Word Usage Practice Questions

Each underlined section corresponds to an answer choice, with the first underlined section corresponding to choice A. Please select the choice containing an error, or select choice E if there is no error.

1. The first chance A to draw in the ticket lottery goes to B whomever C is D the first in line. E No error.

  1. A
  2. B
  3. C
  4. D
  5. E

2. There are many people A who feel that he has B always C got more D than his fair share. E No error.

  1. A
  2. B
  3. C
  4. D
  5. E

3. Steve said, “I feel so A good B today, I C could run the whole training D myselfinstead of just being in it.” E No error.

  1. A
  2. B
  3. C
  4. D
  5. E

4. A Whom did you meet B yesterday at the front desk C in the hotel’s D restaurant? E No error.

  1. A
  2. B
  3. C
  4. D
  5. E

5. A As they B were dissatisfied, the three C best students discussed the issue D between themselves. E No error.

  1. A
  2. B
  3. C
  4. D
  5. E

6. A When the professor told B him to write his essay again, the student wrote C himself the note D “redue” on his paper. E No error.

  1. A
  2. B
  3. C
  4. D
  5. E

7. When somebody A through a B brick, smashing his window, Ian suspected it C was one of the D rioters. E No error.

  1. A
  2. B
  3. C
  4. D
  5. E

8. Everyone in the class agreed A that none of B them C hadn’t seen D Ken’s missing notebook. E No error.

  1. A
  2. B
  3. C
  4. D
  5. E

9. When I first A came B in the house, I realized it was C deserted, with D nobody there. E No error.

  1. A
  2. B
  3. C
  4. D
  5. E

10.AWhose coat,” B Mom asked C , “is this? And D who’s watching the coats right now?”E No error.

  1. A
  2. B
  3. C
  4. D
  5. E

Answers – Word Usage

1. B: The correct usage is whoever, not whomever. This is because whoever is the subject of the clause “whoever is the first in line,” and this takes precedence over its being the indirect object of “goes to.” “Whom” or “whomever” cannot be a subject, only an indirect object.

2. C: The correct present perfect tense of the verb to get is formed with the auxiliary verb has plus the past participle gotten. The simple past tense is got and is not correct to use with has for the present perfect in American English (it is used in British English). The present perfect tense is indicated in this sentence by has together with the adverb always.

3. A: The correct usage to describe how one feels is the adverb well, not the adjective good. Adjectives modify nouns, as in “a good person” or “good food.” Adverbs modify verbs, as in “She did it quickly” or “Do it well.” Adverbs describe when, where, or how, e.g., how Steve feels.

4. E: There is no error. Whom is correct because it is a direct object of meet, and not the subject of a clause or sentence. The adverb yesterday is used correctly, as is the preposition in. The noun restaurant is correct. The question mark is the correct punctuation, as the sentence is a question.

5. D: The preposition between can only be correctly used relative to two people or things, as in “This is just between you and me.” Wherever three or more people or things are involved, the correct usage is among. It is impossible for something to be between more than two objects.

6. D: The student misspelled the word redo, which means to do over or again. The same student wrote, “We made due with what we had.” Both errors show the wrong meaning. The correct meaning is in the word do, a verb. To do means to accomplish, perform, execute, or cause. The word due, on the other hand, is an adjective meaning owed (e.g., the bill is due), having reached the scheduled date (e.g., the bill is due today or the baby is due next month), or proper or fitting (e.g., in due time). There is no such word as “redue.”

7. A: This should be threw, the past tense of the verb to throw, which can be deduced from the context of the sentence. The spelling through is of the preposition, meaning passing in one side/end and out the other in this sentence. A correct example of both words and usages is: “Somebody threw a brick through Ian’s window.”

8. C: It should be “none of them had seen.” The usage “none hadn’t” is a double negative and is incorrect. It would literally mean all of them had seen it, since one negative negates the other.

9. B: The correct usage to link came and the house is into, not in. Into indicates entrance or movement toward the inside of a place or thing. In only indicates within or inside of without entrance or movement in this sense.

10. E: Everything is correct. The possessive pronoun whose is spelled correctly (A). Mom (B) is correctly capitalized as a proper name in this usage. The punctuation is correct: when a quotation is interrupted, a comma and ending quotation mark follows the first part of the quotation, the end of the interruption is punctuated by another comma, and an opening quotation mark indicates where the quotation resumes (C). The spelling who’s (D) is correct as a contraction of who is. (Note: confusing whose and who’s is a common error to avoid.)

 

Last Updated: June 4, 2019