Can You Pass This English Grammar Quiz? Trivia Questions

Who is a subject pronoun, just like he, she, and they, while whom is an object pronoun, like him, her, and them. Unfortunately, many people find it difficult to determine whether a particular context calls for a subject or an object form. If you are among them, try the following instead: Cross out everything except the clause in question, which in this case is conveniently set off for you with commas. All that matters in the choice between who and whom is the pronoun’s role in this group of words: _____ my uncle has always admired Play around with the word order so that it is more natural. In other words: My uncle has always admired _____. Instead of deciding between who and whom, a difficult task for many people, try choosing between the far more familiar he and him. My uncle has always admired _____ (he/him). Because him, an object pronoun, is the correct choice above, you need the object pronoun whom in the original sentence. (In other cases, if you find that a subject pronoun such as she or they is the correct choice, that tells you that who is the form you need.)

Cross off the words Mark and, so that you are left with: Don’t call _____ until tomorrow. You wouldn’t write Don’t call I, would you? The name in front of the pronoun has no effect on it, so no matter how many names you inserted between Mark and the pronoun, the correct form would still be me.

The second sentence illustrates parallel grammatical structure. In the list of qualities associated with the play, all three — confusing, offensive, and boring — are adjectives. In the first sentence, the last item — bore — is a noun and therefore doesn’t match the two adjectives that precede it. The second sentence is preferable, both grammatically and stylistically.

Sometimes a possessive involves two or more nouns, such as Upasana and Monica in the example above. The formation of possessives in such a case depends on the meaning of the sentence. If two people share ownership of a single entity — in this case, the car — then only the second noun shows the possessive ending. In the example above, Upasana may be the fortunate co-owner of a car, but she does not get her own ’s. Now, suppose that Upasana and Monica like to go mountain biking together. If you made reference to their bikes, the correct wording would be Upasana’s and Monica’s bikes. Each has a bike — and each gets his or her own ’s.

When nouns are preceded by multiple adjectives, as in this situation, it can be difficult to determine whether a comma is needed between the adjectives. To determine comma requirements, try reading the phrase with an and between the adjectives. If adding the and sounds reasonable, then you should insert a comma. A long and confusing speech sounds reasonable, right? Hence a comma. For a contrasting example, consider the phrase an earnest American writer. If it doesn’t sound right with an and inserted between the adjectives, then no comma is necessary. We hope you agree that an earnest and American writer does not sound right. Go comma-free in this instance.

The notion that one can’t begin a sentence with because is a persistent and pernicious writing myth. Read any good publication, and you are likely to encounter examples of sentences structured in the same way as Answers a and b above. Sentence c illustrates the real issue with because — that it is sometimes used to begin a sentence fragment, which is a significant sentence error.

It’s is a contraction for it is or it has. Its is a possessive pronoun. If you are unsure whether to use its or it’s in a particular context, try substituting the words it is or it has. If the substitution doesn’t make sense, use the (apostrophe-free) possessive pronoun its. The only possible interpretation of the sentence above is as follows: It’s [contraction for it is] not its [possessive pronoun, perhaps referring to a company] most reliable product.

The pronoun neither is the subject of the sentence and is singular; therefore, it requires a singular verb (is). Associates is part of the prepositional phrase of the associates and therefore cannot be the subject

A singular subject requires a singular verb. Even though there are three speakers in the sentence, anything following the words as well as is not considered part of the grammatical subject. Therefore, although Jaya and Jyoti may have prepared fascinating presentations, they have absolutely no impact on the verb choice. That power is reserved solely for Daljeet. As the grammatical subject, he is singular; therefore, so is the verb.

Most people mistakenly choose the singular verb knows here, but the verb is actually the plural form, know. (Remember: although adding an s to a noun makes it plural, adding s to a verb makes it singular.) Does more than one person know how to operate the equipment? The answer is yes — Shradha is one of the multiple people who know how to operate it. Alternatively, you can think of the issue in more grammatical terms: the verb goes with who, so you have to figure out whether who is singular or plural. To decide that, figure out which word in the sentence who refers back to; that word will then determine whether who is singular or plural. Since who refers to people, which is plural, who requires a plural verb: know.