The plump old white cat basked in the warm sunlight. Which of the following options correctly punctuates the above?

Correct Answer: A

Rationale: The correct answer is A: 'The plump, old, white cat basked in the warm sunlight.' Commas should be used to separate coordinate adjectives describing the cat. In this sentence, 'plump,' 'old,' and 'white' are coordinate adjectives, each providing distinct information about the cat. Option B incorrectly places a comma after 'white,' creating a nonessential element. Option C lacks commas to separate the coordinate adjectives. Option D incorrectly places a comma after 'cat,' causing a punctuation error.

Correct Answer: B

Rationale: The correct answer is B because it maintains subject-verb agreement. In this sentence, 'she is' agrees with 'the lead scientist,' and 'does' agrees with 'she.' Choices A, C, and D have subject-verb agreement errors. In choice A, 'write' should be 'writes' to match the singular subject 'The lead scientist,' and 'does' should be 'do' to match the plural 'scientists in the group.' Choice C also has the same subject-verb agreement error as A. In choice D, 'do the research' should be 'does the research' to match the singular 'every scientist in the group.'

Correct Answer: C

Rationale: 'Childlike' is an adjective formed by adding the suffix '-like' to the noun 'child.' The suffix '-like' is commonly used to transform a noun into an adjective by indicating a resemblance or characteristic associated with the root noun. Choices A, B, and D do not follow the same pattern. 'Created' is a past participle, 'pointing' is a present participle, and 'suburbanite' is a noun derived from 'suburban.' Therefore, 'Childlike' is the only word where the suffix directly converts the root word into an adjective.

Correct Answer: A

Rationale: The correct answer is A: 'To go around.' Circumvent means to find a way around an obstacle or to avoid something by cleverness or deception. Choice B, 'To go under,' is incorrect as circumvent does not involve going under something. Choice C, 'To come near,' is incorrect as circumvent does not mean to approach or get close to something. Choice D, 'To come through,' is incorrect as circumvent does not involve passing through something.

Correct Answer: D

Rationale: In this sentence, 'increasingly' is functioning as an adverb. Adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs to describe the manner, degree, or frequency of an action. In this case, 'increasingly' describes how the difficulty of the hike was growing as we approached the mountain top. Choice A, 'Adjective,' is incorrect as adjectives modify nouns or pronouns, not verbs. Choice B, 'Interjection,' is also incorrect because interjections are words used to express strong emotions or sentiments, not to describe actions or qualities. Choice C, 'Verb,' is incorrect as 'increasingly' is not a verb; it does not express an action or state of being.