English and Language Usage TEAS

Correct Answer: C

Rationale: The correct answer is C: Tense disagreement. The sentence presents a mismatch in tenses between "is a gifted pianist" (present tense) and "struggling with the piece" (present continuous tense). This inconsistency in verb tenses creates a lack of agreement and clarity in the sentence. The correct form should be either "She is a gifted pianist, but she struggled with the piece" or "She was a gifted pianist, and she is struggling with the piece" to maintain tense consistency. Incorrect choices: A: Inappropriate transition word choice - The sentence structure is not affected by the transition word "although." B: Poor diction - The issue is not with the choice of words but with verb tense agreement. D: Incomplete sentence - The sentence is complete in structure; the issue lies in the tense disagreement.

Correct Answer: D

Rationale: The correct answer is D: indispensable. The word "indispensable" means absolutely necessary or essential. In this context, the sentence is stating that his skill on the soccer field is crucial to the team, making him indispensable. Choices A, B, and C are all duplicates of each other, making them incorrect. The redundancy in choices A, B, and C makes them invalid options, leaving D as the correct choice.

Correct Answer: D

Rationale: The correct answer is "D: although." This transition word is appropriate because it introduces a contrast or contradiction between the excitement for the picnic and the concern about rain. "Although" indicates that the two statements are opposing each other. A: "after all" implies a conclusion or justification, not a contrast. B: "likewise" suggests similarity or agreement, not a contradiction. C: "in other words" is used to clarify or rephrase, not to introduce a contrast. In summary, "although" is the best choice as it effectively sets up the contrasting ideas in the sentence.

Correct Answer: A

Rationale: The correct answer is A because the use of dashes between "hammers, saws, chisels" correctly sets off the list of tools within the sentence. The dashes act as a stronger separator compared to commas, making the list more visually distinct. Choice B uses a colon, which is typically used to introduce a list or explanation, not to separate items within a list. Choice C lacks any punctuation to separate the list items, resulting in confusion. Choice D uses a semicolon, which is not appropriate for separating items in a list.

Correct Answer: A

Rationale: The correct answer is A, ambiguous word choice. In the given sentence, the word "it" is ambiguous as it could refer to either the lake or the day. This ambiguity can lead to confusion for the reader. To clarify, the sentence could be revised to explicitly state what "it" refers to. Choice B, inappropriate transition word choice, is not the issue as the transition word "therefore" is used correctly to show cause and effect. Choice C, tense disagreement, is not the problem because the sentence maintains consistent tense throughout. Choice D, incomplete sentence, is also not correct as the sentence is grammatically complete.