Business English Chapter 4-8
Verbs function as subjects in a sentence. True or False
False
Possessive personal pronouns are possessive _____ that modify nouns.
adjectives
Words that modify or describe nouns or pronouns are called:
adjectives.
The normal order of a sentence is predicate first, then subject. True or False
False
The plural form of "wolf" is "wolfs." True or False
False
The verb tense is the form that tells when the action did or will occur. True or False
False
When a singular or plural noun does not end in "s," the rule for forming its possessive noun is to add an apostrophe only. True or False
False
With regard to adjectives, the comparative degree compares three or more persons or things. True or False
False
a sentence reads "He did not return that day." In this sentence, the pronoun being used is "day." True or False
False
which of the following is an example of a collective noun? Family Person Snakes Toys
Family
Which of the following is the correct singular-plural pair of words?
Father-in-law and Fathers-in-law
Words that answer questions such as "Why?" "When?" "Where?" "How?" "How much?" and "To what extent?" are called:
adverbs.
The plural form of "analysis" is _____.
analyses
which of the following in NOT a preposition? A. and B. from C. to D. at
and
which of the following words is the present participle of the word "answer"?
answering
The pronouns "who" and "that" are called relative pronouns because they relate to other words, called ______.
antecedents
By adding the prefix "ir" before the word "relevant," the _____ of the word is formed.
antonym
When writers want to show strong emotion or feeling in their writing, they should end their sentences with:
exclamation points.
"A number" is always singular. "the number" is always plural. true or false
false
A sentence reads "If you want more information, please call me." In this sentence, "if" is the _____.
subordinating conjunction
If a writer wants to provide an example between sentences and between paragraphs, the most effective transitional phrase to indicate the example would be
"in particular".
A person's address reads "156 Chalfont Drive NW." Which of the following punctuations should be used to separate the street name from the abbreviation "NW"?
A comma
Which of the following results when a comma by itself is used to join two independent clauses? A conjunctive adverb. A comma splice.
A comma splice.
Which of the following should a writer capitalize while writing? A personal title of a specific person The suffix "-elect" when joined to titles
A personal title of a specific person
Which of the following sentences uses the prepositions "between" or "among" correctly? There was a huge difference of opinion among Ralph and Lex. A winning team had to divide its prize money among eleven players.
A winning team had to divide its prize money among eleven players.
Which of the following is true about adjectives and adverbs? Adjectives, not adverbs, must follow linking verbs. Adjectives must never follow linking verbs, adverbs must.
Adjectives, not adverbs, must follow linking verbs.
Which of the following sentences uses the adjectives "each other" and "one another" correctly?
Allen and Tim are good to each other.
In which of the following ways can you form the possessive of a compound noun?
By making the last word of the noun possessive
Which of the following is true of punctuation marks at the end of quotations in a sentence? Commas are always inside the closing quotation mark. Semicolons are inside or outside the closing quotation mark depending on the context of a sentence.
Commas are always inside the closing quotation mark.
A sentence reads "Jen and Fiona have been promoted to the same position." In this sentence, "Jen and Fiona" is an example of a(n)_____.
Compound subject
Which of the following is not a rule to follow when adding an ending to a word?
Double the final consonant if the base word ends in "w" or "x."
To show joint ownership, in which two or more people own the same thing, add an apostrophe, or add an apostrophe plus s, to the first part of the compound. True or False
False
A sentence reads "Alex believed that Mr. Phelps was the most greatest mentor in the college." In this sentence, "most greatest" correctly illustrates the superlative degree of the word "great." True or False
False
A sentence reads "My father-in-laws boss was a pleasant man." In this sentence, "father-in-laws" is the possessive form of the word "father-in-law." True or False
False
In which of the following statements is the "which" clause misplaced?
Further economic crises will depreciate the value of your building, which neither of us wants.
Which of the following statements illustrates the incorrect use of the apostrophe? They couldn't meet the market demands due to production problems. In March 09', the company had the largest market share.
In March 09', the company had the largest market share.
The italicized words in which of the following sentences is a correctly used idiomatic preposition?
It was hard for Harry to part with his Captain Marvel's action figure.
which of the following sentences is using the future perfect tense?
Jane will have completed her test long before the others.
