which of the following sentences demonstrates the correct use of an apostrophe

ATI TEAS 7

TEAS 7 English Practice Test

1. Which of the following sentences demonstrates the correct use of an apostrophe?

A. Lyle works for the courthouse, and among his responsibilities is getting the jurors meal’s.
B. Lyle works for the courthouse, and among his responsibilities is getting the juror’s meals.
C. Lyle works for the courthouse, and among his responsibilities is getting the jurors’ meals.
D. Lyle works for the courthouse, and among his responsibilities is getting the jurors meals’.

Correct answer: C

Rationale: The apostrophe is correctly placed in this sentence to show possession by multiple jurors.

2. After a long day at work, Tracy had dinner with her family, and then took a walk to the park. What are the transitional words in the preceding sentence?

A. After, then
B. At, with, to
C. Had, took
D. A, the

Correct answer: A

Rationale: The transitional words in the sentence are 'after' and 'then,' which indicate the sequence of events that occurred. 'After' shows the order in which events took place, while 'then' is used to connect the idea of Tracy having dinner with her family before taking a walk to the park. Choices B, C, and D do not function as transitional words in this context. 'At, with, to' are prepositions indicating location or relationship, 'had, took' are past tense verbs, and 'a, the' are articles used for nouns.

3. Which of the following is a complex sentence?

A. When skywriting, a pilot flies a small aircraft in specific, particular formations, creating large letters visible from the ground.
B. The public defense attorney was able to maintain her optimism despite her dearth of courtroom wins, her lack of free time, and her growing list of clients.
C. Because the distance between stars in the galaxy is far greater than the distance between planets, interstellar travel is expected to be an even bigger challenge than interplanetary exploration.
D. Invented in France in the early nineteenth century, the stethoscope underwent a number of reiterations before the emergence of the modern form of the instrument in the 1850s.

Correct answer: C

Rationale: A complex sentence has one independent clause and at least one dependent clause connected by a subordinating conjunction or a relative pronoun. In choice C, the sentence 'Because the distance between stars in the galaxy is far greater than the distance between planets' is a dependent clause introduced by the subordinating conjunction 'Because,' while the rest of the sentence 'interstellar travel is expected to be an even bigger challenge than interplanetary exploration' forms the independent clause. This combination of an independent clause and a dependent clause makes choice C a complex sentence. Choices A, B, and D do not contain both an independent and dependent clause connected in the way that choice C does, thus they do not qualify as complex sentences.

4. Which of the following examples is a complete sentence?

A. Let me know.
B. On the subject of philosophy.
C. Depending on the type of books you like.
D. Where there are lots of people.

Correct answer: A

Rationale: The correct answer is A: 'Let me know.' This is a complete sentence as it contains a subject ('me') and a verb ('know'). Choice B, 'On the subject of philosophy,' is a prepositional phrase and does not form a complete sentence as it lacks a subject and verb. Choice C, 'Depending on the type of books you like,' is a dependent clause and does not stand alone as a complete sentence. Choice D, 'Where there are lots of people,' is a dependent clause as it begins with a subordinating conjunction ('where') and does not function as a complete sentence on its own.

5. Which of the following sentences uses the most formal language?

A. The movie was awesome!
B. The film did not meet my expectations.
C. I found the cinematic experience to be unsatisfactory.
D. The flick was pretty bad.

Correct answer: C

Rationale: Option C uses formal language by employing more sophisticated vocabulary ('cinematic experience') and refraining from informal terms like 'awesome' and 'flick.' Choice A ('awesome') and Choice D ('flick') use informal language typically used in casual contexts, making them less formal. Choice B, while more formal than Choices A and D, is still less formal than Choice C due to its less sophisticated vocabulary and directness in expressing dissatisfaction compared to the refined language used in Choice C.