Writing Review Practice Questions

Each question refers to the following passage:

Angela Villajuan

Angela Villajuan grew up in Orange, County,California,1 south from2 Los Angeles. When she and her husband,Gilbert,3 have4 their first daughter, Emily, Angela quither job5 as a preschool teacher to stay home and raise her. The family live6 modestly in a middle class neighborhood and dreamed of owning a home7 one day, but knew it was unlikely on Gilbert’s income. A few years earlier,8 Angela’s mother had returned to her native Wisconsin after spending her adult life in Los Angeles.

Angela tried9 to convince her to return to10 Los Angeles when her mother started sending her thelocal, classified ads.11 “I was just floored when I saw how much less rents were, and how affordable houses were,” remembered Angela.

She broached12 the idea of moving to Wisconsin to13 her husband, showing him what a three-bedroom house near Milwaukee would cost as well as, what14 a two bedroom apartment rented for. Gilbert had left his native Philippines after college and had no spectacular15 ties to Los Angeles.

Gilbert agreed, though he worried about how would their daughter16 adjust to a new environment so far from the only home she had known. Angela began applying for teaching positions in Wisconsin and was surprised at how quickly did she receive17 interview requests. The schools were impressed with her credentials and experience, and one offered her a position within only weeks.18

With the job secured, they started planning the move. They sold many of their belongings, packed up their car, and said goodbye to friends. “It’s scary, but we know this is what’s best for us,” Angela said.19 The move took two days, with an overnight stop in Nebraska. When they arrived, the town was small but charming, and the people were welcoming.

Angela’s mother greeted them at the door with a hug and a casserole. Gilbert smiled, relieved. They felt more hopeful than they had in years.20

  1. What change should be made to the underlined section of the passage?
  1. Orange County, California
  2. Orange County California
  3. Orange County California,
  4. No change is necessary.
Show Answer
The correct answer is A!

The phrase should read Orange County, California, with no comma between Orange and County and a comma after California if more follows. The underlined portion incorrectly includes a comma after Orange and lacks proper spacing and punctuation.

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  1. What change should be made to the underlined section of the passage?
  1. south,
  2. just south of
  3. just south of,
  4. No change is necessary.
Show Answer
The correct answer is B!

The phrase “south from” is incorrect in this context. The correct idiom is “just south of” when referring to geographical proximity.

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  1. What change should be made to the underlined section of the passage?
  1. husband Gilbert,
  2. Gilbert
  3. she and Emily
  4. No change is necessary.
Show Answer
The correct answer is D!

When a name is set off by appositives (descriptive phrases like “her husband”), commas should be used before and after the name. This sentence correctly punctuates “her husband, Gilbert,” so no change is necessary.

See original passage

 

  1. What change should be made to the underlined section of the passage?
  1. had
  2. will have
  3. did have
  4. No change is necessary.
Show Answer
The correct answer is A!

The sentence refers to a past event (when they had their first daughter), so the verb tense should be past perfect (“had”), not present (“have”).

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  1. What change should be made to the underlined section of the passage?
  1. quit her job
  2. deciding to quit her job
  3. decided to quit her job
  4. No change is necessary.
Show Answer
The correct answer is A!

This is a simple spacing and spelling error. The correct past-tense phrase is “quit her job.”

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  1. What change should be made to the underlined section of the passage?
  1. will live
  2. living
  3. lived
  4. No change is necessary.
Show Answer
The correct answer is C!

The verb should be in past tense (“lived”) to match the narrative, which is being told in the past.

See original passage

 

  1. What change should be made to the underlined section of the passage?
  1. home, but
  2. house
  3. house, but
  4. No change is necessary.
Show Answer
The correct answer is B!

The word “home” is slightly redundant here, since the family is already living in a “home.” “House” is a better word choice for describing what they hope to own one day, as it refers to physical property rather than emotional or conceptual ties.

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  1. What change should be made to the underlined section of the passage?
  1. a few years, earlier
  2. a few years earlier
  3. a few, years earlier,
  4. No change is necessary.
Show Answer
The correct answer is D!

The original phrase is grammatically correct and appropriately placed for clarity and flow.