Which of the following sentences uses conjunctions correctly? Sam pretended like he was unaffected by the news. Jennifer acted as if her life was going to change.
Jennifer acted as if her life was going to change.
Which of the following sentences correctly illustrates the use of an apostrophe in the case of nouns that indicate separate ownership?
Jennifer's and George's daughters were born prematurely.
Which of the following sentences uses the prepositions "of" and "off" correctly? Louisa told her dog to get off the couch immediately. Walker wanted to get of the steep slope but couldn't do it.
Louisa told her dog to get off the couch immediately.
The italicized words in which of the following sentences correctly illustrates the use of a proper adjective?
Mark and his wife are proud to be New Yorkers.
Of the following examples, which one correctly illustrates the plurals of titles with names? Mr. Smith—the Mses. Smith Miss Smith—the Miss Smiths Mrs. Smith—the Mmes. Smiths Ms. Smith—the Mmes. Smith
Miss Smith—the Miss Smiths
Which of the following is the superlative degree of the word "decisive"?
Most decisive
Which of the following sentences violates the who-did-what principle of sentence construction?
Mr. Edwards saw the prospective customer leaving the stockroom.
What is the plural of the word "Oreo"?
Oreos
Which of the following statements does NOT illustrate the correct use of parentheses? When they met last month (at a common friend's wedding), they exchanged their cell phone numbers. Rachel Toms (She's the customer relationship manager) is the person whom you should complain to.
Rachel Toms (She's the customer relationship manager) is the person whom you should complain to.
Which of the following sentences does NOT illustrate the correct use of dashes? Rebecca Mathews—The CEO of True Trust Inc.—has won the entrepreneur of the year award. Marketing managers—Vivian, John, and Fred are among them—have decided to adopt social media marketing.
Rebecca Mathews—The CEO of True Trust Inc.—has won the entrepreneur of the year award.
Which of the following statements does not have a faulty parallel structure? Rico always has done and always will do a great job. The company is planning to employ an accountant and software engineer.
Rico always has done and always will do a great job.
Which of the following words correctly illustrates the plural form of the proper noun "Sally"? Sallys Sallies Sallie's Sally's
Sallys
A _____ is a group of words that expresses a complete thought and contains a subject and a predicate.
Sentence
Which of the following sentences uses the adverbs "some" and "somewhat" correctly? She was somewhat critical of the architect's plan. Dr. Hahn was some surprised with the results of the study.
She was somewhat critical of the architect's plan.
The words "although", "because", "how", and "whenever" are examples of:
Subordinating conjunctions.
Keeping in mind the rules for apostrophes, which of the following sentences correctly illustrates the use of personal pronouns?
Tammy likes her new home because it's farther away from the city.
The italicized words in which of the following sentences is a being verb?
Terence was tired after his journey
Which of the following book titles has not been capitalized correctly? The Revolution of the Internet: a look back The Path of the Gods
The Revolution of the Internet: a look back
Which of the following examples is incorrect with regard to capitalizing after colons? The company identified the most important feature: quality. The changes in law will affect two industries: Automobile and consumer electronics.
The changes in law will affect two industries: Automobile and consumer electronics.
Which of the following examples is incorrect with regard to capitalizing after colons? The huge financial loss has been due to the negligence of two employees: Mark and Jane. The changes in law will affect two industries: Automobile and consumer electronics.
The changes in law will affect two industries: Automobile and consumer electronics.
Which of the following sentences uses the active voice?
The company improved the product to increase its market share.
Which of the following statements has been capitalized correctly? The employees at the headquarters use a Canon photocopier. The Head of our Department was made to quit his job.
The employees at the headquarters use a Canon photocopier.
Which of the following sentences correctly illustrates the use of an apostrophe?
The student's performance in the play was worth talking about.
In which of the following statements should the word "city" NOT be capitalized? She lives in New York City. They want to set up operations in the City of Paris.
They want to set up operations in the City of Paris.
