NAME: ______________________________________________________ DATE: _______________________

CORRECT USAGE
I. DIRECTIONS: Select the choice which made the sentence incorrect. Select choice e, if there is "no error." Write
the letter of your choice on the space provided before the number.

___1. Bill Cosby is a well-respected actor and comedian. No error.

A

___2. Known as Johnny Appleseed, John Chapman distributed apple seeds and saplings to families bound for
A

the west. No error.

D

___3. Dancing to unanimous acclaim in The United States and Europe, she was known for her interpretation of
A

Stravinsky's Firebird. No error.

E
___4. Needing a sustained wind for flight, the albatross rarely crosses the equator. No error.
A

___5. Sparta and Athens, putting aside there own rivalry, fought off the Persians. No error.
A

___6. Mahalia Jackson, called the greatest potential blue's singer since Bessie Smith, would sing only religious
A

songs. No error.
E
___7. Elected to the House of Representatives in 1958, Shirley Chisholm became the first black female member
A
of Congress. No error.

___8. Put the ingredients altogether in a bowl when you make the cake. No error.
A

___9. Horatio, Hamlet's loyal friend, wishes to die by his own hand,but he consents to stay alive so he can
A

tell Hamlet's story. No error.

D

___10. We visited Boston Harbor, the site of the Boston Tea Party. No error.
A

___11. George's mother, Karen, has come with us to the mall. No error.
A

___12. Marian Anderson, the first black person employed as a member of the Metropolitan opera, was born
A

February 17, 1902. No error.

E
___13. The new expenditures will be born by the American taxpayers. No error.
A

___14. Having joined a volunteer program, Mark helps by reading stories to patients in the children ward. No error.
A

___15. Mr. French, the superintendent of schools in our district, spoke at the PTA meeting last night. No error.
A

___16. Specially treated cloths, are best for cleaning eyeglass lenses. No error.
A

___17. When he addresses the legislature, the Governor will have to answer several questions about the budget.

No error.
E
___18. According to some modern scientists, Galileo's observations, which were made possible by the invention of
A

the telescope, was long overdue. No error.

C

___19. Follow the marked route or you will surely loose your way. No error.
A B

___20. Shakespeare tried to show us the complexity of the human's mind. No error.
A

___21. The governor announced that the roof of the capital needs repair. No error.
A

___22. I am reading about Geraldine Ferraro, the first female vice-presidentialcandidate of a major party. No error.
A

___23. After the eggs are weighed, they are separated by weight in to five groups. No error.
A

___24. The President decorated the astronaut, who had orbited Earth. No error.
A

II. DIRECTIONS: Choose the correct answer for each question. Encircle the number of your choice.
1. Which sentence uses famish correctly?
1. After the straight exam, I felt too exhausted
and famished to eat my favourite foods.
2. I could eat a horse, I am famish now.
3. I famished my stomach next time you treat me
to a meal out.

4. I will bring lots of pizza, thats a famish.

2. Priscila _______ rather not invest her savings in the
stock market.
1. must
2. has to
3. could

4. would
3. Did you have any problem ______ our house?
1. search
2. to search
3. searching
4. for searching

4. I hope you dont mind _____ joining you.

1. to be
2. I had been
3. that I may
4. my
5. Most basketball players are 6 ____ tall or more.
1. foot
2. feet
3. foots
4. feets
6. These children _____ how to improvise more props
for the play.
1. knew
2. knows
3. know
4. known

7. The company will upgrade ______ computer

systems next week.
1. there
2. their
3. its
4. its
8. Clara ___________ three thousand words for her
essay.
1. have wrote
2. has wrote
3. have written
4. has written
9. You have too many _______ but few time to prove
youre right.
1. hypothesis
2. hypotheses
3. hyphothesises
4. hypothesess
10. Neither Sarah nor Tina _______ the crime
yesterday.

1. witness
2. witnesses
3. witnessed
4. witnessing
11. You do like going to the party alone. _____ you?
1. Does
2. Doesnt
3. Do
4. Dont
12. We had our house _______ in yellow.
1. painting
2. painted
3. paint
4. to paint
13. He has been exercising but his immune system
was steadily _________.
1. weak
2. weaken
3. weakened
4. weakening

14. I was ______ that the weather would be sunny and

we would be able to enjoy our swimming.
1. hopeless
2. hopeful
3. hopelike
4. hopely
15. I think its not a great idea. I totally ______.
1. misagree
2. unagree
3. inagree
4. disagree
16. So many ___________ I found in the library, now
Im ready to report.
1. information
2. informations
3. infoes
4. infos
17. My grandpa always feed his flock of _______
early in the morning.
1. sheeps
2. sheep
3. ships
4. ship
18. Happy memories are always remembered, not
________.

