Recognizing Parts of Speech (Advanced)




Review of Definitions
Parts of Speech (Basic)
Phrases and Clauses

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This exercise tests your knowledge of advanced parts of speech such as "conjunction," "infinitive," "participle," and "gerund." These are terms that someone should know as he or she begins a serious study of scientific writing. Many terms tested for in this exercise come from E. D. Hirsch's book Cultural Literacy. It is not necessary that you have a "textbook definition" of each term, but you should have a working knowledge of these terms so that you can understand discussions in which these terms are used. For this exercise to be effective, do not override this document's choice of colors. Also, if possible, remove your browser's option to underline links.






  1. Click on at least one infinitive phrase.

    Mount St. Helens erupted on May 18, 1980. Its slope collapsing, the mountain emitted a cloud of hot rock and gas. In minutes the cloud devastated 500 square kilometers of forests and lakes. Although the effects of the eruption were well documented, its origin is not well understood. To understand the origin of volcanic eruptions, we have to determine how much water the magma contains.

    Give up?




































    Congratulations, you have answered #1 correctly.

    Exercise: Mount St. Helens erupted on May 18, 1980. Its slope collapsing, the mountain emitted a cloud of hot rock and gas. In minutes the cloud devastated 500 square kilometers of forests and lakes. Although the effects of the eruption were well documented, its origin is not well understood. To understand the origin of volcanic eruptions, we have to determine how much water the magma contains.

    Discussion: A discussion of infinitive phrases can be found on page 275 in The Craft of Scientific Writing.



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  2. Click on the one participial phrase.

    Mount St. Helens erupted on May 18, 1980. Its slope collapsing, the mountain emitted a cloud of hot rock and gas. In minutes the cloud devastated 500 square kilometers of forests and lakes. Although the effects of the eruption were well documented, its origin is not well understood. To understand the origin of volcanic eruptions, we have to determine how much water the magma contains.

    Give up?




































    Congratulations, you have answered #2 correctly.

    Exercise: Mount St. Helens erupted on May 18, 1980. Its slope collapsing, the mountain emitted a cloud of hot rock and gas. In minutes the cloud devastated 500 square kilometers of forests and lakes. Although the effects of the eruption were well documented, its origin is not well understood. To understand the origin of volcanic eruptions, we have to determine how much water the magma contains.

    Discussion: A discussion of participial phrases can be found on page 276.



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  3. Click on one coordinating conjunction.

    Mount St. Helens erupted on May 18, 1980. Its slope collapsing, the mountain emitted a cloud of hot rock and gas. In minutes the cloud devastated 500 square kilometers of forests and lakes. Although the effects of the eruption were well documented, its origin is not well understood. To understand the origin of volcanic eruptions, we have to determine how much water the magma contains.

    Give up?



































    Congratulations, you have answered #3 correctly.

    Exercise: Mount St. Helens erupted on May 18, 1980. Its slope collapsing, the mountain emitted a cloud of hot rock and gas. In minutes the cloud devastated 500 square kilometers of forests and lakes. Although the effects of the eruption were well documented, its origin is not well understood. To understand the origin of volcanic eruptions, we have to determine how much water the magma contains.

    Discussion: The following link presents a discussion of coordinating conjunctions.



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  4. Click on at least one dependent clause.

    Mount St. Helens erupted on May 18, 1980. Its slope collapsing, the mountain emitted a cloud of hot rock and gas. In minutes the cloud devastated 500 square kilometers of forests and lakes. Although the effects of the eruption were well documented, its origin is not well understood. To understand the origin of volcanic eruptions, we have to determine how much water the magma contains.

    Give up?




































    Congratulations, you have answered #4 correctly.

    Exercise: Mount St. Helens erupted on May 18, 1980. Its slope collapsing, the mountain emitted a cloud of hot rock and gas. In minutes the cloud devastated 500 square kilometers of forests and lakes. Although the effects of the eruption were well documented, its origin is not well understood. To understand the origin of volcanic eruptions, we have to determine how much water the magma contains.