A clause is a group of words containing both a subject and a predicate. True or False
True
In a sentence, nouns functions as subjects, direct objects, objects of a preposition, appositives, and complements True and False
True
The comparative degree of an adjective is formed by adding "er" to the positive form or by inserting the word "more" or "less" before it. True or False
True
The noun "civics" uses a singular verb. True or False
True
The noun "proceeds" uses a plural verb. True or False
True
The noun "salmon" has only one form. True or False
True
The plural form of the courtesy title "Dr." is "Drs." True or False
True
The simple predicate is the main verb of the sentence plus any helping verbs. True or False
True
To form the possessive of a compound noun, make the last word possessive. True or False
True
When forming the possessive form of a singular noun, add an apostrophe plus s if the possessive form is pronounced with an added syllable. True or False
True
Which of the following adjectives is absolute and cannot be compared? True Great Happy Funny
True
Which of the following is a comma pitfall? Using commas to set off introductory words, phrases, and clauses Using commas to separate a subject from its predicate
Using commas to separate a subject from its predicate
Keeping in mind the rules for common nouns ending in "y," which of the following is the correct singular-plural pair of words?
Valley and Valleys
Which of the following examples is most effective in the context of the you-attitude conveyed through word usage?
You can give me your response by Friday evening.
predicate agreement means that.
a predicate must agree with its simple subject in number and in person.
_____ are used to form possessives of nouns, to form contractions, and to show omissions in dates.
apostrophes
The singular possessive form of the word "broker" is _____.
brokers'
The plural form of "calf" is _____.
calves
When an expression such as "the following" or "as follows" is used to introduce a list of items, it is often followed by a _____.
colon
A participial phrase is always followed by a(n) _____.
comma
Nouns that can be either masculine or feminine are known as ______ noun.
common-gender
A paragraph reads "The rating scale performance appraisal method uses a 10-point or a five-point scale against which an employee is rated by his superior. This method does not usually require employee participation. However, the Management by Objectives method to performance appraisal requires employee participation." In this paragraph, the italicized word "however" is used as a transitional word to ideally
compare or contrast
Two or more words used together to modify one noun or pronoun form a(n) _____ adjective.
compound
A _____ is a noun that consists of two or more words.
compound noun
Words that join words, phrases, or clauses within a sentence are called:
conjunctions.
The word "furthermore" is an example of a(n) _____ adverb.
conjunctive
A sentence reads "The report must be finished by Monday; therefore, we must work on a Saturday." In this sentence, the word "therefore" is a:
conjunctive adverb.
While denotation refers to the dictionary meaning of a word, _____ is the meaning readers associate with the word based on their experiences and emotions.
connotation
Pairs of conjunctions that are regularly used together to connect like elements are called _____ conjunctions.
correlative
A sentence reads "Casey not only has the respect of his teammates but also has the respect of his fans." In this sentence, the type of conjunction used is the:
correlative conjunction.
A who-did-what violation is sometimes called a(n) _____.
dangling modifier
A sentence reads, "Sam's debriefing was very useful to us." In this sentence, the gerund used is _____.
debriefing
The most commonly used adjectives are _____ adjectives. These adjectives tell "what kind of."
descriptive
A(n) ______ is a person or thing that directly receives the action of the verb.
direct object
A sentence reads "The dog jumped over the fence." In this sentence, the subject is _____.
dog
A sentence reads "Jonathan hasn't never traveled to another country." In this sentence, the phrase "hasn't never" is a(n) _____.
double negative
Fred is going through the revised draft of a document to make sure that it is clear, complete, concise, consistent, correct, and courteous. It can be concluded that Fred is _____ the document.
editing
_____ is defined as the process of checking a revised draft to make sure it meets the criteria of the six Cs of communication.
