1. The mother of Dr. Haddock was Abigail Webster, a favorite sister of Ezekiel and Daniel Webster, who, with Sarah, ______ the only children of the Hon. Ebenezer Webster by his second wife, Abigail Eastman, who survived her husband and all her daughters.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. was
B. were
C. are
D. is
2. Mr. Layard in excavating beneath the great pyramid at Nimroud, had penetrated a mass of masonry, within which he had discovered the tomb and statue of Sardanapalus, accompanied by full annals of the monarch’s reign engraved on the walls! He had also found tablets of all sorts, all of them being historical, but the crowning discovery he _____________________
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. had yet to describe.
B. still has to describe.
C. yet describes.
D. hadn’t yet to describe.
3. It is indeed a painful or rather a terrible condition in which Heine now is and _________ for the past year; though the paralysis has made no progress, it has at least experienced no alleviation. He has now lain near two years in bed, and during that time has not seen a tree nor a speck of the blue sky.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. were
B. was
C. has been
D. will be
4. Dr. Otto Zirckel has just published at Berlin a volume called “Sketches from and concerning the United States,” which has some curious peculiarities to the eyes of an American. It is intended as a guide for Germans who wish either _________________ to this country or to send their money here for investment.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. to have emigrated
B. to emigrate
C. emigration
D. emigrating
5. The omissions by Mr. Sparks—sometimes from carelessness, sometimes from ignorance, and sometimes from an indisposition to revive memories of old feuds, or to cover with disgrace names which should be dishonored—and his occasional verbal alteration of Washington’s letter, _________ that general satisfaction with which his edition of Washington would otherwise be regarded.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. prevents
B. has prevented
C. preventing
D. prevent
6. Bauer treats the political and religious parties of modern Germany with the same scornful satire and destructive analysis which __________ in his theological writings.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. appear
B. will appear
C. has appeared
D. appears
7. Dr. Laing, one of those restless English travelers who have printed books about the United States, _____ now a prominent personage in Australia, where he has been elected a member of the newly instituted Legislature, for the city of Sidney.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. was
B. is
C. are
D. were
8. The first two volumes of Oehlenschlager’s Lebens Erinnerungen have appeared at Vienna, and ___________ more observation than anything else in the late movements in the German literature.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. attract
B. attracts
C. will attract
D. attracted
9. The character of Sir Roger de Coverley is a creation which, in its way, has never been surpassed; never perhaps __________ except by the Vicar of Wakefield.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. equals
B. equaling
C. equal to
D. equaled
10. When the public understands how perfectly Parodi identifies herself with the emotions and passions she has to portray,—when they appreciate the immense variety of intonations with which she illustrates her characters, and the earnestness and intensity with which she _________her whole nature into all she does—then she will be hailed as the greatest artist ever on this continent, and one of the greatest in the world.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of standard English?
A. throw
B. throws
C. has thrown
D. can throw
- A. The subject of the verb is both Abigail Webster and her Sarah. This makes our subject plural. In addition, this passage is in the past tense, which makes B the best option since it is plural and in the past tense.
- A. The passage is primarily written in the past perfect, the tense which uses a helping verb like “has” or “had” along with the past participle of the verb. To continue this style, we should use answer option A. Answer option B is not in the past perfect as it uses the word “still”. Answer C does not use a helping verb. Answer D incorrectly uses the word not.
- C. Heine is currently in this bad condition and for the past year and up until this moment he “has been” in this condition. Option A is plural where our subject is singular. Option B implies that he was in this condition in the past but is not still in the condition, and option D put this into the future despite it being in the “past year”. This makes option C the best answer.
- B. Look for parallel structure within the sentence. The Germans may wish to do two things. The second thing is “to send”. We therefore need to match that with our choice “to emigrate”. This makes option B correct and all other options incorrect.
- D. Be careful in identifying the subject of the verb. Ask yourself, “what is it that is going to prevent the satisfaction?” In this case, it is the omissions all the way at the beginning of the passage. “Omissions” is plural and so the correct verb choice would be “prevent”. This makes option D correct and the others incorrect.
- A. Be careful in identifying the subject of the verb. Ask yourself, “what is it that we’re talking about appears in his theological writings?” It is the scornful satire and destructive analysis. This means that the subject of our verb is plural. Our verb must work with a plural subject eliminating options C and D. Option B is incorrectly in the future tense. This just leaves option A as the correct answer.
- B. Be careful in identifying the subject of the verb. Ask yourself, “who is a prominent personage?” it can’t be “the United States”. Because the U.S. is neither a person nor in Australia. The person is Dr. Laing. This means that we must pick a singular verb, eliminating options C and D. Since it is “now” we must pick the present tense option B and not the past tense option A.
- D. These first two volumes have done two things they have “appeared” and “attracted”. The second verb must match the tense of the first making option D correct and the other options incorrect.
- D. Make sure to maintain parallel structure. Sir Roger de Coverley has never been “surpassed” so then we must say he has also never been “equaled”. This makes option D correct and the others incorrect.
- B. Make sure to maintain parallel structure. People appreciate two things about Parodi: how she “illustrates” her character and how she “throws” her whole nature. Both verbs need to be in the present tense making option B correct and the other options incorrect.