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  1. What change should be made to the underlined section of the passage?
  1. tried hard
  2. did try
  3. was trying
  4. No change is necessary.
Show Answer
The correct answer is C!

“Was trying” better emphasizes the ongoing effort Angela made to convince her mother, which fits the context of the narrative.

See original passage

 

  1. What change should be made to the underlined section of the passage?
  1. from
  2. in
  3. on
  4. No change is necessary.
Show Answer
The correct answer is D!

The word “to” is correct here. Angela tried to convince her mother to return to Los Angeles. The infinitive form “to return” is appropriate.

See original passage

 

  1. What change should be made to the underlined section of the passage?
  1. the local classified ads
  2. the local classifyed ads
  3. the local classified, ads
  4. No change is necessary.
Show Answer
The correct answer is A!

There’s a missing space between “the” and “local,” and the comma is unnecessary. The corrected version should be “the local classified ads.”

See original passage

 

  1. What change should be made to the underlined section of the passage?
  1. abroached
  2. approved
  3. came to
  4. No change is necessary.
Show Answer
The correct answer is D!

“Broached” is the correct verb here. It means “to bring up a topic for discussion,” which fits the context.

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  1. What change should be made to the underlined section of the passage?
  1. also
  2. with
  3. about
  4. No change is necessary.
Show Answer
The correct answer is D!

The phrase “broached the idea to her husband” is idiomatic and correct. No change is needed.

See original passage

 

  1. What change should be made to the underlined section of the passage?
  1. would cost, as well as what
  2. would cost as, well as what
  3. would cost as well, as what
  4. No change is necessary.
Show Answer
The correct answer is A!

A comma should go after “cost” to separate the two parts of the comparison. The original placement of the comma is incorrect.

See original passage

 

  1. What change should be made to the underlined section of the passage?
  1. fantastic
  2. curricular
  3. particular
  4. No change is necessary.
Show Answer
The correct answer is C!

The word “spectacular” is incorrect in this context. The intended meaning is that Gilbert didn’t have any specific or meaningful ties to Los Angeles — “particular” is the correct word.

See original passage

 

  1. What change should be made to the underlined section of the passage?
  1. how their daughter would
  2. how would their daughter
  3. how their daughter will
  4. No change is necessary.
Show Answer
The correct answer is A!

This is a noun clause serving as the object of “worried about,” and it must follow subject-verb order: “how their daughter would,” not inverted question order.

See original passage

 

  1. What change should be made to the underlined section of the passage?
  1. how quickly she received
  2. how did she receive quickly
  3. how she quickly received
  4. No change is necessary.
Show Answer
The correct answer is A!

As with question 16, this is not a question but part of a sentence, so it needs standard subject-verb order: “she received,” not “did she receive.”

See original passage

 

  1. What change should be made to the underlined section of the passage?
  1. one offered her a position within weeks only
  2. one only offered her a position within weeks
  3. one offered her a position in only weeks
  4. No change is necessary.
Show Answer
The correct answer is C!

“In only weeks” is the proper idiomatic expression indicating a short time frame. “Within only weeks” is awkward and unnatural.

See original passage

 

  1. What change should be made to the underlined section of the passage?
  1. “It’s scary. But we know this is what’s best for us,” Angela said.
  2. “It’s scary, but we know this is what’s best for us,” Angela said.
  3. “It’s scary. But, we know this is what’s best for us.” Angela said.
  4. No change is necessary.
Show Answer
The correct answer is B!

The original uses a straight double quote instead of a curly quote, but more importantly, it ends with a comma inside the quotation marks, which is the correct punctuation in American English for a sentence followed by an attribution like “Angela said.”

See original passage

 

  1. What change should be made to the underlined section of the passage?
  1. They felt more hopeful than they have in years.
  2. They feel more hopeful than they had in years.
  3. They had felt more hopeful than they have in years.
  4. No change is necessary.
Show Answer
The correct answer is A!

The past perfect (“had”) is unnecessary here. The comparison is between a past moment and an ongoing situation, so present perfect (“have”) works better to express the general span of time.

See original passage