About the ged writting exam 5 pps

M ECHANICS refers to the rules that govern punctuation marks, capitalization, and spelling.. Like therules that govern usage, the rules that govern sentence mechanics help us keep our se

Likewise, be sure to avoid double negatives When a

negative word such as no or not is added to a statement

that is already negative, a double negative—and

poten-tial confusion—results Hardly and barely are also

nega-tive words Remember, one neganega-tive is all you need

Incorrect: He doesn’t have no idea what she’s

talking about.

Correct: He doesn’t have any idea what she’s

talking about.

He has no idea what she’s talking about.

Incorrect: I can’t hardly wait to see you.

Correct: I can hardly wait to see you.

I can’t wait to see you.

 P r e p o s i t i o n a l I d i o m s

Another aspect of usage that may be covered on the GED

is prepositional idioms: the specific word/preposition combinations that we use in the English language, such

as take care of and according to The following is a list of

some of the most common prepositional idioms Review the list carefully to be sure you are using prepositional idioms correctly

– U S A G E –

according to

afraid of

anxious about

apologize to (someone)

apologize for

(something)

approve of

ashamed of

aware of

blame (someone) for

(something)

bored with

capable of

compete with

complain about

composed of

concentrate on

concerned with congratulate on conscious of consist of depend on/upon

equal to except for fond of from now on

from time to time frown on/upon

full of glance at (something)/

glance through (some-thing, e.g., a book) grateful to (someone) grateful for (something)

in accordance with incapable of

in conflict inferior to insist on/upon

in the habit of

in the near future interested in knowledge of

next to

of the opinion

on top of opposite of

prior to proud of

regard to related to rely on/upon respect for responsible for

satisfied with similar to sorry for suspicious of

take care of thank (someone) for (something)

tired of with regard to

M ECHANICS refers to the rules that govern punctuation marks, capitalization, and spelling Like the

rules that govern usage, the rules that govern sentence mechanics help us keep our sentences and their meanings clear

Since the GED Writing Test was revised in 2002, the only spelling that is tested is homonyms, possessives, and con-tractions Correct use of punctuation will be tested, but comma questions will generally be limited to instances where

a comma is necessary to eliminate or prevent confusion

 P u n c t u a t i o n

Punctuation marks are the symbols used to separate sentences, express emotions, and show relationships between

objects and ideas Correct punctuation makes your meaning clear and adds drama and style to your sentences Poor punctuation, on the other hand, can lead to a great deal of confusion for your readers and can send a message other than the one you intended For example, take a look at the following two versions of the same sentence:

Don’t bother Xavier.

Don’t bother, Xavier.

WHEN DO you need a comma? When should you use a dash or

semicolon? How do you know when something should be capitalized? These questions and more will be answered in this chapter You will review the basic rules of mechanics so that you can answer GED questions about spelling, capitalization, and punctuation

These sentences use the same words, but have two

very different meanings because of punctuation In the

first sentence, the comma indicates the speaker is telling

the reader not to bother Xavier In the second sentence,

the speaker is telling Xavier not to bother Here’s

another example of how punctuation can drastically

affect meaning:

You should eat Zak so you can think clearly

dur-ing your interview.

Because this sentence is missing some essential

punc-tuation, the sentence says something very different from

what the author intended The speaker isn’t telling the

reader to eat Zak; rather, she’s telling Zak to eat The

sen-tence should be revised as follows:

You should eat, Zak, so you can think clearly

dur-ing your interview.

Punctuation helps create meaning, and it also has another important function: It enables writers to express

a variety of tones and emotions For example, take a look

at these two versions of the same sentence:

Wait—I’m coming with you!

Wait, I’m coming with you.

The first sentence clearly expresses more urgency and excitement, thanks to the dash and exclamation point The second sentence, with its comma and period, does not express emotion; the sentence is neutral

Punctuation Guidelines

There are many rules for punctuation, and the better you know them, the more correctly and effectively you can punctuate your sentences The following table lists the main punctuation marks and guidelines for when to use them

– M E C H A N I C S –

Connect complete sentences semicolon [;] A semicolon can connect two

show that two ideas are related.

comma [,] and a conjunction Leslie is coming, but Huang is staying

[and, or, nor, for, so, but, yet] home.

dash [—] (less common, but Hurry up—we’re late!

more dramatic) Connect items in a list comma [,] but if one or more His odd shopping list included

items in that list already have a batteries, a box of envelopes, and a

comma, use a semicolon [;] can of spam.

The castaways included a professor, who was the group’s leader; an actress; and a millionaire and his wife.

Introduce a list of three or colon [:] There are three things I want to do

sky-diving, and surf.

Colons have three functions: intro-ducing long lists, introintro-ducing quota-tions, and introducing explanations.

Introduce an explanation colon [:] You know what they say about real

“answers” what precedes)

Introduce a quotation colon [:] or comma [,] She yelled, “Let’s get out of here!”

Indicate a quotation quotation marks [“ ”] “To be or not to be?” is one of the

most famous lines from Hamlet.

