Grammar 150 question and answers
GRAMMAR TEST
(Verbal
Ability-2 & 3: Verbs, Adjectives, Adverbs & Sentence Structure)
1. No head injury is too trivial to
ignore
2. He expressed the opinion that the
committee’s report, that the exhaustion of the mines, affecting the well-being
of the whole country, was too serious to be accepted without further
consideration.
3. A brilliant but outrageous comedian,
Lenny Bruce’s sketches both amused and unsettled his audience.
4. The region has a climate so severe
that plants growing there rarely had been more than twelve inches high.
5. Regretfully, your application has
been refused.
6. Between ten and twelve percent of all
students scoring high enough to qualify for merit.
7. Being that Colette’s first novel was
so wildly successful, her husband locked her in their Paris flat with orders to produce more.
8. You will never find a policeman just
walking here in the park.
9. On attempting to restore the picture
to its original condition, almost irreparable damage was discovered.
10.
After he had drank
the warm milk, he began to feel sleepy and decided to go to bed.
11.
When I had got
back from work and was having a shower, my wife said that she had seen just the
curtains that we have been looking for.
12.
The stable has
been broken open and the horses stolen.
13.
After her doctor
warned her that she was in poor health, Ms. Cheng resolved to go on a diet,
stop smoking, and exercising every day.
14.
Hearing these
strange noises above, the thought at once occurred to me that thieves had
entered the house.
15.
Before we were
called for breakfast, he swam for fifteen minutes in the ocean.
16.
Can you think of
anything which has to be finished before the weekend?
17.
I should have
liked to have been present at the night of the play.
18.
Having searched
thoroughly all the rooms, it was decided that we could do no more.
19. We came to a stream having a very strong
current and which was passable at only one spot.
20.
In the closing
decades of the eighteenth century, it was believed that young women should not
only be obedient and soft-spoken but should also master such skills as
stitching and needle work.
21.
After her fainting
spell, she was told to lay down on the couch for ten minutes.
22.
No judge but the
most stony-hearted could deny the ice-dancers anything but full marks.
23.
On entering the
garret, Ralph Nickleby was found hanging from the ceiling.
24.
Within twenty-four
hours of that order being given the erection of a great chain of wireless
stations will begin in this country.
25.
After years of frustrated
searching for the remains of diminutive mammals from the Age of Reptiles,
paleontologist Matcher learned following the harvester ant and raid its anthill
for valuable fossils.
26.
When making up
prescriptions, some tablets have to be divided into four.
27.
As soon as the sun
rose over the mountains, it became unbearably hot and stifling in the valley.
28.
Mysteriously
beautiful, the Nepalese shrine inlaid with semiprecious stones rare enough to
honour the spiritual essence of the Buddha.
29.
I intended to have
written to him.
30.
I then further
remarked that, Sweden having
observed the laws of neutrality, how could he believe in the possibility of an
alliance with Russia ?
31.
I had hoped to
have found that more progress had been made.
32.
It was the dog who
died, not the man.
33.
Because the
students were extremely noisy and uncooperative, the new teacher started coldly
until they calmed down then letting them squirm with embarrassment.
34.
When he had begun
to sing, all of us became quiet.
35.
Born in Turkey , I was
amazed that Kemal fits so well into English society.
36.
Most western
European countries have decreased their consumption of fossil fuels because of
atmospheric pollution, a number of eastern European countries have not done so.
37.
The mayor shook
hands awkwardly with the visitor, inconvenienced by an attack of arthritis.
38.
He laid for half
an hour unconscious, until he was seen by a passing motorist.
39.
If such a proposal
were made, we would be the first to welcome it.
40.
If I would have
studied for this examination, I would have won the medal; as it was, I received
a very good grade without even trying.
41.
Customs officers
noticed that the yacht was not flying a yellow flag, indicating it had come
from abroad with dutiable goods.
42.
On the Pacific island of Yap , heavy disks of stone money have a
ceremonial value, give prestige to a family when properly displayed, and hordes
of curious tourists have been lured there by it.
43.
We should be glad
if you will attend to this matter.
44.
While it is true
that some thermal pollution may result from the proposed construction and that
a few fish may lose their breeding grounds, there is no reason to refuse
beginning the project.
45.
