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Multiple Choice Grammar Quiz

Identify which one of each pair of sentences is written in proper English.
If both answers seem correct, choose the one that a stern high school English teacher would prefer.
Quiz by Quizmaster
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Featured Quiz
Last updated: January 12, 2022
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First submittedJanuary 12, 2022
Times taken15,141
Average score81.3%
Rating4.08
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1. Which sentence is correct?
The dog hurt it's leg. ✓
The dog hurt its leg. ✓
2. Which sentence is correct?
Adam had more money then Steve. ✓
Adam had more money than Steve. ✓
3. Which sentence is correct?
She and he went to the store. ✓
She and him went to the store. ✓
4. Which sentence is correct?
Who is going to the party? ✓
Whom is going to the party? ✓
5. Which sentence is correct?
He had gone to the library. ✓
He had went to the library. ✓
6. Which sentence is correct?
Belgium lies between France and the Netherlands. ✓
Belgium lays between France and the Netherlands. ✓
7. Which sentence is correct?
Sarah has fewer than 10 cars in her garage. ✓
Sarah has less than 10 cars in her garage. ✓
8. Which sentence is correct?
A judge should strive to be disinterested. ✓
A judge should strive to be uninterested. ✓
9. Which sentence is correct?
Social media affects the teenage brain. ✓
Social media effects the teenage brain. ✓
10. Which sentence is correct?
Lunch made me feel nauseated. ✓
Lunch made me feel nauseous. ✓
11. Which sentence is correct?
Irregardless of its location, Cyprus is in the EU. ✓
Regardless of its location, Cyprus is in the EU. ✓
12. Which sentence is correct?
The movie was based on a book. ✓
The movie was based off a book. ✓
13. Which sentence is correct?
I went to the beach on Saturday. ✓
I went to the beach on saturday. ✓
14. Which sentence is correct?
He could have done it. ✓
He could of done it. ✓
15. Which sentence is correct?
Japanese cars, i.e. Toyota, tend to be very reliable. ✓
Japanese cars, e.g. Toyota, tend to be very reliable. ✓
16. Which sentence is correct?
I love JetPunk a lot. ✓
I love JetPunk alot. ✓
plattitude
+2
Level 91
Jan 17, 2022
Almost got tripped up on the Lunch question. Good mix of questions!
Qikiq
+6
Level 86
Jan 17, 2022
Yes, that's one that has become so mainstream that if you say it correctly, you sound wrong.
loganite
+4
Level 88
Jan 17, 2022
Yeah, that reminds me of "bananas are healthy" (the fruit itself is in good health) vs "bananas are healthful" (they promote good health in the person eating them). The first one isn't wrong, per se, but it is frequently used incorrectly.
WanderingWalrus
+53
Level 78
Jan 17, 2022
I disagree with the nauseated/nauseous answer. Language is dynamic and consistent usage over time makes a construction correct. Contrariwise one shalt evermore be obligated to adopt antiquated speech patterns
TheNatureThread
+1
Level 65
May 6, 2023
*h₃reǵtós
woshiwaiguoren
+4
Level 70
Mar 4, 2022
Forsooth
partdavid
+8
Level 71
Mar 4, 2022
These days I'm as descriptivist as they come, which is why I actually kind of like that this quiz really puts all these "rules" into the appropriate context: as trivia. Fun to know, occasionally useful, but ultimately unimportant.
MiracleMax
+2
Level 75
Apr 4, 2022
That one, I would say, is outdated to the point of being wrong. Grammar can make as many rules as it wants, but if it does not reflect how language is actually used then it is not serving its purpose. Grammar is supposed to enhance clarity of language by codifying, not shaping, common usage. Rules that insist on a "correct" usage contrary a majority of speakers do the opposite.
WanderLust
+7
Level 95
Jan 17, 2022
Regarding Question 3, I never hear anyone use a phrase like "she and he" anymore. It's more like she and (that person's name) went to the store. Or she went to the store with (person's name).
IsleAuHaulte
+12
Level 89
Jan 17, 2022
With regard to that, I'd like to have seen an example like "me and him" used correctly. "So-and-so and I" being used as an object is annoying when the speaker is trying to sound smart by being incorrect. I can't count the number of times I've been smugly "corrected" by strangers for using compound pronouns properly. It's so simple to go back and see which is correct by using each pronoun singularly in the same sentence. Nobody ever says "with I", so "with Jim and I" is blatantly wrong.
Zupity
+2
Level 66
Mar 4, 2022
Look and me and him. As to me or I, you know which to use if you are the only person in the sentence. The rule does not change if you have a companion. I am going out. Will you come with me? Tom and I are going out? Will you come with Tom and me?
Triffid
+4
Level 68
Mar 4, 2022
People are afraid of the word "me". And to a lesser degree, "I". They think using "myself" is good grammar. So we constantly hear "Myself and my family went on holiday" instead of "My family and I went on holiday" or "He told my brother and myself" instead of "He told my brother and me". It drives me mad.
AbiA
+2
Level 83
Mar 4, 2022
Singly, not singularly, in this context.
Tanttu
+5
Level 28
Mar 4, 2022
It's more like they went to the store
elcampeador
+1
Level 78
Mar 4, 2022
What if you don't know the person's name?
JoshPen
+22
Level 79
Jan 17, 2022
The less than/fewer than argument is really running out of steam. Like "never end a sentence with a preposition", these "rules" were someone's grammatic preferences that made it into a textbook and not rules that did anything to improve the clarity or intention of the sentence. "... descriptive grammarians (who describe language as actually used) point out that this rule does not correctly describe the most common usage of today or the past and in fact arose as an incorrect generalization of a personal preference expressed by a grammarian in 1770" - Wikipedia

