English grammar - Apr 14, 14:49 – 20 Practice Problems & Printable PDF

1. Which sentence uses the correct form of the verb?

A. She has ate all the cookies. B. She has eaten all the cookies. C. She have eaten all the cookies. D. She had ate all the cookies.

Solution

Correct: B

The present perfect tense requires the past participle 'eaten' and the auxiliary 'has' for third-person singular subjects. 'Ate' is simple past and cannot follow 'has/have.'

2. Identify the sentence that correctly uses a semicolon.

A. I like apples; because they are sweet. B. I like apples; my brother prefers oranges. C. I like apples; sweet and crunchy. D. I like apples; however.

Solution

Correct: B

A semicolon joins two independent clauses that are closely related. 'I like apples' and 'my brother prefers oranges' are both complete sentences, making the semicolon correct.

3. Which pronoun correctly completes the sentence? 'Neither of the boys forgot ___ homework.'

A. his B. their C. its D. her

Solution

Correct: A

'Neither' is singular, so it requires a singular pronoun. 'His' is the singular masculine possessive pronoun that agrees with 'neither.'

4. Choose the sentence that correctly uses an apostrophe.

A. The dogs bone is buried. B. The dog's bone is buried. C. The dogs' bone is buried. D. The doges bone is buried.

Solution

Correct: B

The bone belongs to one dog, so the singular possessive form is 'dog's.' The apostrophe comes before the 's' for singular possession.

5. Which word is an adverb in the sentence: 'She quickly finished the extremely difficult test'?

A. She B. finished C. extremely D. difficult

Solution

Correct: C

'Extremely' modifies the adjective 'difficult' and tells to what degree, making it an adverb. 'Quickly' is also an adverb, but among the choices only 'extremely' is listed.

6. Select the sentence with the correct subjunctive mood.

A. If I was rich, I would travel. B. If I were rich, I would travel. C. If I am rich, I would travel. D. If I be rich, I would travel.

Solution

Correct: B

The subjunctive mood for hypothetical situations uses 'were' for all subjects. 'Were' after 'I' signals the unreal condition.

7. Which sentence has a dangling modifier?

A. Walking to school, the rain soaked my backpack. B. While walking to school, I got soaked by rain. C. I walked to school in the rain. D. The rain soaked my backpack as I walked to school.

Solution

Correct: A

The introductory phrase 'Walking to school' should modify the subject that follows. Because 'the rain' cannot walk, the modifier is left dangling without a logical subject.

8. Which conjunction is best to complete the sentence? 'Study hard ___ you will pass the exam.'

A. or B. but C. and D. so

Solution

Correct: C

The conjunction 'and' links the imperative 'Study hard' with the positive result 'you will pass,' showing a natural cause-effect relationship.

9. Identify the correct comparative form.

A. This book is more better than that one. B. This book is gooder than that one. C. This book is better than that one. D. This book is best than that one.

Solution

Correct: C

'Better' is the irregular comparative form of 'good.' Using 'more better' is redundant, and 'gooder' is nonstandard.

10. Which sentence uses a non-restrictive clause correctly?

A. My brother who lives in Canada is visiting. B. My brother, who lives in Canada, is visiting. C. My brother who lives in Canada is visiting tomorrow. D. My brother who lives in Canada.

Solution

Correct: B

Commas set off the non-restrictive clause 'who lives in Canada' because it adds extra information rather than identifying which brother.

11. Choose the sentence with correct parallel structure.

A. She likes dancing, swimming, and to run. B. She likes to dance, swim, and running. C. She likes dancing, to swim, and running. D. She likes dancing, swimming, and running.

Solution

Correct: D

All items in the list must use the same grammatical form. 'Dancing, swimming, running' are all gerunds, creating parallelism.

12. Which word correctly completes the sentence? 'Each of the students ___ a new textbook.'

A. have B. has C. having D. had have

Solution

Correct: B

'Each' is singular, so the singular verb 'has' is required. 'Have' would be plural and disagrees with the subject.

13. Identify the correct use of quotation marks.

A. He asked, "What time is it"? B. He asked "What time is it?" C. He asked, "What time is it?" D. He asked, "What time is it"?

Solution

Correct: C

In American English, commas and periods go inside closing quotation marks. The question mark stays inside because it belongs to the quoted question.

14. Which sentence contains a split infinitive?

Written response required.

Solution

Correct: N/A

'To quickly leave' splits the infinitive 'to leave' with the adverb 'quickly,' creating a split infinitive.

15. Select the sentence with the correct use of 'who' or 'whom.'

A. Who did you give the letter to? B. Whom did you give the letter to? C. To who did you give the letter? D. Whom is knocking at the door?

Solution

Correct: B

'Whom' is the object of the preposition 'to.' Rewriting as 'You did give the letter to whom?' shows the need for the object form.

16. Which sentence has the correct subject-verb agreement?

A. The list of items are on the desk. B. The list of items is on the desk. C. The list of items were on the desk. D. The list of items be on the desk.

Solution

Correct: B

The true subject is the singular noun 'list,' so the singular verb 'is' is required. The prepositional phrase 'of items' does not affect agreement.

17. Identify the sentence that correctly uses a colon.

A. She brought: apples, oranges, and bananas. B. She brought apples, oranges: and bananas. C. She brought the following items: apples, oranges, and bananas. D. She brought: three fruits.

Solution

Correct: C

A colon must follow a complete independent clause and introduce a list. 'She brought the following items' is complete, so the colon is correct.

18. Which sentence uses the correct article?

A. She is a honest person. B. She is an honest person. C. She is the honest person. D. She is honest person.

Solution

Correct: B

'Honest' begins with a vowel sound, so 'an' is required. 'A' would create an awkward consonant cluster, and 'the' implies specificity.

19. Choose the sentence with the correct past perfect tense.

A. She had finished her homework before I arrived. B. She has finished her homework before I arrived. C. She finished her homework before I had arrived. D. She had finish her homework before I arrived.

Solution

Correct: A

The past perfect 'had finished' shows an action completed before another past action ('arrived'). The auxiliary 'had' must be followed by the past participle 'finished.'

20. Which sentence contains a gerund phrase?

A. Swimming every morning keeps me fit. B. To swim every morning keeps me fit. C. Swim every morning to keep fit. D. I swim every morning.

Solution

Correct: A

'Swimming every morning' is a gerund phrase functioning as the subject of the sentence. The '-ing' form acts as a noun here.