U.S. English Proofreading Skills Test (Chicago)
Which
of the following sentences does not contain an error in comma usage?
a. That
gigantic balding man was easy to distinguish in the crowd.
b. That
gigantic, balding man was easy to distinguish in the crowd.
c. That
gigantic, balding, man was easy to distinguish in the crowd.
d. That
gigantic balding man, was easy to distinguish in the crowd.
Which
of the following sentences contains an error in number usage, style, or
consistency?
a. The
fact that you've run our debt up to 5.2 million dollars peeves me to the nth
degree!
b. Sue
told me for the thousandth time that she had only 127 chickens, not 130 as I
had thought.
c. Nineteen
seventy-three saw the largest population increase since 1952.
d. 4
of the girls live 15 kilometers away, while 2 of them live only six kilometers
away.
Which
of the following sentences contains an error in number usage, style, or
consistency?
a. I
drove seventeen miles in the rain at 30 mph to pick up some 35 mm film for you,
and all you can do is complain that I got only one roll instead of two.
b. Please
write your memos on 8½ x 11-inch paper rather than on the A4 size.
c. The
biggest lasagna in the world was forty-five M long and used one hundred and 22
KG of tomatoes.
d. Only
36 percent of our town's population voted in the last election, which means
that more than five thousand people stayed away from the polls.
Read
the following passage and select the line that contains an error in
punctuation.
a. The
amount of warmth received by the various regions of the globe and thus the
b. temperature
characteristics of the four seasons, depends largely upon the angle at
c. which
solar radiation reaches the Earth, which is in turn a function of the time
d. of
day, the geographic latitude, and the time of year.
e. No
error
Which
of the following sentences contains an error in grammar or usage?
a. Had
I known about the prize, I might have bought a raffle ticket.
b. Perhaps
you should of thought of the consequences before sticking your head through the
banister.
c. Could
you see your way clear to helping me decipher this enigmatic message?
d. If I
were you, I'd think twice about swimming in quicksand.
Read
the following passage and identify the line that contains an error or
inconsistency.
a. I
found an opening in my schedule to come see you next Friday; however, from
b. what
I under stand, you'll still be out of town at that point. Please let my assistant
c. now
when your next available so she can pencil me in—the sooner the better.
d. b
and c
e. a
and b
Read
the following passage and select the line that contains an error in number
usage, style, or consistency.
a. Seeing
as our train wasn't scheduled to leave until 12:10 p.m., we decided to
b. drive
the thirteen miles to Albany to do a little shopping—it was, after all,
c. only
fifteen days until Christmas and we hadn't even thought about gifts.
d. 7
grandchildren, including a three-year-old, were counting on us!
Which
of the following sentences contains an error in sentence structure?
a. As a
homeowner, do-it-yourself projects have just become too expensive and
time-consuming for me.
b. Do-it-yourself
projects have just become too expensive and time-consuming for me as a
homeowner.
c. I
find, as a homeowner, that do-it-yourself projects have just become too
expensive and time-consuming.
d. As a
homeowner, I find that do-it-yourself projects have just become too expensive
and time-consuming.
Which
of the following sentences contains an error in number usage, style, or
consistency?
a. Your
preliminary reports are due by 1:45 p.m. on September 7, but you have until the
twenty-sixth to submit the final copy.
b. She
completed her degree in the late 1980s and found immediate employment with
First National Bank; indeed, she's spent three-quarters of her career there.
c. Jane
is fascinated by French fashion of the seventeen hundreds and twentieth-century
American fashion of the twenties and thirties.
d. Pompeii,
which was founded between 700 and 600 BC, met its end in AD 79.
Read
the following passage and identify the type of error or inconsistency it
contains.
The
baby giraffe just loved to play with the puma cub. Their games came
inevitably—and painfully—to an end, however, after the first few times the
giraffe smashed his face against the low tree limbs under which the little puma
lithely slipped.
a. Comma
splice
b. Pronoun
reference
c. Faulty
modifier
d. Parallelism
e. No
error
Which
of the following sentences contains an error in number usage, style, or
consistency?
a. Gerald
found 5¢ on the sidewalk, of which he lent 4¢ to Miranda.
b. My
friend Kenneth deposited his savings of $23.32 into thirty-one different banks.
c. The
government provided $8.2 billion in aid to 101 struggling countries.
d. You
can expect to pay between $0.50 and ten dollars for lottery tickets.
