1.

 

A judicial decision handed down in court uses the _______ level of diction.

 

A.

 

colloquial

 

B.

 

formal

 

C.

 

informal

 

D.

 

popular

 

2.

 

Which of the following sentences uses parallelism effectively?

 

A.

 

The large plant-eating dinosaurs were quite slow, rather stupid, and

 

extremely hungry.

 

B.

 

The Red Sox fans screamed, yelled, and were applauding wildly.

 

C.

 

Laura spent all her time gardening and arranging flowers, when she wasn't in a shoe store to shop.

 

D.

 

The report was good because it was factual and offered many details.

 

3.

 

Which of the following sentences contains one or more strong, active verbs?

 

A.

 

The phone directory was hastily searched by Conrad.

 

B.

 

It was believed by some that Conrad's father had been a war hero.

 

C.

 

Having been away in London for two years, Conrad was happy to see Denise.

 

D.

 

Conrad trembled with anxiety and anticipation as he pressed Denise's doorbell.

 

4.

 

Which of the following is a good rule to follow when proofreading an essay?

 

A.

 

Scan the essay twice, once for organization and once for surface errors.

 

B.

 

Use the computer's spell-check and grammar-check functions to be sure you catch any errors.

 

C.

 

Read the essay aloud to hear where words are missing or awkward phrasings or grammatical errors occur.

 

D.

 

Ask your best friend to critique your essay.

 

5.

 

A student who regularly tracks mistakes in spelling, verb forms, and parallelism is probably

 

A.

 

analyzing the essays' organization.

 

B.

 

keeping an error log.

 

C.

 

using a flowchart.

 

D.

 

focusing on learning style.

 

6.

 

Spotting errors as you proofread is easier if you

 

A.

 

reassess your marked-up copy.

 

B.

 

read your work from the computer screen.

 

C.

 

handwrite your essay.

 

D.

 

use a clean printed copy each time.

 

7.

 

A _______ can be used for both organizing and revising an essay.

 

A.

 

flowchart

 

B.

 

verbal sketch

 

C.

 

graphic organizer

 

D.

 

topic sentence

 

8.

 

Which of the following sentences contains a redundancy?

 

A.

 

Chris had trouble working up even mild enthusiasm for Mike's plan.

 

B.

 

Emily's sister gave birth to a pair of twins.

 

C.

 

At no time did Tony indicate a willingness to admit defeat.

 

D.

 

Steve admired the partially completed stadium.

 

9.

 

During revision, you should scan your paper for _______ words and replace them with concrete words

 

or phrases.

 

A.

 

figurative

 

B.

 

general

 

C.

 

informal

 

D.

 

formal

 

10.

 

Nathan argues that each paragraph in a narrative should support the author's thesis. Nan says that

 

paragraphs in a narrative should illuminate some part of the action. Which one is

 

 

correct?

 

A.

 

Both Nathan and Nan are correct.

 

B.

 

Only Nathan is correct.

 

C.

 

Only Nan is correct.

 

D.

 

Neither Nathan nor Nan is correct.

 

11.

 

In which sentence does the italicized word have a negative connotation?

 

A.

 

Jenna's ethnic background gave her anexoticlook.

 

B.

 

Jack, who is the mostoutspokenmember of the group, led the opposition to the new rule.

 

C.

 

Although she had worked hard in high school, Ruth found the college courseschallenging.

 

D.

 

Matthew was ascrawnykid, but he grew up strong.

 

12.

 

Which of the following is a compound sentence?

 

A.

 

Corporate fraud is becoming more common in the United States, and the civil courts are being stretched to their limits.

 

B.

 

Because Viceroy butterflies migrate over very great distances, tracking them is a

 

challenge to entomologists.

 

C.

 

Butterflies and hummingbirds feed on the nectar of flowering plants.

 

D.

 

Because fraud is so common in some corporations, regulatory agencies

 

are overworked.

 

13.

 

A passive verb is the better choice if you wish to

 

A.

 

establish a casual tone.

 

B.

 

deemphasize the subject.

 

C.

 

emphasize the subject.

 

D.

 

establish a formal tone.

 

14.

 

What is the sequence of components in the following sentence?

 

Listless and depressed by vistas of snow and gray skies, Dieter left the cabin and walked toward the frozen

 

pond.

 

A.

 

Modifier, subject, modifier, verb

 

B.

 

Subject, verb, modifier

 

C.

 

Subject, modifier, verb

 

D.

 

Modifier, subject, verb

 

15.

 

Which of the followingcorrectlyuses a transitional word or phrase?

 

A.

 

First impressions are so important in both personal and professional life. Addison shaved off his beard.

 

B.

 

Kara has been happily trying lots of new activities lately. For example, she took up needlepoint on the advice of her

 

counselor.

 

C.

 

The floodwaters receded. The bridge could be inspected.

 

D.

 

Sadly, Mark broke his leg during the performance. The director regretted casting him in the part.

 

16.

 

Which of the following sentences contains a dependent clause?

 

A.

 

Kicking and leaping, the three deer behaved like rambunctious rabbits.

 

B.

 

The red sports car that was parked under the tree belongs to Alan.

 

C.

 

Please clear the table and wash the dishes.

 

D.

 

Jared eagerly climbed into the boxing ring; he was on his back and out for the count in less than ten seconds.

 

17.

 

Which statement istrueabout sentence lengths in a written piece?

 

A.

 

Regardless of the sentence type, the audience tends to read at its own pace.

 

B.

 

In spite of their name, compound-complex sentences are usually shorter than compound or complex sentences.

 

C.

 

Short sentences tend to move ideas quickly.

 

D.

 

Varying sentence type has no appreciable effect on relative sentence length.

 

18.

 

Which of the following sentences is without any surface errors?

 

A.

 

I reluctantly gave the hamster to my cousin because I was afraid Teddy, my cat, would attack it.

 

B.

 

It's up to Georgia and I who drives the car, whether Celine likes it or not.

 

C.

 

The town is located near just a few miles from lake Ontario.

 

D.

 

Mr. Campbell gave copies of his novel to Ruth and me.

 

19.

 

Choosing a good reviewer for your writing means finding someone who

 

A.

 

is a close friend and will give you a positive review.

 

End of exam

 

B.

 

concentrates on correcting your spelling and grammar errors.

 

C.

 

will concentrate on your ideas and how well you support them.

 

D.

 

knows everything about writing and will find every mistake.

 

20.

 

Which sentence should be edited to eliminate its cliché?

 

A.

 

The texture of the burlap was a cross between woven straw and a three-day beard.

 

B.

 

Striding toward the barn in her red coverall and bucket hat, Gloria—tall and round—gave the impression of a charging silo.

 

C.

 

I wanted to hire Dave, but a chain is only as strong as its weakest link.

 

D.

 

The family was immensely relieved when Great-Aunt Martha's condition progressed from "critical" to "it looks like she'll live another 10 years