Grammar Correction Activities

Subject-verb Agreement: Choose the correct answer in parentheses.

1. The results of Dr. Noll’s experiment (was/were) published in a scientific journal.

2. The weather in the country (gets/get) very hot during the summer.
3. A woman and her child (is/are) waiting to see Dr. Mboge.
4. Every man, woman, and child (is/are) protected under the law.
5. Washing the dishes (is/are) the children’s job
6. A lot of students (is/are) already here.
7. Some of the furniture in our apartment (is/are) secondhand.
8. Some of the desks in the classroom (is/are) broken.
9. At least three-quarters of that book on the legendary Gambians (is/are) about people who lived in

the nineteenth century.

10. One of the countries I would like to visit (is/are) China.
11. Some of the cities I would like to visit (is/are) Beijing and Shanghai.
12. Each student in the class (has/have) to have a dictionary.
13. Each of the students (has/have) a note book.
14. None of the students (was/were) late today.
15. The number of students in this room right now (is/are) twenty.

Identify the personal pronouns and their antecedents in these sentences.

1. Malang has a part-time job. He works at a fast-food restaurant.

2. Most monkeys don’t like water, but they can swim well when they have to.
3. The teacher graded the students’ papers last night. She returned them during class today.
4. Nancy took an apple with her to work. She ate it at lunch time.
5. A dog makes a good pet if it is properly trained.
6. Aziz’s cat is named Pussy. She is very independent. She never obeys Aziz. His dogs, on the other

hand, obey him gladly. They like to please him.

7. I read some books. They were quite interesting.
8. Sales in April from stores that were open a year ago rose 2%.
9. Fatou has no brothers or sisters; she is an only child.
10. This vase is the only one of its kind; it’s unique.

Correct the pronoun antecedent agreement problems in the following sentences.

1. When Saul accidentally backed the car into the tool shed, it was wrecked beyond repair.

2. Just before they were scheduled to leave, Fatou told Ida that she couldn’t go after all.

3. When the first-night audience was invited backstage to meet the cast, they had a wonderful time.

4. Uncle Buba and Aunt Nyima took the kids to their favourite restaurant for lunch.

5. The neighbour’s dog gets into my garbage every week, but he refuses to do anything about it.

1
 6. It’s hard to keep track of the Administration’s stand on immigration. They say something different

every week.

7. Last summer I didn’t play a single volley ball game, even though it’s my favourite sport.

8. Kanyi helped Oumie carry her pack when she returned to the boat for a second load.

9. Aisha backed her car into a telephone pole and dented it.

10. Kekoi swung his fist against the cupboard with all his strength, smashing it.

Consistency with Verb Tense

 Do not shift verb tenses unnecessarily. If you begin writing a paper in the present tense, do not
shift suddenly to the past. If you begin in the past, do not shift without reason to the present.

Activity
Make the verbs in each sentence consistent with the first verb used. Cross out the incorrect verb and write
the correct verb in the space at the left.

___ran__ Example: Aunt Fatima tried to kiss her little nephew, but he runs out of the room.

_______________ 1. An aggressive news photographer knocked a reporter to the ground as the movie
stars arrive for the awards.

________________ 2.The winning wheelchair racer in the marathon slumped back in exhaustion and
asks for some ice to soothe his blistered hands.

________________ 3. On the TV commercial for mail-order kitchen knives, an actor cuts a tree branch
in half and sliced an aluminum can into ribbons.

________________ 4. “My husband is so dumb,” said Martha, “that when he went to Dakar, he tries to
play the stamp machines.”

________________ 5. The jeep swerved around the corner, went up on two wheels, and tips over on its
side.

_________________ 6. In a zero gravity atmosphere water breaks up into droplets and floated around in
space.

__________________7. Ralph ripped open the bag of cheese puffs with his teeth, grabs handfuls of the
salty orange squiggles, and stuffed them into his mouth.

___________________ 8. From his perch high up on the rocky cliff, the eagle spots a white-tailed rabbit
and swooped down toward his victim.

____________________9. Several times a year, I like to take a day off, go away by myself, and
recharged my mental batteries.

____________________ 10. When the great earthquake struck San Francisco in 1906, the entire city
burns to the ground in less than twenty-four hours.

2
Misplaced Modifiers: Underline the misplaced word or words in each sentence. Then rewrite the

sentence, placing related words together and thereby making the meaning clear.

1. He nearly brushed his teeth for twenty minutes every night.

___________________________________________________________________________

2. Tijan paused as the girl stopped at a shop window he had been following.

___________________________________________________________________________

3. The woman picked up a heavy frying pan with arthritis.

______________________________________________________________________________

4. Amy ripped the shirt on a car door that she made in sewing class.

______________________________________________________________________________

5. The apprentice watched the carpenter expertly fit the door with envious eyes.

______________________________________________________________________________

6. The people on the bus stared at the ceiling or read newspapers with tired eyes.

______________________________________________________________________________

7. The photographer pointed the camera at the shy deer equipped with a special night-vision scope.

Correct each run-on or comma splice by (1) a full stop and a capital letter, (2) a comma and a

conjunction, or (3) a semicolon. Do not use one method throughout.

1. Our boss expects us to work six hours without a break, he wanders off to a kiosk at least once an

hour.__________________________________________________________________________
2. Tijan bent over and lifted the heavy tray he heard an ominous crack in his back.
______________________________________________________________________________
3. Many young adults today live at home with their parents this allows them to save money.
______________________________________________________________________________
4. My ex-husband just hit me once in our marriage five minutes later I was packed and walking out

the door.
______________________________________________________________________________
5. Our class wanted to do something for flood victims, we sent a donation to the Red Cross.
______________________________________________________________________________

Correct the fragments by (1) attaching the fragment ot a sentence before it, (2) changing to the correct

form of the verb be (am, is, are, was, were), (3) adding a subject and a verb to make the fragment a

complete sentence.
1. The reason for this being that I am partially deaf.
3
 ______________________________________________________________________________
2. She bought a brown coat and a skirt. And a pair of brown shoes to match.
______________________________________________________________________________
3. Tie him so that can’t escape.
______________________________________________________________________________
4. Jerreh sat at his desk. Fantasizing about the upcoming long weekend.
______________________________________________________________________________
5. Last semester, I took six courses. And worked part-time in a supermarket.

_______________________________________________________________________________