Read
the following passage and select the line that contains an error in
punctuation.
a. My
colleague, in an effort to win the pity vote and therefore shield himself from
blame,
b. told
our boss that he had recently, and quite unexpectedly, separated from his wife;
that
c. his
neighbor—whom, incidentally he had once saved from a burning building—had
d. reported
him to the police for disturbing the peace; and that he suspected foul
e. play
in the recent disappearance of Sophie, his beloved cat.
f. No
error
Which
of the following sentences uses correct punctuation?
a. According
to these records, the school years 1998 and 2001 were plagued by dwindling
budgets.
b. For
a more in-depth analysis refer to Smiths study, [2002], and Huffingtons
enlightening essay, (2007).
c. The
final scores in the international championship were as follows; England, 6;
Germany, 4.
d. Italian
has two terms for the word 'face' one for the face of a human, (viso), and
another for the face of an animal (muso).
Read
the following passage and identify the line that contains an error or
inconsistency.
a. My
mother does not have a green thumb—as witness, I
b. call
the numerous drooping plants that that huddle sadly on her
c. balcony
like the frightened survivors of some strange calamity.
d. No
error
Which
of the following sentences contains an error in punctuation?
a. "What
do you think they meant," asked Lucy, "when they said, 'You should
prepare yourselves emotionally?'"
b. The
butler (I almost died laughing!) told the story of Millie's indiscretion to the
whole staff.
c. Horace
said that he intends to return the stolen goods; his word, however, has never
been golden.
d. Malcolm's
sudden and bitter reply, "Leave me in peace, you magpies!" left us
all scratching our heads.
Which
of the following sentences contains an error in sentence structure?
a. Mr.
Hoffman or his assistants are ready to help you with the new editing software.
b. Every
salesperson, according to the latest report, has underperformed this quarter.
c. Living
on the first floor, many strange objects rain down from the other eighty-two
floors above.
d. Eat
it before it escapes!
Read
the following passage and select the line that contains an error in
punctuation.
a. The
main character's shift in attitude is apparent when she
b. says:
"Hilda swore up and down that she would never again speak to
c. that
awful man [her one-time lover.]" Indeed, that passage marks the
d. beginning
of the end of the relationship between the long-time friends.
e. No
error
It
is imperative to include the author's last access date when citing online
sources.
a. True
b. False
Compare
the following manuscript copy to the final proof copy and identify the line
that contains an error.
MANUSCRIPT:
One plane, eight yachts, sixteen luxury cars, numerous houses, villas, and
apartments—my grandfather was disgustingly rich, but also disgustingly stingy.
Upon his death, we discovered that, rather than divide his estate equally among
his family members, Grandpa had decided to leave a tiny morsel to every person in
town—total strangers!—so that none of us could, and I quote, "slip into
the lap of luxury on the sweat of [his] brow."
FINAL
PROOF:
a. One
plane, eight yachts, sixteen luxury cars, numerous houses, villas, and
apartments—
b. my
grandfather was disgustingly rich, but also disgustingly stingy. Upon his
death, we
c. discovered
that, rather than divide his estate equally among his family members,
d. Grandpa
had decided to leave a tiny morsel to every person in town—total strangers!—
e. so
that none of us, and I quote, "slip into the lap of luxury on the sweat of
[his] brow."
f. b
and c
g. No
error
Read
the following passage and identify the line that contains an error or
inconsistency.
a. That
boat has cost us a fortune so far: more than $25,000 to repair the hull
b. after
the hurricane; $10,000 upgrading the interior; and $5,000 to keep it docked
c. for
the summer. What do you say we get rid of it and buy a beach cottage?
d. No
error
Which
of the following sentences contains an error or inconsistency?
a. Have
you reserved the conference room for next week's meeting yet?
