Dr. Norman Prinsky

Engl. 1101 - Augusta State University

Test on Ch. 51 (“Commas”) in The New McGraw-Hill Handbook

1. In their box at the beginning of Ch. 51, the authors of NMHH list how many principal uses of the comma: (a) 5 (b) 7 (c) 9 (d) 11 (e) 13

2. One main use of the semicolon is for main clauses, at least one of which contains: (a) a comma (b) another semicolon (c) a conjunction (d) a colon

Exercise 51.1

3. 51.1#1 (“Surgeons”) A comma belongs: (a) immediately after “surgeons” (b) immediately after “transplants” (c) immediately after “century” (d) immediately after “place” (e) immediately after “surgeons” and immediately after “transplants”

4. 51.1#2 (“The transplant”) A comma belongs: (a) immediately after “transplant” (b) immediately after “twin” (c) immediately after “another” (d) immediately after “lived”

5. 51.1#3 (“Recently”) A comma belongs: (a) immediately after “surgeons” (b) immediately after “hands” (c) immediately after “transplants” (d) immediately after “are”

6. 51.1#4 (“Face transplants”) A comma belongs: (a) immediately after “transplants” (b) immediately after “issues” (c) immediately after “type” (d) immediately after “operation”

7. 51.1#5 (“Some organs”) A comma belongs: (a) immediately after “organs” and before “for” (b) immediately after “operations” (c) immediately after ”donors” (d) immediately after “organs” and before “from”

Exercise 51.2

8. 51.2#2 (“People with”) The best way to combine the clauses would be: (a) “normal IQs, so” (b) “normal IQs, and” (c) “normal IQs, nor” (d) “normal IQs, but”

9. 51.2#3 (“Children with”) The best way to combine the clauses would be: (a) “routines, in school they” (b) “routines, so in school, they” (c) “routines, but in school they” (d) ”routines; so in school they”

___________

Read the following sentence -- After his knee surgery he needed almost a year to recover but once his doctor gave her approval he began to play with his old skill enthusiasm and nerve.

10. A comma belongs: (a) after “surgery” (b) after “he” (c) after “needed” (d) not at all in “After” through “needed”

11. A semicolon belongs: (a) after “surgery” (b) after “year” (c) after “recover” (d) nowhere in the sentence

12. A comma belongs: (a) after “doctor” (b) after “approval” (c) after “play” (d) after “with”

13. A comma belongs: (a) after “skill” (b) after “enthusiasm” (c) after “skill” and after “enthusiasm” (d) nowhere at all between “old” and “nerve”

Read the following sentence -- During the play’s three acts the characters gather at a deserted lonely house by the seashore discover that one of their number an obnoxious business executive has been murdered and call on the hero an off-duty police officer to help them solve the mystery.

14. A comma belongs: (a) after “play’s” (b) after “acts” (c) after “characters” (d) after “gather”

15. A comma belongs: (a) after “deserted” (b) after “lonely” (c) after “seashore” (d) after “discover”

16. A semicolon belongs: (a) after “deserted” (b) after “lonely” (c) after “seashore” (d) after “discover”

17. A comma belongs: (a) after “number” (b) after “obnoxious” (c) after “executive” (d) after “number” and after “executive”

18. A semicolon belongs: (a) after “number” (b) after “executive” (c) after “murdered” (d) nowhere in “discover” through “and call”

19. A comma belongs: (a) after “call” (b) after “hero” (c) after “officer” (d) after “hero” and after “officer”

20. In the following sentence -- Luciano Pavarotti is a famous Italian tenor he is known for his strong clear dynamic voice -- a semicolon belongs: (a) after “Pavarotti” (b) after “is” (c) after “tenor” (d) nowhere in the sentence

21. In the following sentence -- Luciano Pavarotti is a famous Italian tenor he is known for his strong clear dynamic voice -- a comma belongs: (a) after “tenor” (b) after “strong” (c) after “clear” (d) after “dynamic” (e) after “strong” and after “clear”

22. In the following sentence -- I’m tired of Dr. Prinsky’s boring monotonous lectures -- a comma belongs: (a) after “Dr. Prinsky’s” (b) after “boring” (c) after “monotonous” (d) nowhere at all in the sentence (e) this whole test is making me comma-tose

23. In the following sentence -- I’m tired of Dr. Prinsky’s boring and monotonous lectures -- a comma belongs: (a) after “Dr. Prinsky’s” (b) after “boring” (c) after “monotonous” (d) nowhere at all in the sentence (e) this whole test is making me comma-tose

24. In the following sentence -- Janice Williams Whiting of Augusta State University is an excellent art teacher and a caring generous mentor -- a comma belongs: (a) after “Whiting” (b) after “excellent” (c) after “teacher” (d) after “caring” (e) nowhere in the sentence (f) she has to be nicer than Dr. Prinsky

Exercise 51.3

25. 51.3#1 (“Scholars”) A comma belongs: (a) after “Scholars” (b) “studied” (c) “paintings” (d) nowhere in the sentence

