General UK English Basics MCQs

1. What is [...] called?

2. Choose the sentence with correct capitalisation:

3. My brother was in an accident a few years ago; he _____ have been badly injured, but came away without a scratch.

4. Chocolate cake was her favorite _____.

5. 'The battle was won' is an example of:

6. Correct abbreviation for three million pounds?

7. They ____ want to eat ______ vegetables.

8. It's preferable not to compare one employee's performance ____ another's.

9. The project at work is going ____, and that makes me feel ____.

10. 'The bird is __ the branch.'

11. 'The family went __ France last summer'

12. Is it ___ early for a pause?

13. The situation is complex: it has many ... .

14. Which is the past participle?

15. Which is an example of the passive voice?

16. Which shows correct use of parentheses?

17. _____ going to see ______ boyfriend tonight.

18. They .... students.

19. It's a very affordable shop, thanks to the ____ prices.

20. His actions will ... the result.

21. All of the following are prepositions EXCEPT:

22. ____ time for the government to flex ____ muscle.

23. 'He prepared for his wifes return.'

24. An adjective is:

25. Why is the active voice generally preferred to the passive voice in writing?

26. both the semicolon and the comma can be correctly used to separate items on a list.

27. A team specializing in explosives was called in to _____ the bomb.

28. 'I was just listening to a wonderful program on ____'

29. 'He refused to admit ____ any wrongdoing.' Which is the best answer?

30. Excellent point, he responded, thank you for speaking up.

31. The apostrophe is used for all of the following reasons EXCEPT:

32. The ______ soldiers we have, the _____ I like our chances.

33. An example of a pronoun is:

34. It is never necessary to write 'the reason why is,' as opposed to 'the reason is.'

35. The car had a blown

36. If a statement is false, then it _____ be true.

37. The building is twelve _____ tall.

38. If the archers don't _____ their volley soon, the army will surely _____ the battle.

39. 'I don't like to dance, I don't like music' is an example of:

40. The ____ of the policy was ____ in solving the larger problem.

41. What is the rule for adding -s to a number (such as dozen, hundred, thousand, million, etc) when describing quantities?

42. A true gentleman, James was always ... about his great wealth.

43. 'He wasn't sure whether or not she would arrive on time.' Which part of this sentence is incorrect?

44. 'I decided to never see her again' is an example of:

45. There was blood everywhere: it was a _____ scene.

46. Where should a full stop be inserted in: 'If only Ms Smith had arrived sooner,' Dr Jones said

47. The ... complex of buildings was ... to navigate

48. The doctor's ... is next door to the room where the violinist goes to ...

49. When referring to divine figures in ancient Greece or Rome, which capitalisation is correct?

50. What is the general rule for writing numbers?

51. The demonstration was contemporary ___ the graduation ceremony.

52. London is the _____ of the UK, and the Pound Sterling is its _____.

53. 'Winged and feathered, I saw the raven' is an example of:

54. All of the following can be used to correct a run-on sentence EXCEPT:

55. The ... colours ... your eyes.

56. 'The citizen became vexed ___ the electoral process.'

57. 'The place was a mess; we decided to seek other accomodations.'

58. How many spaces can correctly follow a full stop?

59. Which is the proper use of 'hopefully'

60. 'After the weekend retreat, cohesion improved ____ group members.''

61. ... your homework can you play.

62. If you ... more trouble in the neighbourhood, don't let criminals escape. They ... caught and put behind bars.

63. Don't ... think you should tell ... boss that you did not write the report ... ?

64. He said, 'They had finished the work when I arrived.'

65. Which sentence is punctuated correctly?

66. Which sentence illustrates proper sentence structure?

67. Which sentence illustrates the proper use of commas?

68. Do you seriously like this weird T-shirt of yours?

69. Which sentence illustrates correct usage of articles and conjunctions?

70. This drink ... too sweet. Why ... so much sugar in it?

71. Which sentence does NOT illustrate correct verb and verb tense usage?

72. They said, 'We are enjoying the weather.'

73. Had I known this, .... .

74. He said, 'I will open the door.'

75. A nation ... to be great.

76. He said, 'I made a table.'

77. It's never too late to learn how to swim .... you may fall off a boat!

78. although she's a little shy, she's a wonderful person once you get to know her.

79. ... is the name of this movie, and .... actor is this?

80. Did you take up that job?

81. James spoke .... to the audience urging them to elect him chairman of the college. He knew he had a .... chance of winning the election.

82. I regret ... you names; I should not .... so.

83. Which sentence illustrates proper sentence structure?

84. Under that reason he's? for some impression Italian Spanish I the was he was

85. He said, 'I had been reading a newspaper when the light went off.'

86. I studied ... Oxford. Last week, I had an interview ... a programming position ... Google.

87. Bratislava is not .... big ... Budapest

88. Everything ... white because it .... .

89. Which sentence is punctuated correctly?

90. I will go to ... concert, but ... you go as well.

91. Although Barbara speaks ... and seems quite ... , she is the leading expert in her field.

92. .... musicians delivered .... rousing performance .... they had rehearsed often.

93. Do you know if Harlon ____________Japanese before moving to Japan?

94. Which sentence is NOT punctuated correctly?

95. about music its the I most film is love what this

96. Carol has said, 'I am responsible for this project'.

97. 'Sharon must go to the bank today', said Albert.

