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Next Generation ACCUPLACER
Writing Study Guide
Find the error, if any, in this sentence: "I cannot except that you won't go to the dance with me!" I cannot accept that you won't go to the dance with me! Explanation : The easiest way to remember the difference in meaning between these two words is to look at their letters— accept has two c's that are like open arms, just waiting to hug and embrace and accept whatever is being offered, whereas except has a big X just waiting to reject and exclude something ("I will take all of the cookies except that one with the bite taken out of it"). Find the error, if any, in this sentence: "It is clear to see that the stock market is going to have it's ups and downs; it is important not to overreact to the volatility." It is clear to see that the stock market is going to have its ups and downs; it is important not to overreact to the volatility. Explanation : It's is a contraction of it is or it has; it never shows possession. To test whether you need it's or its, try substituting the phrase it is or it has. If either of those work, you need the apostrophe. If neither of them make sense in your sentence, you don't need the apostrophe. Find the error, if any, in this sentence: "Heavy rains and thunderstorms continue to roll through the area; therefore, all flights are cancelled until tomorrow." no error Explanation : This question tests your knowledge of semicolon use. In this case, a semicolon is used to join two independent clauses. All is well!
Find the error, if any, in this sentence: "Katie did not have no time to pick Kevin up before the game." Katie did not have any time to pick Kevin up before the game. Explanation : This sentence had a double negative, which is a big no- no. Just like in math, double negatives actually create a positive, which was not the intent of the sentence. Find the error, if any, in this sentence: "The wily fox escape the dogs who were chasing after it." The wily fox escaped the dogs who were chasing after it. Explanation : The verbs need to match in subject and tense. In this case, the first verb, escape, did not match its subject in number (fox = singular, escape = plural) and it did not match the other verbs in tense (escape = present tense, were chasing = past tense). Find the error, if any, in this sentence: "The book was thrown on the bed by Madi." No error, but the sentence would be stronger if written in active voice: "Madi threw the book on the bed." Explanation : Remember, while not grammatically incorrect, sentences written in passive voice can create weak, ineffectual writing. Try to always use active voice so that instead of the subject of the sentence being a victim of whatever action is being done, it can be the doer. Find the error, if any, in this sentence: "The piano keys was broken." The piano keys were broken. Explanation : This is a subject-verb agreement issue. The word keys is
Find the error, if any, in this sentence: "Mom was sure Brian would loose his wallet if he kept it in his pocket while skateboarding." Mom was sure Brian would lose his wallet if he kept it in his pocket while skateboarding. Explanation : One o makes a big difference. In the case of lose vs. loose, loose means to unfasten or set free (Mark got the turtle loose from the plastic noose.). But, lose one "o" and now you've changed the word to mean being deprived of or unable to find something. Remember, you lose one o and you get a satisfying "oo" when you loosen your tight belt. Find the error, if any, in this sentence: "Stay true to your own principles and you will never be sorry." no error Explanation : Sometimes, principle gets confused with principal. Remember, the leader of a school can be your "pal," so that's the one that refers to a person. Find the error, if any, in this sentence: "He's drowning, Lindsay shouted!" "He's drowning!" Lindsay shouted. Explanation : Lindsay is doing the shouting, so whatever she said should be punctuated by the exclamation mark. The narrator is calmly telling us what Lindsay shouted so the entire sentence just ends with a period. Find the error, if any, in this sentence: Toys and books were scattered around the child's room. Explanation : There are a variety of ways to fix the sentence, but the
"Toys and books scattered around the child's room." point is to identify that it is an incomplete sentence because it is missing a verb and, therefore, doesn't express a complete thought. Find the error, if any, in this sentence: "Sarah loves to read books she reads at least three every week." Sarah loves to read books. She reads at least three every week. Explanation : There are a variety of ways to fix the sentence, but the point is to identify that it is a run-on sentence. There are too many complete thoughts present, so it needs to be broken down into two separate sentences. You could also fix it by using a semicolon ("Sarah loves to read books; she reads at least three every week.") or a comma and a coordinating conjunction ("Sarah loves to read books, and she reads at least three every week.").
