开的从句

和以各种形式拆开的短语，如句号错误(period fault)。

Fragments

Having driven across the desert．We enjoyed the cool weather．

He enjoys flowers and shrubs．Which help screen his yard from

the street．

Revised Sentences

Having driven across the desert， we enjoyed the cool weather．

He enjoys flowers and shrubs，which help screen his yard

from the street．

0R

He enjoys flowers and shrubs．They help screen his yard from

the street．

在写作中要经常检查句子的残缺问题，特别要注意那些以从属

连词或短语等开头的句子，这些词都是“危险词”。要确定以这

些词开始的每个从句，都应附属于一个独立的句子。

避免残缺句的最好办法是注意区别句子和句子的一部分。我们

知道句子的最基本特点是在语法和逻辑上是一个完整的意义表

达单位。它至少具有一个主语和谓语。动词的非限定形式不能

在句中作为谓语单独使用，除非是在如Where to go tonight?简

短的问句中。因此在写句子时要特别注意。

改写残缺句主要有以下两种方法：

1将句中用的句号变成逗号，或把分隔开的短语或从句同它所属

的句子合并成一个能表达完整意思的句子。例如：

Fragments

Since there is a lack of interest．There is a great lack of information．

You should make a determined effort to avoid sentence fragments．

Because they are considered serious mistakes in writing．

I look forward to holidays．For example, Thanksgiving and

Christmas．

Revised Sentences

Since there is a lack of interest，there is a great lack of information.

You should make a determined effort to avoid sentence fragments

because they are considered serious mistakes in writing．

I look forward to holidays，for example，Thanksgiving and

Christmas．

2）把残缺句扩展到主句中，或通过添加或减少某些成分。把残缺

改写为独立、完整的句子。例如：

Fragments

I am interested only in the properties of citrus fruit．Such as

lemons，oranges，and grapefruit．

Having no money and being lonely in the big city.

It was difficult to decide. which choice to make．To return to school or to accept the job．

Revised Sentences

I am interested only in the properties of citrus fruit. Examples are

lemons，oranges，and grapefruit．

Having no money and being lonely in the big city，the women

committed suicide．

It was difficult to decide whether to return to school or to accept

the job．

Directions：Try to revise the following fragments in one or more than

one way．

1．Because some students have part-time jobs in addition to going

to school

2．The table was covered with fresh vegetables．Such as lettuce，

carrots，spinach，and squash．

3．Joe tries to call home once a week．To be in touch with his family

4. He made a point of entering each misspelled word in a notebook. Which

he kept for that purpose.

5. It was a wonderful week. Fishing and swimming every day and dancing

every night.

Revised sentences

1．Because some students have part-time jobs in addition to full-time

class work，they have very little free time．

2．The table was covered with fresh vegetables such as lettuce，carrots，

spinach and squash．

3．Joe tries to call home once a week to keep in touch with his family．

4．He made a point of entering each misspelled word in a notebook，

which he kept for that purpose．

5．It was a wonderful week．We went fishing and swimming every

day and dancing every night．

OR：It was a wonderful week．We fished and swam every day and

danced every night．

2．接排句(Run-on Sentence)

所谓接排句就是两个或更多的句子混合交织在一起，而没有正确

的标点符号标明它们之间关系的句子。这样的句子，意思含混不

清，使读者不能理解各部分之间的关系。接排句有两种形式:一是

融合句(fused sentence)，即在句子之间没有标点符号和句间连接词；

另一种更为常见的形式是逗号连接(comma splice)，即没有并列连

词，只用逗号代替分号和句号，把两个完整的意思连接起来.请看

例句:

Fused Sentences

1. The girls scored higher in math the boys scored higher in verbal skills．

2. Gestures are a means of communication for everyone they are

essential for the hearing-impaired．

Comma Splices

1. Education is an elusive word, it often means different things

to different people．

2. Hikers would especially enjoy a vacation at Yellowstone National

Park，the park consists of two million acres of backcountry．

改正接排句的基本方法可根据句子之间的不同关系分为以下5种

1.用句号分隔。当长句或两个句子之间的关系不是很密切或毫无

关系时，可使用这种方法。例如：

Revised Sentences

The girls scored higher in math．The boys scored higher in verbal skills．

Gestures are a means of communication for everyone．They

are essential for the hearing-impaired．

Education is an elusive word．It often means different things to

different people．

Hikers would especially enjoy a vacation at Yellowstone National

Park．The park consists of two million acres of backcountry

2 用分号隔开。用分号连接两个独立的分句时，它们之间的关系

在意义和语法结构上比起使用句号时，关系较紧密。

Revised Sentences

The girls scored higher in math；the boys scored higher in

verbal skills．

Gestures are a means of communication for everyone；they

are essential for the hearing—impaired．

Education is an elusive word；it often means different things

to different people．

Hikers would especially enjoy a vacation at Yellowstone National

Park；the park consists of two million acres of backcountry．

3使用并列连词连接。当接排的句子之间关系紧密，容易辨别且

合乎逻辑时，可以借助并列连词来连接，通常在这些连词前要

加上逗号。

Revised Sentences

The girls scored higher in math，and／but the boys scored

higher in verbal skills．

Gestures are a means of communication for everyone， but

they are essential for the hearing—impaired．

Education is an elusive word，for it often means different

things to different people．

Yellowstone National Park consists of two million acres of

backcountry，and hikers would especially enjoy a vacation

there．

4使用连接副词连接。根据作者的意图和句子的需要。接排的句

子可以使用连接副词来连接。这时，句子之间要用分号。在连

接副词的后面还要加逗号，但是一般在单音节的连词后不加逗

号。如so，yet。thus等.

Revised Sentences

The girls scored higher in math；however，the boys scored higher

in verbal skills．

Gestures are a means of communication for everyone; neverthe1ess，

they are essential for the hearing-impaired．

Education is an elusive word; indeed, it often means different

things to different people．

Yellowstone National Park consists of two million acres of backcountry;

therefore, hikers would especially enjoy a vacation there．

5.使用从属连词、关系副词或关系代词连接. 当可以判断出一个

句子从逻辑上或意义上从属于另一个句子时, 可以将此接排句

改写成复合句。

Revised Sentences

The girls scored higher in math，while the boys scored higher

in verbal skills．

Although gestures are a means of communication for everyone，

they are essential for the hearing-impaired．

The power failure caused a blackout which created a lot of

problems．

Hikers would especially enjoy a vacation at Yellowstone National

Park，which consists of two million acres of backcountry

Directions: Revise the following run-on sentences

1． Women no longer need to move into the traditionally male

professions they have already opened most of the doors to

desirable career paths．

2．I called for a reservation at a famous restaurant in town，all the

tables were taken before the Dragon Boat Festival．

3．Eric was late to work he ran all the way．

Revised sentences

1．Women no longer need to move into the traditionally male

professions，for they have already opened most of the doors

to desirable career paths．

OR：Women no longer need to move into the traditionally male

professions；they have already opened most of the doors to

desirable career paths．

OR：Women no longer need to move into the traditionally male

professions．They have already opened most of the doors to

desirable career paths．

OR：Because women have already opened most of the doors to

desirable career paths，they no longer need to move into the

traditionally male professions．

2．I called for a reservation at a famous restaurant in town．

All the tables were taken before the Dragon Boat Festival．

OR：I called for a reservation at a famous restaurant in town，but

all the tables were taken before the Dragon Boat Festival．

OR：I called for a reservation at a famous restaurant in town；

however，all the tables were taken before the Dragon Boat

Festival．

OR：I called for a reservation at a famous restaurant in town；all

the tables were taken before the Dragon Boat Festival．

OR：Although I called for a reservation at a famous restaurant in

town，all the tables were taken before the Dragon Boat Festival．

3．Eric was late to work，so he ran all the way．

or：Eric ran all the way；otherwise，he could have been late to

work．

or：Because Eric was late to work，he ran all the way．

or：Eric ran all the way because he was late to work．

or：Eric was late to work although he ran all the way．

Directions: Identify and correct serious errors(such as fragments·

fused sentences and comma splices)in each of the following．

1．Without telling anyone，even her sister，Mary，going to the

park，meeting her friends．

2．The physics problems were just impossible，they took all day to do·

3．That the course was so hard we all studied day and night, with no

one getting an A or a B．

4．I knocked on／at the door when the lady came I gave her most in-

gratiating smile．

5．Why do you ask what concern is it of yours?

6．Getting married is easy，staying married is a different matter.

7．Michelle tried each of the appetizers on the table．And then found

that，when the dinner arrived，her appetite had gone·

8．She didn’t know what to say to his announcement，she was not at

a complete loss for words，either．

Revised sentences

1．Without telling anyone，not even her sister，Mary went to the

park to meet her friends．

2．The physics problems were just impossible；therefore，they took

all day to do．

3．The course was so hard that we all studied day and night，with no

one getting an A or a B．

4．I knocked on／at the door．When the lady came，I gave her most

ingratiating smile．

5．Why do you ask? What concern is it of yours?