Just rules for someone to quote to make someone else feel stupid. (Most rules have a real purpose, these don't)

JWC1202
+21
Level 74
Jan 17, 2022
I agree with your overall point that a lot of these rules are unnecessary and outdated, many borrowed from Latin and applied arbitrarily to English. I disagree that the distinction between less / fewer than falls into this category. There is a useful difference between the way the two terms are applied that helps to distinguish what is being counted and how. When such distinctions are lost, so is some of the nuance and subtlety of our language. It is a loss to the English language, for example, that disinterested and uninterested are coming to mean the same thing.
XYU
+1
Level 62
Mar 11, 2022
I agree about the "fewer" brigade; no-one I know talks like that. (Maybe we can call them the "Fuhrer brigade".)
PantsLobbyist
+1
Level 95
Aug 31, 2022
Less/fewer has a specific purpose regardless of the prevalent misuse; they convey a different message. However, and I'm not an English teacher like Kalbahamut (though I went to school to become one), so they may correct me here, there's no actual rule that one may not finish a sentence with a preposition, it was simply considered uncouth to do so in the past.
toowise
+3
Level 78
Jan 17, 2022
Now I know why I lost points on the blog competition, I've been putting apostrophes where they weren't needed
OfficerDibble
+15
Level 80
Jan 17, 2022
No trouble there, although if you're really being strict then you might prefer "social media affect" rather than "affects". The Cyprus one made me laugh.
jrose69
+2
Level 31
Mar 7, 2022
you're technically right, though I have never heard anyone talk about something being a "social medium" so I give it a pass
BazMcHat
+14
Level 82
Jan 17, 2022
Regarding no.10 - "Lunch made me feel nauseous" seems correct to me. If you eat a meal, something in it upsets you, and you feel you want to vomit, then it's made you feel nauseous.
TenThousand
+2
Level 76
Jan 17, 2022
Dan, could you let us know the logic behind the correct answer here? I'm sure nauseous would be fine for that answer.
TurkeyCookTime
+11
Level 76
Jan 17, 2022
I might be wrong, but I think that the food itself would be nauseous, and eating nauseous food makes you nauseated.
Quizmaster
+10
Level ∞
Jan 17, 2022
@TurkeyCookTime is correct. When you say "I'm nauseous", what you are really saying is "I induce nausea in others". Of course, the popular usage has changed over time and the incorrect usage is more common than the correct one. That's why I included the caveat about a stern English teacher.
BazMcHat
+2
Level 82
Jan 17, 2022
Thanks for your responses!
Nassim
+18
Level 68
Jan 18, 2022
Even Merriam-Webster considers that both words would be correct in that situation. That's no longer being stern, that's being so pedantic you go against the dictionary.
JudgeRudy
+4
Level 66
Jan 20, 2022
Exactly. It isn't incorrect because both "causing nausea" and "affected with nausea" are included in Merriam Webster's definition of the word, and other dictionaries actually have "affected with nausea" as the first definition. This one crosses the line from grammar snob to pure pedant.
AlexM
+4
Level 81
Jan 21, 2022
My Oxford English Dictionary has 2 definitions for Nauseous. Definition 1 is: "Affected with nausea, sick, nauseated"

ie It considers them synonyms. I'd argue that at least in the U.K. most people would use nauseous. I've never heard anyone say "I feel nauseated" or "the food made me feel nauseated."

