Compound Words

In the sentence, "The well-worn textbook had notes in the margins," the compound word "well-worn" is which type?

• Closed

• Open

• Hyphenated

• Phrasal

Answer explanation

"Well-worn" is a hyphenated compound adjective because it uses a hyphen to connect two words that work together to describe the noun "textbook." Closed compounds are single words (like 'doghouse'), and open compounds are two separate words (like 'real estate').

Three of these are open compound nouns, but one is a closed compound. Which word should fill in the blank to complete the sentence: 'Unlike the others, _____ is a closed compound word'?

• real estate

• living room

• sunflower

• post office

Answer explanation

"Sunflower" is a closed compound word, written as one word. The other options, "real estate," "living room," and "post office," are all open compound words, which are written as two separate words but function as a single noun.

Complete the sentence with the correctly formed compound word: Being a very _____ person, my dad always double-checks his work.

• self conscious

• self-conscious

• selfconscious

• selfs-conscious

Answer explanation

The correct answer is "self-conscious," a hyphenated compound adjective used to describe the noun "person." Compound adjectives starting with "self-" are almost always hyphenated.

True or False: The word "sunflower" is an example of an open compound word.

• True

• False

Answer explanation

This is false because "sunflower" is a closed compound word, formed by joining "sun" and "flower" into one word. An open compound, like "ice cream," is written as two separate words.

Which sentence contains a compound word that is formed incorrectly?

• My little brother loves to play in his sandbox.

• She is a student at the local high-school.

• He is a well-known actor in our town.

• The bus stop is just around the corner.

Answer explanation

The compound noun "high school" should be written as an open compound (two separate words), not a hyphenated one. "Sandbox" (closed), "well-known" (hyphenated adjective before a noun), and "bus stop" (open) are all formed correctly.

To fix the loose cabinet door, my dad needed a _____, which is a common closed compound noun.

• screwdriver

• toolset

• hammer

• wrench

Answer explanation

The correct answer is 'screwdriver,' a closed compound noun formed from 'screw' and 'driver' to name a tool. While 'toolset' is also a compound noun, 'screwdriver' is the specific tool implied by the original context.

A place where people wait for a bus is called a _____.

• bus stop

• wait station

• road corner

• bus place

Answer explanation

The open compound noun "bus stop" is the correct term for a place where a bus stops for passengers. The other options are descriptive but are not the standard compound noun for this location.

Which sentence correctly uses a hyphenated compound adjective?

• The twenty five year old woman started a business.

• The twenty-five-year-old woman started a business.

• The woman, who is twenty-five-year-old, started a business.

• The woman is twenty-five years old and started a business.

Answer explanation

When a compound modifier like "twenty-five-year-old" comes before a noun ("woman"), it must be hyphenated. When the phrase comes after the noun, as in option D, it is not hyphenated.

True or False: A compound adjective like 'well known' should be hyphenated in the phrase 'an author who is well-known'.

• True

• False

Answer explanation

This is false. Compound adjectives are typically not hyphenated when they follow the noun they modify, as in 'the author is well known.' The hyphen is used only when the compound adjective comes before the noun, such as 'a well-known author.'

Which sentence correctly hyphenates the compound adjective 'light blue' before the noun?

• She wore a light blue sweater to the party.

• She wore a light-blue sweater to the party.

• She wore a light, blue sweater to the party.

• She wore a light blue-sweater to the party.

Answer explanation

"Light-blue" is a compound adjective describing the color of the sweater. It should be hyphenated when it comes before the noun "sweater" to show that "light" modifies "blue," not the sweater itself.