Senior Typist Exam Grammar and Proofreading 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which of the following sentences correctly uses an apostrophe?
- The supervisor's desk is organized. (Correct answer)
- The supervisor's' desk is organized.
- The supervisors desk is organized.
- The supervisors' desk is organized for one supervisor.
Correct answer: The supervisor's desk is organized.
For a singular possessive, add apostrophe + s: 'supervisor's' is correct for one supervisor's desk.
Question 2: Which word correctly completes the sentence: 'The typist must ensure ___ work is accurate'?
- there
- they're
- their (Correct answer)
- theyre
Correct answer: their
'Their' is the possessive pronoun indicating that the work belongs to the typist, making it the correct choice here.
Question 3: What type of sentence error occurs when two independent clauses are joined with only a comma?
- Fragment
- Dangling modifier
- Comma splice (Correct answer)
- Run-on with no punctuation
Correct answer: Comma splice
A comma splice joins two independent clauses with only a comma, which is grammatically incorrect; a semicolon or coordinating conjunction is needed.
Question 4: In proofreading, the symbol that means 'delete this text' is:
- A caret (^)
- A delete mark (a line through text, often with a loop) (Correct answer)
- An underline
- A circle around the text
Correct answer: A delete mark (a line through text, often with a loop)
The standard proofreading mark for deletion is a strikethrough line through the text, often ending with a small loop or tail, indicating the marked text should be removed.
Question 5: Which sentence demonstrates correct parallel structure?
- She likes typing, to file, and organizing.
- She likes typing, filing, and organizing. (Correct answer)
- She likes to type, filing, and to organize.
- She likes type, file, and organizing.
Correct answer: She likes typing, filing, and organizing.
Parallel structure requires that all items in a series use the same grammatical form; 'typing, filing, and organizing' consistently uses gerunds.
Question 6: Which of the following is correctly hyphenated?
- well known employee
- well-known employee (Correct answer)
- well known-employee
- wellknown employee
Correct answer: well-known employee
Compound modifiers used before a noun are hyphenated: 'well-known employee' is correct because the modifier precedes the noun.
Senior Typist Exam Grammar and Proofreading 2
Which of the following sentences correctly uses an apostrophe?