HESI Grammar Questions

Which of these sentences contains a dependent clause? A.) She said she is feeling hungry, but she is not going to eat. B.) She is hungry but she's not going to eat. C.) Although she is hungry, she is not going to eat. D.) She told me she was hungry but wouldn't eat more.

C.) Although she is hungry, she is not going to eat. *Explanation* "Although she is hungry, she is not going to eat." is correct. A dependent clause begins with words such as although, since, if, when, and because. A dependent clause cannot stand on its own, so it may also be referred to as a "weak" clause.

Which word is the adjective in this sentence? Sally was wearing a sparkly dress. A.) wearing B.) Sally C.) sparkly D.) dress

C.) sparkly adjectives are words that really describe things.

Which of the following is spelled correctly? A.) Embarassing B.) Embarrasing C.) Embarrassing D.) Emberassing

Embarrassing

Which of the following sentences is grammatically correct? A.) Before I lie down to go to sleep, I lay down my book on the nightstand. B.) I lay down my book on the nightstand before I lay down to go to sleep. C.) I lie my book down on the nightstand before I lie down to go to sleep. D.) Before I lay down my book on the nightstand, I like down to go to sleep.

A.) Before I lie down to go to sleep, I lay down my book on the nightstand. Lay means to put something down. It always takes an object. Lie means to recline or to be sedentary and does not take an object.

Which of these sentences is written correctly? A.) It's been a great day. B.) It's has been a great day. C.) Its been a great day. D.) Its has been a great day.

A.) It's been a great day. It's is used in this sentence as a contraction for It has and requires an apostrophe (') to show where letters are missing (h and a). Writing any form of *it's has" would effectively make it mean "it has has."

Which words should be capitalized in this sentence? michelle watched the movie silence of the lambs and was afraid to sleep. A.) Michelle, Silence, Lambs B.) Michelle, Silence C.) Michelle, Silence, Of, The, Lambs D.) Michelle, Movie, Silence, Lambs

A.) Michelle, Silence, Lambs Michelle is the first word in the sentence and it is a person's name. Silence and Lambs are the important words in a movie title. Articles and other small words in titles are not capitalized. The word movie, as used in this sentence, is just an improper noun because it is not part of the name of something, so it is not capitalized.

Which sentence is written correctly? A.) She has a lot of grapes. B.) She have a lot of grapes. C.) Her has a lot of grapes. D.) She has alot of grapes.

A.) She has a lot of grapes. She is the pronoun used when a female is the subject of the sentence. Her is also a pronoun for a female, but it is used when the person is the object of the sentence: "I gave the grapes to her." The pronoun she is singular and requires using has. Have is the verb used for plural nouns, such as they. There is no such word as alot. The two words, a and lot are always separated.

Which word in the following sentence is the subject? The opera singer's solo had a profound impact on the audience? A.) solo B.) impact C.) audience D.) opera singer

A.) Solo The subject of a sentence is the person, place, thing, or idea that is doing or being something. Ask yourself: what "had" an impact? The answer is the "solo." That must be the subject.

Select the word that makes the following sentence grammatically correct. The nursing staff ____________ to serve their patients well. A.) hope B.) hopes C.) hoping D.) does hope

A.) hope *Explanation* The word staff may be singular or plural. Here, the pronoun their indicates that it is being used as a plural noun, which means that the verb that agrees is hope, not HOPES.

Which word is used incorrectly in the following sentence? Dr. Leo lay the paperwork out upon the table for us to view. A.) lay B.) upon C.) us D.) view

A.) lay *Explanation* The past-tense for of the intransitive verb lie is lay. That kind of verb does not take a direct object. The past tense form of the transitive verb lay is laid. Dr. Leo laid the paperwork out on the table.

Select the word that makes the following sentence grammatically correct. It is important that one is able to self-motivate and work by ____________. A.) oneself B.) oneselves C.) hisself D.) themselves

A.) oneself *Explanation* The pronoun must be reflective and refer back to the pronoun already n the sentence - the pronoun one. The correct form of that reflexive pronoun is shown in choice A

Select the option which makes this sentence grammatically correct. The paid vacation benefit is available to _______ employees in the company. A.) part-and full-time B.) part and full time C.) part and full-time part/and full/time

A.) part-and full-time Because with a series of nearly identical compounds, sometimes the final term is delays until the last instance, allowing the hyphen to act as a kind of place holder.

