Grammar I The Noun Phrase Pre-Modification Practice Test



Grammar I

The Noun Phrase Pre-Modification Practice Test

I. Mark any/all that apply to each noun. Consider all possible contexts.

|Noun |A / An |The |Ø |

|Chair | | | |

|Ford (car) | | | |

|Money | | | |

|Rocky Mountains | | | |

|Winter | | | |

|Man | | | |

|Metal | | | |

|Land | | | |

|President (common noun) | | | |

|Hoover Dam | | | |

|Danger | | | |

|Drink | | | |

|Museum of Modern Art | | | |

|Lake Michigan | | | |

|Perezes (family) | | | |

|Morning | | | |

|Coffee | | | |

|Hair | | | |

|People | | | |

|Indian Ocean | | | |

II. Fill in the blanks with the appropriate article ( a/an/the/Ø ). Put all possible options.

Long ago there were ______ tribes of indigenous ______ people living near ______ Lake Huron. In particular, there was ______ people known as ______ Huron. In ______ winter, they hunted ______ bears, ______ rabbits, _______ deer, and other small animals. They used ______ skins of the animals to make ______ clothing. Also, they traded ______ fur to ______ other peoples in ______ region. ______ bear skin was very valuable because its thick ______ hair made it useful to keep warm, especially at ______ night in ______ dead of winter. ______ novelist James F. Cooper wrote ______ story about ______ tribes around ______ Lake Huron area. ______ story is called Last of the Mohicans, and it takes place during what ______ North Americans call _______ French and Indian War.

III. Classify the underlined articles in the following text:

I first experienced terror when I was seven. My mother lived in London, but after a brief liaison with (1) a soldier from the US she became pregnant and fled to (2) the country. (At that time, fifty years ago, it was considered shameful to be a single parent.) A great aunt of hers lived in (3) a cottage in (4) _Ø___ North Wales, and there she was able to bring me up in (5) __ Ø __ peace, pretending that she was a widow. (6) The locals were all very friendly to us and accepted us without question, and I had (7) a blissful childhood.

One day I arrived home from (8) __ Ø ___ school to find my mother clutching (9) a telegram, in floods of tears. (10) The telegram informed her that her father had died. His funeral would be in three days and we had to go to London. I had never been outside (11) the village and I was really excited at the thought of going to (12) the capital city. So, two days later, we boarded a train to London. It was (13) the first time I had been on a train and I could barely contain (14) the excitement of such an adventure. Several hours later we arrived. I clutched my mother’s hand as we stepped down from the train. (15) The station was full of people rushing home from (16) _ Ø ___ work and it was quite dark. Now (17) _ Ø ___ fear was starting to creep into my mind. Then, suddenly, we were in (18) the street outside the station. I had never seen so many people, buses, and cars, nor had I heard so much noise. I was terrified. I opened my mouth and (19) the wail that I let escape was one of (20) _ Ø __ sheer terror.

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

11.

12.

13.

14.

15.

16.

17.

18.

19.

20.

Use the following text for exercises IV and V:

The other day I was driving on the Evergreen Expressway, and a policeman stopped me for speeding. I had to pay a $90 fine, even though I was going only 7 miles per hour over the speed limit on the highway. That was the last straw. I’ve decided that I’m going to send my car to a new hoe in the suburbs.

I used to think that a car was the most wonderful thing in the world. I loved being able to come and go to my part-time job or to the college whenever I wanted. The freedom was great! A year ago, I was in a car pool with four other people, but I hated waiting for the others all the time.

However, I’ve changed my mind since then. Now it’s clear to me that there are just too many disadvantages to having a car in town. For one thing, sitting stalled in your car in a traffic jam is stressful; besides, it’s a phenomenal waste of time. In addition, it costs me $200 each month to park my car in the city, and there’s always the chance it will be vandalized.

