UK English Grammar Quiz # 2

Identify the sentence that illustrates the correct verb tense usage

In Austen's novel, Marianne Dashwood makes a spectacle of herself at the ball and is quickly spirited away by her sister.

My favourite part of The Wizard of Oz is when the house fell on the witch.

In Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing, Claudio accuses Hero of wanton behaviour and, as a result, almost lost his chance at love.

Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath tells the story of the Joad family and the many harsh obstacles they faced.

Choose the series of verbs that best completes the following passage. Garrett ___________ ostracized by the other penguins for so long that he no longer noticed the way they _________ him. For their part, the others _________ Garrett _________ a rogue.

has been, shun, believe, to be

had been, shunned, believed, to be

was, shunned, believed, was

had been, shun, believe, is

Choose the series of pronouns that best completes the following sentence. The ideological chasm that stretches between __________ and __________ is impassable.

him, I

him, me

he, I

he, me

Choose the series of verbs that best completes the following passage. "I heard you ___________ much better since you ___________ that medication," said Randolph. "Not really," _________ Monica. "Now my insomnia ___________ by nightmares."

were sleeping, took, replied, was replaced

had been sleeping, started to take, replies, is replaced

were sleeping, started to take, replied, is replaced

have been sleeping, started taking, replied, has been replaced

Choose the option that best corrects the pronoun reference error in the following sentence. There is advice about marketing, which is invaluable, in Kerstall's new book.

Kerstall offers invaluable advice about marketing in her new book.

With advice about marketing, the help offered in Kerstall's new book is invaluable.

In Kerstall's new book she offers invaluable advice about marketing.

In her new book, Kerstall offers invaluable advice about marketing.

Choose the series of words that correctly completes the following passage. Stanley worked five hours ________ ________ last week in order to ________ the company's software. The new _________ is really great! I'm going to _________ some cake and champagne for him. Would you ________ the table in the conference room?

overtime, everyday, up grade, set up, pickup, setup

overtime, every day, upgrade, setup, pick up, set up

over time, everyday, upgrade, setup, pickup, set up

overtime, everyday, up grade, set up, pick up, setup

Choose the series of modifiers that best completes the following sentence. _________ enough, even though we mixed all those _________ ingredients together, the cake turned out remarkably ________; however, it did smell _________ while it was baking.

Strange, strange, good, strange

Strangely, strange, well, strange

Strangely, strange, well, strangely

Strangely, strangely, good, strange

Choose the series of pronouns that best completes the following sentence. I met some tourists, ________ of ________ were university students, at my friend's house.

none, which

several, whom

some, who

some, which

Read the following passage and identify the type of sentence structure error it contains. "That moose stood smack-dab in the middle of the road," recounted our neighbour, Griffin, from his hospital bed. "I have only three choices: to hit the brakes and hope for the best, to swerve into the trees and hope for the best, or running him over and hoping for the best. Guess which one I chose?"

Run-on sentence

Diction

Faulty modifier

Parallelism

Verb tense shift

d and e

Identify the sentence that illustrates correct modifier placement.

Left at home alone, the hurricane terrified the young children.

No one is allowed to shoot anything on this property except Mr Lang and his sons.

The speaker with the booming voice was upstaged by a small, meowing kitten.

Charlie and Sarah asked us to go skiing on the phone last night.

Identify the sentence that illustrates correct modifier placement

Felicity ordered a croissant and a hot cup of tea.

I wasn't at all hungry, so I only ordered soup and a salad.

Though Tom has lived there for years, he has hardly any friends.

We barely have enough time to finish our shopping

Choose the option that best corrects the verb tense error in the underlined part of the following sentence. The detailed mosaic work on the ancient altar is of such high quality and rare beauty that no modern artwork of the same genre had ever come close to matching it.

no modern artwork of the same genre had ever come close to matching it

it had no equal compared to modern artwork of the same genre

no modern artwork of the same genre comes close to matching it

no modern artwork of the same genre will ever have come close to matching it

no modern artwork of the same genre has ever come close to matching it

Which of the following sentences uses correct diction?

Seeing chickens on a New York City bus is not an everyday occurrence.

If one wants to get promoted, you should expect to arrive early and stay late.

The loot was divided among Captain Horatio and Sneeter, his assistant.

A diction error is when a writer uses words or phrases that are incorrect in terms of meaning or that are inappropriate to the context of the composition.

a and d

Choose the option that best completes the following sentence. Neither Alice nor Amy mentioned Alan's arrogant behaviour ____

lest he'd lose his temper

lest he lose his temper

lest he loses his temper

less he lose his temper

Read the following passage and identify the type of sentence structure error it contains. Mr Grink, who was walking along the boulevard dressed in an impeccable tuxedo, was blissfully unaware of the black clouds of discontent that were gathering menacingly behind him.