Which of these sentences uses punctuation correctly? A.) Honestly Michelle what you are suggesting is never going to work. B.) Honestly, Michelle: what you are suggesting is never going to work. C.) Honestly Michelle; what you are suggesting is never going to work. D.) Honestly, Michelle; what you are suggesting is never going to work.

B.) Honestly, Michelle: what you are suggesting is never going to work. A colon (:) is used to indicate that more information follows the first part of the sentence. A semicolon (;) is used when the second part is simply related to the first part. The comma after honestly separates it from the person being addressed, adding a slight pause when spoken.

Which of the following sentences is grammatically correct? A.) since the professor was excessively boring; many of his students fell asleep. B.) Since the professor was excessively boring, many of his students fell asleep. C.) Since the professor was excessively boring many of his students fell asleep. D.) Since the professor was, excessively boring, many of his students fell asleep.

B.) Since the professor was excessively boring, many of his students fell asleep. This sentence is made up an independent clause and a dependent clause. There should be a comma separating the two clauses. No other punctuation is necessary.

Which sentence is written correctly? A.) Their going to Disney World next year. B.) They're going to Disney World next year. C.) There going to Disney World next year D.) Theyre going to Disney World next year.

B.) They're going to Disney World next year. They're is a contraction for the words they are, which makes sense in this sentence. There is a term for a place, like "over there." Their is used to show possession by more than one person, as in "Their book is on the table."

What word is the conjunction in the following sentence? Michael wanted to play basketball in college, but he had a hard time keeping his grades up. A.) play B.) but C.) wanted D.) had

B.) but A conjunction is a word used to connect individual words, phrases, and independent clauses. Other examples include and, or, nor, for, so, and yet.

Which is the correct verb form to use in the blank in this sentence? "Each player and coach on staff ____ for a new sports facility by next season." A.) hoping B.) hopes C.) hope D.) will have been hoping

B.) hopes The word each means that we are talking about a singular subject. Even though there may be more than one player or coach, each of them has this individual hope, so the verb must also be in the singular form, which is hopes. Note that, even though the word hopes appears to be plural, is is the singular form of the verb, to hope. In other words, it is the form of the verb that goes with all singular subjects: he hopes, she hopes etc. A plural subject, like they, would take the plural form of the verb, which has no s: hope (they hope).

Select the best word for the blank in the following sentence. Neither of the flower bouquets _________ as full as the one we ordered last year. A.) are B.) is C.) were D.) being

B.) is The verb is a neither/nor sentence agrees with the noun or pronoun closest to it. However, since "nor" is missing from the sentence, that makes "neighter" the subject. It is singular and should take the singular verb "is."

Select the best word for the blank in the following sentence. She was _______ exhausted than her sister after they ran the marathon. A.) most B.) more C.) increasingly D.) the more

B.) more Explanation: Since we are only comparing two individuals: the subject, She," and "her sister" we need to use the correct comparative form, "more." The word "most" is used when we're discussing three or more people. There is no need to use the article "the" in front of "more."

Select the word or phrase that makes the following sentence grammatically correct. After ___________ for an entire afternoon, the resident felt revitalized. A.) having rest B.) resting C.) rested D.) rest

B.) resting

Select the correct world for the blank in the following sentence. Nurse Junko and ____________ will review the patient's chart. A.) me B.) she C.) them D.) him

B.) she *Explanation* No matter who is working with the Nurse, the pronoun required must be a subject pronoun. Only SHE fulfills this requirements.

What is the simple predicate in this sentence? "Heater never speaks to her anymore." A.) never B.) speaks C.) her D.) Heater

B.) speaks A simple predicate is the verb in the sentence—an action word. The word never describes the verb, Heather is the subject, and her is a pronoun.

What type of clause is underlined in this sentence? "Do not talk to mom until she has had her first cup of coffee." A.) main clause B.) subordinate clause C.) independent clause D.) noun clause

B.) subordinate clause Subordinate clauses cannot stand by themselves because they do not contain a complete thought. Here, the reader would be left wondering what happens "until she has had her first cup of coffee."

