Forming Nouns from Adjectives or Verbs by Adding a Suffix

The coach praised the team's hard work and _____. Which noun correctly completes the sentence, based on the verb "determine"?

• determination

• determinity

• determinance

• determinism

Answer explanation

The suffix -tion is added to the verb "determine" to form the noun "determination," which means the quality of being firm in purpose. The other suffixes are incorrect for this base word.

Match each verb or adjective to the suffix that correctly forms a noun.

• -ance

• kind

• -ness

• govern

• -ment

• similar

• -ity

• important

Answer explanation

The correct pairings are: 'govern' + '-ment' = government; 'similar' + '-ity' = similarity; 'kind' + '-ness' = kindness; and 'important' + '-ance' = importance.

Sort these base words by the suffix they take to form a noun: -tion or -ment.

Groups:

(a) Takes -tion

,

(b) Takes -ment

• protect

• instruct

• achieve

• excite

• argue

• act

Answer explanation

Verbs are sorted based on which suffix correctly forms a noun. 'Action', 'protection', and 'instruction' use -tion. 'Achievement', 'argument', and 'excitement' use -ment.

To show her _____, she sent a thank-you note. Which noun correctly completes the sentence, based on the adjective "grateful"?

• gratefulness

• gratitudement

• gratitude

• gratifaction

Answer explanation

The noun form of "grateful" is "gratitude." This is a common but irregular form where the base word changes slightly. The other options use incorrect suffixes or spellings.

Which adjective can be made into a noun by adding the suffix -ness without any other spelling changes?

• responsible

• happy

• aware

• important

Answer explanation

The suffix -ness is added to the adjective 'aware' to form the noun 'awareness'. 'Responsible' becomes 'responsibility' (-ity), 'happy' becomes 'happiness' (requiring a y-to-i spelling change), and 'important' becomes 'importance' (-ance).

Match each adjective to its correct noun form, paying attention to any spelling changes that occur.

• happiness

• happy

• curiosity

• responsible

• ability

• curious

• responsibility

• able

Answer explanation

Each adjective requires a specific suffix and sometimes a spelling change to form a noun: happy -> happiness (y changes to i before adding -ness); able -> ability (-le is dropped for -ility); curious -> curiosity (-ity is added); responsible -> responsibility (-ible is dropped for -ibility).

The director's _____ of the new policy was unclear. Which noun form of "explain" correctly fits the sentence?

• explainment

• explanation

• explanance

• explanity

Answer explanation

The verb "explain" correctly forms a noun with the suffix -tion, creating "explanation." The other suffixes, -ment, -ance, and -ity, do not form a standard English word with "explain."

Sort these nouns based on whether they are formed from a verb or an adjective.

Groups:

(a) Formed from a Verb

,

(b) Formed from an Adjective

• punishment

• creativity

• darkness

• celebration

• movement

• sadness

Answer explanation

Nouns like 'movement' (from move), 'punishment' (from punish), and 'celebration' (from celebrate) come from verbs. Nouns like 'sadness' (from sad), 'creativity' (from creative), and 'darkness' (from dark) come from adjectives.

The _____ of the new student was obvious; she didn't talk to anyone. Which noun form of "shy" correctly fits the sentence?

• shyness

• shyity

• shyment

• shyance

Answer explanation

The noun form of the adjective "shy" is "shyness," created by adding the suffix -ness. This word means the quality of being shy. The other options use incorrect suffixes.

Match each verb to the noun that describes the action or its result.

• growth

• grow

• arrival

• arrive

• choice

• decide

• decision

• choose

Answer explanation

Each verb has a specific noun form. 'Decide' becomes 'decision' (using the -sion suffix), 'arrive' becomes 'arrival' (using the -al suffix), and 'choose' and 'grow' have irregular noun forms: 'choice' and 'growth'.