Higher Education Department

Concordia College
1st Semester
A.Y. 2019-2020

Name: _________________________ Date: ___________________

Grade/Section: __________________________ Age: _____________

Punctuation Practice Test

Instructions: For questions 1-20 below, correct all punctuation errors by writing in the correct
marks in their correct places. Some sentences only need basic punctuation, like apostrophes,
question mark, period and exclamation mark; others require more complex forms, such as
dashes, hyphens, colons, and ellipses.
1. The   document   was   clear   pertinent   and   well   written
2. Angela   won   the   race   easily   in   fact   she   get the gold medal
3. I   expected   Michael to come   this   morning   however   I   waited   all   day   for   it   to arrive
4. Douglas McArthur   said   I shall return
5. Tuesday   December 20 1996   is   my   birthday
6. Certainly   you   may   borrow   my   book   Daniel
7. I   am   recalling   his story   I   believe   as   accurately   as   I   can
8. Emily   she   had   always   loved   animals   took   in   the   stray   kitten
9. He   is   not   well- liked   although   he   says   he   is  everyones   friend
10. Rainy   days  arent   all   that   bad   they   provide   the   water   crucial   for   all   life
11. Who do you think will win the contest
12. All of the people at the school including the teachers and students were glad when summer break
came.
13. Watch out for the broken glass
14. We travelled to Puerto Galera Palawan Maldives Batangas and Sagada Baguio
15. Matthew likes to play basketball everday
16. The following are the primary colors red blue yellow
17. Oh my God there is afire
18. Benjamin Franklin said Honesty is the best policy
19. Luneta Park Ocean Park and Star City make a wonderful place to visit
20. My mother like to get up early in the morning my sister would not like to do so
 Higher Education Department
Concordia College
1st Semester
A.Y. 2019-2020

Punctuation Practice Test Answer

Basic Punctuation Skills
1. The document was clear, pertinent, and well written.
Place commas to divide items in a series; "well written" would be hyphenated only if it preceded
the noun.
5. Tuesday, December 20, 1996, is my birthday.
Use commas to separate days from dates, dates from years, and years from the rest of the
sentence; you would need to place at least two commas no matter what two parts of this
complete date you used:
Tuesday, December 20, is my birthday.
December 20, 1996, is my birthday.
7. I am recalling his story, I believe, as accurately as I can.
"I believe" is a nonessential interrupter, so use commas to separate this from the rest of the
sentence.
9. He is not well-liked, although he says he is everyone's friend.
Use a comma to separate the two independent clauses; use the apostrophe to indicate possession
of a singular noun ("everyone").
11. Who do you think will win the contest?
A question mark is used to end an interrogative sentence, that is, at the end of direct questions
which requires an answer.
12. All of the people at the school, including the teachers and students, were glad when
summer break came.
Use a comma to separates a phrase.
13. Watch out for the broken glass!
Use an exclamation mark after an imperative sentence if the command is urgent and forceful.
15. Matthew likes to play basketball every day.
17. Oh! There is a fire!
19. Luneta Park, Ocean Park and Star City make a wonderful place to visit.
Complex Punctuation Skills
2. Angela won the race easily; in fact, she gets gold medal.
    Angela won the race easily -- in fact, she gets dold medal.
Use the semicolon to join two independent clauses using a conjunctive adverb; "in fact" is an
interrupter; a dash would also be acceptable because it leads into a surprise ending.
3.   I expected Michael to come this morning; however, I waited all day for it to arrive.
Use the semicolon to connect two independent clauses with a conjunctive adverb.
4. Douglas McArthur said:"I shall return."
Use the quotes to encompass Shakespeare's statement; use the colon to lead into the quote
because you have just stated an independent clause; explanations follow colons, and this quote
explains what Shakespeare said very directly; use the apostrophe to signify a contraction used in
the quote.
6. Certainly, you may borrow my book, Daniel.
Use a comma to separate introductory elements; use another to separate the recipient of the direct
address ("Daniel").
8. Sarah -- she had always loved animals -- took in the stray kitten.
Use the dashes to indicate an abrupt change of thought, as in this example where the speaker
changes his mind about the direction his sentence would take; the dashes also help to organize
the subject with its verb. Commas and parenthesis also work, but they are not the strongest
option.
10.Rainy days aren't all that bad: they provide the water crucial for all life.
(alt.) Rainy days aren't all that bad -- they provide the water crucial for all life.
(alt.) Rainy days aren’t all that bad; they provide the water crucial for all life.
The colon is used to connect an independent clause with an explanation that follows; a dash
would also be acceptable here; use apostrophes to indicate the use of a contraction (which should
not be used in formal writing). The use of a semi-colon to connect two related complete
sentences is also acceptable.
14. We travelled to Puerto Galera, Palawan; Maldives, Batangas and Sagada Baguio
Use a comma, colon and semicolon to separate the capital of places.
16. The following are the primary colors: red, blue,yellow
18. Benjamin Franklin said: “Honesty is the best policy”
20. My mother likes to get up early in the morning; my sister would not like to do so