Written Test Editing and Revision 5

Question 1

A sentence reads: 'Being that it was raining, the event was postponed.' What is wrong with it?

Accepted Answer

'Being that' is a nonstandard subordinator; 'Because' is correct.

Answer

'Being that' is not standard in formal writing; 'because' correctly expresses the causal relationship.

Question 2

Which of the following sentences contains a misplaced modifier?

Accepted Answer

I almost drove my kids to school every day.

Answer

In this sentence, 'almost' modifies 'drove' rather than 'every day,' implying she rarely drove at all—the modifier is misplaced.

Question 3

When revising for tone, a writer replaces 'you need to stop doing this' with 'readers may wish to reconsider this approach.' What change was made?

Accepted Answer

Second person imperative to a more formal, distanced tone

Answer

The revision moves from a direct command in second person to a softer, more formal suggestion appropriate for academic writing.

Question 4

What is the function of a topic sentence in a body paragraph?

Accepted Answer

To state the paragraph's main idea and connect it to the thesis

Answer

The topic sentence announces the paragraph's controlling idea and shows how it relates to the essay's thesis.

Question 5

A writer finds this sentence: 'The committee, which was formed last year, they rejected the proposal.' What is the error?

Accepted Answer

Double subject pronoun ('they' after 'committee')

Answer

The pronoun 'they' repeats the subject 'committee' unnecessarily, creating a double subject error.

Written Practice Test