6．Getting married is easy；staying married is a different matter．

OR：Getting married is easy，but staying married is a different

matter．

OR：Although getting married is easy，staying married is a

different matter．

7．Michelle tried each of the appetizers on the table．She

then found that，when the dinner arrived，her appetite had gone．

8．She didn’t know what to say to his announcement，nor was she at

a complete loss for words，either.

OR：She was neither ready with a response

nor at a complete loss for words．

3. 误置修饰语（Misplaced Modifiers）

在写作中，为了使句子生动和更具有吸引力，常常需要添加修饰语。

按照英语构句规则，充当定语或状语的词、短语或从句必须尽可能地靠近

所修饰的成分。如果忽视了这个规则，在修饰语和其所修饰的中心词之间

不恰当地夹进了其他成分，就可能造成句子意思混淆，产生歧义。请看下面句子：

Misplaced Modifiers

He sold the old car to the man with leather seats．

Please give the book to the boy with the blue cover．

That cat belongs to my neighbor with five kittens．

Revised Sentences

He sold the old car with leather seats to the man．

Please give the book with the blue cover to the boy．

That cat with five kittens belongs to my neighbor．

如果一个修饰语既可以修饰其前面的词也可修饰其后面的词，

这样的修饰语称为歧义修饰语(squinting modifier)。歧义修饰

语会使读者对其修饰目的感到困惑不解。所以，应该把易产

生歧义的修饰语放在它所惟一修饰的词的前面。例如：

The equipment without the accessories sold the best．(Differ-

ent types of equipment were available，some with and some

without the accessories．)

The equipment sold the best without the accessories．(One

type of equipment was available，and the accessories were

optional．)

Squinting Modifiers

We agreed on the next day to make the adjustments·

Students who practice writing often will benefit．

Revised Sentences

We agreed to make the adjustments on the next day·

(We agreed that on the next day we would make the adjustments)-

Or

On the next day，we agreed to make the adjustments．

(On the next day，we agreed that we would make the adjust-

ments．)

Students who often practice writing will benefit．

Students who practice writing will often benefit．

所以，在写作中我们要特别注意副词的位置，要把它们放在

使读者对句子的意义更清楚的地方。请分析下面这个句子：

He only suggested three rules for us to follow．

除非我们在这里确实是指“He only suggested them；he didn’t

insist on them．”，否则only这个词就应放在它所修饰的词前面：

He suggested only three rules for US to follow．

要注意句子会随着only位置的改变而改变其意义。

Directions：Identify the misplaced word or words in each sentence．

Then rewrite the sentences and make the meaning clear．

1．Our team didn’t even score once．

2 . She is teaching a seminar this term on market economy at the

Osaka International University.

3．The city almost spent twenty million dollars on the new stadium

4．Tony bought an old car from a crooked dealer with a faulty

transmission．

5．The suburbs nearly had five inches of rain．

6．We could see the football stadium driving across the bridge．

7．I almost had a dozen job interviews after I sent out my resume

8．There were strong calls for an immediate ceasefire in the UN

Security Council

9. The exchange students we met for coffee occasionally questioned us

about our latest slang.

10. I put the chair in the middle of the room that I had recently purchased.

Revised sentences

1．Our team didn’t score even once.

2．This term she is teaching a seminar on market economy at the

Osaka International University．

3．The city spent almost twenty million dollars on the new stadium．

4．Tony bought an old car with a faulty transmission from a crooked

dealer．

5．The suburbs had nearly five inches of rain.

6．Driving across the bridge，we could see the football stadium.

7．I had almost a dozen job interviews after I sent out my resume.

8．There were strong calls in the UN Security Council for an immediate ceasefire．

9．The exchange students we occasionally met for coffee questioned

us about our latest slang．

OR：The exchange students we met for coffee questioned us

occasionally about our latest slang.