Well, I’ve decided to leave the old Ford at my cousin’s house in the suburbs. Otherwise I’ll end up going broke paying parking costs. My car will have a good home, and I’ll use it just for those long trips in summer. When I’m in the city, though, I’ll take the bus or the trolley. Or I’ll walk. Who knows? They say that you can meet some interesting people on the bus. Maybe I’ll find the love of my life!

IV. Find examples from the text of the following article classifications:

a) the anaphoric indirect – 1 example

b) the cataphoric – 3 examples

c) the anaphoric direct – 1 example

d) the anaphoric synonym – 2 examples

e) the situational – 2 examples

f) the generic – 3 examples

g) a generic – 2 examples

h) a specifying – 3 examples

i) a unspecifying – 1 example

j) Ø fixed expression – 2 examples

V. Identify all determiners that are NOT articles in the text above. In order to simplify your search, try dividing the determiners into these categories: genitives, possessives, demonstratives, quantifiers, and numbers.

VI. Complete the following chart.

|Determiner |Count Sing |Count Plural |Non-Count |

|A(n) |book |- |- |

|Enough |- |Books |money |

|Which | | | |

|That | | | |

|Much | | | |

|Every | | | |

|Some | | | |

|Zero | | | |

|These | | | |

|What | | | |

|Neither | | | |

Grammar I

The Noun Phrase Pre-Modification Practice Test

ANSWER KEY

I. Mark any/all that apply to each noun. Consider all possible contexts.

|Noun |A / An |The |Ø |

|Chair |X |X | |

|Ford (car) |X |X |X |

|Money | |X |X |

|Rocky Mountains | |X | |

|Winter |X |X |X |

|Man |X |X |X |

|Metal |X |X |X |

|Land |X |X |X |

|President (common noun) |X |X |X |

|Hoover Dam | |X | |

|Danger |X |X |X |

|Drink |X |X |X |

|Museum of Modern Art | |X | |

|Lake Michigan | | |X |

|Perezes (family) | |X | |

|Morning |X |X | |

|Coffee | |X |X |

|Hair |X |X |X |

|People |X |X |X |

|Indian Ocean | |X | |

II. Fill in the blanks with the appropriate article ( a/an/the/Ø ). Put all possible options.

Long ago there were __Ø____ tribes of indigenous ___ Ø ___ people living near __ Ø ____ Lake Huron. In particular, there was __a____ people known as __ Ø / the____ Huron. In _ Ø / the_____ winter, they hunted _ Ø _____ bears, __ Ø ____ rabbits, __ Ø _____ deer, and other small animals. They used _the_____ skins of the animals to make _ Ø _____ clothing. Also, they traded __the____ fur to _ Ø / the_____ other peoples in _the_____ region. _the / Ø / a_____ bear skin was very valuable because its thick _ __ Ø ___ hair made it useful to keep warm, especially at _ Ø _____ night in _the_____ dead of winter. _the_____ novelist James F. Cooper wrote _a_____ story about _the_____ tribes around _the_____ Lake Huron area. _the_____ story is called Last of the Mohicans, and it takes place during what _ Ø / the_____ North Americans call _the______ French and Indian War.

III. Classify the underlined articles in the following text:

I first experienced terror when I was seven. My mother lived in London, but after a brief liaison with (1) a soldier from the US she became pregnant and fled to (2) the country. (At that time, fifty years ago, it was considered shameful to be a single parent.) A great aunt of hers lived in (3) a cottage in (4) _Ø___ North Wales, and there she was able to bring me up in (5) __ Ø __ peace, pretending that she was a widow. (6) The locals were all very friendly to us and accepted us without question, and I had (7) a blissful childhood.

One day I arrived home from (8) __ Ø ___ school to find my mother clutching (9) a telegram, in floods of tears. (10) The telegram informed her that her father had died. His funeral would be in three days and we had to go to London. I had never been outside (11) the village and I was really excited at the thought of going to (12) the capital city. So, two days later, we boarded a train to London. It was (13) the first time I had been on a train and I could barely contain (14) the excitement of such an adventure. Several hours later we arrived. I clutched my mother’s hand as we stepped down from the train. (15) The station was full of people rushing home from (16) _ Ø ___ work and it was quite dark. Now (17) _ Ø ___ fear was starting to creep into my mind. Then, suddenly, we were in (18) the street outside the station. I had never seen so many people, buses, and cars, nor had I heard so much noise. I was terrified. I opened my mouth and (19) the wail that I let escape was one of (20) _ Ø __ sheer terror.