AlexThirkell
+1
Level 75
Jan 30, 2022
I don't think @TurkeyCookTime is correct. Here are the primary definitions of nauseous in both of my go-to dictionaries: "affected with nausea; inclined to vomit" (Google); "affected by nausea" (Collins). "Causing nausea" is the secondary definition in both.

Perhaps the word "feel" is superfluous, but it would be superfluous in both options.

(Maybe you're thinking of noxious? That one is only used in the sense of causing problems.)

Or maybe it's all because the stern English teacher is high (see the caveat...)

mightythor
+3
Level 66
Mar 4, 2022
The dictionary doesn't tell you what's correct. It only tells you how things are being used.
brandybuck96
+2
Level 83
Mar 9, 2023
dictionaries can be incredibly prescriptive. They are getting better especially in online editions, but historically dictionaries have not been purely descriptive at all
FoxAndRabbit
+2
Level 71
Mar 4, 2022
Highly disagree with Mighty. How things are used defines what is correct. That's the entire basis of contemporary linguistics -- descriptivism. Linguistic prescriptivism has been left in the past (for the most part) for a good reason.
leni
+1
Level 76
Jan 17, 2022
You are correct

.”In everyday modern usage, it is acceptable to use both words to mean feeling ill—your audience will likely understand what you mean.

Jango
+14
Level 64
Jan 17, 2022
I think you need to learn the difference between grammar and lexis. Effect/affect, nauseous/nauseated have nothing to do with grammar
Dimby
+1
Level 77
Jan 18, 2022
Lexis? What dictionary uses the term "lexis"? Usage is the term I've always heard for cases like that. But yes, many of these aren't strictly grammar in the traditional sense. Ironically, the changing nature of language expands the definition of what might be considered incorrect grammar, while also excusing many of those cases from being considered incorrect grammar!
Jango
+2
Level 64
Jan 26, 2022
Most of them do, Dimby. It's an important distinction. And I've worked on many dictionaries. If you're not familiar with the term, lexis means vocabulary, hence lexicon and grammar is to do with the guidelines that make utterances comprehensible to each other. I suggest you read some Chomsky if you're interested in the structure of language
Dimby
+1
Level 77
Jan 30, 2022
Oh Noam Chomsky… he’s one of those guys I’ve always thought I should read, but I’ve never had an essay or a project where his research popped up. Maybe your comment is enough for me to go find some of his work and read it for fun!
Jango
+1
Level 64
Mar 4, 2022
I hope you do! His thoughts on generative grammar are very insightful.

Colourless green ideas sleep furiously - grammatically correct but semantically nonsensical;)

JoshPen
+3
Level 79
Jan 17, 2022
How about:

Becky deleted the file by accident.

Becky deleted the file on accident.

The airline struggles as many crew members call in sick.

The airline struggles as many crew members call out sick.

