what is the correct plural of century

ATI TEAS 7

TEAS English Practice Test

1. What is the correct plural of century?

A. Centurys
B. Centures
C. Centuries
D. Centuryies

Correct answer: C

Rationale: The correct plural of 'century' is 'centuries'. In English, to form the plural of most nouns ending in -y, you change the -y to -ies. Choice A, 'Centurys', is incorrect because it does not follow this rule. Choice B, 'Centures', is also incorrect as it does not provide the correct plural form. Choice D, 'Centuryies', is a completely incorrect and non-standard plural form of 'century'. Therefore, the correct answer is 'Centuries'.

2. Which of the answer choices is an effective revision of the ambiguous sentence below? Tanya told her sister to tell her boyfriend Joe to call her as soon as he got home.

A. Tanya's sister said, 'Tell Joe to call me as soon as he gets home.'
B. Her sister told her boyfriend Joe to call Tanya as soon as he got home.
C. Tanya said to her sister, 'Tell your boyfriend Joe to call me as soon as he gets home.'
D. Tanya told her sister, 'Joe should call me as soon as he gets home.'

Correct answer: C

Rationale: The correct answer, option C, effectively clarifies the communication structure by specifying who is communicating with whom and when. Tanya instructs her sister to convey a message to her boyfriend Joe, requesting him to call Tanya upon his arrival home. This revision removes the ambiguity present in the original sentence. Option A is incorrect as it introduces unnecessary complexity and alters the original meaning. Option B is incorrect as it misinterprets the relationships among the individuals involved. Option D is incorrect as it changes the dynamics of the communication and does not address the ambiguity in the original sentence.

3. The shear number of people in the audience overwhelmed the actress as she peeked through the curtain before scene one. Which of the following correctly describes an error in the sentence above?

A. The homograph 'peeked' should be 'peaked.'
B. The homograph 'through' should be 'threw.'
C. The homophone 'shear' should be 'sheer.'
D. The homophone 'scene' should be 'seen.'

Correct answer: C

Rationale: The word 'shear' means to cut, while 'sheer' in this context means 'complete' or 'unqualified.' The correct spelling in the sentence should be 'sheer.' Choice A, 'peeked' is the correct past tense of 'peek,' meaning to glance quickly or briefly. Choice B, 'through' is the correct preposition to indicate moving in one side and out the other. Choice D, 'scene,' is the correct term for a part of a play or movie, not 'seen,' which is the past participle of 'see.'

4. Which of the following versions of the sentence is written correctly?

A. Because she wanted to reduce unnecessary waste, Cicily decided to have the television repaired instead of buying a new one.
B. Cicily decided to have the television repaired because she wanted to reduce unnecessary waste instead of buying a new one.
C. Cicily decided to have the television repaired because she wanted to reduce unnecessary waste, instead of buying a new one.
D. Because Cicily decided to have the television repaired instead of buying a new one, she wanted to reduce unnecessary waste.

Correct answer: A

Rationale: Option A is the correct version of the sentence. It is written in a clear and grammatically correct way. The conjunction 'because' is correctly placed to show the reason for Cicily's decision, and the structure of the sentence flows logically. Choices B, C, and D have issues with sentence structure, placement of conjunctions, or unnecessary commas, making them grammatically incorrect. Choice B places 'because' in an awkward position, disrupting the flow of the sentence. Choice C introduces a comma after 'wanted to reduce unnecessary waste' unnecessarily, causing a punctuation error. Choice D shifts the focus of the sentence by placing 'she wanted to reduce unnecessary waste' at the end, making the sentence less coherent and grammatically incorrect.

5. Which of the following is an example of a simple sentence?

A. Although termites are insects.
B. Termites are very industrious insects.
C. Termites are insects, and they are very industrious.
D. Because termites are insects, they are very industrious.

Correct answer: B

Rationale: The correct answer is B: "Termites are very industrious insects." This is a simple sentence as it contains a subject (termites) and a verb (are) and expresses a complete thought. Choice A is not a simple sentence as it is a dependent clause starting with 'Although' and does not express a complete thought. Choice C is a compound sentence since it consists of two independent clauses joined by the conjunction 'and.' Choice D is a complex sentence with a dependent clause starting with 'Because' and an independent clause.