iTEP Grammar and Structure 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which sentence is in the past perfect tense?
- By the time the exam started, she had reviewed all her notes. (Correct answer)
- She reviewed all her notes before the exam started.
- She has reviewed all her notes for the exam.
- She was reviewing all her notes when the exam started.
Correct answer: By the time the exam started, she had reviewed all her notes.
Past perfect ('had + past participle') describes an action completed before another past action. 'Had reviewed' is the past perfect here.
The past perfect tense ('had + past participle') indicates that an action was completed before another action in the past. 'By the time the exam started, she had reviewed all her notes' shows that the reviewing happened and was completed before the exam started. Option B uses simple past (both actions in sequence, less specific). Option C uses present perfect. Option D uses past continuous. Past perfect is essential for expressing completed prior actions in narration and is a key grammar point on all iTEP grammar sections.
Question 2: Identify the sentence with correct subject-verb agreement.
- The quality of the essays was impressive. (Correct answer)
- The quality of the essays were impressive.
- The qualities of the essay was impressive.
- The quality of the essays are impressive.
Correct answer: The quality of the essays was impressive.
The subject is 'quality' (singular), not 'essays'. The verb must agree with 'quality', so the singular 'was' is correct.
In subject-verb agreement, the verb must agree with the true subject, which can be separated from the verb by a prepositional phrase. In 'The quality of the essays', the head noun (true subject) is 'quality' (singular), and 'of the essays' is a prepositional phrase modifying 'quality'. The singular verb 'was' is therefore correct. Options B and D use plural verbs ('were', 'are') that incorrectly agree with 'essays' rather than 'quality'. Option C incorrectly uses plural 'qualities' with singular 'essay'.
Question 3: Which sentence uses the gerund correctly as a subject?
- Swimming regularly is beneficial for cardiovascular health. (Correct answer)
- To swim regularly is beneficial for cardiovascular health.
- Swim regularly is beneficial for cardiovascular health.
- Swims regularly is beneficial for cardiovascular health.
Correct answer: Swimming regularly is beneficial for cardiovascular health.
A gerund (verb + -ing) can function as the subject of a sentence. 'Swimming' is the gerund subject here.
A gerund is formed by adding -ing to a verb and functions as a noun in the sentence. As a subject, it appears at the beginning: 'Swimming regularly is beneficial.' Option B uses an infinitive (also grammatically acceptable as a subject, but the question asks specifically about gerunds). Option C incorrectly uses the base verb form as a subject. Option D uses the third-person -s inflection 'Swims', which is a conjugated verb and cannot function as a subject without a subject pronoun. The iTEP grammar section tests gerund and infinitive uses.
Question 4: Choose the sentence with correctly placed adverbs.
- She carefully proofreads every report before submitting it. (Correct answer)
- She proofreads carefully every report before submitting it.
- She proofreads every report carefully before it submitting.
- Carefully she every report proofreads before submitting.
Correct answer: She carefully proofreads every report before submitting it.
Manner adverbs like 'carefully' can appear before the main verb or at the end of the clause, but not between the verb and its direct object.
Adverb placement rules in English: manner adverbs (carefully, quickly) typically appear before the main verb or after the object/at the end of the clause. They should not appear between the main verb and its object. Option A places 'carefully' before the main verb 'proofreads' — correct. Option B places it between the verb and its object ('proofreads carefully every report') — incorrect. Option C places 'it' and the gerund phrase incorrectly. Option D has completely inverted word order. Adverb placement is a tested grammar topic on the iTEP.
Question 5: Which sentence correctly uses an infinitive of purpose?
- She went to the library to study for her exams. (Correct answer)
- She went to the library for to study for her exams.
- She went to the library for studying for her exams.
- She went to the library studying for her exams.
Correct answer: She went to the library to study for her exams.
'To + base verb' (infinitive) is used to express purpose — why someone does something.
The infinitive of purpose uses 'to + base verb' to explain the reason for an action. 'She went to the library to study' answers the question 'Why did she go to the library?' Option B incorrectly inserts 'for' before 'to study' — 'for to' is not standard modern English. Option C uses 'for + gerund', which is not the standard infinitive of purpose structure (though 'for studying' can work in some dialects). Option D omits 'to', making 'studying' a present participle modifier (describing simultaneous action, not purpose).
Question 6: Identify the correctly punctuated sentence containing a non-restrictive clause.
- Dr. Chen, who has taught linguistics for twenty years, wrote the textbook. (Correct answer)
- Dr. Chen who has taught linguistics for twenty years wrote the textbook.
- Dr. Chen, who has taught linguistics for twenty years wrote the textbook.
- Dr. Chen who has taught linguistics for twenty years, wrote the textbook.
Correct answer: Dr. Chen, who has taught linguistics for twenty years, wrote the textbook.
Non-restrictive relative clauses add extra information about a known noun and must be set off by commas on both sides.
A non-restrictive (non-defining) relative clause adds extra, non-essential information about a noun that is already specifically identified. It must be enclosed in commas on both sides. Option A correctly uses commas before 'who' and after 'years'. Option B has no commas at all, making it look like a restrictive clause (implying there are multiple Dr. Chens). Options C and D each have only one comma, which is incorrect — both commas are required to properly bracket the non-restrictive clause.
iTEP Grammar and Structure 2
Which sentence is in the past perfect tense?