JWC1202
+4
Level 74
Jan 17, 2022
I once brought up the use of prepositional choice with some of my co-workers. I grew up saying "by accident," but I observed that many people say "on accident." (I'm from New England, but was living in the Pacific NW at the time.) I was hoping to determine if such usage was primarily a regional or generational difference. Although there is some overlap, it appears to be mostly generational, with those in their 30s and younger preferring "on accident," a phrase that sound very odd to my aged ears.
Froststar101
+1
Level 74
Mar 5, 2022
I thought "call out" and "call in" are each just a phrase with a defined, understood meaning. Where I work, people say "call out." "If you aren't able to come in, just call out." I've answered the phone to "hey this is so-and-so, I have to call out today." And "callout" is used as a noun, like "there were a couple of callouts today so we weren't able to hit the goal times." I know other places, and my father, use the phrase "call in" with the same meaning, but at my jobs I've typically heard "call out" and I don't know that it has to be wrong.
Froststar101
+1
Level 74
Mar 5, 2022
And I also say "on accident," fwiw.
leni
+2
Level 76
Jan 17, 2022
Even though nauseous and nauseated are often used to mean feeling unwell, many purists insist that nauseous means “causing nausea” while nauseated means “feeling sick. ”In everyday modern usage, it is acceptable to use both words to mean feeling ill—your audience will likely understand what you mean
FedericoGuzman
+1
Level 73
Jan 17, 2022
I just love the words irregardless and supossibly. They're so funny, I wish they were real.
Dperez
+3
Level 71
Mar 4, 2022
They are, you used them ;)
jmellor13
+2
Level 67
Mar 5, 2022
"Supposably" is a real and correct word. It is just often incorrectly used in place of "supposedly," which has a different meaning.
sumguy
+1
Level 84
Jan 17, 2022
#13 isn't about grammar, it's about capitalization. Just to be sure, I Googled "Is capitalization grammar?" and got "Capitalization is not a part of grammar. Grammar deals strictly with words and word usage."
Fuse
+1
Level 77
Jan 18, 2022
The question asks "Which sentence is correct?" Since "Saturday" must be spelt with a capital S, then Quizmaster is correct.
sumguy
+1
Level 84
Jan 20, 2022
The point is that the question doesn't belong in a quiz called "Multiple Choice Grammar Quiz"!
blizzrd33
+1
Level 79
Mar 4, 2022
If you try to teach writing in grammar class and skip capitalization (and punctuation), you're doing it wrong. Common usage of the term grammar does include capitalization and punctuation, even if some academics prefer to be more strict about what is and isn't included in the meaning of the word grammar. And like most things in language, once they become common usage, the meanings of words evolve to match their new common usage.
Tramp
+3
Level 76
Jan 18, 2022
Typical Belgium - lying...
brandybuck96
+2
Level 83
Jan 18, 2022
OH I've just realised the than/then mistake must be because of how it sounds in American accents. I was always puzzled by that one, it's difficult to get them confused in English accents at least
joeythelemur
+9
Level 84
Jan 18, 2022
Written usage like "He could of done it" seems to be everywhere now. It drives me crazy. IMHO, the most egregious one in this list. :-)
zack22
+1
Level 67
Jan 26, 2022
I totally agree, one of my coworkers sent it in an email just today.
TinteEalaine
+1
Level 53
Mar 4, 2022
Yeah, I can't say that sentence without tripping over the words
mf3
+1
Level 87
Jan 18, 2022
Actually, these days, I think the statement that "Social media effects the teenage brain" could also be considered correct (for different reasons). :)
overtired
+1
Level 84
Jan 18, 2022
I thought that :)
sumguy
+5
Level 84
Jan 20, 2022
Did you mean, "choose the one that a stern high school English teacher would prefer"? Because, stern or not, I suspect most English teachers would accept the incorrect version while high.
InterAlia
+1
Level 75
Mar 8, 2022
The ambiguity you imply is not present while there is an adjective in front of high. Your joke is ruined by the need for a comma.
lvtharrison
+4
Level 81
Jan 21, 2022
Most of these are to do with lexicon and not grammar. Who decides what a word means? Surely the only answer can be a descriptive rather than prescriptive one. Usage decides meaning. The ghost of Shakespeare could be sitting on my sofa yelling 'distracted means crazy' and it wouldn't be right. To him, in 1600 it meant that, now it means 'not focusing' or something like that almost all the time. Language is not set in stone, nobody has more power because once it was used in a particularly way and that person insists on that usage.
Milo74
+1
Level 71
Jan 21, 2022
Well, this is still mostly grammar related. There is "grammar" in a more strict sense, and "grammar" in a more loose sense.

But your larger point about the transitory nature of language and the mutability of authority on it is well-taken and I can hardly disagree.

I once had a disagreement with somebody who had 2 Master's degrees, including a degree in English, and I only had a B.A. in it. My point was that I was using a word in a particular way and in the same usage as one in the OED, but the person I was arguing with this about it said that it was nevertheless incorrect because it didn't conform with any usage of the word in Webster's and that the OED was *only* descriptive and not definitive.

The person I was arguing with might have been technically correct on the differences between the OED and Webster's, but that doesn't mean that a superimposition of that differential onto how I used the word that I used is supremely authoritative, which my friend insisted that it was.

bostjan
+1
Level 72
Mar 4, 2022
No, I agree. It's perhaps unintentionally humourous that a quiz based on nitpicks itself fails the nitpick test between the title and content of the quiz.
Milo74
+2
Level 71
Jan 21, 2022
I got slightly lucky, but 16/16 = 5 points, which I probably don't accomplish as much as 15% of the time.