editing
A sentence reads "Even if she is qualified for the job, we cannot hire her because she is asking for too much money." In this sentence, "even if" is the coordinating conjunction. true or false
false
A sentence reads "James and Madison are very different than each other." In this sentence, the use of the prepositional phrase "different than" is correct. true or false
false
A sentence reads "Mr. Davis was angry with the person responsible for the practical joke." In this sentence, "was" is the preposition. true or false
false
A sentence reads "There firm holds the maximum market share in the industry." The typographical error, "there," would be detected by spell-checkers in word processing programs. true or false
false
A way to make writing effective is to use "this" to refer to an entire preceding thought. true or false
false
Adjectives that tell "how many," "how much," or "in what order" are called demonstrative adjectives. true or false
false
All adverbs end in "ly." true or false
false
By adding the prefix "un" to the term "professional" its synonym can be formed. true or false
false
Commas should be avoided after infinitive phrases, participial phrases, and prepositional phrases. true or false
false
Correlative conjunctions join elements of unequal rank. true or false
false
Dictionary entries use semicolons to indicate the correct places for breaking or dividing words. true or false
false
If more than one man or more than one woman is mentioned in a sentence, place the pronoun as far as possible from the person to whom you refer. true or false
false
If the introductory statement for a numbered list is grammatically complete, use periods after the items in the list. true or false
false
In the English language all adverbs end in "ly." True or False
false
One sure way to produce variety in written communication is to use all compound sentences. true or false
false
Planned repetition of words is best avoided in advertisements. true or false
false
The four coordinating conjunctions are "for," "on," "off," and "so." true or false
false
The words "north," "south," "east," and "west" are capitalized when they refer merely to direction. true or false
false
To be effective, a written message should have two or more main purposes. true or false
false
Using the you-attitude makes messages less courteous. true or false
false
When a dash is used to set off words within a sentence, a semicolon follows the dash. true or false
false
When adding an ending to a word with more than one syllable, the final consonant in the base word should be doubled if the vowel sound in the last syllable is long. true or false
false
Which of the following words does not require the doubling of the final consonant when adding the suffix "ing" to it? ship fix
fix
which of the following is the past participle of the irregular verb "fly"?
flown
When the writing is an incomplete thought, it is called a sentence _____.
fragment
A(n) _____ is a verb form that ends in "ing" and is used as a noun.
gerund
a collective pronoun is a:
group of things or persons
_____ are words that look or sound alike but have different meanings.
homonyms
Words that sound similar to others are called _____.
homophones
Through years of use, certain expressions have come to be considered "correct" even though there may be no rule or logical reason to make them so. Such usage, called _____, governs many expressions in our language.
idiomatic usage
Conjunctive adverbs join two _____ clauses.
independent
An _____ is a question restated as a declarative sentence.
indirect question
_____ forms are forms of a word that show tense, number, and other meanings.
inflectional
"Does" is a(n) _____ of "do."
inflectional form
Words that are used alone and express an extremely strong feeling are called _____.
interjections
In forming the past tense of the word "plan" you double the final "n" because
it contains a short "a" sound.
Verbs that do not indicate an obvious action but express a condition or a state of being are called:
linking verbs
which of the following is an indefinite pronoun? Nobody He She They
nobody
A(n) _____ is the name of a person, place, thing, idea, concept, or quality.
noun
The noun or pronoun that follows the preposition in a phrase is the _____ of the preposition.
object
Which of the following words is NOT an adjective? on a the an
on
When a noun ends in "o" and is preceded by a vowel (e.g. studio), its plural is formed by adding:
only an "s" at the end of the word.
When a plural noun ends in "s," its possessive is formed by adding:
only an apostrophe at the end of the word.
Any verb phrase composed of a past participle with a being-verb helper is in the _____ voice.
passive
Which of the following word groups represents homonyms?
peace, piece
An apostrophe is always used with a noun to show:
possession
The plural form of "potato" is _____.
potatoes
The _____ is the part of the sentence that tells what the subject is or does or what is done to the subject.
predicate
An adjective that follows a being verb and modifies or describes the subject of a sentence is known as a(n) _____.
predicate adjective
A(n) _____ is a connecting word that shows the relationship between a noun or pronoun and other words in a sentence.
preposition
The part of speech that connects a noun or a pronoun to the rest of the sentence is a(n):
preposition
The ______ is used to show that an action began in the past and may still be occuring.
present perfect
The words "American," "Canadian," and "Puerto Rican" are examples of _____ adjectives.
proper
The words "accept" and "except" are
pseudo-homonyms.
a sentence reads "we finally received the overdue shipment last Thursday." in this sentence, the transitive verb is _____.
received
A_____ is used (1) in place of a coordinating conjunction to join independent clauses, (2) before an introductory word that begins the second clause in a sentence, and (3) before explanatory or enumerating words.
semicolon
When the second independent clause in a compound sentence starts with an introductory word, a _____ must be used before the introductory word.
semicolon
A writer should avoid using a comma to:
separate a compound predicate.
