Sentences and conventions

Ten questions of mixed difficulty, covering Sentences and conventions. Print it, or work through it on screen — the answer key starts on its own page.

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Sentences and conventions

English Language Arts 7 · maddyhelps.com

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Circle the best answer for each question. Use the space to note the evidence or reasoning that decided it.

Which revision fixes the run-on sentence “The lights went out we lit some candles”?
1. a) The lights went out we lit, some candles.
2. b) The lights, went out we lit some candles.
3. c) The lights went out. We lit some candles.
4. d) The lights went out, we lit some candles.
The jerseys belong to all the players on the team. Which sentence shows this correctly?
1. a) The players jerseys were hanging in the hall.
2. b) The players's jerseys were hanging in the hall.
3. c) The players' jerseys were hanging in the hall.
4. d) The player's jerseys were hanging in the hall.
In the sentence “The tired goalie skated slowly back to the bench,” which word is an adverb?
1. a) slowly
2. b) bench
3. c) skated
4. d) tired
Read: “When Ana passed the ball to Kim, she scored.” Which revision makes it clear who scored?
1. a) When Ana passed it to Kim, she scored.
2. b) When she passed the ball to Kim, she scored.
3. c) When Ana passed the ball to Kim, Kim scored.
4. d) When Ana passed the ball to Kim, she scored a goal.
Which of these is a sentence fragment?
1. a) Because the storm knocked the power out.
2. b) The storm knocked the power out.
3. c) The power was out, so we stayed inside.
4. d) We stayed inside because the power was out.
In “We skate on the pond after school,” the word “skate” is a verb. In which sentence is “skate” a noun?
1. a) I want to skate before the ice starts to melt.
2. b) They skate faster than anyone else on the team.
3. c) We skate at the arena every Saturday morning.
4. d) My skate came untied halfway through the game.
Which sentence uses quotation marks and punctuation correctly?
1. a) Dad asked, Who left the gate open?
2. b) Dad asked “who left the gate open?”
3. c) Dad asked, “Who left the gate open”?
4. d) Dad asked, “Who left the gate open?”
Which of these is a complete sentence?
1. a) Running down the hall before the bell.
2. b) The boy with the red backpack by the door.
3. c) Because nobody had told us about the test.
4. d) Stop.
Read: “After the storm passed. We walked down to the river to see how high it was.” What is the problem with this writing?
1. a) It is a run-on, so it needs a period after the word “river.”
2. b) The second part is a fragment, because it starts with “We.”
3. c) Nothing is wrong, since both parts start with a capital letter.
4. d) The first part is a fragment and should be joined to the second.
Which sentence uses commas correctly?
1. a) We, packed sandwiches, apples water and sunscreen.
2. b) We packed sandwiches apples, water, and, sunscreen.
3. c) We packed sandwiches, apples, water and sunscreen.
4. d) We packed, sandwiches apples water and sunscreen.

Answer key · Sentences and conventions

English Language Arts 7 · maddyhelps.com

c) The lights went out. We lit some candles. — The run-on is two complete sentences with nothing between them, and a period splits them correctly (so would a comma plus “so”). A comma on its own is not strong enough to hold two sentences together; that mistake is called a comma splice.
c) The players' jerseys were hanging in the hall. — For a plural that already ends in s, add only an apostrophe: players'. “Player's” is right for one player, which is why it tempts, but these jerseys belong to the whole team. With no apostrophe at all, “players” just means more than one and shows no ownership.
a) slowly — An adverb tells how, when or where something is done, and “slowly” tells how the goalie skated. “Tired” also describes, but it describes the goalie, a noun, so it is an adjective.
c) When Ana passed the ball to Kim, Kim scored. — “She” could mean Ana or Kim, so the reader cannot tell who scored. Naming Kim removes the doubt. Adding “a goal” or shortening the sentence changes the words but keeps the same unclear “she.”
a) Because the storm knocked the power out. — “Because” makes the words depend on another idea, so they cannot stand alone even though they have a subject and a verb. Join the fragment to a complete sentence: “We stayed inside because the storm knocked the power out.”
d) My skate came untied halfway through the game. — A noun names a thing, and “my skate” is a thing that can come untied; “my” in front of it is the clue. In the other sentences, “skate” is something people do, so it is a verb. A word's part of speech depends on how it is used in the sentence.
d) Dad asked, “Who left the gate open?” — Dad's exact words go inside the quotation marks, and so does the question mark, because his words are the question. A comma introduces the quotation, and the quoted sentence starts with a capital letter. Putting the question mark outside is the most common slip.
d) Stop. — “Stop.” is a command, and in a command the subject “you” is understood, so it is a complete thought. The other three are longer, but the first has no subject and no complete verb, the second has no verb at all, and the third starts with “because” and never finishes the idea. Length does not make a sentence.
d) The first part is a fragment and should be joined to the second. — “After the storm passed” tells when, but not what happened, so it cannot stand alone. Joining it with a comma fixes it: “After the storm passed, we walked down to the river.” A capital letter and a period do not make a sentence; a complete thought does.
c) We packed sandwiches, apples, water and sunscreen. — Commas separate the items in a list: sandwiches, apples, water and sunscreen. (A comma before “and” is also fine if you use it every time.) A comma never goes between a verb and what it acts on, as in “We packed, sandwiches.”