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Parts of Speech
Punctuation
Sentence Structure
Spelling
Common Errors
100
Which of these words is a verb? A - honesty B - respectfully C - verify D – clarity
C - verify A verb describes an action or happening or a state (for example, ‘is’). Verbs are essential to clause structure: all clauses contain a verb.
100
What is missing? "I want to go to Dreamworld," said Mary "so that I can take on the Tower of Terror."
Add a comma. "I want to go to Dreamworld," said Mary, "so that I can take on the Tower of Terror." Punctuation of direct speech has 4 simple rules. 1. Put the words that are said in quotation marks. 2. Start with a capital letter. 3. Punctuate what is said inside the quotation marks. 4. Use commas to separate the internal attribution (said Mary).
100
Which word is correct? Curtis, of all the singers who are in the choir, is/are the best.
Curtis, of all the singers who are in the choir, is the best. There is a basic rule that states that a verb must agree with its subject. In this complex sentence, the singular 'Curtis' must match with the verb 'is'.
100
Which word is incorrect? How should it be spelled? Their were three gentlemen sipping cappuccinos at the cafe.
There
100
Select the correct word: Facebook has fewer/less than 5,000 employees.
Fewer. “Less” refers to quantity and “fewer” to a number.
200
Which of these words in a noun? A - beautiful B - happiness C - effortless
B - happiness. Nouns are participants in a process. The suffix, -ness, changes a verb to a noun. The suffix -less and -ful change nouns to adjectives and that -ly changes an adjective to an adverb.
200
Add brackets to the sentence: In 2007, Kevin Rudd the 26th Prime Minister of Australia delivered an apology to Indigenous Australians for the Stolen Generations.
In 2007, Kevin Rudd (the 26th Prime Minister of Australia) delivered an apology to Indigenous Australians for the Stolen Generations . When the information enclosed in brackets is omitted, the meaning of the text should be correct and grammatically accurate.
200
Which word is correct? We sailed out of the harbour into the ocean which was/is churning and frothing.
We sailed out of the harbour into the ocean which was churning and frothing. The tense of the sentence must be maintained by matching 'sailed' with 'was'.
200
Which word is incorrect? How should it be spelled? She died her hair a natural auburn tone.
Dyed
200
Identify the error: I didn't do nothing!
If you didn't do nothing then you did do something. “Didn’t” and “nothing” are both negative, so they essentially cancel each other out and make this sentence mean the exact opposite of what the speaker intended.
300
Which sentence uses an adverb correctly? A - She completed the test as quick as possible. B - He opened the door real quiet. C - He folded the note carefully.
C - He folded the note carefully. An adverb contributes additional but non-essential information about the various circumstances of the verb. In English many adverbs have an –ly ending.
300
Which punctuation mark is missing? "Dan looks very ill," said Jane. "Do you think he needs to go to the hospital"
A question mark is needed before the last quotation mark: "Dan looks very ill," said Jane. "Do you think he needs to go to the hospital?" Punctuation of direct speech has 4 simple rules. 1. Put the words that are said in quotation marks. 2. Start with a capital letter. 3. Punctuate what is said inside the quotation marks. 4. Use commas to separate the internal attribution (said Jane).
300
Choose the correct verb: The town was picturesque but dull, its chief attraction _________ proximity to the mountain trails. A - is B - been C – being
C – being
300
Which word is incorrect? How should it be spelled? She drew a strait line with her ruler.
Straight
300
Select the correct word: This year has brought excitement for my friends and I/ me.
me. If you were going to say that without the mention of your friends, you wouldn’t say, “This year has brought excitement for I.” You would say “me.”
400
Which part of the sentence is a preposition: I stole his keys and escaped over the wall.
over. Prepositions provide information about time and place.
400
Should a colon (:), semi-colon (;) or comma (,) be used? There's no answer __ they're probably not in.
There's no answer; they're probably not in. A semi-colon (;) separates two independent clauses
400
Which word is correct? I was very angry and/but consequently I lost my temper when she teased me.
I was very angry and consequently I lost my temper when she teased me. Consequently means 'as a result'.
400
Which word is incorrect? How should it be spelled? She was aloud to go the party if she agreed to a curfew.
Allowed
400
Identify the error: There are alot of aggravating sand flies at the beach.
A lot needs to be written in two words. There are lots and lots but never alots and alots.
500
Which part of this sentence is the adjectival clause? The police officer who was making her first arrest was the last person to leave the crime scene.
who was making her first arrest. Adjectival clauses begin with a relative pronoun (such as who, whom, whose, which or that) and provide more information about the noun.
500
Where should commas be added to this sentence? Sue who normally smiles at everyone was quiet and reserved after the news.
Sue, who normally smiles at everyone, was quiet and reserved after the news. In this sentence, an adjectival clause is used to elaborate on the main noun, Sue. Commas separate this clause from the independent (or main) clause.
500
Which word is correct? She said the weekend might/would have been all right, but the weather was poor.
She said the weekend might have been all right, but the weather was poor. Might, as a modal verb shows possibility (It might have been all right) Would, as a modal verb shows conditionality (It would have been all right if the weather was better).
500
Which word is incorrect? How should it be spelled? The patience were waiting over an hour for the nurse to check their blood pressure.
Patients
500
Identify the error: I'm so tired I want to lay down.
Lie. “Lay” is only used when you are acting upon an object other than yourself e.g. you will lay the keys on the table; a chicken will lay an egg.