26. 51.3#2 (“Paintings have”) A comma belongs: (a) “America” (b) “Europe” (c) “Africa” (d) “America” and “Europe” (e) ”America” and “Europe” and “Africa”

27. 51.3#3 (“Paintings found”) A comma belongs: (a) after “France” (b) after “Paintings” and “France” (c) after “animals” (d) after “animals” and after “birds” (e) nowhere in the sentence

28. 51.3#4 (“Some scholars”) A comma belongs: (a) after “scholars” (b) after “believe” (c) after “rapturous” (d) nowhere in the sentence

29. 51.3#5 (“We can”) A comma belongs: (a) after “picture” (b) after “flickering” (c) after “dank” (d) after “flickering” and after “dank” (e) nowhere in the sentence

30. 51.3#6a (“Mixing colors”) A comma belongs: (a) after “colors” (b) after “saliva” (c) after “breath” (d) after “saliva” and after “breath” (e) nowhere from “mixing” to “must”

31. 51.3#6b (“Mixing colors”) A comma belongs: (a) after “creative” (b) after “power” (c) after “control” (d) after “power” and after “control”

Exercise 51.4

32. 51.4#1 (“After the”) A comma belongs: (a) after “year” (b) after “CE” (c) after “Europeans” (d) nowhere in the sentence

33. 51.4#2 (“To the”) A comma belongs: (a) after “Holy” (b) after “traveled” (c) after “pilgrims” (d) nowhere in the sentence

34. 51.4#3 (“Increasingly”) A comma belongs: (a) after “aware” (b) after “borders” (c) after “relationships” (d) nowhere in the sentence

35. 51.4#4 (“Establishing”) A comma belongs: (a) after “ports” (c) after “Mediterranean” (c) after “seas” (d) nowhere in the sentence

36. 51.4#5 (“As this”) A comma belongs: (a) after “expanded” (b) after “world” (c) after “spices” (d) nowhere in the sentence

37. 51.4#6a (“In the”) A comma belongs: (a) after “thirteenth” (b) after “fourteenth” (c) after “centuries” (d) nowhere from “In” through “European”

38. 51.4#6b (“In the”) The commas already after “China” and “India” are correct because of: (a) commas for introductory prepositional phrases (b) commas for items in a series X, Y and Z (c) commas for items in a series X, Y, and Z (d) commas for main clauses connected by FANBOYS

______________

39. One of Dr. Prinsky’s two ways to differentiate restrictive (essential) from nonrestrictive (nonessential) material as explained in “Dr. Prinsky’s Snake-Oil Grammar” has to do with the: (a) number of items (one or more than one) in a group or “set” (b) presence of common nouns, proper nouns, or noncount nouns (c) possible substitution of a semicolon for a comma (d) clause making sense by itself

40. One of Dr. Prinsky’s two ways to differentiate restrictive (essential) from nonrestrictive (nonessential) material as explained in “Dr. Prinsky’s Snake-Oil Grammar” has to do with the: (a) subject agreeing in number with the verb (b) transitive verb in contrast to the intransitive verb (c) presence or not of a direct object (d) action in the first clause, relative to the action in the second clause

41. In the following sentence (from “Dr. Prinsky’s Snake-Oil Grammar”) -- Herman Melville’s novel Moby Dick tells a whale of a good story -- a comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “novel” (b) after “Dick” (c) after “novel” and after “Dick” (d) nowhere in the sentence

42. In the following sentence (from “Dr. Prinsky’s Snake-Oil Grammar”) -- Herman Melville’s first novel Typee is set in the South Seas -- a comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “novel” (b) after “Typee” (c) after “novel” and after “Typee” (d) nowhere in the sentence

43. In the following sentence (from “Dr. Prinsky’s Snake-Oil Grammar”) -- I’ll go though I don’t want to -- a comma belongs: (a) after ”go” (b) after “though” (c) after “go” and after “though” (d) nowhere in the sentence

44. In the following sentence (from “Dr. Prinsky’s Snake-Oil Grammar”) -- I’ll go if you go -- a comma belongs: (a) after “go” (b) after “if” (c) after “you” (d) nowhere in the sentence

45. As explained in NMHH, the mandatory conjunction for a restrictive adjective clause is: (a) which (b) that (c) because (d) since

46. In the following sentence -- I had read many studies on the subject, but the studies that Johnson recommended were the most helpful -- a comma belongs or commas belong: (a) “studies” (b) after “recommended” (c) after “studies” and after “recommended” (d) nowhere else in the sentence as already punctuated

47. In the following sentence -- People fighting passionately for their rights can inspire others to join a cause -- a comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “People” (b) after “rights” (c) after “People” and after “rights” (d) nowhere in the sentence

48. In the following sentence -- The widely respected researcher R.S. Smith has shown that a child’s performance on IQ tests is not reliable -- a comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “researcher” (b) after “Smith” (c) after “researcher” and after “Smith” (d) nowhere in the sentence