1. unspecifying (no adjective to specify the soldier)

2. generic / situational

3. unspecifying

4. proper noun

5. generic (mass)

6. anaphoric indirect (it’s indirectly understood that these locals are people living in North Wales)

7. specifying (adjective “blissful” specifies the type of childhood)

8. fixed expression (institution)

9. unspecifying

10. anaphoric direct (refers directly to telegram mentioned in previous sentence)

11. anaphoric indirect (refers indirectly to North Wales)

12. anaphoric synonym (London)

13. cataphoric (“that I had been…” describes the head time)

14. cataphoric (öf such an adventure” describes the head excitement)

15. anaphoric indirect (refers to the train)

16. generic

17. generic

18. cataphoric (“outside the station” describes which street)

19. cataphoric (“that I let escape” describes the wail)

20. generic

IV. Find examples from the text of the following article classifications:

Cataphoric situational generic

The other day I was driving on the Evergreen Expressway, and a policeman

specifying

stopped me for speeding. I had to pay a $90 fine, even though I was going only 7 miles

cataphoric anaphoric direct cataphoric

per hour over the speed limit on the highway. That was the last straw. I’ve decided that

situational

I’m going to send my car to a new hoe in the suburbs.

Generic generic

I used to think that a car was the most wonderful thing in the world. I loved being

Situational anaphoric indirect

able to come and go to my part-time job or to the college whenever I wanted. The

specifying specifying

freedom was great! A year ago, I was in a car pool with four other people, but I hated

anaphoric synonym

waiting for the others all the time.

However, I’ve changed my mind since then. Now it’s clear to me that there are

Unspecifying fixed exp

just too many disadvantages to having a car in __Ø__town. For one thing, sitting stalled

specifying specifying fixed exp

in your car in a traffic jam is stressful; besides, it’s a phenomenal waste of _Ø___time.

situational

In addition, it costs me $200 each month to park my car in the city, and there’s always

cataphoric

the chance it will be vandalized.

Anaphoric synonym situational

Well, I’ve decided to leave the old Ford at my cousin’s house in the suburbs.

specifying

Otherwise I’ll end up going broke paying parking costs. My car will have a good home,

Fixed exp situational

and I’ll use it just for those long trips in _Ø_ summer. When I’m in the city, though, I’ll

generic generic

take the bus or the trolley. Or I’ll walk. Who knows? They say that you can meet some

generic cataphoric

interesting people on the bus. Maybe I’ll find the love of my life!

V. Identify all determiners that are NOT articles in the text above. In order to simplify your search, try dividing the determiners into these categories: genitives, possessives, demonstratives, quantifiers, and numbers. Words in parentheses () are the heads of the noun phrases that include the determiner.

|Genitives |Possessives |Demonstratives |Quantifiers |Numbers |

|Cousin’s |My (car) |Those (long trips) |Many (disadvantages) |$90 (fine) |

| |My (part-time job) | |Each (month) |7 (miles per hour) |

| |My (mind) | |Some (people) |One (thing) |

| |Your (car) | |Other (day) | |

| |My (car) | | | |

| |My (cousin’s house) | | | |

| |My (car) | | | |

| |My (life) | | | |

VI. Complete the following chart.

|Determiner |Count Sing |Count Plural |Non-Count |

|A(n) |book |- |- |

|Enough |- |Books |money |

|Which |X |X |X |

|That |X | |X |

|Much | | |X |

|Every |X | | |

|Some | |X |X |

|Zero | |X |X |

|These | |X | |

|What |X |X |X |

|Neither |X | | |

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