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. Although Eric knew the boss had no sense of humor - he couldn't resist making one _____ remark.






2. To revise a textbook properly - you must do more than make a few _____ changes to the manuscript.






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






4. The store manager tried to _____ the angry customer by offering to replace the damaged merchandise or return her money.






5. Although her _____ smile and gentle bearing made Miss Marple seem to be a sweet little old lady - in reality she was a tough-minded - shrewd observer of human nature.






6. Typically - partygoers are _____; hermits are not.






7. Pointing out that the candidate consistently had voted against strengthening antipollution legislation - the reporter _____ her claim that she was a fervent environmentalist.






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






9. You can _____ your chances of being admitted to the college of your choice by learning to write well.






10. Rejecting the candidate's _____ comments on tax reform - the reporter pressed him to state clearly where he stood on the issue.






11. The fact that the band was already booked to play in Hollywood on New year's Eve _____ their accepting the gig in London.






12. The BP oil spill has caused _____ damage to the entire Gulf Coast.






13. Their _____ in rank made no difference at all to the prince and Cinderella.






14. Denying that she advocated total _____ - Katya maintained she wished only to change our government - not to destroy it utterly.






15. Although defeat appeared inevitable - the general was _____ in his refusal to surrender.






16. The stereotypical cowboy is a _____ soul - answering lengthy questions with a simple 'yep' or 'nope.'






17. Everyone waited to see which one of the rival candidates for city council the mayor would _____.






18. Thoroughly baffled by Holmes's _____ remarks - Watson wondered whether Holmes was intentionally concealing his thoughts about the crime.






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






20. His coarse - hard-bitten exterior _____ his inner sensitivity.






21. The young wrestler struggled to defeat his formidable _____.






22. She kept all the receipts form her business trip in order to _____ her expenses for the Internal Revenue Service.






23. When Amanda said to the ticket scalper - 'One hundred bucks? What do you want - a pound of flesh?' she was making an _____ to Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice.






24. After Ralph dropped his second try of drinks that week - the manager swiftly _____ him to a minor post behind the bar.






25. Because Sal once had fallen asleep while reading War and Peace - he thought that all Russian novels were _____.






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






27. You had better _____ your accounting errors before the auditors arrive.






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






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






30. Even though she knew she would be burned at the stake as a witch - Joan of Arc refused to _____ her belief that her voices came from God.






31. When Johnny came down with a bad case of poison oak - the doctor recommended calamine lotion to _____ the itching.






32. 'Judicial activism' is the alleged tendency of some judges to _____ the power of elected legislatures by making the law rather than merely interpreting it.






33. When acacias are in bloom - the increase of pollen in the air _____ Richard's hay fever.






34. 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.






35. At the protest rally - the students cheered the strikers and booed the dean with equal _____.






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






37. The beauty of Tiffany's stained glass appealed to Esther's _____ sense.






38. There is a fine line between speech that is _____ and to the point and speech so abrupt that it verges on rudeness.






39. Although Alfred _____ in fulfilling his duties at work - he is less conscientious about meeting his obligations at home.






40. Josh is such a greedy _____ that - as soon as the earthquake struck - he tripled the price of bottled water at his store.






41. Since both interpretations seemed possible - the judge could not decide which way to interpret a particularly _____ passage in the law.






42. Historically - traders and missionaries often proved themselves to be _____ explorers - bravely venturing into new territories despite the dangers involved.






43. Shrewdly purchasing valuable plots of land for small sums - John Jacob Astor gained a reputation as an _____ investor.






44. I was bowled over by the _____ of Amy's welcome. What an enthusiastic greeting!






45. Disappointed in love - Miss Emily became a _____; she shut herself away in her empty mansion and refused to see another living soul.






46. The wealthy - self-indulgent young man felt oddly drawn to the strict - _____ lifestyle practiced by members of some monastic orders.






47. The recent corruption scandals have _____ many people's faith in the city government.






48. Youth's beauty is _____; it quickly fades with age.






49. 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.






50. Rather than live in the crowded city center - we chose to buy a house in one of the _____ suburbs ringing the metropolis.