PERT Practice Test 2026 – Complete Guide for Exam Prep

A comma splice occurs when two independent clauses are joined by just a comma without a coordinating conjunction, creating a grammatical error. In the identified sentence, "The party was over" and "it was time to go home" are both independent clauses because they can stand alone as complete sentences. Joining them with only a comma results in a splice.

In contrast, the other sentences correctly structure their clauses. The second sentence uses a subordinate conjunction, creating a dependent clause, while the third sentence employs a similar structure. The fourth sentence uses a coordinating conjunction along with a comma, which is the correct way to link two independent clauses. Understanding the structure of independent and dependent clauses can help identify comma splices effectively.