Pronouns, Adjectives, and Adverbs, Oh My!
Neither the attraction nor the enthusiasm of the job had lost (a) its (b) it’s (c) their appeal.
(a) its
(two singular subjects connected by neither/nor, either/or require a singular verb)
Does this sentence have correct structure:
Because most dealings require a permanent record good communication skills are critical.
No
Bonus 100 points: What's missing?
Our quarterly earnings are significantly greater (a) then (b) than they were in the last report.
(b) than
Which is correct? Contracts (a) which (b) that are complicated may create legal problems.
(b) that
(In a defining clause, use that. In non-defining clauses, use which.)
Business communicators should consider including a forward look, good wishes, a mention of freebies, or references to resale information or promotion in this part of a bad-news message.
Closing
This cell phone and its calling plan (a) cost (b) costs much less than I expected.
(a) cost
(These are two compound nouns- you can have one without the other- so a singular verb is used. This is an exception to the plural verb using 'and' rule. )
Does this sentence have correct structure:
Some employees responded by phone; others emailed their response.
Yes
(a) There (b) Their (c) They're friends aren't coming to the party.
(b) Their
My course syllabi (a) are (b) is stored in my class folder.
(a) are
(Syllabi is the plural form of syllabus)
When the bad news is insignificant and does not personally affect the receiver, you should use this type of writing strategy to organize your negative news.
Direct
If you reject her offer to help, Felicia will feel (a) bad (b) badly
(a) bad
(When you use the sense verbs (taste, look, smell, and feel) descriptively, you should follow them with an adjective)
Does this sentence have correct structure:
Most job seekers offer a printed cover letter; but some are using digital ones.
No
Bonus 300 points: What's wong?
The director can choose from (a) between (b) among seven qualified applicants.
(b) among
Regarding the dress code, (a) one half (b) one-half (c) 1/2 of the employees dress appropriately.
(a) one half
(One half is not hyphenated when used as a noun, but is hyphenated when used as an adjective)
This is the ability to understand and enter into the feelings of another.
Empathy
Everyone on the men’s swimming team must be fitted for (a) his (b) their Speedo.
(a) his
(a gender specific adjective requires a gender specific pronoun)
What sentence structure error (fragment, run-on, or comma splice) does this sentence commit?
Several employees have suggested we create teams to work on the assignment, many are opposed to the idea.
Comma splice
The decision of the president will (a) affect (b) effect our next step in marketing strategy.
(a) affect
Everything in this sentence is lowercase... what are the words that need to be capitalized?
i will receive my bachelor's degree in marketing from the business department at cmu.
____________
To soften bad news, many business writers choose to use this type of organizational strategy.
Indirect
Everyone except the broker and (a) I (b) me (c) myself claimed a share of the commission.
(b) me
(completely remove the other person to see what pronoun should be used)
What sentence structure error (fragment, run-on, or comma splice) does this sentence commit?
The bill for margaritas and burritos was only $15 but we didn’t have enough between us to cover it.
Run-on
Her (a) principle (b) principal concern was customer safety.
(b) principal
Is the following sentence punctuated correctly? The severance package includes two _______ salary for each year worked.
(a) weeks
(b) week's
(c) weeks'
(c) weeks'
(plural AND possessive)
Using this type of voice verb enables you to depersonalize an action and cushion the bad news.
Passive