Quiz: Only people with A PhD Passed This English Grammar Test

The subjunctive mood expresses wishes, demands, or hypotheticals. 'I suggest that he arrive early' uses the base form 'arrive' (not 'arrives') after 'that' – correct subjunctive. Other options use indicative incorrectly.

Semicolons join two independent clauses without a conjunction. 'The sun set; the stars appeared' is correct. Option A misuses semicolon before a list (use colon). Option C incorrectly joins clause and phrase. Option D uses comma splice.

With collective nouns like 'committee', use singular verb when acting as a unit. 'The committee has reached a decision' is correct. Other options have errors: 'neither...nor' agrees with closer subject (apples/are), 'each' demands singular, 'one in five' takes singular.

Third conditional (past unreal) uses 'if + past perfect, would have + past participle'. 'If I had known, I would have come' is correct. Option A is mixed error; C uses 'would have' in if-clause; D uses present tense for past.

A dangling modifier does not logically attach to the subject. 'Walking to school, the bus passed me' implies the bus was walking. Correct version would be 'While I was walking to school, the bus passed me.'

Parallelism requires same grammatical form in lists. 'She likes hiking, swimming, and biking' uses all gerunds. Options A, C mix forms; D incorrectly uses 'to run, jogging'.

'Whom' is objective case (object of verb/preposition). 'To whom did you send the letter?' – preposition 'to' requires 'whom'. 'Who' is subjective. Replace with 'he/him' test: 'him' = whom.

Past perfect (had + past participle) indicates an action completed before another past action. 'She had already left when he arrived' shows sequence: leaving before arrival. Option A simple past; C past perfect but incorrect sequence; D present perfect.

Indefinite pronouns like 'everyone' are singular. 'Everyone should bring his or her own lunch' uses singular pronouns. 'Their' (plural) with 'everyone' is common in casual speech but traditionally incorrect. 'Its' is possessive for things.

A split infinitive places an adverb between 'to' and the verb. Traditionally avoided; 'to go boldly' is unsplit, while 'to boldly go' is split. Modern English accepts both, but this question tests traditional rule.

'Lay' is transitive (needs object – lay the book down). 'Lie' is intransitive (to recline). 'I lie down every afternoon' – no object. 'Lay the book on the table' – object 'book'. 'He laid' (past of lay); 'he lay' (past of lie).

Apostrophes indicate possession (John's car) or contraction (it's = it is). 'Its' is possessive without apostrophe. 'Whose' is possessive of who. Option D properly uses 'it's' (it is) and 'your' (possessive without apostrophe).

'Fewer' for countable nouns (items), 'less' for uncountable (mass). 'Fewer than ten items' – items are countable. 'Less sugar' – sugar uncountable. Option B incorrectly uses 'less' with minutes (countable).

Emphatic 'do' adds emphasis in affirmative sentences. 'I do like pizza' contrasts with a previous negative statement. In standard declarative, 'I like pizza' is fine; 'do' is for emphasis or questions/negatives.

Passive voice: subject receives action (form of 'to be' + past participle). 'The cake was eaten by the dog' – cake receives eating. Active: 'The dog ate the cake.' Option B is active; C passive but no agent; D active.

'Affect' is usually a verb (to influence). 'Effect' is usually a noun (result). 'The weather affected our plans' – verb. 'The effect was dramatic' – noun. 'Effect' as verb means to bring about, rarer.

A colon introduces a list, explanation, or quotation after an independent clause. 'She brought three things: a map, a compass, and a flashlight' – correct. Option A no independent clause before colon; C semicolon needed; D comma splice.

Nonrestrictive clauses add extra info and require commas. 'My brother, who lives in Chicago, is a doctor' – the info 'who lives in Chicago' is not essential (I have only one brother). Restrictive: no commas for essential info.

Traditional rule: 'between' for two items, 'among' for three or more. 'Between you and me' (two). 'Among the three candidates' (three+). However, modern usage accepts 'between' for more than two when each pair is considered.

Standard English uses only one negative per clause. 'I don't have any money' – correct (not 'no money'). 'I haven't seen nobody' is a double negative (meaning positive). 'She didn't say nothing' is also double negative.