Texas Civil Service Exam Writing and Grammar 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which sentence correctly uses 'who' vs. 'whom'?
- Who did the supervisor assign the task to?
- Whom submitted the incident report?
- To whom should I address this complaint? (Correct answer)
- Who was the report given to by the clerk?
Correct answer: To whom should I address this complaint?
'Whom' is correct when it functions as the object of a preposition (here, 'to whom').
Question 2: Which of the following is an example of jargon that should be avoided in public-facing civil service documents?
- The applicant must submit a completed form.
- Per the aforementioned statutory provisions heretofore referenced, compliance is mandatory. (Correct answer)
- Your application has been received and is under review.
- Please contact our office if you have questions.
Correct answer: Per the aforementioned statutory provisions heretofore referenced, compliance is mandatory.
Plain language guidelines require avoiding legal jargon and overly complex phrasing in documents meant for the public.
Question 3: Which sentence correctly uses a hyphen?
- The well known officer received an award.
- The officer is well-known in the department.
- The well-known officer received an award. (Correct answer)
- The award was given to the well known officer.
Correct answer: The well-known officer received an award.
A compound modifier (well-known) is hyphenated when it appears before the noun it modifies.
Question 4: Select the sentence with correct subject-verb agreement.
- A list of violations were submitted to the board.
- A list of violations was submitted to the board. (Correct answer)
- The list of violations have been submitted to the board.
- Lists of violations has been submitted to the board.
Correct answer: A list of violations was submitted to the board.
The subject is 'list' (singular), not 'violations,' so the singular verb 'was' is correct.
Question 5: Which transition word best shows contrast between two ideas in a report?
- Furthermore
- Therefore
- Nevertheless (Correct answer)
- Consequently
Correct answer: Nevertheless
'Nevertheless' introduces a contrasting idea despite what was said before, unlike 'furthermore' (addition) or 'therefore/consequently' (result).
Question 6: Which sentence has an error in pronoun-antecedent agreement?
- The committee submitted its final recommendation.
- Each employee must update their personnel file.
- The team completed their assignment ahead of schedule. (Correct answer)
- The department revised its operating procedures.
Correct answer: The team completed their assignment ahead of schedule.
'Team' is a collective noun treated as singular in formal writing, so 'its' is preferred over 'their.'
Question 7: Which revision improves this wordy sentence: 'Due to the fact that the application was incomplete, it was returned.'
- Due to the incomplete nature of the application, it was returned.
- Because the application was incomplete, it was returned. (Correct answer)
- In view of the fact that the application was incomplete, it was returned.
- Inasmuch as the application was incomplete, it was returned.
Correct answer: Because the application was incomplete, it was returned.
'Due to the fact that' is a wordy phrase that should be replaced with the simpler 'because.'
Texas Civil Service Exam Writing and Grammar 5
Which sentence correctly uses 'who' vs. 'whom'?