1O．I put the chair that I had recently purchased in the middle of the

room．

4．悬垂修饰语(Dangling Modifiers)

悬垂修饰语是与句子的主语不能构成逻辑关系的修饰语。悬垂修饰语

可以出现在句中的任意位置，但大多位于句首。请看下面例句：

Dangling Modifiers

By going to the various sorority houses on campus and meeting

hundreds of new girls，my conversation，manners，and poise

became more polished．

To write the proposal，research must be done．

两句中斜体的修饰语与句子的主语不存在逻辑关系。在第一句

中，当作者想当然地认为“I”是句子的主语，并打算对自己做个

描述。但是由于用了“my conversation…”做句子的主语就破坏了

句子中的逻辑关系而引起荒谬可笑的解释：It was her conversation

that visited the sorority houses．动词的非限定性短语作状语时，其

逻辑主语必须与句子主语保持一致，否则就会形成悬垂性修饰语。

如果把句子的主语改成“I”，就可改成一个令人满意的句子了。同

样，在第二句中，动词不定式在逻辑上不能修饰句子的主语，the

research．

Revised Sentences

By going to the various sorority houses on campus and meeting

hundreds of new girls，I polished my conversation，manners，

and poise．

To write the proposal, the professor must first do some re-

search．

2．悬垂动名词(Dangling Gerund)

Dangling Modifiers

By installing a birdbath．the birds were given a source of water．

After finishing the research，the paper was easy to write．

Revised Sentences

By installing a birdbath，we gave the birds a source of water．

After finishing the research，I found that the paper was easy

to write．

3．悬垂动词不定式(Dangling Infinitive)

Dangling Modifiers

To ski properly，a course of instruction is necessary．

To write well，good books must be read．

Revised Sentences

To ski properly，a beginner should take a course of instruction.

To write well, I must read good books.．

4．悬垂省略从句(Dangling Elliptical Clause)

Dangling Modifier

While climbing the hill，the rain began to fall·

When only a small boy，my father took me with him to Chicago·

Revised Sentences

While climbing the hill，she felt the rain beginning to fall·

When I was only a small boy，my father took me with him to

Chicago．

常用的修改悬垂性修饰语的方法有：

1.找出句子中隐含的主语，对所修饰的短语提供行为者(actor)

(承担动作行为的人或物).

Dangling Modifiers

At the age of six my uncle bought my first pet，a goldfish.

While leaving the house，the phone rang·

Using this drug，many undesirable side effects are experienced．

Revised Sentences

At the age of six, I received my first pet, a goldfish from my

uncle．

While leaving the house, I heard the phone ring·

Using this drug，patients experience many undesirable side

effects．

2.补足悬垂短语或省略从句必要的成分，扩展其成为一个完整的

从句，由行为者做主语.

Revised Sentences

When I was six，my uncle bought me my first pet，a goldfish·

As I was leaving the house，the phone rang.

Many undesirable side effects are experienced when this drug is used.

Directions：Please revise the following sentences with dangling modifiers．

1．Thumbing through the magazine，her eyes automatically noticed the cosmetic ads．

2．To please the visitors，a cross talk was performed．

3．On entering the teacher’s office，a terrestrial globe caught his attention． ；

4．Though only seventeen，the army accepted his application．

5．From attending professional meetings，important lessons can be

learned．

6．With fifty pages left to read，War and Peace was absorbing．

7．On the newsstands only an hour, its sales surprised everyone．

8．While eating lunch in the cafeteria，the computer malfunctioned

Revised sentences

1．Her eyes automatically noticed the cosmetic ads as she was thumbing

through the magazine．

2．To please the visitors，they performed a cross talk。

3. On entering the teacher’s office，he noticed a terrestrial globe．

4. Though he was only seventeen，the army accepted his application.

5. From attending professional meetings，we learned some important

lessons．

6. With fifty pages left to read, Tina found War and Peace was

absorbing.

7. Because the magazine had been on the newsstands only an hour,

its sales surprised everyone．

8. While the programmer was eating lunch in the cafeteria，the computer

malfunctioned．

Directions：Here are sentences with dangling modifiers．Correct

them in two ways．Either place the subject within the opening word

group，or place it right after the opening word group．

1.Swimming at the lake，a rock cut Maria’s foot．

2.While eating my sandwich，five mosquitoes bit me．

3.Getting out of bed，the tile floor was so cold that Sue shivered all over．

4Although exhausted from operating, the day ended with reading lab reports.

Revised sentences

1.When Maria was swimming at the lake，she cut her foot on a

rock．

OR：Swimming at the lake，Maria cut her foot on a rock．

2．While I was eating my sandwich，five mosquitoes bit me．

OR：While eating my sandwich，I was bitten by five mosquitoes．

3．When Sue got out of bed，the tile floor was so cold that she

shivered all over．

OR：Getting out of bed，Sue found the tile floor so cold that she

shivered a11 over．

4. Although the doctor was exhausted from operating，he ended the

day by reading lab reports．

OR: Although exhausted from operating, the doctor ended the day by

reading lab reports.