Rumours of a
planned corporate buyout aroused so much buyer interest that the price of the
stock had risen by five dollars a share before the day’s trading ended.
46.
As Prime Minister,
I should like to ask you a question about your cabinet reshuffle.
47.
Someone said that
the English excelled all the other nations, the Dutch being avaricious, the
French a set of sycophants, the Germans were drunken and beastly gluttons, and
the Spaniards were proud and insolent.
48.
She is the tallest
of the two girls.
49.
What we saw at the
exhibition was the most versatile computer which has ever been produced in a
British factory.
50.
Before the Industrial
Age began , virtually the only forms of intra-urban mass transportation were
those that are slowly drawn by means of horses.
51.
On reckoning up,
twenty pounds was discovered to be missing by the cashier.
52.
I want you to
gently pick up the box of eggs and to carefully carry it.
53.
He was
particularly glad to note the success the council had had in its propaganda
work amongst school children, and also that no fewer than 7,000 of London ’s drivers
voluntarily enrolled themselves to endeavour to go through a whole year without
a single accident.
54.
This group of
artists did not believe in selling works of art; however, some giving them
away.
55.
To lash back at
one’s adversaries may actually be a less courageous course than attempting to
bring about a reconciliation with them.
56.
Like most cars
with four-wheel drive, I find the new Toyoto handles excellently on rough
surfaces.
57.
Although
encephalitis is considered epidemic only in underdeveloped countries, recent
occurrences of the disease has been concentrated in the central states of the US .
58.
The statesman was,
as his speeches inferred, so imbibed with ambition as to be positively
dangerous.
59.
Exposed to the
unexpectedly long and severe cold spell, frost soon killed the buds of the
citrus trees and they did not produce fruit that season.
60.
I was very excited,
being the first time for a few years at least that I had travelled by sea.
61.
The moment the
market board had opened for the day, the broker, eager to make sales, calls his
clients with investment advice.
62.
The service is
hoped to be resumed shortly.
63.
To the
town-dweller, accustomed to polished performances of professional actors and
actresses, a picture of a rickety platform, no floodlights, actors in obviously
home-made costumes, and who constantly forget their cues, comes.
64.
Due to me being a
new-comer I was unable to get a house suitable for my wife and me.
65.
Although he had
planned a more pessimistic ending, Thomas Hardy got persuaded by public demand
to close The Return of the Native with a marriage that seemed to promise
happiness for Thomasin and Diggory.
66.
I think education
and health and those sort of things generally are two of the main advantages of
modern travel.
67.
The great wastes
of the southeast quadrant of Saudi
Arabia are at once forbiddingly empty,
climatically harsh, and the beauty of them is haunting.
68.
All the ships were
unloaded at Liverpool and sent by train to Manchester .
69.
The 16-year-old
slave, who had disguised herself as a boy to join the Underground Railroad,
finally swum across the Potomac to find
protection in the capital.
70.
They live in stone-age
conditions, as it was.
71.
He has a special
cupboard for test tubes into which he slips at odd times.
72.
Abhorring rampant
commercialism, our Backstreet Theatre Group has always attempted to try and
produce original work by worthy, if unknown, playwrights.
73.
Being an
inveterate smoker, there are always several ashtrays lying about the room.
74.
Hardly had he
returned than he was called out again.
75.
Admiral Dewey,
half a world away from Washington , was capable
of making command decisions on his own authority, he was undoubtedly the most
qualified officer to lead the US
fleet into Manila
Bay .
76.
The ten first
pages of the book were missing.
77.
After he spoke for
several minutes, Governor Short realised that the hubbub in the audience
indicated that he was not holding his listeners’ attention.
78.
Return my book
back to me today.
79.
If he be found
guilty and receives a prison sentence, his family will suffer.
80.
That many people
believe him to be the most competent and well-informed of all the candidates
currently listed on the ballot.
81.
Of the two books
he chose the one he considered the most suitable.
82.
She didn’t use to
do it.
83.
As soon as the
roses bloomed their last in late summer or early autumn, most gardeners begin
the annual task of heavy pruning.
84.
Panting for breath
the lifebelt eluded his grasp.
85.
The museum is very
nice, but unlike the art gallery I wouldn’t want to visit it again.
86.
He didn’t ought to
have done it.
87.
They saw the church coming round the corner.
88.
