Deck 5: Mastering Nouns and Pronouns

Question 1

Describe a compound noun and explain with the help of an example how its plural is formed.

Answer 1

Students' answers will vary. A compound noun is a noun that consists of two or more words. Compound nouns may be written with a hyphen, with a space between them, or as one word. To form the plural version of a compound noun, make the main word, the most important word in the compound, plural. For example, a "bulletin board" is a board on which we post bulletins. The main word is "board;" therefore, the plural is "bulletin boards," not "bulletins board."

Question 2

Explain with the help of examples how plurals of nouns ending in "o" are formed.

Answer 2

Students' answers will vary. When forming the plurals of nouns ending in "o," use the following rules:
a) Add "s" to form the plural of nouns ending in "o" preceded by a vowel. For example, "studio" and "studios."
b) Add "es" to form the plural of nouns ending in "o" preceded by a consonant. For example, "potato and "potatoes."
There are exceptions to the rule. For example, "casino" becomes "casinos" and "disco," short for discotheque, becomes "discos." Consult your dictionary when you are unsure of a plural form.
c) Nouns ending in "o" that relate to music and art form their plurals by adding "s." For example, "piano" becomes "pianos;" and "solo becomes "solos."
d) If the final "o" is preceded by a vowel, add "s" for the plural, for example, "videos." If the final "o" is preceded by a consonant, add "s" or "es" for the plural, for example, "photos" or "potatoes."

Question 3

Explain situations when writers use an apostrophe to form a plural. Provide examples.

Answer 3

Student responses will vary. In some situations, an apostrophe is used to form the plural. Use an apostrophe plus s to form plurals of lowercase letters and lowercase abbreviations. An example for lowercase letters: The t's and f's on this page are unclear. An example for lowercase abbreviations: The receptionist handles all c.o.d.'s for our office. To form plurals of capital letters and acronyms, add only the lowercase letter s. However, if adding a letter s to form a plural abbreviation would cause confusion, add an apostrophe before the s. Here is an example: He got A's, I's, and U's on his report. (Not As, Is, and Us)

Question 4

Explain, with examples, the rules for using apostrophes with compound nouns that show joint ownership and separate ownership.

Question 5

How do gerunds function grammatically? Explain with an example.

Question 6

Discuss the difference between possessive pronouns and contractions and explain how each is formed.

Question 7

Explain the rules for using nominative case pronouns.

Question 8

Explain the rules for using objective case pronouns correctly in writing.

Question 9

Explain, with examples, any two special problems of pronoun usage.

Question 10

What are the two functions served by pronouns ending in "self"?

Question 11

A _____ is a noun that consists of two or more words.

Question 12

The plural form of "calf" is _____.

Question 13

The plural form of "potato" is _____.

Question 14

The plural form of "analysis" is _____.

Question 15

Some nouns are always singular even though they end in "s." The verb to be used to agree with such nouns is _____.

Question 16

The singular possessive form of the word "broker" is _____.

Question 17

A sentence reads, "Sam's debriefing was very useful to us." In this sentence, the gerund used is _____.

Question 18

Words that sound similar to others are called _____.

Question 19

"You," "he," "she," and "it" are examples of _____ pronoun cases.

Question 20

Pronouns ending in "self" that emphasize the use of a noun or another pronoun are performing the _____ use function.

Question 21

Which of the following is the correct singular-plural pair of words?

A) Father-in-law and Fathers-in-law
B) Chief of staff and Chief of staffs
C) General Manager and Generals Manager
D) Mother-in-law and Mother-in-laws

Question 22

Keeping in mind the rules for common nouns ending in "y," which of the following is the correct singular-plural pair of words?

A) Attorney and Attornies
B) Valley and Valleys
C) Journey and Journies
D) Company and Companys

Question 23

Which of the following words correctly illustrates the plural form of the proper noun "Sally"?

A) Sallys
B) Sallies
C) Sally's
D) Sallie's

Question 24

Of the following examples, which one correctly illustrates the plurals of titles with names?

A) Mrs. Smith-the Mmes. Smiths
B) Mr. Smith-the Mses. Smith
C) Ms. Smith-the Mmes. Smith
D) Miss Smith-the Miss Smiths

Question 25

When a noun ends in "o" and is preceded by a vowel (e.g. studio), its plural is formed by adding:

A) an apostrophe and an "es" at the end of the word.
B) an apostrophe and an "s" at the end of the word.
C) only an apostrophe at the end of the word.
D) only an "s" at the end of the word.

