Grammar and Mechanics Flashcards
6 cards from real Writing and Editing practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 6 Grammar and Mechanics flashcards as text
Which word correctly completes: 'Neither the editor nor the writers __ finished the draft'?
Answer: have
With 'neither/nor,' the verb agrees with the nearer subject ('writers'), which is plural.
Which sentence correctly uses an appositive?
Answer: My editor, Sarah, loves commas.
A nonrestrictive appositive should be set off by commas on both sides.
Which form of the verb is correct: 'The data __ incomplete'?
Answer: Both A and B are acceptable
Both 'is' and 'are' are acceptable with 'data' in modern American usage.
Which sentence contains a misplaced modifier?
Answer: She only eats salad on Tuesdays.
Placing 'only' before 'eats' suggests she does nothing else with salad except eat it, rather than limiting when she eats it.
Which sentence uses the active voice?
Answer: The editor reviewed the manuscript.
In active voice, the subject (the editor) performs the action (reviewed).
Which sentence correctly uses 'fewer' vs. 'less'?
Answer: There are fewer errors in this draft.
'Fewer' is used with countable nouns like 'errors'; 'less' is used with uncountable quantities.