English Sentence Structure MCQs with Answers (FREE)

1: Indentify the object in the following sentence: "He threw the ball across the field."

A. He

B. across the field

C. the ball

D. the field

2: What is a coordinating conjunction?

A. a word such as "yet," "but," "so," or "nor"

B. a word that joins two words of equal syntactic importance

C. a word that joins two independent clauses

D. (All of these)

3: "Because this situation needs to change as soon as possible." Which best describes this example?

A. fragment

B. run-on

C. sentence

4: "The day was bright and cold." What part of speech is "and"?

A. interjection

B. conjunction

C. adjective

D. preposition

5: True or false: A compound sentence is always longer than a compound-complex sentence.

A. True

B. False

6: True or false: A complex sentence always contains a dependent clause.

A. False

B. True

7: What is a subject?

A. who or what a sentence is about

B. where a sentence takes place

C. what a sentence is intended to convey

D. the grammatical purpose of a sentence

8: What is the following an example of? "George goes to the gym."

A. Simple sentence

B. Compound-complex sentence

C. Dependent clause

D. Compound sentence

9: Which of the following is a complex sentence

A. Students study in the morning because it gives them free time in the afternoon.

B. Many of the students like to study in the morning.

10: "Who wants to know?" Based on its purpose, what type of sentence is this?

A. exclamatory

B. interrogative

C. declarative

D. imperative

11: Choose the correct word order:

A. Steve almost is never late.

B. Steve almost never late is.

C. Steve is almost never late.

D. Never late is almost Steve.

12: A sentence that ends in a question mark is most likely:

A. a declarative sentence

B. an interrogative sentence

C. an imperative sentence

D. an exclamatory sentence

13: "My boyfriend ____ attacked by a group of hooligans."

A. had

B. was

C. became

D. got

14: Which type of clause can stand by itself?

A. an independent clause

B. an adjectival clause

C. a relative clause

D. a dependent clause

15: Which sentence implies that Kate is the only person who cares about Jason?

A. Kate only cares about Jason.

B. Kate cares only about Jason.

C. Only Kate cares about Jason.

16: Which sentence implies that the only thing Kate does is care about Jason?

A. Only Kate cares about Jason.

B. Kate only cares about Jason.

17: "Choose me! He may be more handsome, but my love for you is greater than ____"

A. his

B. he's

C. him

D. he

18: "Isabelle was very angry." Based on its purpose, what type of sentence is this?

A. declarative

B. imperative

C. exclamatory

D. interrogative

19: True or false: A compound sentence is always longer than a complex sentence.

A. False

B. True

20: "Hey, where'd you get that dress?" What part of speech is "Hey"?

A. interjection

B. preposition

C. noun

D. conjunction

21: "The abandoned puppy climbed out of the box." What part of speech is "abandoned"?

A. verb

B. adjective

C. noun

D. adverb

22: A complex sentence requires an independent clause and one or more ...

A. normal clauses

B. relative clauses

C. dependent clauses

D. adjectival clauses

23: Which is a way of correcting a comma splice?

A. changing the comma to a semicolon

B. making one of the clauses a dependent clause

C. inserting a coordinating conjunction after the comma

D. (All of these)

24: "Be more careful." Based on its purpose, what type of sentence is this?

A. imperative

B. exclamatory

C. declarative

D. interrogative

25: Which of the following is an example of a dependent clause?

A. We drove to Montana.

B. From head to toe.

C. I ran a mile.

D. Because she was angry.

26: "The woman smiled sadly." What part of speech is "sadly"?

A. adverb

B. adjective

C. preposition

D. verb

27: Correct the following sentence: "First thing in the morning, Joe likes to make coffee, to exercise, and then taking a shower."

A. First thing in the morning, Joe likes to make coffee, exercise, and then taking a shower.

B. First thing in the morning, Joe likes to make coffee, exercise, and then take a shower.

C. Joe likes to make coffee, to exercise, and then taking a shower first thing in the morning.

D. First thing in the morning, Joe likes coffee, exercise, and then taking a shower.

28: "While we were gone, Jason cleaned the house." Which best describes this example?

A. fragment

B. run-on

C. sentence

29: "I missed my train!" Based on its purpose, what type of sentence is this?

A. interrogative

B. exclamatory

C. imperative

D. declarative

30: Which of the following sentences illustrates correct usage of articles and conjunctions?

A. Has a package I’ve been waiting for been delivered yet, nor must I wait longer?

B. For my birthday, I would like a book, an hourglass, and the keys to a new boat.

C. The cake that I ate was better that the one you had.

D. An house is not the home, or so they saying goes

31: What is a subordinating conjunction?

A. a word that orders two phrases

B. a word that joins a dependent clause to an independent clause

C. a word that reverses the meaning of a previous word

D. a word that joins two independent clauses

32: "He is the very model of a diplomat." What part of speech is "is"?

