Punctuation and Mechanics Quiz
Use a comma to separate the
independent clauses which are joined by a coordinating conjunction:
The
department sponsored a seminar on college survival skills and it also hosted a
barbecue for new students.
Use commas to break up the items in
the list:
Bubbles of
air leaves ferns bits of wood and insects are often found trapped in amber.
Decide if the information in italics
is restrictive (necessary) to the meaning of the sentence, and separate it with
commas if it is not restrictive.
Scientists who
study the earth’s structure are called geologists.
Decide if the information in italics
is restrictive (necessary) to the meaning of the sentence and separate it with
commas if it is not restrictive.
The
scientists who represented eight different universities met to review
applications for the prestigious O’Hara Award.
Use a semicolon to separate the two
independent clauses joined by a transitional expression.
Many corals
grow very gradually in fact, the creation of a coral reef can take centuries.
Use quotation marks to set off the
quote within this sentence.
In his
“Letter from Birmingham Jail,” Martin Luther King Jr. wrote, We know through
painful experience that freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it
must be demanded by the oppressed (225).
Use an apostrophe to indicate that a
noun is possessive.
The
Childrens Defense Fund . . .
Use an apostrophe to indicate a
contraction between two words.
Its a shame
that Mark is not here today.