Only recently has
the full extent of the damage, hidden deep underwater when the Maine had been sunk,
been carefully explored and the true cause of the famous explosion revealed.
89.
These curtains
need coming down.
90.
Barbados only just defeated Trinidad ,
handicapped by a spate of recent injuries.
91.
Coming round the
corner a tree lay across the path.
92.
Babar is the most
popular elephant in children’s literature but was created 54 years ago in a
suburb of Paris .
93.
He decided to
quickly leave the house.
94.
Jefferson grieved
at the death of Philip Mazzei, whose advice about viniculture has been followed
assiduously since the creation of the vineyard at Monticello .
95.
Of the two he was
trying the hardest.
96.
Herbert Emerson
Wilson was known as ‘King of the Safecrackers’ and had been a minister in San Diego .
97.
Being the only
people there, their presence was most important.
98.
I should not have
been able to have done this for you in this case.
99.
When the sun rises
at the spring equinox, its first rays strike the ancient symbol that is carved
into the back wall of the cave in West
Virginia during prehistoric times.
100.
It all depends now
on them coming in time.
101.
The managing
director said that the firm had ordered the goods and will have to pay for
them.
102.
Many settlers went
to new countries to develop the resources there; a few, however, moved to these
places because of the strange and compelling natural beauty to be found here.
103.
I witnessed the
girl walk deliberately past the fans shouting abuse.
104.
Today, when Indian
leaders initiated lawsuits seeking the return of ancestral lands, the
government often offers to settle the disputes out of court.
105.
Borges, probably
the most innovative writer of the twentieth century, has brought for world
literature a fresh conception of the true nature of fiction.
106.
They are both
excellent books, but this one is best.
107.
Credulous people
believe in the existence of aliens, sceptics do not.
108.
He works more
diligent now that he has become the foreman.
109.
In the work of
Dagon artists, produced centuries before western astronomers were to observe
the phenomena, were a traditional artistic motif illustrating the four moons of
Jupiter.
110.
Because his unique
situated cottage was surrounded by Australian pines and an acre of mangroves,
he found peace and quiet in the beach community.
111.
The physician
warned two of the wrestlers that fasting for several days could be dangerous,
but they and the other members of the team were too desperate to lose weight
before the meet.
112.
Waiting outside
the bank in lawn chairs and sleeping bags, the applicants for low-interest
loans hoped to buy decent built houses for their families.
113.
I saw you using my
new binoculars.
114.
As soon as the
leaves began to assume their brilliant fall colours, many city-dwellers leap
into rented cars and speed northward for one brief annual contact with Nature.
115.
I wouldn’t be
surprised if he didn’t pay me back.
116.
To be accurately
called ‘culture-bound,’ a person must doggedly believe that hardly nothing of
importance has been achieved by cultures other than his or her own.
117.
Everyone in the
class looks well in the graduation picture except Margie and me.
118.
William Faulkner’s
great themes are the following; courage, pride, pity.
119.
These claims have
been dismissed as mere bravado by the police.
120.
Most students
enter college right after high school, while a few waiting a year or two before
seeking admission.
121.
Dashing across the
campus, John tried to overtake the instructor who had forgotten his briefcase.
122.
Saint Bernard dogs
have rescued many stranded travellers, they have truly been man’s best friends.
123.
Hypercortisolism
is when the adrenal cortex produces too much artisol.
124.
Having lost his
money in the stock market, his friends deserted him.
125.
Most of the 6,000
terra cotta figures found at Xian could not be restored because they were so
shattered without spending too much time and money.
126.
An assistant
commissioner said they could neither vouch for the truth nor accuracy of the
reports.
127.
The Ivorian
students considered it even more disrespectful to look directly into the eyes
of an elder than refusing to answer a question asked by a teacher.
128.
I will always
remember you standing by me and offering me encouragement.
129.
It will be their
home for life if they don’t fall behind with the rent and are evicted.
130.
Occurring in
April, we were surprised by the unexpected snow storm.
131.
Yeats eventually
created a unique voice in his poetry, but he was able to shake off the
restricting influences of the British literary tradition.
132.
Reading about the
massacre, it was difficult to understand the motive of the killers.
133.
June is my
favourite month; the roses smell so sweetly and the birds sing so happily.
134.
The labourer today
has greater leisure, is less provincial, enjoying the fruits of his labours to
a far greater degree than was hitherto possible.
