- A. Are you a man or a moose?
- B. How dead is a dead doornail?
- C. When in doubt, pout.
- D. Look before you leap.
2. Of these four words, which one is most likely to have a negative flavor?
- A. Meander
- B. Harangue
- C. Confound
- D. Distract
3. Which of the following statements about vocabulary building is not correct?
- A. Pronunciation is an important part of adding new words to your vocabulary.
- B. The best way to improve your vocabulary is to memorize lists of vocabulary words.
- C. Reading on a daily basis is very important for building your vocabulary.
- D. Using the dictionary is only one step in the process of vocabulary building.
4. Read the word in parentheses; then decide which of these sentences most effectively translates an abstract concept into a mental picture.
- A. (Sunrise) The rising sun transformed the canyon into bright stone and deep shadow.
- B. (Studious) Lucy lay on her bed reading a back issue of National Geographic.
- C. (Rumors) Whispers of doubt filled the empty halls like the reek of boiled cabbage.
- D. (Freedom) On her twenty-first birthday, Lola declared herself a woman.
5. When using direct quotations in your writing, which of the following should be placed outside the set of quotation marks?
- A. Semicolon
- B. Period
- C. Comma
- D. Question mark
6. Which of the following words is most likely to carry a connotation?
- A. Walk
- B. Stand
- C. Stride
- D. Run
7. When we speak of the flavor of a word, we're talking about the extra understood meanings that it carries in addition to its main meaning. These extra meanings are called
- A. definitions.
- B. shadings.
- C. connotations.
- D. denotations.
8. Find the sentence with the active voice.
- A. The bill was passed by the legislature.
- B. I was told by the chairman that the bill was passed by the legislature.
- C. The chairman told me that the legislature passed the bill.
- D. It was voted by the legislature to pass.
9. An antonym is a word that's
- A. pronounced the same.
- B. opposite in meaning.
- C. the same in meaning.
- D. defined in a thesaurus.
10. Of the following methods, the best way to increase your reading is by
- A. reading a new book every day.
- B. setting a goal to read five new pages every night.
- C. joining a mail-order book club.
- D. forcing yourself to read subjects you dislike.
11. Nelson's hobby is tinkering with small appliances. Tinkering with implies that Nelson is unskilled at his hobby. You want to change the flavor of this sentence to show that Nelson is, in fact, quite skilled at his hobby. Which of the following should you choose to replace tinkering with so that the reader gets the right idea?
- A. Repairing
- B. Selling
- C. Messing with
- D. Fiddling with
12. Which sentence best describes clustering?
- A. You write down words or ideas in chronological order.
- B. You're generating words that suggest possible themes for an essay.
- C. You're generating words that suggest possible sentences or paragraphs.
- D. You write down words or ideas that occur to you in no particular order.
13. Which of the following sentences uses the best close-up words?
- A. Sara is pursuing a non-science degree.
- B. Sara is pursuing a degree.
- C. Sara is studying languages.
- D. Sara is studying French and German.
14. Increasing your vocabulary means
- A. you'll be able to spend more time reading.
- B. you'll spend less time on revision.
- C. you'll write more lively sentences.
- D. you'll write longer sentences.
15. Which of the following would be an appropriate way to add variety to your sentences?
- A. Use questions and answers together.
- B. Use more close-up words.
- C. Add personal anecdotes.
- D. Make your sentences read like a spoken conversation.
16. When writing, you can most effectively use a dash
- A. to add a formal touch to a sentence.
- B. in place of an exclamation point.
- C. to get the reader's attention.
- D. in place of a semicolon.
17. Which of the following words is the best close-up word?
- A. Food
- B. Zucchini
- C. Plant
- D. Vegetable
18. Which of the following sentences is written in the passive voice?
- A. I would not provoke that man if I were you.
- B. Having left the building, Elvis never returned.
- C. The effects of cyanide are well known.
- D. They considered their options.
19. Which one of the following sentences is written in the active voice?
- A. Few people think seriously of doing something about accidents.
- B. It is said that definite steps can be taken to prevent many accidents.
- C. Accidents are considered by most people as unavoidable.
- D. Accidents are witnessed every day.
20. Which statement is most accurate regarding the speaking-writing connection?
- A. The words used by writers are not normally used in speaking.
- B. To own a word, speak it.
- C. Written words seldom reflect the words people use when they speak.
- D. To own a word, write it over and over again. End of exam
