1. From each group, choose the sentence that contains a
compound adjective:
A. Sheila
was horribly moody.
B. We’d
like you to be part of the decision-making process.
C. The
company showed steady improvement in their stock trades.
A. This
is a widely used procedure for finishing wood floors.
B. Moths
ate his woolen socks.
C. That
was really generous of you.
A. Sharon’s
adopted son is five years old today.
B. My
new car has leather upholstery.
C. She
was a well-known actress by the time she reached age five.
2. Using hyphens in compound adjectives: Which sentences
are correct?
A. The
group was full of rowdy 10 year old schoolboys.
B. The
group was full of rowdy 10-year-old schoolboys.
A. The
actress is well known.
B. The
actress is well-known.
A. They
enjoyed a three-year profit streak.
B. They
enjoyed a three-year-profit streak.
3. Using –ly adverbs in compound adjectives: Which
sentences are correct?
A. Along
the river, rapidly increasing floodwaters caused evacuations.
B. Along
the river, rapidly-increasing floodwaters caused evacuations.
A. My
neighbor Jim is an internationally recognized author.
B. My
neighbor Jim is an internationally-recognized author.
A. The
bank robbers tried to hatch their ill conceived plan and failed.
B. The
bank robbers tried to hatch their ill-conceived plan and failed.
4. Choose the correct compound adjective for each
sentence.
A. He
is fond of ______________________ Scotch.
·
good
·
12-year-old
·
10 year old
B. The
weather has been ___________________ lately.
·
terribly-cold
·
terribly cold
·
too cold
C. Babysitting
these kids is like trying to manage a _____________________.
·
three ring circus
·
three-ring-circus
·
three-ring circus
5. Fill in the blanks with the best compound adjective
for the situation:
A. Melanie
has everything she needs. She is _____________________.
·
two-faced
·
very badly behaved
·
well-cared for
B. Louis
overcomes difficulties easily. He is _______________________.
·
short-tempered
·
level-headed
·
internationally renowned
C. Mr.
Chan likes to hear about new ideas. He is ______________________.
·
strong-minded
·
two faced
·
open-minded
6. Fill in the blanks with the best phrase for the
situation:
A. Jesse
was promoted, so he bought ________________________________.
·
himself-a brand new car
·
himself a brand-new-car
·
himself a brand-new car
B. The
_______________________ has been going on for decades.
·
gun control debate
·
gun-control debate
·
gun-control-debate
C. The
sound of ___________________________ always soothes my mind.
·
gently-flowing water
·
gently flowing water
·
gently-flowing-water
7. From each group, choose the sentence containing the
correct compound adjective:
A. Maria
is old-fashioned. She can’t quite see the words on the blackboard.
B. Maria
is near-sighted. She can’t quite see the words on the blackboard.
C. Maria
is very shy. She can’t quite see the words on the backboard.
A. She
wore an old-fashioned dress to the ball.
B. She
wore a deeply-rooted dress to the ball.
C. She
wore a seasonal dress to the ball.
A. He
works for a Texas-based pharmaceutical company.
B. He
works for a rapidly increasing pharmaceutical company.
C. He
works for an American-style pharmaceutical company.
8. Creating compound adjectives: From each group, choose
the sentence pair that makes the most sense.
A. I
don’t like glue that dries slowly. = This is a quick-drying glue.
B. Did
you know that some plants eat meat? = Did you know that there are meat-eating
plants?
C. Professor
Brown has a very narrow mind. = Professor Brown’s mind is very narrow.
A. The
price of the car was high. = It was a high-priced car.
B. The
meal tasted good. = This was a tasteful-meal.
C. He
likes to weigh in on political issues. = He is loud-mouthed and boring.
A. The
tapeworm measured 35 inches. = The tape-worm measured 35-inches.
B. The
duck has flat feet. = That’s a flat-footed duck.
C. Why
not try some carrot juice? = Have some carrot-juice.
9. Compound adjectives containing numbers: From each
group, choose the sentence containing the correct compound adjective.
A. The
earthworms were at least three inches long.
B. He
ate a 12-inch sandwich for lunch.
C. The
sumo champion weighed 210-kilograms.
A. He
drives a one-ton truck.
B. Our
house has three-bedrooms and two-bathrooms.
C. There
are nine-carrots in each bottle of juice.
A. My
new chainsaw cost three-hundred dollars.
B. I
got a 300-dollar chainsaw for two hundred dollars.
C. The
best chainsaws cost more than three-hundred-dollars.
10.
Use the underlined phrase to make a compound adjective.
A. He
suggested an innovative plan to save money.
B. Her
brother had a sharp mind.
C. My
cat died suddenly when it was ten years old.
Answer ：
1.
B, A, C
2.
B, A, A
3.
A, A, B
4.
A – 12-year-old B –
terribly cold C –
three-ring circus
5.
A – well-cared for B –
level-headed C –
open-minded
6.
A – himself a brand-new car B
– gun-control debate C – gently flowing water
7.
B – near-sighted A –
old-fashioned C
– Texas-based
8.
B – meat-eating plants A –
high-priced car B – flat-footed duck
9.
B – 12-inch sandwich A –
one-ton truck B – 300-dollar chainsaw
10. A- He suggested an innovative
money-saving plan.
B- Her brother was sharp-minded.
C- My ten-year-old cat died suddenly.