Question 26

What is the plural of the word "Oreo"?

A) Oreos
B) Oreoes
C) Oreo's
D) Oreo'es

Question 27

Which of the following sentences correctly illustrates the use of an apostrophe?

A) Each managers' folders are complete.
B) The youngest teachers' classroom was the noisiest.
C) The student's performance in the play was worth talking about.
D) The peoples' representative was proud of what he had accomplished.

Question 28

When a plural noun ends in "s," its possessive is formed by adding:

A) only an "es" at the end of the word.
B) an apostrophe and an "s" at the end of the word.
C) only an apostrophe at the end of the word.
D) only an "s" at the end of the word.

Question 29

In which of the following ways can you form the possessive of a compound noun?

A) By making the last word of the noun possessive
B) By making the first word of the noun possessive
C) By replacing the compound noun with a simple noun
D) By leaving the compound noun as it is

Question 30

Which of the following sentences correctly illustrates the use of an apostrophe in the case of nouns that indicate separate ownership?

A) Jennifer and George's daughter was born prematurely.
B) Jennifer's and George's daughters were born prematurely.
C) Jennifer's and Georges daughter was born prematurely.
D) Jennifers' and Georges' daughters were born prematurely.

Question 31

An apostrophe isalways used with a noun to show:

A) a compound noun.
B) an antecedent.
C) possession.
D) a compound object.

Question 32

Keeping in mind the rules for apostrophes, which of the following sentences correctly illustrates the use of personal pronouns?

A) Darryl has a new computer and uses it's features effectively.
B) Tammy likes her new home because it's farther away from the city.
C) Felicia and her mother are leaving because theres' a better opportunity elsewhere.
D) Their's is not a story you want to hear.

Question 33

The term _____ refers to the form of a pronoun.

A) case
B) tense
C) gerund
D) mode

Question 34

Which of the following is an objective case pronoun?

A) We
B) Who
C) I
D) Them

Question 35

Which of the following is a nominative case pronoun?

A) Them
B) They
C) Whom
D) Us

Question 36

Which of the following is the plural form of the objective pronoun "whom"?

A) Whoms
B) Whomever
C) Whom
D) Whose

Question 37

Keeping in mind the rules for pronoun casing, if a pronoun follows and completes the meaning of a being verb, that pronoun must be:

A) possessive.
B) nominative.
C) objective.
D) plural.

Question 38

In a sentence, the person or thing that receives the action of the verb is known as the _____.

A) subject
B) preposition
C) object
D) infinitive

Question 39

Keeping in mind the rules for pronoun casing, when a pronoun is part of the compound subject, use the:

A) nominative case.
B) objective case.
C) possessive case.
D) infinitive case.

Question 40

Which of the following sentences correctly illustrates a nominative pronoun in the compound subject?

A) We went out with Peter and he.
B) Peter and him were not to be found.
C) I bought gifts for Peter and he.
D) Peter and he came home late last night.

Question 41

The plural form of the courtesy title "Dr." is "Drs."

Question 42

The plural form of "wolf" is "wolfs."

Question 43

The noun "civics" uses a singular verb.

Question 44

The noun "proceeds" uses a plural verb.

Question 45

The noun "salmon" has only one form.

Question 46

When forming the possessive form of a singular noun, add an apostrophe plus s if the possessive form is pronounced with an added syllable.

Question 47

When a singular or plural noun does not end in "s," the rule for forming its possessive noun is to add an apostrophe only.

Question 48

A sentence reads "My father-in-laws boss was a pleasant man." In this sentence, "father-in-laws" is the possessive form of the word "father-in-law."

Question 49

To form the possessive of a compound noun, make the last word possessive.

Question 50

To show joint ownership, in which two or more people own the same thing, add an apostrophe, or add an apostrophe plus s, to the first part of the compound.

Question 51

There are three cases of pronouns-possessive, nominative, and objective.

Question 52

When a pronoun is the subject of a verb, the pronoun must be nominative.

Question 53

If a pronoun that completes the meaning of the infinitive verb "to be" when "to be" has no subject then that pronoun must be objective.

Question 54

Pronouns ending in self that emphasize the use of a noun or another pronoun are performing their reflexive function.