49. In the following sentence -- One researcher the widely respected R.S. Smith has shown that a child’s performance on IQ tests is not reliable -- a comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “researcher” (b) after “Smith” (c) after “researcher” and after “Smith” (d) nowhere in the sentence

Exercise 51.6

50. 51.6#1 (“The mind-body”) A comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “problem” (b) after “centuries” (c) after “problem” and after “centuries” (d) nowhere in the sentence

51. 51.6#3 (“Since the”) A comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “time” (b) after “Greeks” (c) after “been” (d) nowhere in the sentence

52. 51.6#4 (“Plato the”) A comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “Plato” (b) after “philosopher” (c) after “Plato” and after “philosopher” (d) nowhere in the sentence

53. 51.6#5 (“The French”) A comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “philosopher” (b) after “Descartes” (c) after “philosopher” and after “Descartes” (d) nowhere in the sentence

54. 51.6#6 (“”Descartes’s influential”) A comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “theories” (b) after “foundation” (c) after “rationalism” (d) nowhere in the sentence

Exercise 51.8

55. 51.8#1 (“Millions of”) A comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “viewers” (b) after “critics” (c) after “however” (d) after “critics” and after “however” (e) after “greed”

56. 51.8#2 (“These shows”) A comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “shows” (b) after “say” (c) after “shows” and after “say” (d) nowhere in the sentence

57. 51.8#3 (“The participants”) A comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “participants” (b) after “shows” (c) after “participants” and after “shows” (d) after “people” (e) nowhere else in the sentence except as already punctuated

58. 51.8#4 (“The Amazing Race”) A comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “subjects” (b) after “competitors” (c) after “subjects” and after “competitors” (d) after “world” (e) nowhere in the sentence

59. 51.8#5 (“The message”) A comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “You” (b) after “too” (c) after “You” and after “too” (d) after “rich” (e) nowhere in the sentence

60. 51.8#6 (“Yes many”) A comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “Yes” (b) after “promise” (c) after “dollars” (d) nowhere in the sentence

61. 51.8#7 (“These shows”) A comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “shows” (b) after “course” (c) after “shows” and after “course” (d) nowhere in the sentence

62. 51.8#8 (“Their entertainment”) A comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “value” (b) after “why” (c) after “them” (d) nowhere in the sentence

Exercise 51.9

63. 51.9#1 (“Professor Bartman”) A comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “room” (b) after “proclaimed” (c) after “room” and after “proclaimed” (d) nowhere in the sentence

64. 51.9#2a (“Who”) A comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “‘Who’” (b) after “‘ask’” (c) after “‘Who’” and after “‘ask’” (d) nowhere in the sentence

65. 51.9#2b (“Who”) A question mark belongs: (a) after “‘Who’” (b) after “‘ask’” (c) after “assignment” (d) after “‘queried’” (e) nowhere in the sentence

66. 51.9#3 (“Patricia”) A comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “‘Patricia’” (b) after “hissed” (c) after “‘Patricia’” and after “hissed” (d) nowhere in the sentence

67. 51.9#4 (“What would”) A comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “‘What’” (b) after “‘you’” (c) after “‘like’” (d) nowhere in the sentence

68. 51.9#5 (“Now smiling”) A comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “replied” (b) after “‘Begin’” (c) after “‘us’” (d) nowhere in the sentence

69. 51.9#6 (“She explained”) A comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “explained” (b) after “that” (in “that the”) (c) after “is” (d) nowhere in the sentence

Exercise 51.10

70. 51.10#1 (“Families lured”) A comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “Families” (b) after “1862" (c) after “Families” and after “1862" (d) after “land” (e) nowhere in the sentence

71. 51.10#2 (“Any belongings”) A comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “be” (b) after “piled” (c) after “wagons” (d) nowhere in the sentence

72. 51.10#3a (“The journey”) An additional comma belongs or additional commas belong: (a) in “2000" (b) in “150000" (c) in “2000" and in “150000" (d) after “people” (e) nowhere in the sentence

73. 51.10#3b (“The journey”) The commas bracketing “a 2000-mile trip” are necessary because of a: (a) subordinate clause (b) nonrestrictive absolute phrase (c) restrictive adjective clause (d) nonrestrictive appositive phrase

74. 51.10#4a (“Born in”) A comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “7" (b) after “author” (c) after “Wilder” (d) after “author” and after “Wilder” (e) after “7" and after “author” and after “Wilder”

75. 51.10#4b (“Born in”) The commas bracketing “Born . . . 1867" are necessary for a: (a) subordinate clause (b) nonrestrictive prepositional phrase (c) restrictive adjective clause (d) nonrestrictive participial phrase

76. 51.10#5 (“In October”) A comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “October” (b) after “1880" (c) after “Wilder” (d) “De Smet” (e) after 1880 and after “De Smet”

77. 51.10#6 (“Mary Anne”) A comma belongs or commas belong: (a) after “Miller” (b) after “PhD” (c) after “Miller” and after “PhD” (d) after “dissertation” (e) nowhere in the sentence