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501 GRAMMAR
AND WRITING
QUESTIONS
501 GRAMMAR
AND WRITING
QUESTIONS
3rd Edition
Prepare for your exams
Study with the several resources on Docsity
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Earn points by helping other students or get them with a premium plan
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Skip to main content web texts movies audio software image logo personSign In upload search Full text of "Learn English" See other formats 501 GRAMMAR AND WRITING QUESTIONS
501 GRAMMAR
AND WRITING
QUESTIONS
3rd Edition
NEW YORK
Copyright © 2006 LearningExpress, LLC.
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. Published in the United States by LearningExpress, LLC, New York.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data 501 grammar & writing questions. — 3rd ed. p. cm. ISBN 1-57685-539-
- English language — Grammar — Examinations, questions, etc. 2. English language — Rhetoric — Examinations, questions, etc. 3. Report writing — Examinations, questions, etc. I. Title: 501 grammar and writing questions. II. Title: Five hundred one grammar and writing questions. III. Title: Five hundred and one grammar and writing questions. PE1112.A15 2006 428.2'076— dc
2005035266
SECTION 1 Mechanics: Capitalization and Punctuation 1
SECTION 2 Sentence Structure 1 1
SECTION 3 Agreement 29
SECTION 4 Modifiers 43
SECTION 5 Paragraph Development 49
SECTION 6 Essay Questions 95
ANSWERS 103
Introduction
This book — which can be used alone, along with another writing- skills text of your choice, or in com- bination with the LearningExpress publication, Writing Skills Success in 20 Minutes a Day — will give you practice dealing with capitalization, punctuation, basic grammar, sentence structure, organiza- tion, paragraph development, and essay writing. It is designed to be used by individuals working on their own and
for teachers or tutors helping students learn or review basic writing skills. Additionally, practicing with 501 Gram- mar and Writing Questions will greatly alleviate writing anxiety.
Many people grimace when faced with grammar exercises. But in order to communicate with others, pass tests, and get your point across in writing, using words and punctuation effectively is a necessary skill. Maybe you're one of the millions of people who, as a student in elementary or high school, found memorizing grammar rules tedious. Maybe you were confused by all of the exceptions to those rules. Maybe you thought they would just come naturally as you continued to write and speak.
First, know you are not alone. It is true that some people work very hard to understand the rules, while oth- ers seem to have a natural gift for writing. And that's okay; we all have unique talents. Still, it's a fact that most jobs today require good communication skills, including writing. The good news is that grammar and writing skills can be developed with practice.
INTRODUCTION
Learn by doing. It's an old lesson, tried and true. The 501 grammar and writing questions included in these pages are designed to provide you with lots of
and punctuation, and then moves on to grammar and sentence structure. By the time you reach the section on paragraph development, you've already practiced on almost 300 questions. You will then continue practic- ing the skills you've already begun to master in the previous four sections, this time, in combination. When you get to the last section, you'll be ready to write your own essays.
► How to Use This Book
Whether you're working alone or helping someone brush up on grammar and usage, this book will give you the opportunity to practice, practice, practice.
Working on Your Own
If you are working alone to review the basics or prepare for a test in connection with a job or school, you will probably want to use this book in combination with a basic grammar and usage text, or with Writing Skills Success in 20 Minutes a Day. If you're fairly sure of your basic language-mechanics skills, however, you can use 501 Grammar and Writing Questions by itself.
Use the answer key at the end of the book not only to find out if you chose the right answer, but also to learn how to tackle similar kinds of questions next time. Every answer is explained. Make sure you under- stand the explanations — usually by going back to the questions — before moving on to the next set.
Tutoring Others
This book will work well in combination with almost any basic grammar and usage text. You will probably find it most helpful to give students a brief lesson in the particular skill they'll be learning — capitalization, punctuation, subject-verb agreement, pronoun agree- ment, sentence structure, style — and then have them spend the remainder of the session answering the ques- tions in the sets. You will want to impress upon them the importance of learning by doing, checking their answers, and reading the explanations carefully. Make sure they understand a particular set of questions before you assign the next one.