98. Your company name ? of What the is

99. Jeremy drove his motorcycle ... the bridge, ... the hill, and ... the diner before finally parking it ... two police cars.

100. Only after they had completed an exhaustive study ... how to adapt the technology to the needs of our company.

101. Which sentence illustrates correct pronoun usage?

102. If Harry .... to the party too early, don't let him in; he .... outside like everyone else.

103. Jerry said, 'I saw my cousin at the fair'.

104. I'm not feeling well,' Agatha said.

105. I think Fran could be ... great public speaker, ... she is still too shy to try it.

106. Which sentence illustrates the proper use of apostrophes?

107. Neither we ________ Sal, our neighbour, could understand ________ it had been our dog Rover or Sal's cat Mittens _________ had destroyed all the flower beds in the middle of _______ night.

108. Knowing that February was the ... month of the year, Cheryl planned her vacation ... .

109. Which sentence is punctuated correctly?

110. Would I have it anything if had . I you known said would not bother

111. Rhonda says, 'I get to work early every day'.

112. 'I will be moving soon', said Alma.

113. ..... she was feeling ill, Teresa wanted to eat only .... apple .... some soup.

114. Lilacs .... violets are usually purple, .... I have seen some .... are white.

115. Which sentence illustrates the proper use of parallel construction?

116. to sleep likes . midday Katie until at weekends

117. Charlotte knew .... the secret investigation .... her past, but she closed her eyes to it and pretended it wasn't happening.

118. Don't .... think Larry should call .... wife if .... is going to be late for dinner?

119. This dish ... too spicy. Why .... so much pepper?

120. I find it very hard to remember ... letters that are entrusted to me. In fact, I remember .... to do so scores of times!

121. Which sentence illustrates the proper use of commas?

122. 'It may snow tomorrow', he said.

123. That tall man is carrying a lot of lumber.

124. days . for last has good weather few The been the not

125. last what ! it's did you night , over After

126. Did you hear the weather forecast for tomorrow?

127. 'I can meet you at noon', said Peter.

128. After realising that our hosts hadn't actually invited ... to .... party, .... excused ... from the table and slipped out the back door.

129. It is easy to carry solid objects, but the same cannot be said of liquids. REWRITTEN SENTENCES:

130. I think Pamela deserves to be punished for her ... stupid and ... behaviour.

131. Which sentence illustrates the proper use of parallel construction?

132. Although the issue was very serious, the committee disposed .... it in a few minutes and moved .... to other business.

133. We were surprised when the ... parade ... turned into a ... party!

134. with can't phone . on Whenever always to the time spend I speak I my friend , him

135. Which sentence does NOT illustrate proper use of articles and conjunctions?

136. Everyone ... too busy cooking and .... the campsite .... the family of bears .... from the woods.

137. Alison regrets .... you with her remarks; she never meant .... so.

138. Of the two books, Sam's is definitely the .... ; however, even though Sandra's didn't turn out as .... as expected, she still did a __________ job of writing it.

139. Did you see the show last night?

140. Which sentence illustrates correct pronoun usage?

141. Which sentence is NOT punctuated correctly?

142. Mr. Peach has sent his four children to Ivy League colleges .... he has sacrificed his health working day and night in that dusty factory.

143. Which sentence illustrates proper sentence structure?

144. Whiskey, my pet squirrel, jumped ... my head and ... the windowsill.

145. .... is the name of the opera, and .... role did you say Maria would play?

146. Which does NOT illustrate correct verb and verb tense usage?

147. Jack, leaning casually .... the tree, watched as Sally walked slowly .... him.

148. Which sentence illustrates correct usage of articles and conjunctions?

149. I placed my notes ... my desk and referred to them ... the meeting.

150. That house used to be ... , but ... have given it to ....

151. Victor, who stole ... ideas and used them to make ... a millionaire, never once offered .... a word of thanks.

152. Will you be going to the company picnic this year?

153. The deer ran quickly ... the trees, its hooves pounding .... the forest floor.

154. Does Jack wear that furry hat often?

155. The excited children, who had run toward the loud ... .

156. work . is always to brother willing not My

157. Julia, who is studying to be .... foreign correspondent, is currently doing ... internship in .... Middle East ... will return before the end of ..... year.

158. Which illustrates proper sentence structure?

159. Which illustrates correct verb and verb tense usage?

160. Those who are not wise .... .

161. Which illustrates correct usage of articles and conjunctions?

162. While .... of our relatives live on the .... hill in the county, ..... of our friends live in the .... .... areas of the valley.

163. The archaeologists were .... to discover such a ... and ..... ..... artefact at that mostly uncovered site.

164. Although Marvin said he had hidden the keys .... the flower pot, we were unable to find them .... the dark. In the end, we waited for him at the coffee shop .... the corner.

165. The .... , .... odour was ..... coming from the chemistry lab up the street.

166. The helium-... balloon rose .... into the air; the villagers knew then that their .... leader was off on another mission.

167. Which sentence does NOT illustrate correct pronoun usage?

168. Although both did a good job in ..... contemporary pieces, the taller dancer showed more flair in ... .

169. Which illustrate(s) correct verb and verb tense usage?