b. Please
remember to visit our policy page at
http://www.all-about-lampshades.net/terms-and-conditions.htm.
c. Will
Gertrude pickup the programs at the printer's office, or shall I?
d. Watch
for common errors (like "that" for "who," or missing
quotation marks and parentheses—especially the closing marks.
e. a
and b
f. c
and d
Which
of the following sentences contains an error in sentence structure?
a. Sam
would have loved to adopt a monkey, to take it home, and share his room with
it.
b. Because
he was more generous than his stingy brother, Sam would have devoted half of
his allowance to that monkey.
c. Sam
looked forward to teaching the monkey how to play baseball and soccer.
d. All
of the above sentences contain errors in sentence structure.
Read
the following passage and identify the line that contains an error or
inconsistency.
a. "Did
you happen to see that huge dent in the front fender?" Agatha casually
b. called
out to her son who, having detected a distinct chill in the air, had
c. already
slipped out the back door and was halfway over the hedge.
d. No
error
Which
of the following sentences contains an error or inconsistency?
a. Margaret
seldom misses an error when she proofreads others' papers, but proofing her own
is a whole different story.
b. You've
put me in the awkward and embarassing position of having to report you for
harassment.
c. Don't
forget to bring what we need for the picnic (cups, napkins, plates, etc.)
d. My
birthday falls on a Monday this year, just two days before Thanksgiving.
e. All
of the above
f. None
of the above
Read
the following options and select the line that contains an error in grammar or
usage.
a. Everyone
in town, intent on sending that crook of a mayor to jail, testified
b. in
front of the judge. Even the judge testified, asking himself questions
c. and
giving himself carefully considered responses. The mayor didn't stand a chance.
d. No
error
Which
of the following sentences contains an error in apostrophe usage?
a. My
sister hopes to open a clinic that will offer programs on women's health.
b. Fortnoy
loved to sneak into the art studio's storage room and alter Phoebe's paintings.
c. I
have all of Austen's novels, but I've read only one of them.
d. Isabel
had no intention of ridding the dog of it's fleas.
Which
of the following sentences contains an error in punctuation?
a. Although
the allowance for dart width determines the shape of the garment, it does not
always have to be sewn into a dart (or so I read).
b. My
sister, who is a consummate seamstress, taught me four new design techniques;
the mandarin collar, the dolman sleeve, the contoured waistband, and the French
cuff.
c. The
man who designed Ralph's tuxedo also designed dashing ensembles for Ricardo, my
Chihuahua, and Esther, my hedgehog.
d. Having
scolded me for my carelessness, the tailor proceeded to repair the gaping hole
in my jacket.
e. a
and b
f. b
and c
Read
the following passage and identify the type of error or inconsistency it
contains.
Charlie
has never learned to speak German very well; he still thinks in his mother
tongue, which distracts him so much that he ended up making mistakes in even
the simplest German sentences.
a. Subject-verb
agreement
b. Pronoun-antecedent
agreement
c. Tense
or verb shift
d. Pronoun
case
e. No
error
Which
of the following sentences is correct in terms of number usage, style, or
consistency?
a. Dr.
Hahn had to give up his yacht when he filed for Chapter 11 protection.
b. The
bowlers, who were all in their forties, brought in scores that included two
289s and four 300s.
c. My
5-year-old daughter has already read ¾ of the encyclopedia.
d. Refer
to pages 36-62 for information on activities for age groups 3 to five, 6-8, and
9 up to eleven.
e. a
and b
Read
the following passage and select the line that contains an error in grammar or
usage.
a. Sure,
there were a few dirty dishes in the sink, a few
b. dog
hairs on the couch, a few discarded socks here and there—but
c. for
all intensive purposes, that house was cleaner than it had
d. been
in a ridiculously long time.
e. No
error
Which
of the following sentences contains an error in punctuation?
a. Records
show that the documents were sent to the client at 275 Sumee Way NW, Mannatucka,
MA 65508, on December 12, 1985, but that the client never signed them.
b. In
stormed the students, the teachers, et. al., to stage a protest against the
cafeteria food.
c. We
were asked to bring only cold foods (e.g., potato salad, sandwich meats, fresh
vegetables) to the pot-luck dinner.
d. Dramscher
et al. (1964) noted that the female horned owl produced an average of two eggs
per clutch.
e. No
error
Which
of the following statements about typeset matter is correct?
a. There
should be no character space after any mark of punctuation that ends a
sentence.
b. A
single character space should follow any mark of punctuation that ends a
sentence.
c. Two
character spaces should follow any mark of punctuation that ends a sentence.
d. One
or two character spaces may follow any mark of punctuation that ends a
sentence.
