CPW Editing & Proofreading 2

Question 1

A sentence reads: 'The committee has made their decision.' What is the error?

Accepted Answer

Pronoun-antecedent disagreement

Answer

'Committee' is a collective noun treated as singular, so the pronoun should be 'its,' not 'their.'

Question 2

Which sentence correctly uses a semicolon?

Accepted Answer

He submitted the draft; however, it needed revision.

Answer

A semicolon can precede a conjunctive adverb like 'however' when joining two independent clauses.

Question 3

When proofreading, you encounter 'effect' used where 'affect' is needed. This is an example of:

Accepted Answer

A homophone confusion

Answer

'Affect' and 'effect' are commonly confused homophones with distinct grammatical roles.

Question 4

A paragraph contains the sentence: 'Running down the street, the rain soaked her.' What type of error is this?

Accepted Answer

Dangling modifier

Answer

The participial phrase 'Running down the street' illogically modifies 'the rain' rather than a person.

Question 5

Which punctuation mark is used to set off nonessential (nonrestrictive) clauses?

Accepted Answer

Comma

Answer

Commas are used to set off nonrestrictive clauses that add extra information but are not essential to the sentence's meaning.

(CPW) Certified Professional Writer Practice Test