Test Bank

Chapter 4
Principles of Business Communications

TRUE/FALSE

1. The two most valuable resources for the business communicator are a dictionary and a
thesaurus.

ANS: True

2. A specialized dictionary is one that shows special symbols for word pronounciation.

ANS: False

3. The primary criterion for an understandable word choice for a message is to choose a word
that the sender understands.

ANS: False

4. Technical words are terms with a special meaning in a particular field.

ANS: True

5. Vague or abstract words are indefinite words, but they have a specific meaning that is the
same for each receiver of the message.

ANS: False

6. An obsolete word is one that is overused in normal conversation or messages and has lost its
effectiveness.

ANS: False

7. Sentence unity comes from limiting content to one main idea.

ANS: True

8. Long sentences are more effective than short sentences because you can cover more
thoughts in one sentence.

ANS: False

TB-25
9. Passive voice is preferred in business messages because they avoid use of first-person
pronouns.

ANS: False

10. One way to emphasize an idea is to tell the receiver what is important.

ANS: True

11. A long sentence in a business letter is 30 words or longer.

ANS: True

12. In some situations negative words can be used for emphasis.

ANS: True

13. There is no place in business messages for weak words.

ANS: False

14. A strong word will be either an adjective or adverb because both are descriptive words.

ANS: False

15. Obsolete words sound formal and, therefore, are appropriate in formal but not informal
business communication.

ANS: False

16. Short sentences are understandable, so your writing should only use sentences with no more
than 20 words.

ANS: False
17. When using sentence structure to give ideas emphasis, place the most important ideas in the
dependent clauses.

ANS: False

18. Repeating key words in sentences is a way of giving emphasis to the ideas represented by
those words.

ANS: True

19. Diversity has become widely recognized in business; therefore, the use of unbiased
language is no longer an essential consideration in the composition of business messages.

ANS: False

TB-26 Test Bank for Business Communication, 7e

20. Generally, the direct plan of paragraph organization is recommended for good news or
neutral news.

ANS: True

MULTIPLE CHOICE

1. Which words are examples of obsolete words?

a. enclosed herewith c. bottom line
b. get over it d. unhappy
ANS: a. enclosed herewith

2. A sentence in a paragraph that helps your receiver move from one aspect of the subject to
another is called a
a. contrasting sentence c. tie-in sentence
b. unified sentence d. structural sentence
ANS: c. tie-in sentence

3. Of the following sentences, which would be unbiased?

a. The white teacher spoke to the inner-city c. The Jewish lady moved into an upscale
youths. townhouse in Manhatten.
b. Mrs. Smith talked with the students about d. Mr. Brown, 85, spent Thanksgiving with
the difficulties experienced by single- his family.
parent families.
ANS: b. Mrs. Smith talked with the students about the difficulties experienced by single-parent
families.

4. Composing with style means

a. using formal language. c. using clear, concise words that convey
your personality.
b. using unusual words. d. using language that creates a sense of
mystery for the reader.
ANS: c. using clear, concise words that convey your personality

5. Which of the words below is most likely to be understood for a middle-level receiver?
a. hermetic c. enjoyment
b. hilarity d. heuristic
ANS: c. enjoyment

Chapter 4 Principles of Business Communications TB-27

6. The words that communicate best are usually those that are
a. words that you know best c. words slightly below your receiver’s
vocabulary level
b. words that will increase the receiver’s d. words slightly above your receiver’s
vocabulary because he or she will need to vocabulary level
check a dictionary for the meaning.
ANS: c. words slightly below your receiver’s vocabulary level

7. Which of the following sentences lacks agreement of subject and verb?

a. The fifth grade class has recess at 10 a.m. c. Martina or her children were always at
home on Saturdays.
b. Mary and Janice go to the grocery each d. Each year supervisors reminds their staff
day. of Internet-use policies.
ANS: d. Each year supervisors reminds their staff of Internet-use policies

8. A sentence structure that allows one idea to be emphasized and one idea to be de-
emphasized is the
a. simple sentence c. complex sentence
b. short sentence d. compound sentence
ANS: C. complex sentence

9. Which of the following words is not a transitional word?

a. second c. for example
b. finally d. readily
ANS: d. readily

10. Which one of the following incorrect sentences lacks parallelism?

a. Managing the store, practicing violin, c. Jane Harris, who lives in Martinville,
and attending classes keeps Mary busy. sings in their community choir each year.
b. Leave your practice problems on the d. Marsha, John, and Milton take a bicycle
desk, your homework should be ride each evening.
completed, and be ready for tomorrow’s
test..
ANS: b. Leave your practice problems on the desk, your homework should be completed, and
be ready for tomorrow’s test..

TB-28 Test Bank for Business Communication, 7e

 PROBLEM

1. Provide an alternate word or phrase to make the following words more understandable to a
receiver with medium vocabulary level.

a. transcend
b. renounce
c. gaunt
d. deftly
e. depleted

ANS: a. surpass,
b. resign
c. forbidding
d. cleverly
e. exhaust
REF: 84-85

2. For each of the following sentences, select a strong alternative word for the italicized weak
word.

a. The ceiling tile fell to the floor.

b. The referee sent the player out of the game for rough play.
c. The two young men looked much the same.
d. The message presented was strong.
e. The argument between Eugenia and Meredith left both feeling displeasure.