1. forget
2. forgets
3. forgot
4. forgotten
19. Flight Z735 ______ yesterday. 350 passengers
died in that accident.
1. crush
2. crushed

3. crash
4. crashed
20. There is a ________ message when you look
closely at her painting.
1. hid
2. hide
3. hided
4. hidden

Answers and Explanations

1. B: The adjective "well-respected" is hyphenated, not two separate words.
2. D: When referring to the region, "West" should be capitalized, as with the East, North, and South. When
indicating direction, as in "Turn left and drive west for 25 miles," these are lower-case.
3. B: "United States" is capitalized, but the article "the" before it should not be capitalized, as it is not part of
the name.
4. D: "Equator" is a name, i.e. a proper noun, and therefore, it should be capitalized.
5. A: The third-person plural possessive pronoun is spelled "their." "There" is an adverb indicating place or
position (e.g. "here or there").
6. A: The term for this genre of music is "blues," i.e. a plural noun. It is NOT possessive and therefore, should
NOT have an apostrophe.
7. E: This sentence is correct as it is written.
8. B: The correct adverb to modify the verb "put" here is "together." "Altogether" has a different meaning, i.e.
entirely, totally, or on the whole, e.g. "I am altogether disgusted with your terrible grammar" or "Altogether,
it was a pleasant day." The sentence given could sound correct when spoken, but it would have to be spelled
as two separate words: "Put the ingredients ALL TOGETHER."
9. E: This sentence is correct as it is written.
10. E: This sentence is correct as it is written.
11. E: This sentence is correct as it is written.
12. D: "Opera" should be capitalized as part of the name "Metropolitan Opera."
13. B: The correct spelling of the future perfect tense of "to bear," meaning carried, held, or supported, as in this
sentence, is "borne" with a final e. ("Airborne" is another example.) "Born" is ONLY a correct spelling for
the meaning "given birth to," e.g. "The baby was born on schedule."
14. D: The word "children" should be possessive, i.e. "children's", to modify "ward."
15. E: This sentence is correct as it is written.
16. A: There should NOT be a comma between the subject and verb.
17. B: Since "governor" is not paired with a name, e.g. "Governor Jones," it should NOT be capitalized.
18. D: The verb should be the plural "were" to agree with its subject, "observations," not the singular "was."

19. D: The correct spelling is "lose," pronounced with a "z" sound and meaning to misplace, be deprived of, or
fail to keep. The spelling "loose," pronounced with an "s" sound, is an adjective meaning not attached or not
restrained; or a verb meaning to free, unleash, or detach.
20. D: Correct usage is the adjective "human" modifying the noun "mind." The possessive "human's mind"
would only be used to indicate an individual human, e.g. "Through their direct comparison of the two
subjects, the psychologists concluded that the human's mind was more complex than the dog's mind."
21. C: The correct word here is Capitol, with its initial letter capitalized and spelled with an o. "Capital" is a
different word, meaning the official government seat of a state or country (e.g. the capital of New York is
Albany); wealth, in money or property; preeminent, e.g. "Wisconsin is the cheese capital of America";
excellent, e.g. "He's a capital fellow"; or upper-case ("capital letters"). Capitol refers to the U.S. Congress
building or similar buildings of state legislatures.
22. E: This sentence is correct as it is written.
23. D: The correct preposition is "into," because it shows a process or a change. One cannot separate eggs "in"
groups; this would imply they were already in groups and were somehow being separated further within
those groups-e.g., into smaller groups. One can only separate or divide things into groups.
24. C: The comma is unnecessary before a nonrestrictive relative dependent clause. It is only required before a
restrictive relative dependent clause, i.e. one that is essential to identify the subject it modifies (in this case,
which astronaut?). When the relative clause gives additional information, it is enclosed by commas.

1.

1. Which sentence uses famish correctly?

After the straight exam, I felt too exhausted
and famished to eat my favourite foods.
2. I could eat a horse, I am famish now.
3. I famished my stomach next time you treat me
to a meal out.
4. I will bring lots of pizza, thats a famish.
2. Priscila _______ rather not invest her savings in the
stock market.
1. must
2. has to
3. could
4. would
3. Did you have any problem ______ our house?
1. search
2. to search
3. searching
4. for searching
4. I hope you dont mind _____ joining you.

1. to be
2. I had been
3. that I may
4. my
5. Most basketball players are 6 ____ tall or more.
1. foot
2. feet
3. foots
4. feets
6. These children _____ how to improvise more props
for the play.
1. knew
2. knows
3. know
4. known
7. The company will upgrade ______ computer
systems next week.
1. there
2. their

3. its
4. its
8. Clara ___________ three thousand words for her
essay.
1. have wrote
2. has wrote
3. have written
4. has written
9. You have too many _______ but few time to prove
youre right.
1. hypothesis
2. hypotheses
3. hyphothesises
4. hypothesess
10. Neither Sarah nor Tina _______ the crime
yesterday.
1. witness
2. witnesses
3. witnessed
4. witnessing
11. You do like going to the party alone. _____ you?
5. Does
6. Doesnt
7. Do
8. Dont
12. We had our house _______ in yellow.
1. painting
2. painted
3. paint
4. to paint
13. He has been exercising but his immune system
was steadily _________.
1. weak
2. weaken
3. weakened
4. weakening
14. I was ______ that the weather would be sunny and
we would be able to enjoy our swimming.
1. hopeless

2. hopeful
3. hopelike
4. hopely
15. I think its not a great idea. I totally ______.
1. misagree
2. unagree
3. inagree
4. disagree
16. So many ___________ I found in the library, now
Im ready to report.
1. information
2. informations
3. infoes
4. infos
17. My grandpa always feed his flock of _______
early in the morning.
1. sheeps
2. sheep
3. ships
4. ship
18. Happy memories are always remembered, not
________.
1. forget
2. forgets
3. forgot
4. forgotten
19. Flight Z735 ______ yesterday. 350 passengers
died in that accident.
1. crush
2. crushed
3. crash
4. crashed
20. There is a ________ message when you look
closely at her painting.
1. hid
2. hide
3. hided
4. hidden