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Commas – Exercise 1
Directions: Choose the option that will fix the comma error.
____ 1. During lunch, at the campus cafeteria, Mildred noticed the dirty tables, the overworked cashiers, and the exorbitant price for a watery soda.
A. Should you remove the comma after lunch?
B. Or should you remove the comma after cashiers?
____ 2. Melissa couldn't study for her comma quiz, because she was joy riding on the Enterprise with Mr. Spock, whom the US Air Force chased with its fastest jets.
A. Should you remove the comma after quiz?
B. Or should you remove the comma after Mr. Spock?
____ 3. The slimy smelly lettuce on my burrito made me ask the manager to return my 99 cents.
A. Should you add a comma after slimy?
B. Or Should you add a comma after burrito?
____ 4. Sitting in the atrium, Marcus chatted pleasantly with a pretty student from his chemistry class, but then he had to leave suddenly, because he noticed that he had only thrity seconds to get to Professor Spottke's English class on time.
A. Should you remove the comma after atrium?
B. Or should you remove the comma after suddenly?
____ 5. To study for his calculus midterm, Brian drank seven cups of strong Turkish coffee which kept him wide awake for the all-nighter.
A. Should you remove the comma after midterm?
B. Or should you add a comma after coffee?
____ 6. "Don't eat that pizza," warned Lisa. "It's over two weeks old", she then explained.
A. Should the comma after pizza follow the quotation marks?
B. Or should the comma after old precede the quotation marks?
____7. Fifteen uncooked popcorn kernels, and a few grains of salt littered the front of Robert's shirt as he slouched in the theater seat.
A. Should you add a comma after fifteen?
B. Or should you remove the comma after kernels?
____ 8. Swinging at the fast ball, Bobbie heard, the satisfying crack of the home run that he had just hit.
A. Should you remove the comma after ball?
B. Or should you remove the comma after heard?
____ 9. Karen wasn't sure if she needed a comma or not so she drew in a smudge that could pass for a comma or a stray pen mark.
A. Should you add a comma after not?
B. Or should you use a comma after comma?
____ 10. Maricarmen bought a new dictionary, so that she could proofread for spelling errors on her next in-class essay.
A. Should you remove the comma after dictionary?
B. Or should you add a comma after errors?
____ 11. Last weekend, Brenda had time to wash clothes. The dishes, however were piled all over the kitchen counter and in the sink.
A. Should you add a comma after however?
B. Or should you add a comma after counter?
____ 12. "Don’t give me that look Marlin," warned Mrs. Clemmons, who held his paycheck in her hand.
A. Should you add a comma after look?
B. Or should you remove the comma after Mrs. Clemmons?
____ 13. Winning the lottery would create more headaches than the money is worth but Fred still buys a ticket every week.
A. Should you add a comma after lottery?
B. Or should you add a comma after worth?
____ 14. Thumbing through the s section of the dictionary, Harold tried to find, the correct spelling of psychology, but the owrd eluded him despite his careful search.
A. Should you remove the comma after find?
B. Or should you remove the comma after psychology?
____ 15. Oreo, a "barkless" basenji will scream like a human child if we don't feed her pizza crust quickly enough.
A. Should you add a comma after basenji?
B. Or should you add a comma after child?
____ 16. Coffee brewed on the counter top and bacon fried on the stove. Snuggling under the covers for a few more moments of sleep, Clyde relished his first Saturday free from work.
A. Should you add a comma after top?
B. Or should you remove the comma after sleep?
____ 17. At the bakery where she worked, Denise happily took one order after another, enjoying the fast pace of Sunday afternoon. Orville, on the other hand had a killer headache from the constant noise and flood of hungry customers
A. Should you remove the comma after another?
B. Or should you add a comma after hand?
____ 18. Christine removed her glasses, so that the world would dissolve into a blur. If she couldn't see the mound of homework before her, she could pretend that it didn't exist.
A. Should you remove the comma after glasses?
B. Or should you remove the comma after her?
____ 19. David looked in his cereal bowl and gasped in surprise. When his mother came running from the kitchen, David explained "Something just dove under the flakes!"
A. Should you remove the comma after kitchen?
B. Or should you add a comma after explained?
____ 20. Deepa slaved over her essay so she expected a good grade when Ms. Richards returned the papers. The A on the last page confirmed for Deepa that hard work does pay off.
