This short quiz will help you sharpen your writing skills. Answers are posted below.
1. Which sentence is better, a or b?
a) Klemp advised me he’d been at the beach all weekend.
b) Klemp told me he’d been at the beach all weekend.
2. Imagine that you’re writing the first sentence in a police report. Which sentence works better, a or b?
a) On October 22, 2020, at approximately 7:25 pm, I, Officer Carole Pamila, was dispatched to Frank’s Bar and Grill in response to a fistfight.
b) Bartender Daisy Linville told me the fight started while several customers were watching a hockey game on TV.
3. Correct the errors in the sentences below. Sentences may have several errors – or none.
a) I know your busy, but there waiting for your opinion of the proposed budget changes.
b) Belson said her foot slipped off the brake petal.
c) I sited Lewis for a parking violation.
ANSWERS
1. Which sentence is better, a or b?
a) Klemp advised me he’d been at the beach all weekend. INCORRECT [Advised means “counseled.” For clarity, use told.]
b) Klemp told me he’d been at the beach all weekend. CORRECT
2. Imagine that you’re writing the first sentence in a police report. Which sentence works better, a or b?
a) Bartender Daisy Linville told me the fight started while several customers were watching a hockey game on TV. CORRECT [Start your report with the first thing you saw, heard, or did at the scene. In this case, you went right over to the bartender to find out what had happened.]
b) On October 22, 2020, at approximately 7:25 pm, I, Officer Carole Pamila, was dispatched to Frank’s Bar and Grill in response to a fistfight. [Wrong! You already typed your name and the date, time, and location into boxes on your laptop screen. Don’t waste time repeating that information.]
3. Correct the errors in the sentences below. Sentences may have several errors – or none.
a) I know you’re busy, but they’re waiting for your opinion of the proposed budget changes. [You’re is a contraction of you are. They’re is a contraction of they are.]
b) Belson said her foot slipped off the brake pedal. [Brake – part of a car – is correct. A petal is part of a flower. You need the word pedal – the device your foot presses to stop a car.]
c) I cited Lewis for a parking violation. [A site is a location: a work site, for example. You need cited here.]