135.
What I find
objectionable is him going to the store without permission.
136.
The result of all
these lengthy legal actions, counterclaims, and appeals simply produced huge
bills from the lawyers and nothing else.
137.
The body of Mr.
Chopra was cremated yesterday in the compound of the newspapers he edited for
security reasons.
138.
He expressed the opinion
the report of Mr. Smith, that the exhaustion of the mines, affecting the
well-being of the whole country, was too serious to be accepted without further
consideration.
139.
Being an
inveterate smoker, there are always several ashtrays lying about my room.
140.
Having brought
these legal actions and counterclaims and appeals without success, the huge
bills dealt the company a further blow.
141.
She had forgotten
all about the stranger’s coming to the door and inquired about her brother.
142.
No orders will be
given special attention, but will have to wait their turn.
143.
Being locked and
bolted, the police were forced to break the door to gain entry into the
apartment.
144.
The volcano
erupted, sent clouds of dust to a height of 40 miles, and blotted out the sun
for more than two days.
145.
Grading term
papers for so many years, the professor is an expert at spotting submissions
that have been plagiarized or even too heavily influenced by another’s ideas.
146.
He was forced to
abandon his attempt to sail the Atlantic
single-handed on Monday.
147.
The actors were
criticised both by their friends and their enemies.
148.
I shall only send
you $50 towards the appeal if you write to me again.
149.
It was not
seriously thought that the negotiating team would be presenting any new offers,
and that, instead, the talks would have to be adjourned until next year.
150.
No new applicants
will be considered, but will have to reapply for the post in January next year.
GRAMMAR TEST—: ANSWERS
Note: 1. The
correct word or phrase that has replaced the existing one is indicated in bold & underlined. But the existing word or phrase that has been replaced has not been
shown.
2. The other words related to the
correction are indicated in bold for ease of
understanding.
3. If a word is removed from the
sentence as part of the correction, it is shown in bold brackets ( ).
4. The reason for the correction or
topic of grammar is indicated in square brackets [ ] after the sentence.
1.
No head injury is too trivial to treat. OR
No head injury is trivial enough to ignore. OR
No head injury, however trivial, should be ignored. [Use of Comparative Structures]
2.
He expressed the
opinion that the committee’s report, that the exhaustion of the mines is affecting the
well-being of the whole country, was too serious to be accepted without further
consideration.
[Sentence
Structure]
3.
A brilliant but
outrageous comedian, Lenny Bruce drew sketches that both amused and unsettled his audience. [Misrelated
Modifier]
4.
The region has a
climate so severe that plants growing there rarely have been more than twelve
inches high. [Verb Tense]
5.
Regrettably, your application has been refused. [Use of Adverbs]
6.
Between ten and
twelve percent of all students scored high enough to qualify for merit. [Sentence Structure]
7.
Because Colette’s first novel was so wildly successful, her
husband locked her in their Paris
flat with orders to produce more. [Misrelated Participle]
8.
You will never
find a policeman walking just here in the park. [Positioning of Adverbs]
9.
When we attempted to restore the picture to its original condition,
almost irreparable damage was discovered. [Dangling Participle]
10. After he had drunk the warm milk, he
began to feel sleepy and decided to go to bed. [Verb Tense]
11. When I (had) got back from work and was having a shower, my wife said
that she had seen just the curtains that we had been looking for. [Verb Tense]
12. The stable has been broken open and
the horses have been stolen. [Faulty Ellipsis]
13. After her doctor warned her that she
was in poor health, Ms. Cheng resolved to go on a diet, stop smoking, and exercise every day.
[Parallelism: Verbs in Clauses]
14. When I heard these strange
noises above, the thought at once occurred to me that thieves had entered the
house. [Misrelated Participle]
15. Before we were called for breakfast,
he had swum for fifteen minutes in the ocean. [Verb Tense]
16. Can you think of anything that has to be
finished before the weekend? [Use of That or Which]
17. I should have liked to be present at the night of
the play. [Use of Perfect Infinitive]
18. Having searched thoroughly all the rooms, we decided that we
could do no more. [Dangling Participle]
19. We came to a stream which had a very strong
current and which
was passable at only
one spot.