Comma splice

Pronoun reference

Misplaced modifier

Subject-verb agreement

Verb tense shift

Identify the sentence that illustrates clear pronoun reference.

After putting the silverware in the cabinet, Mabel sold it.

The clowns told the acrobats that they would receive a bonus after the performance.

Rhonda filed a complaint with the police, but they were unresponsive.

We called Dr. Arnold's office all day, but he never answered the phone.

Choose the option that best corrects the sentence structure error underlined in the following sentence. The martini, very dry, was sipped taciturnly by Sebastian while Wanda, absentmindedly twirling the little umbrella in her cocktail, stared at him maliciously.

The martini, very dry, was sipped taciturnly by Sebastian

The very dry martini was taciturnly sipped by Sebastian

Sebastian sipped his very dry martini taciturnly

Sebastian, who sipped his dry martini taciturnly,

Sebastian taciturnly sipped his very dry martini

Choose the option that best corrects the verb tense error in the underlined part of the following sentence. Just as the second act was about to start, the stage manager came out and told the audience that the lead actress fell ill during intermission and needed the aid of a doctor before the show could go on.

that the lead actress fell ill during intermission and needed the aid of a doctor

that the lead actress fell ill during intermission and had needed the aid of a doctor

that the lead actress had fallen ill during intermission and needed the aid of a doctor

that the lead actress has been ill during intermission and would need the aid of a doctor

that the lead actress was ill during intermission and had been in need of a doctor's aid

Identify the sentence that illustrates correct subject-verb agreement.

These solar panels and that potted plant make the studio seem so much airier.

Amanda is one of those people who loves afternoon football games.

Either Cassandra or her children is going to Hawaii for the holidays.

Jack was the only one of the climbers who were injured.

Identify the sentence that illustrates correct subject-verb agreement

My favourite topic is plays by Brecht.

Gary as well as his father were frightened of the chimpanzee.

Both the orange and the lemon is rich in vitamin C.

The major, instead of the generals who had been asked to appear, are scheduled to review the troops at graduation.

Choose the option that best completes the following sentence. The general rule in grammar is to place modifiers _______________ .

as close as possible to the beginning of the sentence

immediately before the words they modify

as close as possible to the words they modify

immediately after the words they modify

Choose the option that best corrects the diction errors in the underlined part of the following sentence. After two thrilling hours at the toy store, Gregory was devastated to learn that he'd have to choose between his eleven action figures; you see, the sign at the check out counter said,

between his eleven action figures; you see, the sign at the check out counter said,

among his eleven action figures; you see, the sign at the checkout counter said,

among his eleven action figures; you see, the sign at the checkout counter said,

between his eleven action figures; you see, the sign at the check out counter said,

Identify the underlined part of the sentence below. Although she pretends otherwise, Martha can't stand the haughty people at her country club.

Simple subject

Simple predicate

Predicate

Direct object

Object complement

Identify the sentence that illustrates correct pronoun-antecedent agreement.

If one wants to do well in this job, you should watch, listen, and learn.

The fine arts gallery will be presenting the works of their students next week.

When the baby is done with the bottle, it must be sterilized.

The snow, which was falling gently, melted on my upturned face.

Identify the sentence that illustrates correct pronoun-antecedent agreement..

Each of the trainers completes seven sessions a week with his or her animals.

Neither the supervisor nor his assistants did his job well.

The secret agent, instead of his underlings, are planning the sting.

Every person on the cruise had to jump overboard in order to save their lives.

Complete the following sentence by choosing the pronoun that agrees with the antecedent. When Crenshaw finally appeared on stage and saved the day, the audience roared _________ approval.

Their

Its

his

one's

Complete the following sentence by choosing the pronouns that agree with the antecedents. Although both did a good job in ____________ contemporary pieces, the taller dancer showed more flair in ___________.

her, hers

her, theirs

their, hers

his or her, theirs

Choose the option that best corrects the comparison error in the underlined part of the following sentence. Although Merlin was renowned for his superb wizardry and general sagacity, Mingo, his unheralded apprentice, was every bit accomplished and intelligent like Merlin.

accomplished and intelligent as Merlin

as accomplished and intelligent like Merlin

as accomplished and intelligent as Merlin

accomplished and intelligent than Merlin

Choose the series of modifiers that best completes the following sentence. We heard your performance was really __________ last night and felt __________ that we had missed it.

well, bad

good, badly

well, badly

good, bad

Identify the sentence that illustrates correct use of modifiers.

Of the two companies, Groose & Grouse is the more reliable.

I had never seen so much people in one place—it was truly frightening!

Mt. Kiskayuna is the taller of the three peaks of the mountain range.

Grandpa always said that he preferred less words and more action.