Indicate a question question mark [?] What time is it?

“How much longer?” he asked.

Connect two words that work hyphen [-] mother-in-law, turn-of-the-century

together as one object or modifier poet, French-fried potatoes

Separate a word or phrase dash [—] I never lie—never.

for emphasis

We’re late—very late!

Separate a word or phrase that commas [,] Elaine, my roommate, is from

told me, was “Boo-boo.”

Separate a word or phrase that parentheses [( )] There is an exception to every rule

information

Show possession or contraction apostrophe [’] Why is Lisa’s wallet in Ben’s

backpack?

Comma Rules

Many mechanics questions will deal with commas, the

most common punctuation mark within sentences The

presence and placement of commas can dramatically

affect meaning and can make the difference between

clarity and confusion The previous chart lists four

comma uses, but there are several others The following

is a complete list of comma rules If you know them, then

you can be sure your sentences are clear You will also

be able to tell whether a comma is needed to correct a

sentence

Use a comma:

1 with a coordinating conjunction to separate two

complete sentences Note that a comma is not

required if both parts of the sentence are 4 words

or less

Let’s eat first, and then we will go to a movie I’m definitely older, but I don’t think I’m much wiser.

I love him and he loves me.

2 to set off introductory words, phrases, or clauses.

Next year, I will stick to my New Year’s resolutions.

Wow, that sure looks good!

Because the game was cancelled, Jane took the kids bowling.

3 to set off a direct address, interjection, or

transi-tional phrase

Well, Jeb, it looks like we will be stuck here for

a while.

His hair color is a little, um, unusual.

My heavens, this is spicy chili!

Sea horses, for example, are unusual in that

the males carry the embryos.

4 between two modifiers that and could replace.

He is a mean, contemptible person.

(Both mean and contemptible modify

person.)

Incorrect: Denny’s old, stamp collection is

priceless.

Correct: Denny’s old stamp collection is

priceless.

(You cannot put “and” between old and

stamp; old describes stamp and stamp

modi-fies collection They do not modify the same

noun.)

5 to set off information that is relevant but not

essential (nonrestrictive)

Essential, not set off:

The woman who wrote Happy Moon is

com-ing to our local bookstore.

(We need this information to know which

woman we’re talking about.)

Nonessential, set off by commas:

The dog, lost and confused, wandered into the

street.

(The fact that the dog was lost and confused

is not essential to the sentence.)

Essential, not set off:

Witnesses who lie under oath will be

prosecuted.

Nonessential, set off by commas:

Leeland, who at first refused to testify, later admitted to lying under oath.

6 to separate items in a series.

The price for the cruise includes breakfast, lunch, dinner, and entertainment.

The recipe calls for fresh cilantro, chopped onions, diced tomatoes, and lemon juice.

7 to set off most quotations As a general rule,

short quotations are introduced by commas while long quotations (several sentences or more) are introduced by colons All speech in dialogue should be set off by commas

“Let’s get going,” he said impatiently.

Rene Descartes is famous for the words, “I think, therefore I am.”

Joseph said, “Please forgive me for jumping to conclusions.”

8 to set off parts of dates, numbers, titles, and

addresses

She was born on April 30, 2002.

Please print 3,000 copies.

Tiberio Mendola, MD, is my new doctor Please deliver the package to me at 30 Willow Road, Trenton, NJ.

9 to prevent confusion, as in cases when a word is

repeated

What it is, is a big mistake.

After I, comes J.

– M E C H A N I C S –

 C a p i t a l i z a t i o n

Capitalization is an important tool to help us identify (1)

the beginning of a new sentence and (2) proper nouns

and adjectives Here are six rules for correct capitalization:

1 Capitalize the first word of a sentence.

Please close the door.

What are you trying to say?

If you are quoting a full sentence within your

own sentence, use a capital letter, unless you

introduce the quote with that.

The author notes, “A shocking three out of

four students admitted to cheating.”

The author notes that “a shocking three out of

four students admitted to cheating.”

If you have a full sentence within parentheses,

that sentence should be capitalized as well (and

the end punctuation mark should be within the

parentheses)

He was expelled for repeatedly violating the

school’s code of conduct (He was caught

stealing and cheating several times.)

2 Capitalize proper nouns A proper noun is the

name of a specific person, place, or thing (as

opposed to a general person, place, or thing) See

the table at the bottom of this page

3 Capitalize the days of the weeks and months of

the year, but not the seasons.

It was a warm spring day in May.

Wednesday is the first official day of autumn.

4 Capitalize the names of countries, nationalities,

geographical regions, languages, and religions

He has traveled to Brazil and Tunisia She is half Chinese, half French.

She is from the South.

(But, Drive south for five miles.)

We speak Spanish at home.

He is a devout Catholic.

Lincoln Memorial (specific monument) impressive memorial/monument

Dade High School (specific school) our high school

Precambrian Age (specific time period) long ago

Microsoft Corporation (specific company) that company