A. adjective

B. adverb

C. verb

D. preposition

33: An imperative sentence:

A. makes an emphatic point or exclaims something

B. states a demand or order, or gives instructions

C. poses a question

D. makes a statement or states a fact

34: Which part of the following sentence is incorrect– "I have been thinking on my parents ever since I received their letter."

A. Vocabulary

B. preposition

C. Word order

D. Punctuation

35: "Avery liked peaches, but Jason liked plums." Based on its structure, what type of sentence is this?

A. simple

B. compound-complex

C. complex

D. compound

36: "If I only had a brain." is an example of:

A. run-on sentence

B. sentence fragment

C. complex sentence

D. compound sentence

37: Indentify the direct object in the following sentence: "Did he send you a letter?"

A. send

B. you

C. he

D. a letter

38: "Which of these three possible explanations is ___ likely?"

A. the less

B. minus

C. less

D. the least

39: Which sentence contains a misplaced modifier?

A. The diamond watch, which is very expensive, is locked in a cabinet.

B. Her handwriting was neat, which looked great on the poster.

C. The neighbor’s dogs didn’t like the scarecrow, who barked loudly.

D. Cold iced tea on a hot sunny day is very refreshing.

40: Identify the subject in the following sentence: "Did you send him a letter?"

A. him

B. you

C. a letter

41: "Wind whistled through the trees." What part of speech is "through"?

A. preposition

B. adjective

C. verb

D. conjunction

42: True or false: the adverbs "better" and "best" can correctly be used to extremify both the adjective "good" and the adjective "well."

A. False

B. True

43: Which sentence appears to contain a misplaced modifier?

A. (All of these)

B. Having shut down unexpectedly, I restarted my computer.

C. Though boiling hot, I guessed he would eat the soup immediately.

44: "Jennifer, not her brothers, are at fault." What type of error is present in this sentence?

A. subject-verb agreement

B. pronoun-antecedent agreement

C. parallel structure

D. modifier placement

45: Which part of the following sentence is incorrect– "Because of she got the job, they moved to London, in spite of the weather."

A. Word order

B. The second preposition

C. Run-on sentence

D. The first preposition

46: What is a predicate?

A. what the subject of a sentence does

B. who or what a sentence is about

C. the grammatical purpose of a sentence

D. where a sentence takes place

47: Identify the dependent clause in the following sentence: "Since Jim lost his job, he has taken up painting."

A. Since Jim lost his job

B. he has taken up painting

C. lost his job

D. taken up

48: "This is the best day of the week!" Describe the error.

A. Subject-verb agreement.

B. Gerund instead of an infinitive.

C. Misplaced modifier.

D. Unclear antecedent.

49: "Andrea had gone to France; George was dumbfounded." Based on its structure, what type of sentence is this?

A. compound

B. simple

C. compound-complex

D. complex

50: Which answer reveals a comma splice?

A. I have gone to the market, but this is the first time I will be going alone.

B. I have gone to the market. This is the first time I will be going alone.

C. I have gone to the market, this is the first time I will be going alone.

D. I have gone to the market; this is the first time I will be going alone.

51: All of the following prepositions could complete the sentence EXCEPT: "We finally found him sitting ____ the house."

A. by

B. atop

C. on

D. upon

52: "George went to the bookstore and the laundromat." Based on its structure, what type of sentence is this?

A. compound-complex

B. simple

C. compound

D. complex

53: "It's over, let's go home." Which best describes this example?

A. sentence

B. run-on

C. fragment

54: Which is an example of a noun phrase?

A. The kitten fell into a well

B. Once upon a time

C. After the American Civil War

D. The long and arduous journey

55: "The white-tailed late-year deer hunting season is fast approaching." Identify the noun phrase.

A. "white-tailed late-year dear"

B. "The white-tailed late-year deer hunting season"

C. "The white-tailed...deer"

D. "deer hunting season"

56: What is a comma splice?

A. a comma used to join two independent clauses

B. an error in sentence construction

C. (All of these)

D. a cause of run-on sentences

57: "The music is playing, it's time to dance." is an example of:

A. complex sentence

B. sentence fragment

C. compound sentence

D. run-on sentence

58: What is a clause?

A. a group of words that make an incomplete phrase

B. a group of words containing a subject and a predicate

C. a group of words containing both a verb and an adverb

D. a group of words on a related theme

59: Identify the indirect object in the following sentence: "Did he send you a letter?"

A. you

B. he

C. a letter

D. send

60: Is this question grammatically correct? "If my sister can come too, I'll go to the party."

A. No

B. Yes

61: Which is an example of a subordinating conjunction?

A. over

B. or

C. and

D. if

62: "She accepted the punishment with dignity." What part of speech is "dignity"?

A. adverb

B. adjective

C. noun

D. conjunction

63: Which part of the following declarative sentence is incorrect? "That horses refuses to be saddled."

A. verb conjugation

B. noun number

C. article

D. predicate adjective

64: "She did not take his concern that seriously." What part of speech is "that"?

