Standard English Conventions

Chief Editor

Mar 17, 2024

Take all 3 MCQs in interactive quiz mode with timer and progress tracking

Public-awareness campaigns about the need to reduce single-use plastics can be successful, says researcher Kim Borg of Monash University in Australia, when these campaigns give consumers a choice: for example, Japan achieved a 40 percent reduction in plastic-bag use after cashiers were instructed to ask customers whether ________ wanted a bag. Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?

Difficulty: Easy

they

one

you

it

When external forces are applied to common glass made from silicates, energy builds up around minuscule defects in the material, resulting in fractures. Recently, engineer Erkka Frankberg of Tampere University in Finland used the chemical ________ to make a glassy solid that can withstand higher strain than silicate glass can before fracturing.Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?

Difficulty: Hard

compound, aluminum oxide

compound aluminum oxide,

compound, aluminum oxide,

compound aluminum oxide

Midway through her 1968 jazz album A Monastic Trio, Alice Coltrane switches instruments, swapping the piano for the harp. With the same fluid style that Coltrane was famous for on piano, she ________ her fingers across the harp strings and creates a radiant sound. Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?

Difficulty: Easy

sweep

are sweeping

were sweeping

sweeps