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Difficulty: MediumSentence Fragments

Peat bogs act as natural preservation chambers due to their unique, highly acidic, and oxygen-poor environments; which slow decay to such an extent that organic matter can remain intact for thousands of years.

Which of the following choices is the best replacement for the underlined portion of the sentence?

  1. A
    NO CHANGE
  2. B
    environments, they slow
  3. environments, which slowAnswer
  4. D
    environments. Which slow

Answer

The correct choice is 'environments, which slow' because it properly connects the dependent relative clause to the main clause using a comma.
The correct choice is the option containing 'environments, which slow'. This choice uses a comma to attach the non-essential dependent relative clause starting with 'which' to the main independent clause, maintaining the grammatical flow of the sentence without creating a fragment.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Determine the grammatical nature of the clause starting with the relative pronoun 'which'.
The clause 'which slow decay...' contains a verb but cannot stand alone as a complete sentence; it is a dependent relative clause.
Identifying clause types is necessary to select the correct punctuation to join them.
2
Evaluate the punctuation options to connect this dependent clause to the preceding independent clause.
A semicolon or a period cannot be used to separate a dependent clause from an independent clause, which rules out the options containing a semicolon or a period. A comma alone cannot join two independent clauses, which rules out the option containing 'they slow'.
Semicolons and periods require independent clauses on both sides, while comma splices occur when two independent clauses are joined only by a comma.
3
Choose the option that correctly links the dependent clause using a comma.
The option ending in a comma followed by 'which' is the only grammatically correct structure.
A comma followed by a relative pronoun correctly integrates a non-essential relative clause into the sentence.

Key Concept

Identifying and correcting sentence fragments caused by improperly punctuated dependent relative clauses.
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Topics

Sentence Fragments

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