[Sentence
Structure]
20. In the closing decades of the
eighteenth century, it was believed that young women should not only be obedient and soft-spoken but (should) also master such skills as stitching and
needle work.
[Parallelism with
Correlative Conjunctions]
21. After her fainting spell, she was
told to lie down on the couch for ten minutes. [Use of Verbs]
22. Only a stony-hearted judge could have given the ice-dancers anything less
than full marks.
[Use of Negatives]
23. When we entered the garret, Ralph
Nickleby was found hanging from the ceiling. [Misrelated Participle]
24. Within twenty-four hours of the issue of that order (being given) the erection of a great chain of
wireless stations will begin in this country. [Use of Gerund/Participle]
25. After years of frustrated searching
for the remains of diminutive mammals from the Age of Reptiles, paleontologist
Matcher learned to follow the harvester ant and raid its anthill for valuable fossils.
[Idiomatic Verb
Pattern]
26. When making up prescriptions, you will
sometimes have to divide the tablets into four.
[Misrelated
Participle]
27. As soon as the sun rose over the
mountains, the weather became unbearably hot and stifling in the valley.
[Ambiguity:
Thoughtless Use of Pronouns]
28. Mysteriously beautiful, the Nepalese
shrine is inlaid with
semiprecious stones rare enough to honour the spiritual essence of the Buddha.
[Sentence Structure]
29. I intended to write to him. [Use of
Infinitives]
30. -I then further asked, Sweden having observed the laws of neutrality,
how could he believe in the possibility of an alliance with Russia ? OR
-I then further
remarked that, Sweden having
observed the laws of neutrality, he could not
believe in the
possibility of an alliance with Russia ? [Sentence Structure]
31. I had hoped to find that more
progress had been made. [Use of Infinitives]
32. It was the dog that died, not the
man. [Use of That or Who]
33. Because the students were extremely
noisy and uncooperative, the new teacher started coldly until they calmed down and then let them squirm with
embarrassment. [Sentence Structure]
34. When he began to sing, all of
us became quiet. [Verb Tense]
35. I was amazed that Kemal, though born in Turkey , fits so well into English society. [Misrelated Participle]
36. Although most western European countries have
decreased their consumption of fossil fuels because of atmospheric pollution, a
number of eastern European countries have not done so. [Sentence Structure]
37. The mayor, inconvenienced by an attack of
arthritis, shook hands
awkwardly with the visitor.
[Ambiguity:
Improper Word Order]
38. He lay for half an hour unconscious, until
he was seen by a passing motorist. [Use
of the Appropriate Verb]
39. If such a proposal were made, we should be the first to
welcome it. [Use of Should or Would]
40. If I had studied for this examination, I
would have won the medal; as it was, I received a very good grade without even
trying. [Conditional Sentences]
41. Customs officers noticed that the
yacht was not flying a yellow flag, as it should have
been to indicate that it had come
from abroad with dutiable goods. [Sentence Structure]
42. On the Pacific island of Yap ,
heavy disks of stone money have a ceremonial
value, give prestige to a family when properly
displayed, and lure hordes of
curious tourists. [Parallelism:
Verbs in Clauses]
43. We should be glad if you would attend to this
matter. [Use of Should /Shall or Would/Will]
44. While it is true that some thermal
pollution may result from the proposed construction and that a few fish may
lose their breeding grounds, there is no reason to refuse to begin the project. [Idiomatic Verb Pattern]
45. Rumours of a planned corporate buyout
aroused so much buyer interest that the
price of the stock rose by five dollars a share before the day’s trading ended.
[Verb Tense]
46. As Prime Minister, could you please answer a question about your cabinet reshuffle? [Misrelated Modifiers]
47. Someone said that the English
excelled all the other nations, the Dutch being avaricious, the French a set of
sycophants, the Germans (were) drunken and beastly gluttons, and
the Spaniards (were) proud and insolent. [Parallel
Structures]
48. She is the taller of the two girls. [Use of
Comparatives]
49. What we saw at the exhibition was the
most versatile computer that has ever been produced in a British factory. [Use of
Which or That]
50. Before the Industrial Age began ,
virtually the only forms of intra-urban mass transportation were those that were slowly drawn by
means of horses. [Verb Tense]
51. On reckoning up, the cashier discovered that twenty pounds was missing. [Misrelated Participle]
52. I want you to pick up the box of eggs gently and to carry it carefully. [Positioning of Adverbs]
53. -He was particularly glad to note the success the council had had in its
propaganda work amongst school children, and also the fact that no fewer than 7,000 of London ’s drivers voluntarily enrolled
themselves to endeavour to go through a whole year without a single accident. OR
-He was
particularly glad to note that the council had been so
successful in its propaganda
work amongst school children, and also that no fewer than 7,000 of London ’s drivers voluntarily enrolled
themselves to endeavour to go through a whole year without a single
accident.
