Hyphens
Capitalization
Tech Terms
Punctuation
Tricky Words
100
The Iraq war has cause significant (anti American / anti-American) sentiment.
What is "anti-American"? Rule: Use a hyphen to separate a prefix from a proper noun.
100
I will teach during the (fall / Fall) semester.
What is "fall"? Rule: Do NOT capitalize the seasons.
100
My (email / e-mail) address is bubba@allisonpr.com
What is "email"?
100
(Hank Williams Jr. / Hank Williams, Jr.) said something stupid about Obama.
What is "Hank Williams Jr."? Rule: Do NOT use a comma between a person's name and Jr. or Sr.
100
Take a multivitamin to (ensure / insure) you get sufficient nutrients.
What is "ensure"? Rule: Ensure is to guarantee; insure is to secure insurance.
200
The (newly elected / newly-elected) president will have to create jobs.
What is "newly elected"? Rule: Do NOT use the hyphen with adverbs ending in -ly.
200
The (board of trustees / Board of Trustees) is meeting in London.
What is "board of trustees"? Do NOT capitalize board of trustrees unless used as part of the formal title (WWU Board of Trustees).
200
You can find lots of bad medical advice on the (internet / Internet).
What is "Internet?"
200
Please arrive by (8:00 AM / 8:00 a.m. / 8:00 am) sharp.
What is "a.m."? Rule: Lowercase with period. Avoid the redundant 8:00 a.m. this morning.
200
The blue tie (compliments / complements) your outfit better than the red.
What is "complement"? Rule: Complement means to complete or supplement; compliment denotes praise.
300
I (resent / re-sent) the email.
What is "re-sent"? Rule: Use the hyphen to distinguish meaning of different words that are spelled the same way (e.g., recover, re-cover).
300
I saw (former / Former) President Bill Clinton at KFC.
What is "former"? Former is always lowercase.
300
(iPads / IPads) are made in China.
What is "IPads"? Rule: Capitalize the "i" when the word begins a sentence.
300
Did you see the (Mona Lisa / "Mona Lisa") at the Louvre?
What is "Mona Lisa"? Rule: Put titles of works of art in quotation marks.
300
He offered me good (council / counsel) on my professional development.
What is "counsel"? Rule: Counsel as a noun means advice; council is a group of people brought together to deliberate on a particular issue.
400
I took a (transatlantic / trans-Atlantic) flight to Paris.
What is "transatlantic"? Rule: Transatlantic is the exeption to the rule to use the hyphen to separate a prefix from a proper noun.
400
The meeting takes place in (room 2 / Room 2 / Room Two).
What is "Room 2"? Rule: Capitalize chapter, room, highway, etc., when followed by a number (or letter) and use figures.
400
I (googled / Googled) a cure for hiccups.
What is "Googled"?
400
He said, "I saw the (play." / play".)
What is "play." Rule: Always put the period inside quotation marks.
400
How much (further / farther) is the gas station?
What is "farther"? Rule: Farther refers to physical distance; further relates to metaphorical distance or depth (it's another way of saying "additional").
500
He received a (10 to 20 year / 10 to 20-year / 10- to 20-year) prison sentence.
What is "10- to 20-year"? Rule: Suspensive hyphenation - suspends the use of "year" to avoid repetition.
500
Tom earned his (bachelor of arts in history / bachelor of arts in History / Bachelor of Arts in history)
What is "Bachelor of Arts in history"? Rules: Capitalize Bachelor of Arts (but not bachelor's degree). Academic majors are lowercase except proper nouns (e.g., English).
500
You need a (web page / webpage / Web page) to promote the contest.
What is "Web page?"
500
Should I see (King Lear? / "King Lear"? / King Lear?")
What is "King Lear"?...? Rules: Put other punctuation marks (?, !) inside quotations only when they are part of the quoted material (e.g., "Did you see King Lear?" he asked.) Put play (and book, movie, poem, album, song, radio and TV program, and computer game titles) in quotations.
500
There were (over / more than) 400 guests at the wedding.
What is "more than"? Rule: Use "more than" with numbers; use "over" with spatial relationships.
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