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Question

Difficulty: EasySentence Fragments

Giant kelp forests grow rapidly along the rocky coastlines of the Pacific Ocean. Providing critical shelter and food for hundreds of marine species.

Which of the following options is the correct choice for the underlined portion of the sentence?

  1. A
    NO CHANGE
  2. Ocean, providingAnswer
  3. C
    Ocean, they provide
  4. D
    Ocean; providing

Answer

The correct answer is 'Ocean, providing' because it connects the participial phrase to the preceding independent clause with a comma, correcting the sentence fragment.
The option containing 'Ocean, providing' is correct because it uses a comma to properly join the participial phrase 'providing critical shelter and food for hundreds of marine species' to the main independent clause, creating a grammatically complete and coherent sentence.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify the grammatical role of the underlined portion and the surrounding clauses.
The first part of the sentence, 'Giant kelp forests grow rapidly along the rocky coastlines of the Pacific Ocean,' is an independent clause. The second part, 'Providing critical shelter and food for hundreds of marine species,' is a participial phrase lacking a subject and a finite verb, making it a fragment when separated by a period.
To determine if a sentence fragment exists, we must analyze whether each clause can stand alone as a complete sentence.
2
Evaluate the options to determine how to correctly join the participial phrase to the independent clause.
Using a comma to attach the participial phrase ('Ocean, providing') integrates it as a modifier describing the kelp forests, creating a single, grammatically correct sentence.
A participial phrase can be joined to an independent clause using a comma to avoid a sentence fragment.
3
Eliminate grammatically incorrect options.
The original option creates a fragment. The option with 'Ocean, they provide' creates a comma splice. The option with 'Ocean; providing' incorrectly uses a semicolon to introduce a dependent phrase.
Ensuring the sentence contains no fragments, comma splices, or semicolon fragments guarantees grammatical correctness.

Key Concept

Recognizing and correcting sentence fragments
Estimated Time:45s
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Topics

Sentence Fragments

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