I. Parts of Speech
Identify the simple subject, verb, and direct object in the following sentence:
Our class has created a community of grammar experts. /3
Underline the following different elements in the passage below: two prepositions (PREP); two pronouns (PRON, including any relative pronouns); two independent clauses (IC); and two modifiers (MOD). 1 point awarded per correct identification:
Oscar Wilde once said, “We cannot be too careful in the choice of our enemies.” A witty and brilliant writer whose ideas consistently went against the grain of late Victorian society, he certainly made his share of enemies among the British authorities. /8
List all 7 coordinating conjunctions. Coordinating conjunctions are those words you can use to connect two independent clauses:/7
Grammar Identifications
Write an original sentence using a NOUN CLAUSE and identify its parts of speech. A noun clause serves as a sentence subject, object, or complement. A Noun Clause answers the question “What?” or “Who?” For example: What I believe is none of their business. (What=Direct object; I= Subject; believe=verb). (Do not simply repeat a sentence from our Hacker book; your sentence must be your own work)./1
Write a sentence using an ADJECTIVE CLAUSE modifying a noun or pronoun. Adjective clauses are subordinate clauses that often answer the question “Which one?” or “What kind of?” They begin with a relative pronoun (who, whom, whose, which, or that) or a relative adverb (when or where). /1
Write a sentence with an ADVERB CLAUSE. An adverb clause plays the role of an adverb, modifying a verb, an adjective, or another adverb. It answers the question “When” or “How?” or “Where?”/1
II. Sentence Completeness
Indicate in the blank whether each statement is a complete sentence (OK), a comma splice (CS), a sentence fragment (F), or run on (RO). Repair any errors for a bonus point.
The building Gustav owns on Boylston Avenue has been renovated at great expense, nevertheless, the interior continues to look shabby. ________/1
The neurosurgeon explained that the medication could have one side effect; patients suffering temporary memory loss. ______/1
There is an old belief that birds begin to choose their mates on February 14, perhaps this legend is responsible for our association of romance with Valentine’s Day.
_______/1
We gave our tickets to an usher; an usher who directed us to our seats. _______/1
III. Joining Subjects and Verbs
High levels of air pollution emitted from vehicular exhaust (causes/cause) damage to the respiratory tract. ________/1
Each of the vehicles (is/are) required to pass inspection. ________/1
Either a driver’s license or two credit cards (is/are) required.
________/1
The number of school children (is/are) declining, a development that should not, however, (affect/effect) the way teacher education programs (is/are) structured.
_______/3
The award winning author Toni Morrison once said, “The ability of writers to imagine what is not the self, to familiarize the strange and mystify the familiar, (is/are) the test of their power.” Morrison’s brilliant writing, as well as her thoughtful interviews, amply (demonstrate/demonstrates) the magnitude of her artistic and intellectual power.______/2
IV. Pronoun Case
For each sentence, circle the correct pronoun.
An employee on extended leave may continue (their/his or her) life insurance.
_______/1
The hiring committee realizes that other candidates are more experienced than (him/he).
______/1
Author Oscar Wilde wrote, “Those (who/whom) the gods love grow young.”
______/1
The panel will feature several participants (who/whom) we have not yet met.
______/1
Identify and correct errors in the following sentences. For each sentence, you receive 1 point for correctly identifying the error and 1 point for correctly repairing it. If is a sentence is correct, mark C next to it. You receive 2 points for correctly identifying an error-free sentence.
Modifiers
Taking our seats, the game started. ___/2
The evening passed very pleasantly, munching popcorn and watching a late movie.
___/2
Our swimming hole is much more shallower than Crystal Lake.
___/2
Throw your mother from the train a kiss.
___/2
Several soldiers passed by in their uniforms recently drafted.
___/2
Restrictive and non-restrictive elements
We climbed Mt. Rainier which is over 15,000 feet high. ___/2
Identify (name the problem) and correct errors in the following sentences. For each sentence, you receive 1 point for correctly identifying the error and 1 point for correctly repairing it. If a sentence is correct, mark C next to it. You receive 2 points
for correctly identifying an error-free sentence. A sentence may have a couple of errors. When you correct a sentence, please retain the original meaning.
Apostrophes and Possessives:
Whose responsible for making this mess?
__/2
NASA’s space flight program still captures many peoples imagination.
__/2
Its beginning to snow.
__/2
Your probably glad to be finishing the last pages of this exam. __/2
Were Watson and Cricks experiments critical to the discovery of DNA, or were Franklin’s contributions equally significant? __/2
Commas
Cambridge Massachusetts is the higher education capital of the United States.
__/2
Semicolons, Colons, and Commas
I admired Mr. Grimes; the repair wizard. __/2
I learned that she had lost her job; which really surprised me. __/2
The medication that the doctor prescribed caused Mario to experience one negative side effect: it made him sleepy. __/2
Sandy’s difficult semester had a positive effect she enjoyed her summer vacation even more than usual. __/2
Parallelism, Commas, Colons, Infinitives, Dashes, and Agreement (hint: do not split an infinitive).
Tennyson’s poem, “Ulysses,” recounts a mythic journey with a famous, final line whose relationship to parallelism illustrates a key element of a poet’s freedom: “To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.” __/2
I shall calculate an estimate, draw up a contract, send out a professional to interpret it for you,—provided every help that I can. __/2
Edit
Please edit 5 items in the following passage by adding commas, semi-colons, or any other punctuation where necessary and crossing out punctuation or grammatical errors with an “X” those elements that should be replaced. You may choose to strike excess words or edit for agreement.
A panda, walks into a café. He orders a sandwich, eats it than draws a gun and fires two shots in the air.
“Why” asks the confused waiter as the panda goes toward the exit. The panda produces a bad punctuated wildlife manual and tosses’ it over his shoulder.
“I’m a panda”, he says at the door. “Look it up”!
The Waiter turns to the relevant entry and sure enough their find an explanation.
“Panda. Large black-and-white bear-like mammal native to China. Eats, shoots and leaves.”
So punctuation…really–does matter even if, it is, only occasionally: a matter of life and death. /5 (One point for each problem you edit properly).
Usage: Correct errors or write OK
Omar threw the ball further than Judith. __/1
I studied for the grammar quiz everyday of the week except Thursday through Monday. __/1
I am certain that I will make less mistakes on the second exam of the semester than I did on the first one. ___/1
The documentary film will compliment the textbook description of the Civil War.
___/1
Writing is where you spend hours and hours staring at a blank computer screen and then tap out one good sentence. ___/1
If we take several projects off of your plate, you will probably be able to finish the semester a week early. ___/1
My parents and myself will spend the holidays together this year. ___/1
The amount of mistakes he made in the gymnastics competition cost him the medal.
___/1
Do you think the music of Bach is better then the music of Beethoven? ___/1
Sometimes it’s hard to except the truth. ___/1
Write a sentence (or two sentences) using the words “good” and “well.” ____/1
Write a sentence (or two sentences) using the words “eminent” and “imminent.” ____/1
Please write at least 10 grammatically correct sentences. The sentences do not need to reflect a polished style or brilliant content, though they should form a cohesive paragraph rather than unrelated phrases. Your sample writing must include at least six of the following 12 elements in whatever order that creates a flowing narrative:
* a sentence containing an independent clause and a dependent clause;
* “whom”;
* a pair of dashes;
* a transitional phrase, such as “however,” “for example”;
* a coordinating conjunction;
* a semi-colon;
* a modifier (word, phrase, or clause);
* a possessive;
* a participial phrase (any tense) or a gerund phrase;
* a comparison;
* a superlative;
* a quotation.
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