What would be considered the dependent clause in this sentence? "The students could finally see the bus, which was running 15 minutes behind schedule." A.) The students could finally see the bus B.) which was running 15 minutes behind schedule C.) running 15 minutes behind schedule D.) could finally see the bus

B.) which was running 15 minutes behind schedule "which was running 15 minutes behind schedule" is correct. The dependent clause in a sentence is the part which cannot stand alone as a complete sentence and functions a noun, adjective, or adverb.

What would be considered the dependent clause in this sentence? "The students could finally see the bus, which was running 15 minutes behind schedule." A.) running 15 minutes behind schedule B.) which was running 15 minutes behind schedule C.) The students could finally see the bus D.) could finally see the bus

B.) which was running 15 minutes behind schedule The dependent clause in a sentence is the part which cannot stand alone as a complete sentence and functions as a noun, adjective, or adverb.

Which of these sentences contains a dependent clause? A.) She said she is feeling hungry, but should is not going to eat. B.) She told me she was hungry but wouldn't eat more. C.) Although she is hungry, she is not going to eat. D.) She is hungry but she's not going to eat.

C.) Although she is hungry, she is not going to eat. A dependent clause begins with words such as: although, since, if, when, and because. A dependent clause cannot stand on its own, so it may also be referred to as a "weak" clause.

Which sentence is grammatically correct? A.) Because less people showed up to the party, we served fewer cookies. B.) Because fewer people showed up to the party, we served less cookies. C.) Because fewer people showed up to the party, we served fewer cookies. D.) Because less people showed up to the party, we served less cookies.

C.) Because fewer people showed up to the party, we served fewer cookies. Both people and cookies are items you can count and would require the use of the word fewer. The word less is used to describe the amount of something generally appearing in bulk form and, therefore, uncountable, such as less sand or less water. However, you would write "fewer" bags of sand" and "fewer glasses of water."

Which sentence is grammatically correct? A.) Wash the baby with carefully unscented, hypoallergenic soap. B.) Wash the baby with unscented, hypoallergenic soap, carefully. C.) Carefully wash the baby with unscented, hypoallergenic soap. D.) Wash, carefully, the baby with unscented, hypoallergenic soap.

C.) Carefully wash the baby with unscented, hypoallergenic soap. This is the most concise way to express this direction. The word carefully should describe how you wash the baby and not describe the soap used. Carefully should also be as close to the action word, wash, as possible.

Which of these sentences is written correctly? A.) Him likes everything accept the Brussels sprouts. B.) He likes everything accept the Brussels sprouts. C.) He likes everything except the Brussels sprouts. D.) Him likes everything except the Brussels sprouts.

C.) He likes everything except the Brussels sprouts. He is the correct pronoun to use as a subject. Accept means to receive and would not make sense in this sentence. **Brussels is capitalized here as the vegetable is named for the city of Brussels. However, some publications choose to leave it lowercase, so you may see it written both ways.

Which of the following sentences is grammatically correct? A.) My favorite outdoor activities including fly-fishing, and river-rafting. B.) My favorite outdoor activities include camping and fly-fishing, and also river-rafting. C.) My favorite outdoor activities include camping, fly-fishing, and river rafting. D.) My favorite outdoor activities include camping and fly-fishing and river-rafting.

C.) My favorite outdoor activities include camping, fly-fishing, and river rafting. Items in a list should be separated by commas.

Which of these sentences is grammatically correct? A.) One of my best friends is getting married next weak. B.) One of my best friends are getting married next week. C.) One of my best friends is getting married next week. D.) One of my best friend's is getting married next week.

C.) One of my best friends is getting married next week. Only this sentence has correct subject-verb agreement, correct punctuation, and the right word choice.

What is the correct form of the missing words? The red car in the parking lot belong to Sarah Jones. James knew that ___________ car was new and fast. A.) Sarah Jone's B.) Sarah Jones C.) Sarah Jones's or Sarah Jones' D.) Sarah Joneses

C.) Sarah Jones's or Sarah Jones' Apostrophes show possession and one is needed here to show that the car belongs to Sarah Jones. Different references give various recommendations for doing this with words that end in s. Both the versions in this answer choice are listed as correct methods by certain grammar authorities.