A. Should you put a comma after essay?
B. Or should you put a comma after page?
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Pronoun Agreement - Exercise 1
Directions: In the space provided, fix the underlined error.
_________________ 1. Nobody knows that eating chocolate-broccoli muffins is a good way to provide
their bodies with vitamin C.
_________________ 2. The troupe of knife jugglers shocked their audience when a butcher knife
accidentally decapitated the head of an old woman's poodle.
_________________ 3. Either the grill crew or the manager must give their permission for you to return
that half-eaten double cheeseburger.
_________________ 4. Both the computer monitor and the refrigerator door have its shiny surface
smeared with dog snot from our curious puppy Oreo.
_________________ 5. Which member of your track team makes their opponents resemble turtles
trying to compete with a hare?
_________________ 6. The catering committee for the Halloween dance received many compliments
for their squid eyeball stew.
_________________ 7. The new and improved laundry detergent restored Hector's mud-stained pants
to its original condition.
_________________ 8. After feeding several quarters into the gumball machine, a person learns that
they have little chance of receiving the miniature camera in the display.
_________________ 9. Mrs. Carson, like every other American literature teacher, has their own
interpretation of the symbols of Moby Dick.
_________________ 10. Every puppy and kitten will cry at night until their owner comes to carry it to
bed.
_________________ 11. My grandmother, as well as too many other Americans, believes every word they read in the National Enquirer.
_________________ 12. If anyone wishes to try one of Louise's famous fudge-stuffed mushrooms, they had better hurry before the guest devour all of these delicious treats.
_________________ 13. Each of these computers has their own technical glitch that can frustrate the user.
_________________ 14. If Tito's Taco Palace continue to increase their prices, Samantha won't be able to afford the cheapest lunch burrito.
_________________ 15. Tito's Taco Palace stuffs their tortillas with many unusual items; for example, you can order peanut butter and octopus burritos or tarantula and mango tacos.
_________________ 16. Every neighbor on my street looked up in surprise as the giant spaceship descended from the sky and hovered above their heads.
_________________ 17. Someone in the apartment needs to remember to buy shampoo unless everyone wants to wash their hair tomorrow morning with dish soap.
_________________ 18. Neither Floyd the dog nor Madison's three cats enjoy sleeping on the hard, cold floor when he can jump onto the soft, warm bed as soon as she leaves for work.
_________________ 19. These two young men will not pass the final exam in Fundamentals of Biology because he has spent the semester flirting with the pretty Josephine instead of listening to Dr. Shuman.
_________________ 20. Not only the crickets but also a frog chirped outside David's window for so long last night that they kept the poor boy from getting any rest before his important pronoun agreement quiz.
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Subject-Verb Agreement - Exercise 1
Directions: In the blank, use the correct present tense form of the infinitive given at the beginning of each sentence.
_________________ 1. To have: The cracked windshield, in addition to the torn upholstery and rusted body, ______ made Ruth's old car difficult to sell.
_________________ 2. To be: This week's National Inquisitor claims that there ____ photographs of the Loch Ness Monster eating Elvis.
_________________ 3. To work: At Tito's Taco Palace ____ friends who will stuff double meat into burritos for free.
_________________ 4. To crawl: On the tables in the library ____ the many germs that have escaped in the hot breath of hardworking students.
_________________ 5. To be: None of this breakfast that Lilly Mae cooked ____ fit to eat.
_________________ 6. To taste: None of these chocolate-broccoli muffins____ good, either.
_________________ 7. To have: The whole red ant colony, including the queen and all of her drones, ____ swarmed over Tommy's feet, stinging his ankles
_________________ 8. To make: Fifteen gallons of chocolate milk ____ Herbert the elephant a happy pachyderm.
_________________ 9. To hope: Everyone on the roller coaster, including Martha and Angie, ____ that the hot dogs, onion rings, funnel cake, and cotton candy will stay down during the twisting ride to come.
_________________ 10. To bother: Neither Fred's ratty clothes nor his sullen attitude ____ Esmeralda, who lets Fred pick up the check every time they dine out.
_________________ 11. To hug: That pair of jeans ____ the curves of Hannah's body as nicely as tinfoil on a baked potato.