[Sentence Structure]
54. This group of artists did not believe
in selling works of art; however, some gave them away.
[Sentence
Structure]
55. Lashing back at one’s
adversaries may actually be a less courageous course than
attempting to bring about a
reconciliation with them. [Parallelism with Gerunds]
56. Like most cars with four-wheel drive, the
new Toyota
handles excellently on rough surfaces, I find.
[Misrelated
Modifiers]
57. Although encephalitis is considered
epidemic only in underdeveloped countries, recent occurrences of the disease have been concentrated
in the central states of the US .
[Subject-Verb Agreement]
58. The statesman was, as his speeches implied, so imbued with ambition as
to be positively dangerous.
[Use of the
Appropriate Verbs]
59. Exposed to the unexpectedly long and severe
cold spell, the buds of the citrus trees were soon killed by
frost, and the trees did not produce fruit that season. [Misrelated Participle]
60. I was very excited, as it was the first time for at least several years that I had
travelled by sea.
[Misrelated
Participle]
61. The moment the market board opens for the day, the
broker, eager to make sales, calls his clients with investment advice. [Parallelism: Verbs in Clauses]
62. We hope to resume the service shortly. [Double Passive]
63. To the town-dweller, accustomed to
polished performances of professional actors and actresses, comes a picture of a
rickety platform, no floodlights, actors in obviously home-made costumes, and who
constantly forget their cues (comes). [Sentence Structure]
64. Owing to my being a new-comer I was unable to get a
house suitable for my wife and me.
[Use of Gerunds]
65. Although he had planned a more
pessimistic ending, Thomas Hardy was persuaded by public demand to close
The Return of the Native with a marriage that seemed to promise happiness for
Thomasin and Diggory. [Use of the Appropriate Verb]
66. I think that education and
health and things of that kind are among the main advantages of modern
travel. [Use of the Appropriate Phrases]
67. The great wastes of the southeast
quadrant of Saudi Arabia
are at once forbiddingly empty, climatically harsh, and hauntingly
beautiful. [Parallelism
with Adjectives]
68. All the ships were unloaded at
Liverpool and the goods sent by train to Manchester .
[Faulty Ellipsis]
69. The 16-year-old slave, who had
disguised herself as a boy to join the Underground Railroad, finally swam across the Potomac to find protection in the capital. [Verb Tense]
70. They live in stone-age conditions, as
it were. [Use of Subjunctive Mood]
71. He has a special cupboard for test
tubes and he slips into it at odd times. [Misrelated Modifier]
72. Abhorring rampant commercialism, our Backstreet
Theatre Group has always tried to produce original work by worthy, if unknown,
playwrights. [Idiomatic Verb Pattern]
73. As he is an inveterate
smoker, there are always several ashtrays lying about the room. [Dangling Participle]
74. Hardly had he returned when he was called out
again. [Use of Conjunctions]
75. Admiral Dewey, half a world away from
Washington , was capable of making command
decisions on his own authority, and he was undoubtedly the most qualified officer to lead the
US fleet into Manila Bay .
[Sentence
Structure]
76. The first ten pages of the book were missing.
[Positioning of Adjectives]
77. After he had spoken for several
minutes, Governor Short realised that the hubbub in the audience
indicated that he was not holding his listeners’ attention. [Verb Tense]
78. Return my book (back) to me today. [Removal of
Redundancies]
79. -If he be found guilty and receive a prison sentence, his family will suffer. OR
-If he is found guilty and receives a prison sentence, his family will
suffer.