What is the correct way to write the missing words in this sentence? The children learned that the __________ is sometimes considered a turning point of the war. A.) sledge of vicksburg B.) siege of Vicksburg C.) Siege of Vicksburg D.) Siege Of Vicksburg

C.) Siege of Vicksburg The Siege of Vicksburg was a battle in the American Civil War and it is considered a proper noun. Proper nouns are people, places, organizations, and sometimes things and they must be capitalized. Prepositions (words like as, at, by, for, in, of, on, per, and to), are not typically capitalized unless they begin a sentence.

Which of these sentences is written correctly? A.) The girl wanted himself to take her to the store. B.) The girl wanted him to take her to the store, hisself. C.) The girl wanted him to take her to the store. D.) The girl wanted he to take her to the store.

C.) The girl wanted him to take her to the store. The correct form of the masculine pronoun for this sentence is him because it is used as an object. He would be used if it was the subject, as in "He took her to the store." Himself is not correct at this place in the sentence, but could be used to emphasize who she wanted to take her, as in "She wanted him to take her to the store, himself." There is no such word as hisself. The correct word is himself.

Which of these sentences contains an active verb tense? A.) The woman was given an engagement ring by her boyfriend B.) The boy was rewarded with a trophy for his win. C.) The lawyer presented his case to the jury. D.) The spaghetti was quickly devoured by the hungry children.

C.) The lawyer presented his case to the jury. This is the correct answer because active tense is when the subject of the sentence is performing the action. Passive verb tense shows the receiver of the action as the subject and is used in the other three choices.

The underlined word in the sentence is which part of speech? "The panda chewed his bamboo shoot slowly and carefully." A.) article B.) pronoun C.) adverb D.) verb

C.) adverb Adverbs explain how something is done and usually end in -ly. In this case, carefully explains how the panda chewed (which is the verb in the sentence).

In the following sentence, which is the dependent clause? The World War II soldier was a hero, especially because of his actions during the invasion of Normandy. A.) The World War II soldier. B.) was a hero. C.) especially because of his actions during the invasion of Normandy D.) the invasion of Normandy

C.) especially because of his actions during the invasion of Normandy A dependent clause is a group of words with a noun and a verb. It does not express a complete thought so it is not a sentence and can't stand alone. The independent clause here is, "The World War II soldier was a hero," since that could stand on its own as a complete thought. The rest of the sentence, separated by a comma, is a dependent clause.

Select the best word for the blank in the following sentencve. Germany has ___________ bluebells than does England. A.) the least B.) less C.) fewer D.) lesser

C.) fewer The word "fewer" is used to describe a countable noun that decreases. "Bluebells" is countable, so we would use "fewer." "Less" is used for uncountable amounts. "Least" is superlative and is used to relate three or more items in a group.

Which transition best completes this sentence correctly? Sarah did not realize until after she arrived in New York that she had left her ball gown at home; ___________, she was fortunate enough to find a shop that rented them by the evening. A.) because B.) while C.) however D.) after all

C.) however However is the correct answer because 'however' indicates that the relationship between two independent clauses is one of contrast or opposition. In this example, the first independent clause is a negative one, while the second is the positive that contrasts it.

What is the simple predicate in this sentence? Heather never speaks to her anymore. A.) never B.) Heather C.) speaks D.) her

C.) speaks A simple predicate is the verb in the sentence - an action word. The word never describes the verb. Heather is the subject, and her is a pronoun.

Which one is the correct verb form to use in this sentence? My shower ________ a leak Friday night. A.) spring B.) spranged C.) sprang D.) sprung

C.) sprang The action occurred in the past, therefore, sprang would be used because it is the simple past tense of the word spring. You would only use sprung if it was preceded by have, had, or has, as in "I noticed that my shower had sprung a leak."

Which sentence is grammatically correct? A.) Kevin prays for his sister's salvation at St. Mary's Church, fervently. B.) Kevin prays at St. Mary's Church fervently for his sister's salvation. C.) None of these are grammatically correct. D.) Kevin prays fervently at St. Mary's Church for his sister's salvation.

