Free Punctuation MCQs with Answers

1. Identify the correctly punctuated sentence.

• A. My brother who lives in Karachi is a doctor.
• B. My brother, who lives in Karachi, is a doctor.
• C. My brother who lives in Karachi, is a doctor.
• D. My brother, who lives in Karachi is a doctor.

Explanation: A non defining relative clause, one that adds extra information rather than identifying which brother, is enclosed by a pair of commas. Using only one comma is always wrong, since the pair works like brackets. Without commas the clause would be defining, implying the speaker has more than one brother.

2. Choose the correctly punctuated sentence.

• A. Its raining and the dog has lost its collar.
• B. It's raining and the dog has lost it's collar.
• C. It's raining and the dog has lost its collar.
• D. Its' raining and the dog has lost its' collar.

Explanation: It's with an apostrophe is only ever the contraction of it is or it has, while its without one is the possessive. Expanding the contraction mentally settles every case: it is raining works, but the dog has lost it is collar does not. Its' is not a word at all.

3. Choose the sentence that uses the semicolon correctly.

• A. The lecture was long; but interesting.
• B. The lecture was long; it was nevertheless interesting.
• C. The lecture was long; and the students were tired.
• D. The lecture; was long and interesting.

Explanation: A semicolon joins two complete independent clauses without a coordinating conjunction, which is exactly what the second option does. Placing one before but or and is wrong, since those conjunctions already do the joining and need only a comma. A semicolon never separates a subject from its verb.

4. Identify the sentence among the following which is punctuated correctly:

• A. The teaching staff asked the principal what time the meeting would start.
• B. The teaching staff asked the principal: "What time would the meeting start"?
• C. The teaching staff asked the principal, "What time would the meeting start?"
• D. The teaching staff asked the principal; "What time would the meeting start?"

Explanation: A direct quotation is introduced by a comma, begins with a capital letter and keeps its question mark inside the closing quotation marks. A colon or semicolon cannot introduce quoted speech in this way, and placing the question mark outside the quotation is wrong because the question belongs to the quoted words. The first option is grammatically fine as reported speech, but it is not punctuated as a quotation.

5. Which mark is used for Semicolon________?

• A. ?
• B. :
• C. ;
• D. !Pakistan Studies Quiz

Explanation: A semicolon is written as “;” and separates closely related independent clauses or items in a complex list. The extra words after the options appear to be unrelated text but do not alter the answer.

6. He bought a three ___________ suit.

• A. Hundred-Dollars
• B. Hundreds-Dollar
• C. Hundred-Dollar
• D. Hundreds-Dollars

Explanation: In a compound adjective before a noun, the number and dollar unit are hyphenated and the unit remains singular: “a three-hundred-dollar suit.” The plural form dollars is not used in this compound modifier.