_________________ 12. To annoy: Neither the coughing muffler nor the squeaky brakes ____ Ruth as much as the broken radio in her old car.
_________________ 13. To get: Florida alligators usually ____ severe indigestion after eating poodles.
_________________ 14. To cling: Every cat hair, candy wrapper, and loose thread ____ to the super- charged polyester pants that Theodora loves to wear.
_________________ 15. To know: Any one of Ms. Orsini's students ____ the rules that govern subject- verb agreement.
_________________ 16. To take: The sine on my hardwood floors ____ abuse from the ragged toenails of Floyd, my dog.
_________________ 17. The have: Neither of those students ____ a clue about the rules governing subject-verb agreement. Pity them both during the quiz.
_________________ 18. To make: Patience and compassion, in addition to a wallet bulging with money, ____ every want Jordan as a friend.
_________________ 19. To require: Statistics ____ so much homework that Michelle's poor fingers have permanent indentations from the calculator pads.
_________________ 20. To come: The committee ____ from all parts of the city, so we usually have to start late because so many members get stuck in traffic.
_________________ 21. To believe: The committee ____ that waiting until everyone arrives is more important than starting on time.
_________________ 22. To be: When Dad is angry, there ____ fire flickering in his eyes as well as smoke escaping from his ears.
_________________ 23. To brighten: When Matthew is having a bad day, old episodes of The X-Files always ____ his mood.
_________________ 24. To hit: Each of those opera singers regularly ____ notes high enough to break glass and rupture eardrums.
_________________ 25. To be: Either the fried oyster sandwich or shrimp pizza ____ the best choice for lunch
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Using proofreading marks, make corrections to this paper. On the back, write a response to the writer on things she needs to look at before submitting her final draft.
Molly Warren
November 18, 2006
Christopher Reeve
“When the first Superman movie came out, I was frequently asked, ‘What is a hero?’ I remember the glib response I repeated so many times. My answer was that a hero is someone who commits a courageous action without the consequences…” (Still Me).
Tragic Hero – A distinguished person (a man or a woman) of stature or significance who has a tragic downfall (a dreadful, calamitous, disastrous, or fatal downfall) because of some personal character flaw (tragic flaw), or by fate (Micucio).
Christopher Reeve was a t the peak of his career in 1995. Known as Superman, Reeve was known practically worldwide. He had stared in several movies other than his four Superman movies, such as Gray Lady Down, Somewhere in Time, Monsignor, Deathtrap, Morning Glory, Street Smart, Village of the Damned and Above Suspicion (Still Me). Reeve ironically played a paraplegic in Above Suspicion, filmed eight months prior to Reeve’s accident (Still Me).
May 27, 1995 was a beautiful day for an even tin Culpeper, Virginia. Dressage was early in the morning and cross-country was in the afternoon. Show jumping would be held the following day, Sunday, May 28, 1995. Reeve came out in 4th place after dressage and was prepared for cross country. Reeve said that he was most worried about the 17th and 18th jumps on the course (Still Me). He cleared the first two jumps with none problems, but as he approached the third obstacle and his horse, Buck, began to take off from the ground. Buck suddenly refused to jump, sending an off-balanc e Reeve over his head, who was scrambling to stay on for competition’s sake. Reeve was scambling to grab onto anything he could, and ended up entangled in his horse’s bridle. Since he hands were solidly tangled in the bridle, he had no means of breaking his fall. Consequently, he land on the other side of the obstacle directly on his head.
Witnesses says that after Reeve fell, they heard him saying he couldn’t breathe (Still Me). Soon after, he became unconscious. Reeve, broke his first and second vertebrae, known as the hangman’s injury because when a person are hung the snap of the noose shatters the first and second vertebra. When the paramedics reached Reeve he had not breathed for about three minutes (Still Me). Reeve was stabilized and driven off the cross country field, then transported to the Culpeper hospital. Dr. Maloney, the admitting physician in the emergency room at Culpeper, administered methylprednisolone (MP), which greatly reduced the risk of further damage to Reeve’s spinal cord (Still Me). From the Culpeper hospital, Reeve were transported to UVA Hospital by a helicopter ironically deemed Pegasus.
“For more than a year I wondered if my injury was purely an accident, a freakish event, or if I was responsible for what happened to me.” (Still Me 20)