D.) Kevin prays fervently at St. Mary's Church for his sister's salvation. This choice presents the information in the clearest and most concise manner. Modifiers, such as "fervently," should be placed adjacent to the verb they modify. The other two versions of the sentence do not accomplish this.

What is the correct way to write the missing words in this sentence? Cara chose to study Jupiter, Saturn, ___________ for her science project. A.) Neptune, and The Sun B.) neptune, and the sun C.) Neptune, and the sun D.) Neptune, and the Sun

D.) Neptune, and the Sun Both "Neptune" and "Sun" are capitalized in this sentence because they are proper nouns. Proper nouns are always capitalized and they include name-specific people, places, organizations, and things. Note: If you were talking about suns, in general, of which there are many in the universe, you would not capitalize the word sun. Example: "Each solar system revolves around a sun." Then, you would not be talking about any particular sun. But, when you use the article the before sun, it indicates one particular sun and that is capitalized.

Which of the following sentences is grammatically correct? A.) The soccer player ran quick to the goal. B.) The soccer player did run quickly to the goal. C.) The soccer player did ran quickly to the goal. D.) The soccer player ran quickly to the goal.

D.) The soccer player ran quickly to the goal. Since "ran" is a verb, we need the adverb form, "quickly," to modify it. "Quick" is an adjective and describes nouns not verbs.

Which punctuation mark would correctly fill in the blank space? After standing in the rain for nearly half an hour __________ Dawn decided she was not going to wait on Mike any longer. A.) no punctuation necessary B.) a semicolon C.) a colon D.) a comma

D.) a comma In this sentence, the word "after" is a common starter word for the introductory clause and should be followed by a comma. A clause is a group of words that contain both a subject and a predicate and help to form a sentence. Other common starter words that require a comma after the introductory clause include when, while, although, and since.

Which punctuation mark would correctly fill in the blank space in this sentence? Jane ordered the steak __ Mark ordered the chicken salad. A.) no punctuation B.) a comma (,) C.) a colon (:) D.) a semicolon (;)

D.) a semicolon (;) These are two independent clauses, which could each function as a complete sentence. To keep them together in one sentence, they need a semicolon to hold them together because a comma just isn't strong enough for two independent clauses. Without any punctuation, it becomes a run-on sentence.

Which word in the following sentence is a preposition? The Vikings traveled in wooden boats across the Atlantic Ocean. A.) Vikings B.) traveled C.) boats D.) across

D.) across There are two prepositions in this sentence: "in" and "across". The word "Vikings" is a noun, and "boats" is also a noun. The word "traveled" is a verb.

Please select the combination of words that makes these sentences correct: "I'm searching for good __________ that will help me get my finances in order. Can you ________ me on what I should do? A.) advise, advise B.) advise, advice C.) advice, advice D.) advice, advise

D.) advice, advise

Which word from the following sentence is a noun? The dog jumped into the air to catch the Frisbee. A.) jumped B.) into C.) catch D.) air

D.) air a noun is a person, place, or thing. There are several nouns in this sentence: Dog, air, frisbee. The word "jumped" is a verb as is "catch." The word "into" is a preposition.

Which punctuation mark would correctly fill in the blank space? "After standing in the rain for nearly half an hour __________ Dawn decided she was not going to wait on Mike any longer." A.) a colon B.) no punctuation necessary C.) semicolon D.) comma

D.) comma A comma is the correct answer. In this sentence, the word "after" is a common starter word for the introductory clause and should be followed by a comma. A clause is a group of words that contain both a subject and a predicate and help to form a sentence. Other common starter words that require a comma after the introductory clause include when, while, although, and since.

Which of the words in this sentence is a noun? The girl likes to run and jump. A.) and B.) run C.) likes D.) girl

D.) girl A noun in a person, place, or thing.

Which one is the correct verb form to use in this sentence? My shower _______ a leak Friday night. A.) spranged B.) sprung C.) Spring D.) sprang

D.) sprang The action occurred in the past, therefore, sprang would be used because it is the simple past tense of the word spring. You would only use sprung if it was preceded by have, had, or has, as in "I noticed that my shower had sprung a leak."