Is the following sentence missing semicolons or commas? If so, where?: A draft of my first essay is due on Monday I also need to read the second chapter of the textbook.

1 Answer
Mar 25, 2016

A semicolon is needed between the independent clauses: "A draft of my first essay is due on Monday; I also need to read the second chapter of the textbook."

Explanation:

In this sentence, we have two independent clauses. These are basically sentences that could stand alone--that is, it would be perfectly acceptable to say:

A draft of my first essay is due on Monday. I also need to read the second chapter of the textbook.

However, when independent clauses are very closely linked, it is possible to link two of them with a semicolon.

Thus, the following sentence is acceptable:

A draft of my first essay is due on Monday; I also need to read the second chapter of the textbook.

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