ATI TEAS PRACTICE TEST English and Language Usage
1. Which of the following nouns represents the correct plural form of
the word syllabus?
A. Syllabus
B. Syllaba
C. Syllabi
Syllabis: C. The word syllabi is the correct plural form of syllabus.
- The other answer choices reflect incorrect plural forms. Specifically,
syllabus does not change the form at all, and the Latin root of syllabus
would require some change.
- At the same time, syllaba - while an accurate plural for some words
with Latin roots - is incorrect in this case.
- And syllabis is a double form of the plural, so it cannot be correct.
2. Which of the following words functions as an adjective in the
sentence below?
The welsh kingdom of Gwynedd existed as an independent state from the
early 5th century, when the Romans left Britain, until the late 13th
century, when the king of England took control of Wales.
A. independent
B. century
C. king
D. control: A. The word independent is an adjective that modifies the
word state, describing what kind of state the kingdom of Gwynedd
was. The words century, king, and control are all nouns in this
context.
3. Bi, re, and un are:
A. Suffixes, appearing at the beginning of base words to change their
mean- ing
B. Suffixes, appearing at the end of base words to enhance their meaning
C. Prefixes, appearing at the beginning of base words to emphasize
their meaning
D. prefixes, appearing at the beginning of base words to change their
meaning: D. prefixes, appearing at the beginning of base words to
change their meanings.
,- Suffixes appear at the end of words.
- Prefixes are attached to the beginning of words to change their
meanings.
- Un+happy, bi+monthly, and re+examine are prefixes that, by
definition, change the meanings of the words to which they are
attached.
4. Which of the following sentences shows the correct use of
quotation marks?
,A. Grady asked Abe, 'Did you known that an earthquake and a tsunami
hit Messina, Italy, in 1908?'
B. Grady asked Abe, "Did you known that an earthquake and a tsunami
hit Messina, Italy, in 1908"?
C. Grady asked Abe, "Did you known that an earthquake and a tsunami
hit Messina, Italy, in 1908?"
D. Grady asked Abe, " 'Did you known that an earthquake and a tsunami hit
Messina, Italy, in 1908'?": C. Answer choice C. is correct, because the
quotation is a standard quotation (requiring double quotes) as well as
a question.
- Additionally, the question mark belongs inside the quotation marks.
- Answer choice A. correctly places the question mark inside the
quotation marks, but the sue of single quotes is incorrect for standard
quotations.
- Answer choice B is incorrect, because it places the question mark
outside the quotation marks.
- Answer choice D uses the layered quotes, which are unnecessary in
this case, since the sentence presents only one quotation instead of
more than one.
5. Since, whether, and accordingly are examples of which type pf
single words?
A. common, or basic, single words
B. compare/contrast words
C. cause-effect words
D. temporal sequencing words: C. Cause-effect words. Signal words give
the reader hints about the purpose of a particular passage. Some
signal words are concerned with comparing/contrasting, some with
cause and effect, some with temporal sequencing, some with physical
location, and some with a problem and its solution. The words since,
whether, and accordingly are words used when describing an
outcome. Outcomes have causes.
6. Which of the answer choices identifies the misspelled word in the
sen- tence below?
Donald considered the job offer carefully, but he ultimately decided that
the low salary was not acceptible given his previous experience.
A. carefully
B. decided
, C. salary
D. acceptible: D. Acceptable is the correct spelling of the word.
7. Which of the answer choices best combines the following four
sentences into two sentences?
I'm usually good about keeping track of my keys. I lost them. I spent hours
1. Which of the following nouns represents the correct plural form of
the word syllabus?
A. Syllabus
B. Syllaba
C. Syllabi
Syllabis: C. The word syllabi is the correct plural form of syllabus.
- The other answer choices reflect incorrect plural forms. Specifically,
syllabus does not change the form at all, and the Latin root of syllabus
would require some change.
- At the same time, syllaba - while an accurate plural for some words
with Latin roots - is incorrect in this case.
- And syllabis is a double form of the plural, so it cannot be correct.
2. Which of the following words functions as an adjective in the
sentence below?
The welsh kingdom of Gwynedd existed as an independent state from the
early 5th century, when the Romans left Britain, until the late 13th
century, when the king of England took control of Wales.
A. independent
B. century
C. king
D. control: A. The word independent is an adjective that modifies the
word state, describing what kind of state the kingdom of Gwynedd
was. The words century, king, and control are all nouns in this
context.
3. Bi, re, and un are:
A. Suffixes, appearing at the beginning of base words to change their
mean- ing
B. Suffixes, appearing at the end of base words to enhance their meaning
C. Prefixes, appearing at the beginning of base words to emphasize
their meaning
D. prefixes, appearing at the beginning of base words to change their
meaning: D. prefixes, appearing at the beginning of base words to
change their meanings.
,- Suffixes appear at the end of words.
- Prefixes are attached to the beginning of words to change their
meanings.
- Un+happy, bi+monthly, and re+examine are prefixes that, by
definition, change the meanings of the words to which they are
attached.
4. Which of the following sentences shows the correct use of
quotation marks?
,A. Grady asked Abe, 'Did you known that an earthquake and a tsunami
hit Messina, Italy, in 1908?'
B. Grady asked Abe, "Did you known that an earthquake and a tsunami
hit Messina, Italy, in 1908"?
C. Grady asked Abe, "Did you known that an earthquake and a tsunami
hit Messina, Italy, in 1908?"
D. Grady asked Abe, " 'Did you known that an earthquake and a tsunami hit
Messina, Italy, in 1908'?": C. Answer choice C. is correct, because the
quotation is a standard quotation (requiring double quotes) as well as
a question.
- Additionally, the question mark belongs inside the quotation marks.
- Answer choice A. correctly places the question mark inside the
quotation marks, but the sue of single quotes is incorrect for standard
quotations.
- Answer choice B is incorrect, because it places the question mark
outside the quotation marks.
- Answer choice D uses the layered quotes, which are unnecessary in
this case, since the sentence presents only one quotation instead of
more than one.
5. Since, whether, and accordingly are examples of which type pf
single words?
A. common, or basic, single words
B. compare/contrast words
C. cause-effect words
D. temporal sequencing words: C. Cause-effect words. Signal words give
the reader hints about the purpose of a particular passage. Some
signal words are concerned with comparing/contrasting, some with
cause and effect, some with temporal sequencing, some with physical
location, and some with a problem and its solution. The words since,
whether, and accordingly are words used when describing an
outcome. Outcomes have causes.
6. Which of the answer choices identifies the misspelled word in the
sen- tence below?
Donald considered the job offer carefully, but he ultimately decided that
the low salary was not acceptible given his previous experience.
A. carefully
B. decided
, C. salary
D. acceptible: D. Acceptable is the correct spelling of the word.
7. Which of the answer choices best combines the following four
sentences into two sentences?
I'm usually good about keeping track of my keys. I lost them. I spent hours
