Directions: Correct the following sentences (if necessary) and give reasons for your corrections.
Question 1: Despite his opposition to most of Churchill’s domestic policies, Attlee readily consented with almost all of his rival’s military decisions during World War II.
Answer: Despite his opposition to most of Churchill’s domestic policies, Attlee readily consented to almost all of his rival’s military decisions during World War II. [Use of Prepositions]
Question 2: Each one of the dogs in the show require a special kind of diet.
Answer: Each one of the dogs in the show requires a special kind of diet. [Subject-Verb Agreement]
Question 3: I maintain that by accepting this situation it will never improve.
Answer: I maintain that by accepting this situation we shall never improve it. [Dangling Participles]
Question 4: Owing to the dollar’s tendency to rise in value when interest rates soar, it was weakened by last week’s unexpected drop in the prime rate.
Answer: Owing to the its tendency to rise in value when interest rates soar, the dollar was weakened by last week’s unexpected drop in the prime rate. OR
Since the dollar tends to rise in value when interest rates soar, it was weakened by last week’s unexpected drop in the prime rate. [Noun-Pronoun Agreement]
Question 5: Countries where no snake has ever been sighted is rare indeed.
Answer: Countries where no snake has ever been sighted are rare indeed. [Subject-Verb Agreement]
Question 6: The country’s economy required strengthening, its resources increased.
Answer: The country’s economy required strengthening, and its resources needed to be increased.
[Use of Conjunctions]
Question 7: He told his staff that each of them should be able to carry out the task by oneself.
Answer: He told his staff that each of them should be able to carry out the task by himself.
[Pronoun Consistency]
Question 8: A recent decline in retail sales and a decrease in the production of consumer goods has brought down interest rates, according to eminent economists.
Answer: A recent decline in retail sales and a decrease in the production of consumer goods have brought down interest rates, according to eminent economists. [Subject-Verb Agreement]
Question 9: By order of the Student Council, the wearing of mini-skirts by we girls in school has been permitted.
Answer: By order of the Student Council, the wearing of mini-skirts by us girls in school has been permitted.
[Pronoun Case]
Question 10: This year’s crisis seems equally, if not more, dangerous than last year’s.
Answer: This year’s crisis seems as dangerous as last year’s, if not more so. [Use of Comparative Structures]
Question 11: The Dean and the Curriculum Committee plan doubling the number of credits required for graduation, even though the students feel that the present number is sufficient.
Answer: The Dean and the Curriculum Committee plan to double the number of credits required for graduation, even though the students feel that the present number is sufficient. [Use of Idiomatic Verb Patterns]
Question 12: Please bear in mind that the argument is between the vicar and myself, and concerns nobody else.
Answer: Please bear in mind that the argument is between the vicar and me, and concerns nobody else.
[Pronoun Case]
Question 13: We have heard that the principal has decided whom the prize winners will be and will announce the names in the assembly today.
Answer: We have heard that the principal has decided who the prize winners will be and will announce the names in the assembly today. [Pronoun Case]
Question 14: She sang like she wished the people in the next colony to hear her.
Answer: She sang as if she wished the people in the next colony to hear her. [Use of Conjunction or Preposition]
Question 15: The city of Dresden, that was virtually burnt to the ground during the war, now flourishes again.
Answer: The city of Dresden, which was virtually burnt to the ground during the war, now flourishes again.