Which
of the entries below does not follow best practice for indexing the names of
titled persons?
a. Elizabeth
II (queen), 28
b. Albert
II, Prince of Monaco, 67
c. Sussex,
3rd Earl of (Oliver Ashton Cooper), 45
d. Pope
(John Paul II), 88
Which
of the following is not a duty generally performed by a proofreader?
a. Comparing
a galley or first proof word for word against an edited manuscript
b. Correcting
minor errors of accuracy and consistency in spelling, grammar, capitalization,
hyphenation, and other style elements
c. Checking
for errors in running heads, page numbers, word breaks, and formatting
d. Checking
the overall consistency and effectiveness of the author's voice and of the
plot, characterization, organization, and structure of the text
e. Ensuring
that the author's final changes to the manuscript have been correctly
transferred to the proof
f. Checking
the accuracy of numbers, abbreviations, titles, bulleted lists, tables,
figures, and captions
Read
the following passage and select the line that contains an error in grammar or
usage.
a. As a
public speaking exercise, we were
b. required
to memorize and recite not only the
c. Presidential
oath of office, but also one
d. of
Hamlet's soliloquies.
e. No
error
Which
of the underlined parts of the following sentences contains an error or
inconsistency?
a. Were
these fourteen zebras ordered by you and her or by Sam and Al?
b. Herbert
and Peg have always been so rude to Arthur and me.
c. Stella's
and Alma's puppies usually frolic together at the dog park.
d. Each
of the climbers has undergone a rigorous physical assessment.
Read
the following passage and select the line that contains an error in grammar or
usage.
a. To
the Esteemed Members of the Partners in Crime Adventure Club:
b. Due
to my deep-seeded fear of spiders and bats, I
c. regret
that I will be unable to join you in the spelunking
d. expedition
scheduled for next week.
e. No
error
Which
of the following sentences does not contain an error or inconsistency?
a. After
dividing up the loot, we realized that Lightfoot and Drake had taken the lions'
share.
b. Hugh
isn't a close friend; still, I wish he would have invited me to the party.
c. Having
been awakened by the screaming sirens, the policeman met me in my pajamas.
d. This
year I learned how to tune a piano, make old-fashioned taffy, and speak French.
Which
of the following sentences correctly punctuates a run-in list?
a. You
are required to provide (1), three watercolor brushes (2), three oil brushes and
(3), one easel.
b. The
professor will lead workshops in (a) working with pastels; (b) working with
watercolors, and (c) working with oil paints.
c. The
workshops are offered in three one-week summer sessions: (a) the first week in
June, (b) the third week in July, and (c) the second week in August.
d. You
are required to provide (1) watercolor brushes, oil brushes, and a palette; (2)
a variety of pencils, pens, pastels, and charcoals; and (3) two sketch pads,
two frames, and an easel.
e. a
and b
f. c
and d
The
following represents a complete bibliography for a scholarly paper. Review the
entries and identify the line that contains an error.
a. Salmon,
Harry R. Digestive Tracts: News and Views from the Belly of the Beast. New
York: Oxford University Press, 1987.
b. ———.
"The Hiccup and Its Role in Digestion." In Neurobiology Now, edited
by M. LaCrosse, 221-228. New York: Oxford University Press, 1995.
c. Talley,
Annie O. and Alice Talley, eds. Gastroenterology in the Modern Hospital.
University of Chicago Press: 1983.
d. Yarnoff,
Malek, trans. Signs of Recovery. London: Stratton Books, 2004.