[Use of
Subjunctive or Indicative Mood]
80. (That) Many people believe him to be the
most competent and well-informed of all the candidates currently listed on the
ballot. [Sentence Structure]
81. Of the two books he chose the one he considered the more suitable. [Use of
Comparatives]
82. She used not to do it. [Appropriate Usage]
83. As soon as the roses bloom their last in
late summer or early autumn, most gardeners begin the annual task of heavy pruning. [Verb Tense]
84. While he panted for breath the
lifebelt eluded his grasp. [Misrelated Participle]
85. The museum is very nice, but unlike
the art gallery I wouldn’t want to visit it again.
86. He ought not to have done it. [Idiomatic Usage]
87. They saw the church as they were coming round the
corner. [Misrelated Participle]
88. Only recently has the full extent of the damage,
hidden deep underwater when the Maine
sank, been carefully explored and the true cause of the famous
explosion revealed. [Verb Tense]
89. These curtains need to come down.
OR These curtains need to be taken down.
[Idiomatic Verb
Pattern]
90. Barbados , handicapped by a spate of recent injuries, only just defeated Trinidad . [Ambiguity:
Improper Word Order]
91. As we came round the corner
a tree lay across the path. [Misrelated Participle]
92. Babar, who was
created 54 years ago in a suburb of Paris , is the most popular elephant in
children’s literature. [Sentence Structure]
93. He decided to (quickly) leave the house quickly. [Positioning of
Adverbs]
94. Jefferson grieved at the death of Philip Mazzei, whose
advice about viniculture had been followed assiduously since the creation of the
vineyard at Monticello .
[Verb Tense]
95. Of the two he was trying the harder. [Use of
Comparatives]
96. Herbert Emerson Wilson, who had been a minister in San
Diego , was known as ‘King of the Safecrackers’. [Sentence Structure]
97. As they were the only people
there, their presence was most important. [Misrelated Participle]
98. I should not have been able to do this for you in this case. [Perfect
Infinitive]
99. When the sun rises at the spring equinox, its first
rays strike the ancient symbol that was carved into the back wall of the cave in West Virginia during prehistoric times. [Verb Tense]
100.
It all depends now
on their coming in time. [Use of Gerunds]
101.
The managing
director said that the firm had ordered the goods and would have to pay for them.
[Verb Tense]
102.
Many settlers went
to new countries to develop the resources there; a few, however, moved to these
places because of the strange and compelling natural beauty to be found there. [Use of Adverbs]
103.
I witnessed the
girl walk deliberately past the fans shouting abuse at them.
[Ambiguity: Improper Word Order]
104.
Today, when Indian
leaders initiate lawsuits seeking the return of ancestral lands, the
government often offers to settle the disputes out of court.
[Verb Tense]
105.
Borges, probably
the most innovative writer of the twentieth century, has brought to world literature a fresh conception
of the true nature of fiction. [Use of Prepositions]
106.
They are both
excellent books, but this one is better. [Use of Comparatives]
107.
While credulous people believe in the existence of aliens, sceptics do not.
[Sentence Structure]
108.
He works more diligently now that he has
become the foreman. [Use of Adjective or Adverb]
109.
In the work of
Dagon artists, produced centuries before western astronomers were to observe
the phenomena, was a traditional artistic motif illustrating the four moons of
Jupiter.
[Subject-Verb Agreement]
110.
Because his uniquely situated cottage
was surrounded by Australian pines and an acre of mangroves, he found peace and
quiet in the beach community. [Use of Adjective or Adverb]
111.
The physician
warned two of the wrestlers that fasting for several days could be dangerous,
but they and the other members of the team were so
desperate to lose weight before the meet that they ignored his warning. [Use of Comparative Structures]
112.
Waiting outside
the bank in lawn chairs and sleeping bags, the applicants for low-interest
loans hoped to buy decently built houses for their families. [Use of Adjective or Adverb]
113.
I saw you through my new
binoculars. [Removing Ambiguity]
114.
As soon as the
leaves begin to assume their brilliant fall colours, many
city-dwellers leap into rented cars and speed northward for one brief annual
contact with Nature. [Verb Tense]
115.
I would be surprised if he paid me back. [Double Negatives]
116.
To be accurately
called ‘culture-bound,’ a person must doggedly believe that hardly anything of importance has
been achieved by cultures other than his or her own. [Double Negatives]
117.
Everyone in the
class looks good in the graduation picture except
Margie and me.
[Use of Adjective or Adverb]
118.
William Faulkner’s
great themes are the following: courage, pride, pity. [Use of
Punctuation]
119.
