As promised, here is the punctuation quiz. Some of the sentences may be correct, but the rest have punctuation errors. Correct them, and then scroll down to see the answers. (Remember that I am traditional!) Stay tuned for explanations for the answers and the rules in next week’s blog post!
1. I just baked some brownies, would you like some?
2. (letter) Dear Sirs; I am interested in the position of advertising director for your company. (rest of letter)
3. I just went to the store and bought apples, bananas, cherries, strawberries and pineapple for the fruit salad.
4. Mike Jones, chief of police; Andy Crimson, homicide detective; Mayor Crawford, and Supervisor Kelley attended the meeting.
5. He tried to ski down the advanced slope, and fell when he was almost at the bottom.
6. Why did you wear that old, torn sweater to the party.
7. Out of all my brothers, my brother, Tom, is the most successful.
8. My cousin Tom, he is a doctor, is retiring next year and moving to France.
9. My dog — I have no idea how — she got there was found wandering three streets away.
10. The book that I read last week is titled “How I Traveled Across Spain in One Week.”
11. I haven’t replied to you yet, because I don’t know if I can make it.
12. The June 12, 1965 issue of that magazine is a collector’s item.
13. September, 1959 is a month I will always remember.
14. My uncle has worked for the F.B.I. for thirty years.
15. I would love to move to California; my husband would prefer to live in Arizona.
16. Did he ask, “Are we going to Disneyland”?
17. In his speech the Mayor Smith said, ” It (the new shopping center complex) will help the economy of the city.”
18. Although he is a famous author, (of seven bestsellers) he has lost all his money.
19. He said, “My favorite song of all time is “Yesterday.”
20. He said “I am going to the movies with Jean and Theo”.
21. I am bringing: salad, bread, cheese, and wine.
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Oh, OK!
The sentences punctuated correctly:
1. I just baked some brownies; would you like some? OR I just baked some brownies. Would you like some?
2. (letter) Dear Sirs: I am interested in the position of advertising director for your company. (rest of letter)
3. I just went to the store and bought apples, bananas, cherries, strawberries and pineapple for the fruit salad. Correct as is. You could add the Oxford comma after strawberries, but you don’t have to.
4. Mike Jones, chief of police; Andy Crimson, homicide detective; Mayor Crawford; and Supervisor Kelley attended the meeting.
5. He tried to ski down the advanced slope and fell when he was almost at the bottom.
6. Why did you wear that old, torn sweater to the party?
7. Out of all my brothers, my brother Tom is the most successful.
8. My cousin Tom (he is a doctor) is retiring next year and moving to France. You can also use dashes instead of the parentheses.
9. My dog — I have no idea how she got there — was found wandering three streets away.
10. The book that I read last week is titled How I Traveled Across Spain in One Week.
11. I haven’t replied to you yet because I don’t know if I can make it.
12. The June 12, 1965, issue of that magazine is a collector’s item.
13. September 1959 is a month I will always remember.
14. My uncle has worked for the FBI for thirty years.
15. I would love to move to California; my husband would prefer to live in Arizona. Correct as is.
16. Did he ask, ” Are we going to Disneyland?”
17. In his speech the Mayor Smith said, ” It [the new shopping center complex] will help the economy of the city.”
18. Although he is a famous author (of seven bestsellers), he has lost all his money.
19. He said, “My favorite song of all time is ‘Yesterday.‘”
20. He said “I am going to the movies with Jean and Theo.”
21. I am bringing salad, bread, cheese, and wine.
Next Week: Why the answers are the answers….
Hi Arlene, thanks for the quiz. Loved it.
For #9 we can also use parentheses instead of dashes. That’s the only comment I have. i agree with all the rest. The collon after salutation – even in formal letters – is hardly ever used in Australian English; comma is prefered.
@ Pete: I agree with Arlene’s punctuation.
I agree that you could use parentheses instead of dashes.
Wouldn’t #20 have a comma after “said”? He said, “I am…
Yes…
I was wondering about #17. In his speech the Mayor Smith said,
I would write in his speech Mayor Smith said (the is not required and is awkward in this sentence).
In #14 I think thirty or 30 would be right. As long as consistency is used when using numbers.
That’s my two cents worth.
Mary
In #17, the parentheses indicate something that the mayor did not say, but is necessary clarification for the quote. If someone had heard the entire speech, they would understand; however, the excerpt doesn’t make this clear. The point of the sentence was to change the parentheses to brackets, which are used to clarify information in a quote. The information is not part of the quote. In #14, the FBI doesn’t have the periods. The “thirty” wasn’t part of the issue, but I was using humanities style where all numbers up to 100 are spelled out.
Something wrong. I have six extra commas.
Keep in mind, everyone, that my punctuation is American English. Sometimes the British do the exact opposite!
Oh, no, Gordon!
I must admit that I prefer using the “Oxford comma.” I cringe every time I see that it is missing. I do believe that it shows a certain degree of precision.
For example: when riding the Southern Pacific parlor car to Monterey (California), I went to see what snacks were available at the bar. The bartender said, “I have ham, cheese, ham and cheese, peanut butter, and jelly sandwiches.”
The absence of the Oxford comma would turn the last two sandwiches into a single peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
By the way, I ordered a “ham and cheese” sandwich. The bartender then took down a ham and a cheese sandwich, opened their cellophane wrappings, removed one slice of bread from each and slapped the remaining parts together; putting them on a plate. (I was truly amazed at this “efficiency” in stocking sandwiches.)
Here is a brain teaser: punctuate — and capitalize — the following words so that they make sense:
that that is is that that is not is not is not that it it is
I ALWAYS use the Oxford comma!!
That that is, is; that that is not, is not. Is not that it? It is!
How did I do??
You got it!
It could have a period I place of the first semicolon. But you got the meaning spot on.
Yay! I am proud of myself! It took a couple of readings!