A. pronoun

B. adverb

C. article

D. adjective

65: The 'comma splice' is a kind of:

A. sentence fragment

B. dangling modifier

C. run-on sentence

D. complex sentence

66: Identify the dependent clause: "Should we clean up together, are you going to do it yourself, or do you expect me to do it for you?

A. sentence does not contain a dependent clause

B. do you expect me to do it for you

C. Should we clean up together

D. are you going to do it yourself

67: "We looked in the mailbox, the garden, the shed, and behind a tree." What type of error is present in this sentence?

A. parallel structure

B. modifier placement

C. subject-verb agreement

D. pronoun-antecedent agreement

68: Which part of this sentence is incorrect: "Only one of the seven countries that participate have any objections."

A. Only one

B. participate

C. have

D. any

69: Which is not an acceptable correction to the common run-on sentence?

A. Separate two independent clauses into two sentences.

B. Add a coordinating conjunction after inserting a comma.

C. Link two sentences as independent clauses.

D. Insert a semicolon into the sentence.

70: Which sentence contains an error of subject-verb agreement?

A. I am smarter than she is.

B. Either the senators or the president were responsible.

C. The dogs and the baby were asleep.

D. Neither you nor I am tall enough.

71: A dependent clause:

A. is an incomplete sentence without another dependent clause to complement it.

B. is a sentence fragment without an independent clause.

C. is always shorter than an independent clause.

D. is conditional, and therefore requires use of the subjunctive.

72: Identify the predicate in the following sentence: "Jim is going to the store to buy eggs."

A. store

B. is going to the store

C. is going

D. to the store to buy eggs

73: "Each piece of data should be recorded, so the scientists can learn from them." What type of error is present in this sentence?

A. subject-verb agreement

B. pronoun-antecedent agreement

C. parallel structure

D. modifier placement

74: Which of the following CANNOT correctly be used between two independent clauses?

A. a period

B. a semicolon

C. a comma and a coordinating conjunction

D. a comma

75: A compound-complex sentence always contains:

A. one or more independent clauses and two or more dependent clauses

B. two or more independent clauses, and/or two or more dependent clauses

C. two or more independent clauses and one or more dependent clauses

D. at least one dependent clause and at least one dependent clause

76: "He adored the kitten that Jane had rescued." Based on its structure, what type of sentence is this?

A. complex

B. simple

C. compound-complex

D. compound

77: "Having fallen in the sink, John found his phone no longer worked." What type of error is present in this sentence?

A. modifier placement

B. parallel structure

C. subject-verb agreement

D. pronoun-antecedent agreement

78: "While I was at work, Jack cleaned the bathroom." Based on its structure, what type of sentence is this?

A. complex

B. simple

C. compound-complex

D. compound

79: "Which shoes did she wear yesterday?" What part of speech is "Which"?

A. adjective

B. adverb

C. noun

D. preposition

80: "He had no comment concerning the scandal." What part of speech is "concerning"?

A. preposition

B. conjunction

C. verb

D. adjective

81: "He loved the gift that his mother sent us, but I abhorred it." Based on its structure, what type of sentence is this?

A. complex

B. compound

C. simple

D. compound-complex

82: Which sentence contains an error of pronoun-antecedent agreement?

A. Anders and I arrived later in the evening.

B. Mary-Kate and Ashley has lost their shoes.

C. Jan, Mary, and she won an award.

D. Every hiker should watch their step.

83: A predicate adjective:

A. modifies a sentence's subject

B. describes an adjective

C. describes a person, place, thing, activity, or action

D. modifies a sentence's object

84: Which is an example of a coordinating conjunction?

A. while

B. yet

C. that

D. if

85: "I am very, very sorry for everything," she admitted. What part of speech is "very" and word does the first "very" modify?

A. adverb/sorry

B. adjective/very

C. adjective/sorry

D. adverb/very

86: True or false– In English, an interrogative sentence will always begin with either a verb or with one of the following words: where, why, how, who, what, where, when.

A. False

B. True

87: Identify the dangling modifier.

A. While entering the meeting late, the accountant reached for the charts and began to present.

B. Entering the meeting late, the accountant reached for the charts and began to present.

C. Upon entering the meeting late, the accountant reached for the charts and began to present.

D. Having entered the meeting late, the accountant reached for the charts and began to present.

88: "His boss can be overbearing: she sometimes makes him come in on weekends, and he thinks he should be compensated for the extra hours of work." This is an example of:

A. Complex-compound sentence

B. Complex sentence

C. Compound sentence

D. Simple sentence

89: Identify the predicate adjective in the following sentence: "The thankless, arduous task left him feeling miserably tired.

A. tired

B. thankless and arduous are both predicate adjectives

C. miserably

D. miserably tired

90: In the business community B2B means what?

A. Business to Business

B. Two Business Leaders Communication

C. Business plus additional business leads.

D. Business Two Businesses