ICAS Spelling Rules and Conventions Questions and Answers — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which of the following sentences correctly uses the plural forms of 'roof' and 'echo'?
- The loud echos bounced off the rooves of the houses.
- The loud echoes bounced off the rooves of the houses.
- The loud echoes bounced off the roofs of the houses. (Correct answer)
- The loud echos bounced off the roofs of the houses.
Correct answer: The loud echoes bounced off the roofs of the houses.
The standard plural of 'roof' is 'roofs', although 'rooves' is an older form it is rarely used now. For words ending in 'o' preceded by a consonant, the plural is typically formed by adding '-es', making 'echoes' the correct form.
Question 2: When adding the suffix '-able' to the word 'notice', what is the correct resulting word and why?
- Noticeable, because the final 'e' is kept to maintain the soft 'c' sound. (Correct answer)
- Noticable, because the 'e' is dropped to avoid a double vowel.
- Noticible, because the 'e' changes to an 'i' before the suffix.
- Noticeable, because you never drop the final 'e' before adding '-able'.
Correct answer: Noticeable, because the final 'e' is kept to maintain the soft 'c' sound.
When a word ends in '-ce' or '-ge', the final 'e' is kept before adding a suffix like '-able' or '-ous'. This is done to preserve the soft 'c' (/s/) or 'g' (/j/) sound. Dropping the 'e' would result in 'noticable', which might incorrectly suggest a hard 'c' sound.
Question 3: An editor reviewed a manuscript and found a spelling error in one sentence. Which sentence contains the error?
- The new law will affect the entire population.
- She gave her friend some sound advice.
- They're planning to visit the museum next week.
- The long drought had a negative affect on the crops. (Correct answer)
Correct answer: The long drought had a negative affect on the crops.
The sentence incorrectly uses 'affect' (a verb meaning 'to influence') where it should use 'effect' (a noun meaning 'a result' or 'consequence'). The correct sentence would be: 'The long drought had a negative effect on the crops.'
Question 4: Which of the following words is an exception to the common "i before e, except after c" spelling rule?
- Believe
- Seize (Correct answer)
- Receive
- Friend
Correct answer: Seize
The word 'seize' is a well-known exception to the 'i before e, except after c' rule, as the 'ei' combination does not follow a 'c'. 'Believe' and 'friend' correctly use 'ie'. 'Receive' correctly uses 'ei' after 'c'.
Question 5: A student was asked to write a list of equipment needed for a camping trip. Which word in the list is spelled correctly?
- Separate (Correct answer)
- Accomodation
- Neccessary
- Definitly
Correct answer: Separate
'Separate' is the only correctly spelled word. The correct spellings for the others are 'accommodation' (double 'c', double 'm'), 'necessary' (one 'c', double 's'), and 'definitely' (contains the word 'finite').
Question 6: In which sentence is the apostrophe used correctly to show plural possession?
- The cat cleaned it's paws meticulously.
- All of the student's projects were displayed in the hall.
- The students' projects were all displayed in the hall. (Correct answer)
- The Jones's are coming over for dinner tonight.
Correct answer: The students' projects were all displayed in the hall.
To show possession for a plural noun that ends in 's' (like students), the apostrophe is placed after the 's'. 'It's' is a contraction of 'it is'; the possessive is 'its'. 'Student's' is singular possessive. 'The Joneses' is the plural of Jones; no apostrophe is needed to make a name plural.
ICAS Spelling Rules and Conventions Questions and Answers
Which of the following sentences correctly uses the plural forms of 'roof' and 'echo'?