Thank you for making a quiz I had a reasonable chance of getting 5 points on, as well as for reassuring me of my grammatical prowess.

Remster
+2
Level 77
Mar 4, 2022
Interesting. The worry about "nauseous" doesn't exist in British English ("Lunch made me feel nauseous" is no more problematic than "Praying made me feel pious"), and "nauseated" is normally used only as a verb.
JackintheBox
+1
Level 79
Mar 4, 2022
Nauseous and nauseated are both grammatically correct I think.
RJG
+1
Level 60
Apr 21, 2023
Both can be used as past tense, so agreed.
RJG
+1
Level 60
Apr 21, 2023
They can be used interchangeably. But, in modern times nauseous seems to have replaced nauseated in these contexts.
slug
+2
Level 69
Mar 4, 2022
Nice quiz, but the sentence with e.g. in running text isn't exactly great style. I would write as (e.g., Toyota) or else spell out for example.
sumokitty
+1
Level 82
Mar 4, 2022
Totally agree. That really jumped out at me, as I thought it was the error in question until I read the second answer.
bostjan
+1
Level 72
Mar 4, 2022
Thanks for this quiz. I really enjoyed it. "She and he" in the nominative is correct, but sounds so awkward, partly because it's so rarely heard and partly because there are few situations in which the antecedent would be clear. Inappropriate use of whom is one of my pet peeves, as well as one you didn't point out: inappropriate use of reflexive pronouns. For example: "Please contact me or my associate." I often times hear the reflexive pronoun used instead, and it drives me bonkers.

I have to admit, though, that #12 had me think twice. Prepositions always give me a difficult time. I chose the correct answer, changed it, changed it back, and then moved on. I feel like I still don't really understand it but just was lucky.

cyanidecarrot
+1
Level 32
Mar 4, 2022
"Lunch made me nauseous" is a grammatically correct sentence, I could just be dumb, but I can't possibly see how it's incorrect
Jacktheguy
+1
Level 89
Mar 4, 2022
That’s one of the two that I missed. It’s unlikely you’ll hear someone say nauseated instead of nauseous.
bostjan
+1
Level 72
Mar 7, 2022
Actually, #8 is 100% grammatically correct as well. Maybe Quizmaster is an advocate for lazy judicial policies. #12 is also grammatically correct, although I'm not sure what the meaning would be. And, #15 is grammatically correct as well if the person who wrote the sentence is unaware of any other Japanese automotive manufacturers.
Koopa
+1
Level 77
Mar 4, 2022
Thank you for including the i.e. vs e.g example. It is a huge pet peeve for me at work, because about 90% of people believe the two are interchangeable :/
TjizzleDizzle
+1
Level 67
Mar 4, 2022
Flabbergasted by my score. Had 15/16 correct (only the who/whom one was wrong)...English isn't my primary language. Now let's hope it sticks around. xD
Cordelia75
+1
Level 56
Mar 5, 2022
There was a TV show in the early 1970s called The Courtship of Eddie’s Father where the child would say, e.g., “I and Mrs. Livingston” to avoid the “Mrs. Livingston and me” as subjects error. It sounded so cute. Also I was taught not to use “nauseous” when “nauseated” was meant. Another thing that used to mark a care for the use of English was “clothing is hung, people are hanged.” It is surprising how often that comes up when you listen for it.
XYU
+1
Level 62
Mar 11, 2022
Good work Quizmaster. I think you meant to say "high school" in your bullet point, though. Perfect quiz in which to make a mistake :-)

I do see this "Should of" thing creeping in, these days. I think it's quite a fun expression, really. However, I reserve a special disdain for people who misuse "literally"; let's start a campaign against it.

Maybe you could consider the phrasing "The winningest quarterback" in a future instalment!

Quizmaster
+1
Level ∞
Mar 11, 2022
Haha, fixed.
RJG
+1
Level 60
Apr 21, 2023
15/16. "Sarah has less than 10 cars in her garage" is an acceptable variant.
Lpro
+1
Level 41
Oct 10, 2023
I feel like the last question is just to get people to be on this website more often LOL!
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