Grammatical Structure & Syntax Recognition Flashcards

Choose the sentence that avoids a dangling modifier.

Answer: After finishing the exam, the students left the room.

Only in option A does the subject ('the students') logically perform the action in the modifier ('After finishing the exam').

In 'The faster you drive, the greater the risk,' what syntactic pattern is used?

Answer: Correlative comparative construction

The 'the…the…' pattern is a correlative comparative construction expressing proportional relationships.

Which sentence contains a misplaced modifier?

Answer: He almost drove his children to school every day.

'Almost' is misplaced; it modifies 'drove' instead of 'every day'—meaning he nearly didn't drive at all, not that he drove on most days.

What is the grammatical term for 'her singing' in 'We appreciated her singing'?

Answer: Gerund phrase functioning as direct object

'Her singing' is a gerund phrase (noun function) serving as the direct object of 'appreciated.'

Identify the sentence with correct parallel structure.

Answer: She likes hiking, swimming, and cycling.

All three activities use the gerund (-ing) form, maintaining grammatical parallelism.

In 'It is important that he arrive on time,' what mood is the verb 'arrive'?

Answer: Subjunctive

The base form 'arrive' (instead of 'arrives') signals the subjunctive mood used in 'that' clauses after expressions of importance or necessity.

What is the function of the colon in: 'She had one goal: to win the championship.'?

Answer: To introduce a noun phrase that explains 'goal'

Here the colon introduces an appositive noun phrase that renames and clarifies the preceding noun 'goal.'