A(n)_____subject is the main word or words in the complete subject - the core of the subject.
simple
Some nouns are always singular even though they end in "s." The verb to be used to agree with such nouns is _____.
singular
The phrase "in order that" is an example of a(n) _____ conjunction.
subordinating
A sentence reads "she was delighted about the surprise holiday." In this sentence, the adjective used is _____.
surprise
Which of the following is an example of a common noun? The Nile Mr. Burton Buddhism Teachers
teachers
The italicized words in which of the following sentences is a noun?
the food is hot
all verb tenses are formed from:
the principal parts of a verb
A combination of words that properly belong together, such as a noun or pronoun and its modifiers or a verb and its complement, is called a _____.
thought unit
_____ refers to the general effect a piece of writing creates, which could be formal or informal, serious or humorous, positive or negative.
tone
Words such as "after," "below," and "more important" used by writers to provide connections between sentences and between paragraphs are known as _____ words and phrases.
transitional
A comma splice creates a run-on sentence in which two related ideas that can stand alone grammatically are joined together by only a comma. true or false
true
A prepositional phrase consists of a preposition, an object, and any modifier of the object. True or False
true
A sentence reads "Angela could hardly never remember to check her incoming e-mail." In this sentence, "hardly never" is a double negative. True or false
true
A sentence reads "The family that lives in the apartment above ours is friendly." In this sentence, "above ours" is the prepositional phrase. true or false
true
A sentence reads "The teacher will complete her lesson plans in September." In this sentence, the verb phrase being used is "will complete." True or False
true
A transitive verb is a verb that has an object or a receiver of the verb's action. true or false
true
Avoid using words with unpleasant sounds, and do not attempt to write business letters that sound musical or poetic. true or false
true
Before writers begin revising the initial draft of a document, it is advisable for them to put their writing aside for a few hours or even for a day. true or false
true
Declarative sentences make statements, and imperative sentences order someone to act. true or false
true
Effective writers use commas to connect thoughts and to separate elements within sentences. true or false
true
Ideally, proofreading is a team effort. true or false
true
If you have a general idea of the meaning you want to convey, a thesaurus will give you a choice of specific words to express it. true or false
true
Indirect quotations, which are restatements of a person's exact words introduced by the word "that," are not enclosed in quotation marks. true or false
true
Parallel structure expresses parallel ideas in parallel form. true or false
true
Predicate agreement means that a predicate must agree with its simple subject in number and in person. true or false
true
Single quotation marks are used for words quoted within other quoted material. true or false
true
Some words can be adjectives or adverbs, depending on their position in the sentence. true or false
true
Subordinating conjunctions introduce dependent clauses that serve as adverbs modifying an adjective, verb, or adverb in the main clause. true or false
true
The first word following a colon must be capitalized if it begins a sentence stating a formal rule. true or false
true
The pronouns "who" and "that" are called relative pronouns because they relate to other words, called antecendents. true or false
true
The word which is a relative pronoun that refers to another word in the sentence. true or false
true
When using consecutive adjectives in writing, no comma follows the last adjective in a series. true or false
true
Tracy is working on her final English essay for school. She has a reputation for expressing herself well but makes careless punctuation errors, especially with regard to comma placement. To ensure that her comma placement is accurate this time, she should use a comma to separate:
two unrelated numbers that end up adjacent to each other in a sentence.
Which of the following practices hampers the clarity of a message?
use of clichés
Which of the following practices makes a message less courteous? adopting a reader-centered writing style using less traditional fonts such as cursive type fonts and solid capital fonts
using less traditional fonts such as cursive type fonts and solid capital fonts
Which of the following practices is preferred by writers in order to write effective sentences? using the passive voice using the you-attitude
using the you-attitude
Which of the following practices will make a paragraph effective for a reader? introducing two or more main ideas in the paragraph using transitional words and phrases between sentences in the paragraph
using transitional words and phrases between sentences in the paragraph
_____ is that property of a transitive verb that shows whether the subject acts or is acted upon.
voice
Which of the following is the correct spelling of the plural form of the common noun "warranty"?
warranties
A sentence reads "The students who arrive late for the examination will be penalized." In this sentence, the relative pronoun is ______.
who
Which of the following is an example of a declarative sentence? You are smart Take care of the laundry I love this movie! How much is this watch?
you are smart.