The police have dismissed these claims as mere bravado. [Ambiguity;
Improper Word Order]
120.
Most students
enter college right after high school, but a few wait a year or two before seeking
admission. [Sentence Structure]
121.
Dashing across the campus, John tried to overtake the instructor who had forgotten his briefcase.
[No
Error]
122.
Saint Bernard dogs
have rescued many stranded travellers; they have truly been man’s best
friends.
[Use of
Punctuation]
123.
Hypercortisolism
is the excessive production of cortisol by the
adrenal cortex. [Sentence
Structure]
124.
When he lost his money in the stock market, his friends deserted him.
[Misrelated Participle]
125.
Most of the 6,000
terra cotta figures found at Xian could not be restored without spending too much time and money because they were
so shattered. [Ambiguity: Improper Word Order]
126.
An assistant
commissioner said they could vouch for neither the truth nor accuracy of the reports.
[Parallelism with
Correlative Conjunctions]
127.
The Ivorian students
considered it even more disrespectful to look directly into the eyes of an elder than to refuse to answer a question asked by a
teacher. [Parallelism with Comparative Structures]
128.
I will always
remember your standing by me and offering me encouragement. [Use of Gerunds]
129.
It will be their
home for life if they
don’t fall behind with the rent and they are evicted. [Sentence Structure]
130.
(Occurring
in April) We were surprised
by the unexpected snow storm in the month of April.
[Misrelated
Participle]
131.
Yeats eventually
created a unique voice in his poetry, because he was able to shake off the
restricting influences of the British literary tradition. [Use of Conjunctions]
132.
When I read about the massacre, it was difficult to understand the motive
of the killers.
[Dangling Participle]
133.
June is my
favourite month; the roses smell so sweet and the birds sing so happily. [Use of
Adjective or Adverb]
134.
The labourer today
has greater leisure, is less provincial, and enjoys the fruits of his
labours to a far greater degree than was hitherto possible. [Parallelism: Verbs
in Clauses]
135.
What I find
objectionable is his going to the store without permission.
[Use of Gerunds]
136.
-The
result of all these
lengthy legal actions, counterclaims, and appeals was simply huge bills from
the lawyers and nothing else. OR
-(The result of) All these lengthy legal actions, counterclaims, and appeals simply produced huge bills from
the lawyers and nothing else. [Sentence Structure]
137.
For security reasons the body of Mr. Chopra was cremated yesterday in the
compound of the newspapers he edited. [Ambiguity: Improper Word Order]
138.
He expressed the
opinion that the report of Mr.
Smith, stating that the exhaustion of the mines is affecting the well-being of the
whole country, was too serious to be accepted without further consideration.
[Sentence Structure] (Repeat of Question no. 2)
139.
Being an inveterate smoker, I always have several ashtrays
lying about my room. [Misrelated Participle] (Repeat of Question no. 73)
140.
Having
brought these legal
actions and counterclaims and appeals without success, the company was dealt a further blow by the huge bills. [Misrelated Participle]
141.
She had forgotten
all about the stranger’s coming to the door and inquiring about her
brother. [Use of Gerunds]
142.
No orders will be
given special attention; all will have to wait their turn. [Sentence Structure]
143.
As the door was locked and bolted, the police were forced to break the
door to gain entry into the apartment. [Misrelated Participle]
144.
The volcano
erupted and sent clouds of dust to a height of 40 miles, blotting out the sun for more
than two days. [Use of Participles]
145.
Having graded term papers for so many years, the professor is an expert at spotting submissions
that have been plagiarized or even too heavily influenced by another’s ideas.
[Use of Participles]
146.
On Monday he was forced to abandon his attempt to sail the Atlantic single-handed.
[Ambiguity:
Improper Word Order]
147.
The actors were
criticised both by their friends and by their enemies.
[Parallelism with Correlative
Conjunctions]
148.
-I shall send you only $50 towards the appeal if you write
to me again. OR
-I shall send you $50 towards the appeal only if you write to me again.
[Positioning of Adverbs]
149.
It was
not seriously thought that the negotiating team would be presenting any new offers, and it was obvious that, instead, the talks would have to be adjourned until next year.
[Sentence Structure]
150.
No new applicants
will be considered—all will have to reapply for the post in January next year.
[Sentence
Structure]
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