Test your basic knowledge |

Complete Advanced Sentences

Subjects : english, grammar
Instructions:
  • Answer 50 questions in 15 minutes.
  • If you are not ready to take this test, you can study here.
  • Match each statement with the correct term.
  • Don't refresh. All questions and answers are randomly picked and ordered every time you load a test.

This is a study tool. The 3 wrong answers for each question are randomly chosen from answers to other questions. So, you might find at times the answers obvious, but you will see it re-enforces your understanding as you take the test each time.
1. The boss prefaced his speech by telling a pointless _____ about an encounter he'd had with former President Bush.






2. Using only a few descriptive phrases - Austen manages to _____ the character of Mr. Collins so deftly that we can predict his every move.






3. The architect realized that her design for the new school had to be in _____ with the local building code.






4. Paradoxically - _____ reasoning does not always produce incorrect results; even though your logic may be flawed - the conclusion you reach may still be correct.






5. The costume designer _____ the leading lady's ball gown with yards and yards of ribbon and lace.






6. Con artists take advantage of the _____ of inexperienced Internet users to gain access to their credit card information.






7. As far as I'm concerned - Apple's claims about its new computer are pure _____; no machine is that good!






8. A born storyteller - my father loved to _____ anecdotes about his early years in New York.






9. The reviewers praised the new restaurant's _____ selection of dishes - which ranged from Asian stir fries to French ragouts and stews.






10. Looking for any inconsistency in the testimony that might exonerate his client - the defense lawyer pounced on a _____ between the two witnesses' versions of what had occurred.






11. Although some girls were attracted by Mark's air of _____ - Judy was put off by it - for she felt his aloofness indicated a lack of openness.






12. When both Harvard and Stanford accepted Laura - she was in a _____ as to which school she should attend.






13. Because Carmen believed in Juan's fidelity - she _____ the notion that he might be having an affair.






14. Mother was a _____ housekeeper - unwilling to allow a single speck of dirt to mar her perfect home.






15. Because she was a firm believer in old-fashioned courtesy - Miss Post _____ the modern tendency to address new acquaintances by their first names.






16. The airline customer service agent tried to _____ the angry passenger by offering her a seat in first class.






17. Katya's _____ love of justice moved her to champion the cause of anyone she considered unfairly treated by society.






18. Please try not to include so many _____ details in your report; the bare facts are all I need.






19. The winter storm was ______; it changed course constantly.






20. To John - who had never missed a meal - hunger was an _____ concept - one he understood only in theory.






21. At commencement - the dean praised Ellen for her _____ behavior as class president.






22. To be low man on the totem pole is to have a decidedly inferior place in the _____.






23. Bobby was such a _____ eater that he would eat a sandwich only if his mother first cut off every scrap of crust.






24. The special prosecutor determined that the attorney general - though inept - had not intentionally set out to _____ the progress of the investigation.






25. Though Huck was quite willing to _____ Tom's story - Aunt Polly knew better than to believe either of them.






26. Blind people sometimes develop a compensatory ability to sense the _____ of objects around them.






27. Because solar energy has the power to reduce greenhouse gases and increase energy efficiency - conversion to the use of solar energy may help _____ the threat of global warming.






28. The rich new student tried to attract friends by making an _____ display of his wealth.






29. Rumors of police corruption led the mayor to _____ an investigation into the department's activities.






30. Nothing could shake his _____ that his children would get the best education that money could buy.






31. According to Sherlock Homes - the very point that appears to complicate a case - when duly considered and scientifically handled - is the one most likely to _____ it.






32. Stories in The New York Times often include _____ allusions to obscure people and events.






33. Dirt poor and out of work - she did not give up but continued to fight against _____.






34. Because a _____ examination of the ruins indicates the possibility of arson - we believe the insurance agency should undertake a more thorough investigation of the fire's cause.






35. The defense called several respectable witnesses who were able to _____ the lying testimony of the prosecution's sole witness.






36. The Head Start program attempts to _____ prekindergarten children so that they will do well when they enter elementary school.






37. With its worn-out dialogue and predictable plot - the sitcom struck me as unbearably _____.






38. Don't just hint around that you're dissatisfied; be _____ about what's bothering you.






39. Warned of _____ weather conditions ahead - the pilot told the passengers to fasten their seat belts.






40. All things change over time; nothing is _____.






41. Someone mute cannot talk; someone _____ can hardly stop talking.






42. Galileo's assertion that the earth moved around the sun directly contradicted the religious teachings of his day; as a result - he was tried for _____.






43. The senator was _____ for behavior inappropriate to a member of Congress.






44. The attorney came up with several far-fetched arguments in a vain attempt to _____ his weak case.






45. Judy's great fear was that she might _____ omit a question on the exam and mismark her entire answer sheet.






46. Noticing the _____ glance the customer gave the diamond bracelet on the counter - the clerk wondered whether he had a potential shoplifter in the store.






47. It is _____ that his success came when he least wanted it.






48. To win his audience - the speaker used every _____ trick in the book.






49. Acetone is an extremely _____ liquid: it vaporizes instantly.






50. The coming trip to France should provide a _____ test of the value of my conversational French class.