Writing Practice Questions 1

Each underlined section corresponds to an answer choice. Select the answer choice that contains an error, or select Choice E if there is no error.

  1. “Are you all ready for the English exam? asked mom.“
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The correct answer is D!

When used as a name, Mom should be capitalized. When used as a noun (e.g., “Our mom told us”), it’s lowercase. Spelling, capitalization, and punctuation are correct in the other underlined parts.

 

  1. According to the fire marshal’s statistics, smoking cigarettes in bed are the cause of many tragic fires.
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The correct answer is D!

The incorrectly plural verb are should be is to agree with the singular subject smoking.

 

  1. Signs of decay that should be recognized by every citizen includes oil spills along the shoreline as well as the absence of wildlife.
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The correct answer is B!

The singular verb includes should be plural here to agree with the plural subject signs.

 

  1. Either Philip or Joe will always finish their trigonometry homework in class.
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The correct answer is C!

The possessive pronoun modifying “trigonometry homework” should be the singular his here to agree with the singular “Either Philip or Joe,” not the plural their.

 

  1. Who else beside Jim Smith won a scholarship?
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The correct answer is C!

The preposition here should be besides, meaning “except” or “in addition to,” not beside, meaning “next to” or “alongside of.”

 

  1. I appreciate your helping me in the kitchen when my mom is at work.
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The correct answer is C!

The word Mom is used as a name here, so it should be capitalized.

 

  1. I am certain that the English scholarship winner will be hear.
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The correct answer is D!

Hear is the wrong word; it should be the adverb here.

 

  1. Talking with my grandfather about World War II effected me more than I thought it would have.
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The correct answer is B!

The verb should be affected (influenced), not effected.

 

  1. The president is all together opposed to the bill.
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The correct answer is C!

The phrase should be altogether (entirely), not all together.

 

  1. Tsetse flies, which carry the dreaded disease called sleeping sickness, attacks both humans and cattle.
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The correct answer is D!

Because the subject tsetse flies is plural, the verb must be attack.

 

  1. According to Aunt Grace, this kind of a sweater is the warmest for the winter months.
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The correct answer is B!

Remove the unnecessary of a; write this kind of sweater.

 

  1. Many reading lists for high‑school students include translations from Scandinavian writers such as Lagerlog, Undset, and Ibsen.
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The correct answer is E!

This sentence is grammatically correct as written.

 

  1. Will they ascent to our proposal?
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The correct answer is C!

Use the verb assent (agree), not the noun ascent.

 

  1. Earlier synthetics, such as Bakelite, have went the way of the dinosaur.
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The correct answer is C!

The past participle of go is gone, so it should read have gone.

 

  1. After the attack by the U‑boat, the Lusitania sunk in 18 minutes; over 1,000 people drowned.
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The correct answer is B!

The simple past tense of sink is sank: the Lusitania sank.

 

  1. The teacher discussed the rule that the compliment of thirty degrees is sixty degrees.
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The correct answer is B!

In geometry the term is complement of an angle, not compliment.

 

  1. As you approach the intersection, drive as cautious as you can.
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The correct answer is B!

Use the adverb cautiously, not the adjective cautious.

 

  1. The queen’s counsil could not agree on the correct policy.
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The correct answer is B!

The noun should be council (advisory group), not counsil.

 

  1. Scurvy, one of the diseases that modern science has conquered, result from a lack of vitamin C.
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The correct answer is D!

The singular subject Scurvy takes the singular verb results.

 

  1. Some people say that compact discs offers a brighter treble and truer base than conventional records.
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The correct answer is B!

Plural subject compact discs needs plural verb offer.

 

  1. I learned about the Roaring Twenties from my great‑grandmother and he.
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The correct answer is D!

The object of the preposition from should be the objective pronoun him, not he.

 

  1. Mrs. Jones was formally head of the history department at Center High School.
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The correct answer is A!

The adverb should be formerly (previously), not formally.

 

  1. The British navy, members of which are called “limeys,” were responsible for first using limes to prevent scurvy during long sea voyages.
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The correct answer is D!

The singular collective noun navy takes the singular verb was responsible.

 

  1. Please write and tell my mother and I about your trip to San Francisco.
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The correct answer is C!

After a preposition (tell), use the objective pronoun me, not I.