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Worksheet: Using Hyphens Correctly

Total questions: 30

Worksheet time: 15mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

Which of the following is correctly hyphenated for a compound adjective before a noun?

a)

a high quality product

b)

a high-quality product

c)

a highquality product

d)

a high quality-product

2.

Which prefix rule suggests using a hyphen?

a)

Use a hyphen when the prefix ends in a vowel and the root begins with the same vowel.

b)

Use a hyphen only when the prefix is “un-”.

c)

Don’t use a hyphen with any prefix.

d)

Only use a hyphen if the word is longer than four syllables.

3.

In which case is no hyphen needed according to the rules discussed?

a)

a well-known author

b)

a self-respecting person

c)

a very-tall tree

d)

a twenty-year-old student

4.

When describing age before a noun (e.g., “a six-year-old child”), the correct hyphenation is:

a)

a six year old child

b)

a six-year-old child

c)

a six-year old child

d)

a six-year-old-child

5.

Which of these is an example of creating a new or unusual compound noun where a hyphen helps reduce confusion?

a)

A. “ice cream cone”

b)

B. “no-meater”

c)

C. “resume review”

d)

D. “book club”

6.

According to Rule 4 from the video description (avoid hyphenating between very and –ly adverbs), which sentence is correct?

a)

A. She is a very-experienced teacher.

b)

B. She is a very experienced teacher.

c)

C. She is very-experienced teacher.

d)

D. She is a very experienced-teacher.

7.

Which of the following numbers (in words) should be hyphenated according to the hyphen rules?

a)

Twenty-one

b)

Twenty-two

c)

Ninety-nine

d)

One hundred

8.

Which of these is incorrectly hyphenated?

a)

the post-World War II era

b)

a long-term plan

c)

a highly-skilled worker

d)

an ex-husband

9.

When combining two hyphenated words or phrases, how should the hyphenation be handled?

a)

Drop all hyphens.

b)

Keep the hyphen only at the last word.

c)

Keep hyphens after the last word before the conjunction.

d)

Use spaces instead of hyphens.

10.

Why are hyphens used (beyond just joining words)?

a)

To make words look more formal.

b)

To increase the number of syllables in a word.

c)

To reduce ambiguity in writing and show words should be read together.

d)

To replace commas when listing items.

11.

What does syntax primarily refer to?

a)

The meaning of words

b)

The arrangement of words to form sentences

c)

The use of figurative language

d)

The choice of vocabulary

12.

What is the most common sentence pattern in English?

a)

Verb–Object–Subject (VOS)

b)

Subject–Verb–Object (SVO)

c)

Object–Subject–Verb (OSV)

d)

Verb–Subject–Object (VSO)

13.

Which of the following sentences follows the SVO pattern?

a)

A. Ate the cake she.

b)

B. The cake she ate.

c)

C. She ate the cake.

d)

D. Ate she the cake.

14.

What happens when two or more independent clauses are joined without proper punctuation?

a)

It forms a complete sentence.

b)

It becomes a run-on sentence.

c)

It becomes a fragment.

d)

It becomes a dependent clause.

15.

Which pair of elements must a sentence contain to be complete?

a)

A. Subject and object

b)

B. Verb and adjective

c)

C. Subject and verb

d)

D. Verb and conjunction

16.

Which of the following best describes a dependent clause?

a)

A group of words that expresses a complete thought

b)

A group of words that lacks a verb

c)

A group of words with a subject and verb but not a complete thought

d)

A phrase with no subject or verb

17.

Why is syntax important in writing?

a)

It determines the length of paragraphs.

b)

It organizes words to create meaning and tone.

c)

It eliminates the need for punctuation.

d)

It focuses on figurative expressions only.

18.

What should a writer do when two different ideas appear in one sentence?

a)

Keep them together to sound formal.

b)

Separate them into different sentences.

c)

Add more adjectives to connect them.

d)

Remove the verb from one of them.

19.

What happens when a sentence lacks either a subject or a verb?

a)

It becomes a run-on sentence.

b)

It becomes a fragment.

c)

It becomes an independent clause.

d)

It becomes a paragraph.

20.

According to the handout, how many syntactic patterns exist in English?

a)

Three

b)

Five

c)

Seven

d)

Ten

21.

Choose the correctly written compound modifier.

a)

The teacher gave a last minute assignment.

b)

The teacher gave a last-minute assignment.

c)

The teacher gave a last-minute-assignment.

d)

The teacher gave a last minute-assignment.

22.

Choose the correctly written compound modifier.

a)

She is a well known author.

b)

She is a well-known author.

c)

She is a well known-author.

d)

She is a well-author known.

23.

Which sentence shows incorrect hyphenation?

a)

The newly-elected president promised reforms.

b)

The ex-senator attended the ceremony.

c)

The very-happy child clapped her hands.

d)

The twenty-two-year-old athlete broke the record.

24.

Identify the correctly hyphenated phrase with a prefix.

a)

re-enter the room

b)

reenter the room

c)

re–enter the room

d)

re enter the room

25.

Which sentence correctly hyphenates a number from twenty-one to ninety-nine?

a)

She counted thirty five apples.

b)

She counted thirty-five apples.

c)

She counted thirty five-apples.

d)

She counted thirty five apples’.

26.

Which sentence correctly follows the subject-verb-object (SVO) pattern?

a)

Ran the dog across the yard.

b)

Across the yard ran the dog.

c)

The dog ran across the yard.

d)

The yard ran the dog across.

27.

Identify the sentence fragment.

a)

Because the students studied all night.

b)

The students studied all night.

c)

The students studied and passed.

d)

The students were ready for the exam.

28.

Which sentence contains a run-on that needs correction?

a)

The bell rang the students left the classroom.

b)

The bell rang, and the students left the classroom.

29.

Which of the following sentences best separates two different ideas into two sentences?

a)

A. She loves to write she wants to publish a novel someday.

b)

B. She loves to write, she wants to publish a novel someday.

c)

C. She loves to write. She wants to publish a novel someday.

d)

D. She loves to write and publish novel someday.

30.

Choose the sentence that contains a dependent clause.

a)

The game was canceled due to rain.

b)

If the game is canceled, we will stay home.

c)

The players ran onto the field.

d)

Everyone cheered loudly.