Writing Clarity and Grammar Flashcards

Which sentence correctly uses an apostrophe?

Answer: The officers' vehicles were searched.

'Officers'' is the correct plural possessive, showing that the vehicles belong to multiple officers.

An officer writes: 'Running toward the vehicle, the gun was dropped.' What type of error is this?

Answer: Dangling modifier

This is a dangling modifier — the phrase 'running toward the vehicle' implies the gun was running, which is illogical.

In a supplemental report, Officer Reyes states: 'Me and my partner responded to the call.' What correction is needed?

Answer: Change 'Me and my partner' to 'My partner and I'

When used as a subject, 'I' is correct; 'me' is an object pronoun and cannot serve as the subject of a verb.

Which version of the sentence uses parallel structure correctly?

Answer: The suspect was tall, athletic, and dark-haired.

Parallel structure requires all items in a list to share the same grammatical form; 'tall, athletic, and dark-haired' are all adjectives.

What is wrong with the following sentence? 'The victim stated that they seen the suspect leave.'

Answer: 'Seen' should be 'saw' — incorrect verb form

'Seen' requires a helping verb (had seen); the simple past tense 'saw' is correct here.

An officer is writing about two suspects and consistently refers to them as 'they.' Why might this cause confusion in a report?

Answer: 'They' could be unclear about whether one or both suspects are meant

In reports involving multiple subjects, 'they' can be ambiguous; naming suspects (Suspect 1, Suspect 2) or repeating names eliminates confusion.

Which punctuation mark is used to introduce a list in a formal report?

Answer: Colon

A colon is the correct punctuation to introduce a list or to signal that elaboration follows a complete statement.