    Discussion: A discussion of dependent clauses can be found at the following link. To return from this site, simply click on the "back" button on your browser.



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  5. Click on at least one dependent clause.

    Earlier tests on a Boeing 747 revealed that the fuel temperature in the tank could have been high enough to vaporize, allowing a spark to create a fire, but military experts insist that creating an explosion in a fuel tank is difficult.

    Give up?




































    Congratulations, you have answered #5 correctly.

    Exercise: Earlier tests on a Boeing 747 revealed that the fuel temperature in the tank could have been high enough to vaporize, allowing a spark to create a fire, but military experts insist that creating an explosion in a fuel tank is difficult.

    Discussion: A discussion of dependent clauses can be found at the following link. To return from this site, simply click on the "back" button on your browser.


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  6. Click on at least one infinitive phrase.

    Earlier tests on a Boeing 747 revealed that the fuel temperature in the tank could have been high enough to vaporize, allowing a spark to create a fire, but military experts insist that creating an explosion in a fuel tank is difficult.

    Give up?




































    Congratulations, you have answered #6 correctly.

    Exercise: Earlier tests on a Boeing 747 revealed that the fuel temperature in the tank could have been high enough to vaporize, allowing a spark to create a fire, but military experts insist that creating an explosion in a fuel tank is difficult.

    Discussion: A discussion of infinitive phrases can be found on page 275 of The Craft of Scientific Writing.



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  7. Click on one participial phrase.

    Earlier tests on a Boeing 747 revealed that the fuel temperature in the tank could have been high enough to vaporize, allowing a spark to create a fire, but military experts insist that creating an explosion in a fuel tank is difficult.

    Give up?




































    Congratulations, you have answered #7 correctly.

    Exercise: Earlier tests on a Boeing 747 revealed that the fuel temperature in the tank could have been high enough to vaporize, allowing a spark to create a fire, but military experts insist that creating an explosion in a fuel tank is difficult.

    Discussion: A discussion of participial phrases can be found on page 276.



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  8. Click on the coordinating conjunction.

    Earlier tests on a Boeing 747 revealed that the fuel temperature in the tank could have been high enough to vaporize, allowing a spark to create a fire, but military experts insist that creating an explosion in a fuel tank is difficult.

    Give up?




































    Congratulations, you have answered #8 correctly.

    Exercise: Earlier tests on a Boeing 747 revealed that the fuel temperature in the tank could have been high enough to vaporize, allowing a spark to create a fire, but military experts insist that creating an explosion in a fuel tank is difficult.

    Discussion: The following link presents a discussion of coordinating conjunctions.



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  9. Click on the gerundial phrase.

    Earlier tests on a Boeing 747 revealed that the fuel temperature in the tank could have been high enough to vaporize, allowing a spark to create a fire, but military experts insist that creating an explosion in a fuel tank is difficult.

    Give up?




































    Congratulations, you have answered #9 correctly.

    Exercise: Earlier tests on a Boeing 747 revealed that the fuel temperature in the tank could have been high enough to vaporize, allowing a spark to create a fire, military experts insist that creating an explosion in a fuel tank is difficult.

    Discussion: A discussion of gerundial phrases can be found on page 275. This gerundial phrase serves as the subject of a dependent clause.



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  10. Click on the verb in the passive voice.

    According to the second theory for the explosion, a shoulder-fired missile struck the plane and caused the fuel tank to explode. In this theory, the missile was launched from a boat.

    Give up?



































    Congratulations, you have answered #10 correctly.

    Exercise: According to the second theory for the explosion, a shoulder-fired missile struck the plane and caused the fuel tank to explode. In this theory, the missile was launched from a boat.

    Discussion: The verb "was launched" is passive, and the verbs "struck" and "caused" are active. A discussion of active and passive voice occurs on pages 104-109.



You have reached the end of this exercise.

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