ANS: a. Crushed
b. kicked
c. exactly
d. Right
e. Annoyed

REF: 87-88

Chapter 4 Principles of Business Communications TB-29

3. Give a more specific and precise word or phrase for each italicized word or words in the
sentences below. Add necessary details if needed to be more precise.

a. Thomas drove by the elementary school.

b. Daniel cultivated the field with the tractor.
c. What answer did you find on that page in your science textbook?
d. Ming Li is a native of another country.
e. The house on Elm Street was built in 1950.

a) st.thomas elementary school.

b) Mahindra tractor
c) 95
d) Japan
e) Ancient house

REF: 87

4. Rewrite the following negative sentences to emphasize positive words or a can-do attitude.

a. Your reasoning is faulty.

b. Don’t let the house get dirty.
c. We had clouds and rain three days last week.
d. I cannot go to the convention until Friday.
e. Don’t forget the deadline.

ANS:
a)

REF: 89

TB-30 Test Bank for Business Communication, 7e

5. Write an alternate word or phrase for the obsolete phrases below.

a. enclosed please find

b. hoping to hear from you soon
c. I remain,
d. I regret to inform you
e. hereby advise

ANS:

REF: 90-91

6. Rewrite the following sentences to make the mean clear and concise.

a. Larry Jones, the plant manager, plans to meet with employees on November 12; and the
purpose of the meeting is to describe the new medical insurance program that is to be
changed the first of the year to provide considerably more coverage at lower cost.

b. When mowing the yard, a bee stung Robin, our neighbor.

ANS:

REF: 91-92

7. For each of the following sentences with passive verbs, rewrite the sentence using the active
form of the verb.

a. The last football game of the season was played last Saturday.
b. The stories had been passed down by family members from generation to generation.

ANS:

REF: 95-96

Chapter 4 Principles of Business Communications TB-31

8. Create sentences as directed.

a. Use sentence structure to emphasize the benefits of earning a college degree and de-
emphasize the effort to earn it..
b. Use location to emphasize a specific date you will ship a customer’s order.

ANS:

REF: 96-97

9. Rewrite the following sentences to improve clarity by using short sentences and removing
unnecessary words.

a. Whenever the checks are received late and after the appropriate and correct due dates, the
payments are considered and deemed past due.

b. The class met twice a week, students attended on both Tuesday and Thurday, and 5:30
p.m. was the time the class started.

ANS:

REF: 93-94

10. Rewrite the following sentences to omit unnecessary words or phrases.

a. She laid the papers upon the top of the table, which was a dining table.
b. Marjorie printed out three copies of the report on the Jones’ case.

ANS:

REF: 94-95

ESSAY

TB-32 Test Bank for Business Communication, 7e

1. Explain why short paragraphs are preferred in business letters and memos and why long
paragraphs are not preferred.

ANS: In business letter and memo writing, short paragraphs average four to five lines.
If any paragraph in a letter or memo is eight lines or more, it is long and should be
examined carefully to see whether it can be shortened or divided. Usually, business
letters and memos are read quickly, and short paragraphs aid receiver understanding.
.

REF: 100

2. Discuss the meaning of paragraph unity and what you can do to improve a paragraph
without unity.

ANS: Paragraph unity means that all the sentences in a

paragraph relate to one topic. The topic should be covered adequately; however, if
the paragraph becomes too long, it should be divided into two or more logical parts

REF: 100-101

Chapter 4 Principles of Business Communications TB-33

3. Explain the difference between the direct plan and indirect plan for sentence organization in
paragraphs and when each one can be used appropriately.

ANS: The sentence that presents the main point of a paragraph is the topic sentence.
The topic sentence announces the main idea to the reader, or it summarizes the content
of the main idea. In the direct plan, the topic sentence is like a headline and will
be the first sentence, as it is in this paragraph .
With the indirect plan, the topic sentence will be placed later in the paragraph.

REF: 102

4. What is paragraph coherence? Describe three ways to improve coherence between and
within paragraphs.

ANS: Providing coherence between and within paragraphs means having a smooth
thought flow from one sentence or paragraph to the next. You want to encourage
your receiver’s thoughts to move smoothly and logically through the message.

Three ways to improve coherence between and within paragraphs are:

Length: Use short paragraphs to emphasize content; use long paragraphs to de-emphasize
content.

Location: Place ideas at the beginning or ending of paragraphs to give the greatest emphasis.The
middle of a paragraph is the location of least emphasis.

Repetition: Repeat key words throughout the paragraph to emphasize the ideas those words
represent.

REF: 102-103

TB-34 Test Bank for Business Communication, 7e

5. Explain how to avoid use of biased language.

ANS: In academic writing, it is important to avoid using language that can be seen as biased.
Bias happens when writers choose language that is either not specific or not sensitive to labels.
Section 5 of the APA Manual covers the many ways that bias can appear in writing and how to
avoid those. Biased language could be avoided by maintaining following rules:
1. Use Third Person Point of View
2. Choose Words Carefully When Making Comparisons
3. Be Specific When Writing About People
4. Use People First Language.
5. Use Gender Neutral Phrases

REF: 104-105

6. Write a paragraph that explains why active voice of the verb is considered preferable in
most cases to the passive voice.

ANS:

The active voice is more direct, stronger, and more vigorous than the passive voice.
The active voice usually requires fewer words and results in shorter, more understandable
Sentences.

REF: 95-96

Chapter 4 Principles of Business Communications TB-35

7. What is the meaning of each of the following guidelines for composing clear sentences:
a. Give sentences unity.
b. Keep related words together.

ANS:

REF: 91-92

8. Identify and describe five of the eight different ways you can give emphasis to ideas in
sentences.

ANS:

REF: 96-99

9. Explain why paragraphs in business reports can be somewhat longer than those in business
letters and memos.

ANS:

REF: 100

TB-36 Test Bank for Business Communication, 7e

10. Explain why positive words are usually preferable to negative words, and give an example
of when negative words might be preferred.

ANS:

REF: 88-89

Chapter 4 Principles of Business Communications TB-37