INTRODUCTION
The Oxford Dictionary of American Usage and Style by Bryan A. Garner (Berkley Publishing Group)
Quick Review Writing: Grammar, Usage, and Style by Jean Eggenschwiler and Emily Dotson Biggs (Cliffs Notes)
Woe is I: The Grammarphobes Guide to Better English in Plain English, 2nd Edition, by Patricia T. O'Conner (Riverhead Books)
Writing Skills Success in 20 Minutes a Day, 3rd Edition (LearningExpress)
Writing Smart: Your Guide to Great Writing, 2nd Edi- tion, by Marcia Lerner (Princeton Review)
501 GRAMMAR
AND WRITING
QUESTIONS
SECTION
Mechanics:
Capitalization and Punctuation
Since every sentence begins with a capital, the how-to's of capitalization seem like a logical place to begin learning about language mechanics. When doing the exercises in this section, refer to the following checklist. Matching your answer to a rule will reinforce the mechanics of writing and secure that knowledge for you.
► Capitalization Checklist
/ The first word of every sentence— *Yes, we do carry the matching bed skirt.
/ The first word of a quoted sentence (not just a quoted phrase) - *And with great flourish, he sang, "O beautiful for gracious skies, for amber waves of grain!"
Periods
/ At the end of a declarative sentence (sentence that makes a statement)— ► Today, I took a walk to nowhere.
/ At the end of a command or request— ►Here 's a cloth.
Now gently burp the baby on your shoulder. S At the end of an indirect question— ''Jane asked if I
knew where she had left her keys. / Before a decimal number— * Statisticians claim that
the average family raises 2.5 children. / Between dollars and cents— *I remember when $1.
could buy the coolest stuff. S After an initial in a person's name— ► You are Sir
James W. Dewault, are you not? / After an abbreviation— *On Jan. 12, 1 leave for Africa.
Question Marks
/ At the end of a question— *Why do you look so sad? / Inside a quotation mark when the quote is a ques-
tion— ►She asked, "Why do you look so sad?"
Exclamation Points
/ At the end of a word, phrase, or sentence filled with emotion— *Hurry up 1. 1 cannot be late for the meeting]
S Inside a quotation mark when the quote is an excla- mation— *The woman yelled, "Hurry up\ I cannot be late for the meeting]"
Quotation Marks
/ When directly quoting dialogue, not when para- phrasing— ^Hamlet says, "To be, or not to be. That is the question."
/ For titles of chapters, articles, short stories, poems, songs, or periodicals-*My favorite poem is "The Road Not Taken."
Semicolons
/ Between two independent clauses (an independ- ent clause is a complete thought. It has a subject and
/ Between hours and minutes— *It's 2:00 a.m. — time
to sleep.
Apostrophes
«/" Where letters or numbers have been deleted — as in a contraction— ►/ looked at my father and whispered, "It's (It is) okay to cry every so often."
/ At the end of a name where there is ownership (remember to also add an s after the apostrophe if the word or name does not end in an 5 already)
—*Mary Jane's horse sprained his ankle during practice.
MECHANICS: CAPITALIZATION AND PUNCTUATION
Commas
/ Between items in dates and addresses - *Michael arrived at Ellis Island, New York, on February 14,
/ Between words in a list— >The university hired a woman to direct the Bursar's, Financial Aid, and Reg- istrar's offices.
/ Between equally important adjectives (be care- ful not to separate adjectives that describe each other)— >The reporter spoke with several intense, tal- ented high school athletes.
S After a tag that precedes a direct quote— >David whined, "I am famished!'
/ Ina quote that precedes a tag and is not a question or an exclamation—*"/ am famished,' 'whined David.
/ Around nonessential clauses, parenthetical phrases, and appositives (A nonessential or nonrestrictive clause is a word or group of words that are not nec- essary for the sentence's completion; a parentheti-
- The new bakery | in the center of town | sells a wide assortment | of italian pastries. |None
a b c d e
- Michael Blake, jr., | is such an accomplished golfer | that he won three tournaments | in a row. | None
a b c d e
- Catherine complained loudly, | "why can't you ever | pick me up on time | in the morning?" | None
a b c d e
- The Declaration of Independence | is one of the most important | documents in the history |
a be of the United States. | None d e
- Sally's Sweet shop, | one of the oldest businesses in town, | is located on one of the main streets |
a b c
of Millersville. | None d e
MECHANICS: CAPITALIZATION AND PUNCTUATION
- My first childhood pet, | a gray cat named otis, | was given to me as a gift | on my fifth birthday | None
a b c d e
- The local elementary school | is organizing a screening | of the movie toy story |as a fundraiser. | None
a b c d e
SET 2 (Answers begin on page 103.) Choose the punctuation mark that is needed in each of the following sentences. If no additional punctuation is needed, choose answer e.
- "It isn't fair!" shouted Martin. Coach Lewis never lets me start the game!"
a..