Question

read the passage.
how long can this possibly take? jessie had a new appreciation for why they called this the waiting room. time. just. dragged. on. as if it had halted altogether. she couldnt wait to meet her new baby sister; finally, another girl in a house full of boys! her excitement was matched only by her impatience, which was as worn out as the old teddy bear she clutched while waiting for its new owner.
which statement best describes how the author uses grammar as an element of style in this passage?
○ the author includes sentence fragments.
○ the author includes run - on sentences.
○ the author observes strict, formal structural conventions.
○ the author uses punctuation to express unfinished thoughts.

Explanation:

The passage contains short, incomplete phrases like "Time. Just. Dragged. On." which are sentence fragments—they lack a complete subject-verb structure to form a full sentence. These fragments are used to emphasize Jessie's slow, tedious experience of waiting. The passage does not have run-on sentences, does not follow strict formal grammar conventions, and the punctuation here does not signal unfinished thoughts (the fragments are deliberate, complete in their stylistic use).

Answer:

The author includes sentence fragments.