A participial phrase is said to be “dangling” when the noun it is intended to modify is missing from the sentence. Similarly a modifier is said to be misplaced when it is separated from the word it modifies. Edit the following sentences to eliminate such errors. 1. Looking from my bedroom window, the horses frolicked … Read more
Correct errors of redundancy in the following sentences by removing words that repeat the meaning already expressed by other words in the same sentence. 1. After a few minutes, the hawk was a small speck in the sky. 2. The Medical Examiner was called to the building where a dead corpse had been found. 3. … Read more
The following sentences contain errors of punctuation. Revise them as necessary. 1. That’s my dream car in the window I plan to buy it as soon as I have enough money. 2. The boss is really old. He still addresses women clients as Mrs So-and-So. 3. I never expected to see so many glacier’s and … Read more
Homonyms are words that sound alike, but have different meanings and usually different spellings. In these sentences choose the word with the correct meaning for the sentence context. 1. Mrs. Reid has ______ the responsibility for her disabled son for twenty years. a) borne b) born 2. The gardener’s work will ______ my design as … Read more
Correct errors of pronoun use in the following sentences. 1. Do you want to go with Hamed and myself to the park? 2. Last summer, the Retys were extremely kind to my family and I when we stayed with them. 3. If it snows, me and the children will take our sleds to the hill … Read more
Each of the following sentences includes a smothered verb (i.e., a word that has been formed from a verb). Revise the sentences as necessary for conciseness: 1. The committee will hold a meeting this Wednesday evening at seven o’clock. 2. I will make a decision after studying the criteria you have given me. 3. We … Read more
A nonrestrictive clause is a subordinate clause that may be left out of a sentence without significantly altering the meaning expressed by the main clause. In a restrictive clause, on the other hand, the information is related to a word in the main clause. Nonrestrictive clauses are set off by commas; restrictive clauses are not. … Read more
In each sentence, choose the correct word from the pair of similar terms. (If both words possibly can be correct, choose the more plausible one.) 1. Sallie’s parents criticized her constantly as a child; as a result, she has difficulty accepting a ______ . a) compliment b) complement 2. Many citizens feel that the government … Read more
One use of the apostrophe is to form the possessive case of nouns and indefinite pronouns. Add apostrophes to show possession as needed in the following sentences. 1. All my friends and I gather at the Joneses house every Christmas Eve. 2. We celebrated JFKs life on the fiftieth anniversary of his death. 3. Everyones … Read more
Correct the capitalization in the following sentences. 1. Harry Selfridge was a Self-Made Man who left school at 14 and lived to amass an enormous Fortune in london. 2. At the age of 20, Selfridge went to work at Marshall Field and company in Chicago where he rose from Stock Boy to Junior Partner. 3. … Read more
The language of wishing requires a particular combination of verb tenses, according to whether the wish is for the present, the past, or the future. Choose the correct verb form for each of the following sentences. 1. I didn’t see the first part of the Hobbit movie. I wish I ________ it. a) saw b) … Read more
Pronouns ending in -self, -selves should be used only to refer to or emphasize another word in the sentence. These reflexive pronouns should not be used in place of other personal pronouns. Some of the sentences below are incorrectly using the reflexive pronouns. Edit as necessary: 1. His cousin and himself are the same age. … Read more