Download Title: When Words Collide, 9th Edition Author: Kessler

Title: When Words Collide, 9th Edition
Author: Kessler/McDonald
Section: Chapter 5 Online Quiz Answers
1) The following two sentences contain 10 nouns -- including one gerund. Can you find them and
suggest what they are doing in these sentences?
The senator said today that she anticipated no adverse outcomes in today's debate on federally
subsidized health insurance.
“Creating consensus is my goal,” she said, “and the senate should not fear a robust dialogue
that achieves understanding and agreement.”
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
h.
i.
j.
Answers:
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
h.
i.
j.
senator (subject of sentence)
outcomes (direct object)
debate (object of preposition)
health insurance (object of preposition)
Creating (as a gerund, the subject)
consensus (object of the gerund phrase)
senate (subject of clause)
dialogue (direct object)
understanding (direct object)
agreement (direct object)
See “Nouns,” pages 49-50.
2) Words like he, his, she, her, its, who, whom are pronouns. As “noun substitutes,” they add variety to
their “alter-ego nouns.” In the following sentences, please identify each pronoun and tell us (if it is
apparent) the pronoun’s antecedent (the noun that precedes it somewhere and to which the pronoun
refers.)
a. Brenda announced that she will run for president.
b. It was she who solved the puzzle.
c. Both the accountant and the chief financial officer understood the problem and the potential
solution, but only he was able to explain it properly to the media.
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d. This is the book that was stolen.
e. This book is not my favorite.
Answers:
a. The only pronoun is she -- it refers to Brenda (the antecedent). BUT -- isn't that a pronoun, a
relative pronoun? Not in this case; it's a conjunction. If you think that is a pronoun, then what
is its antecedent?
b. Three pronouns here, and their antecedent (obviously the same individual) needs to be
determined by an earlier reference (in an earlier sentence). They are It, she and who. (The last
one is called a relative pronoun.)
c. In this sentence, he and it are pronouns, but they are used incorrectly. To whom does the
personal pronoun he refer? The same question can be asked of it.
d. We see two pronouns here -- This (a reference to book) and that (a relative pronoun, "standing
in" for book in the second clause).
e. Only one pronoun here: my, a simple possessive. This is an adjective, as it does not "stand in"
for book but specifies the identification of the book.
See “Pronouns,” pages 50-53.
3) Adjectives modify nouns, and adverbs don't. Adverbs are much busier in their modifying roles but
they often are not as colorful or descriptive as adjectives. Please identify the ten adjectives in the
following paragraph.
A frantic Bill Anderson, frustrated by bureaucratic delays and anxious about resolving a
"nightmare of unbelievable proportions," rushed wildly around the crowded office to gather the six
signatures he would need before midnight. He barely met the deadline, but he was truly thankful to the
calm clerk who reassured him that he would be successful.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
h.
i.
j.
Answers:
a. Frantic (modifies “Bill Anderson”)
b. Frustrated (modifies “Bill Anderson”)
c. Bureaucratic (modifies “delays”)
d. Anxious (modifies “Bill Anderson”)
e. Unbelievable (modifies “proportions”)
f. Crowded (modifies “crowded”)
g. Six (modifies “six”)
© 2016 Cengage Learning®. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part,
except for use as permitted in a license distributed with a certain product or service or otherwise on a password-protected website or
school-approved learning management system for classroom use.
h. Thankful (modifies “he”)
i. Calm (modifies “clerk”)
j. Successful (modifies “he”)
See “Adjectives,” pages 53-56.
4) Please identify the three adverbs present in the same statement above.
a.
b.
c.
Answers:
a. Wildly (modifies the verb, “rushed”)
b. Barely (modifies the verb, “met”)
c. Truly (modifies the adjective, “thankful”)
See “Adverbs,” pages 56-58.
5) Please identify the prepositions in the following sentences.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
Every student passed the exam except Sheila.
George looked like a million bucks.
After school, Marcus went home.
Madeline played volleyball for the university.
The weary soldier returned from the war.
The chicken ran across the road.
Matthew feels like eating pizza.
Answers:
a. Except (describes the relationship between the students and Sheila)
b. Like (describes the relationship between George and a million bucks)
c. After (describes a temporal relationship between Marcus, school and home)
d. For (describes the relationship between Madeline and the university)
e. From (describes the relationship between the soldier and the war)
f. Across (locates the chicken in relation to the road)
g. Like (describes the relationship between Matthew and pizza)
See “Prepositions,” pages 58-60.
6.) Please identify the conjunctions in the following sentences.
© 2016 Cengage Learning®. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part,
except for use as permitted in a license distributed with a certain product or service or otherwise on a password-protected website or
school-approved learning management system for classroom use.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
Because Pierre hated rollercoasters, he never went to amusement parks.
Clarice wanted to go to the zoo, but she ran out of cash.
Claude looked as if he had seen a ghost.
Sammy was neither frightened nor reluctant to jump on stage without a script.
I may be exhausted, but I won’t give up.
Jane was both excited and nervous for her first job interview.
Unless we patch the hole immediately, the raft will sink.
Answers:
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
Because [“Because” is a subordinating conjunction.]
But [“But” is a coordinating conjunction.]
As if [“As if” is a subordinating conjunction.]
Nether-nor [“Neither-nor” is a correlative conjunction.]
But [“But” is a coordinating conjunction.]
Both-and [“Both-and” is a correlative conjunction.]
Unless [“Unless] is a subordinating conjunction.]
See “Conjunctions,” pages 60-62.
© 2016 Cengage Learning®. May not be scanned, copied or duplicated, or posted to a publicly accessible website, in whole or in part,
except for use as permitted in a license distributed with a certain product or service or otherwise on a password-protected website or
school-approved learning management system for classroom use.