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Answer Keyto accompany
The Pearson Editing Exercises
Second Edition
Anna Ingalls
Southwestern College, Emeritus
Dan Moody
Southwestern College

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1B: Distinguishing Between the Simple and the Complete Subject,
page 2 (Simple subjects are shown bolded and italicized.)
Most colleges in the United States offer some sort of academic assistance, such as
tutorial services and writing centers. These services are often free. A tutor is someone
who has already passed the class that the student needs help with, usually with a high
grade. Also, tutors often are required to complete several hours of training in how to
tutor others effectively. A second type of academic assistance is known as a writing
center. At most writing centers, students can schedule appointments, or they can drop
in without an appointment. Some writing centers will even help students with their
papers by e-mail. Online writing labs, or OWLs, sponsored by various colleges and
universities, can also provide valuable assistance with writing assignments. In addition,
many colleges offer drop-in help with math, reading, biology, and other key subjects.
The important thing to remember for all of these types of assistance is to arrive on time
with a copy of your work, or at least a description of your assignment. You should have
specific questions ready, and ask the tutor to help you learn from your mistakes.
1C: Recognizing Subjects and Verbs, page 3
(Simple subjects are shown bolded and italicized.)
My first real job, at age 16, was as a stock clerk at the nearby TG&Y variety store.
I had never worked in a business before, so the store manager’s goal was to bring me
up to speed on the “rules” of the retail world. The first rule was to arrive slightly early
every day so that we could start right on time. The second rule of the store was not to sit
down while counting stock or dusting shelves. Rules three and four prohibited gossip
about the other employees and customers. The fifth rule was to volunteer for another
job as soon as one job was finished. In addition to these five rules of retail work, the
manager included many other valuable skills in my training. Stock rotation and
customer assistance might not have been the most exciting skills to learn; however,
everything about my experience at the TG&Y would help me in my later jobs.
1D: Recognizing Subjects and Verbs, page 4
(Simple subjects are shown bolded and italicized.)
A stack of logs burning in a fireplace certainly gives a warm and cozy feeling,
but that fireplace could actually be cooling your house and costing you hundreds of
dollars a year in heating costs. The reason for this is that an open fireplace draws warm,
heated air from the room, and then cold air leaks in around doors, windows, pipes, and
wires. However, if you are not willing to give up the idea of a cozy evening in front of a
blazing fire, there are several steps you can take to improve the heating efficiency of

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your fireplace. One solution is to install glass doors to reduce how much warm air is
pulled up the chimney. Another possibility is to use an outdoor air supply, which
completely eliminates the loss of warm house air. The third idea is to use a fireplace
heater to recirculate the hot air, and the fourth option would be to install a fireback, a
metal sheet that absorbs heat and radiates it into the room. Finally, some people decide
to install a wood stove that fits into the fireplace and radiates even more heat into the
room. Each of these options will keep you warmer and use less firewood, and you will
enjoy your fireplace more than ever.
2A: Correcting Phrase Fragments and Subordinate Clause Fragments,
page 5
Many colleges offer personal development classes, which often include
something called assertiveness training. Unfortunately, the term “assertive” is often
misunderstood. Some people think that being assertive means the same thing as being
aggressive. However, assertiveness and aggressiveness are actually very different. A
person who is aggressive tends to be argumentative and forceful. An aggressive person
often intimidates or offends people, trying to force his or her opinions on others. On the
other hand, when you are assertive, you stand up for your rights in a non-threatening
manner. To be assertive, you should clearly state what you want. It is important to
speak up for yourself and not let other people bully you into going along with their
ideas. For example, do not agree to drive a friend to work every day or keep his pet
rabbits for a month unless you really want to do these things. By learning to assert
yourself without becoming aggressive, you will feel better about yourself. In addition,
you will gain the respect of others.
2B: Correcting Fragments, page 6
What does it mean to be an average American? Many people don’t like the idea
of being average because they think “average” is a negative word. They associate
“average” with getting C’s in school instead of A’s and B’s. However, “average” as a
statistical term just means that you match up with most people. For instance, the
average American stays indoors most of the time, spending only 5% of the day
outdoors. If you spend the majority of your time indoors, you are doing what the
average American does. The average American still lives in the state where he or she
was born, spends about 2 1/2 hours online per day, and drives a car that is eight years
old. In the last forty or fifty years, the lifestyle of the average American has changed.
Forty or fifty years ago, almost all families had only one wage earner, and mothers
typically stayed home. The typical family no longer has a mother who does not work
outside the home and a father who is responsible for bringing home all of the income.
Another change is that most American households have more televisions than people.

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2C: Correcting Fragments, page 7
The average American’s lifestyle today is a very busy one. How do busy parents
still find time to spend with their children? How do busy college students manage to
work full-time or part-time and still get good grades in their classes? One solution is
multitasking, or doing more than one thing at a time. We may make business calls and
schedule appointments using our cell phones while we are watching a sports event or
waiting for a movie to start. We often hear people making personal calls while they are
shopping or waiting in line at the supermarket. Perhaps doing you do your homework
while watching television or listening to music. If you listen to audio books while you
are driving, you may be able to complete some of your assignments during your
commute. You may sometimes meet with friends for lunch, and a study session at the
same time. Although multitasking can help us accomplish more things in less time, we
need to be careful. If we try to do too much, we may become easily distracted and
unable to focus on a single important task.
3A: Combining Simple Sentences to Create Complex Sentences, page 8
(Answers may vary.)
Although dogs are said to be man’s best friend, cats are actually the most popular
pets in the United States. Cats were originally valued for their pest control skills because
they caught mice and rats in grain storage areas. People could store their surplus crops
more securely when they didn’t have to worry about rodents and other pests getting
into the storage bins. In ancient Egypt, cats were revered. In fact, the Egyptian goddess
of love, whose name was Bastet, had the head of a cat. Killing a cat in ancient Egypt
was a crime that was punishable by death. Ancient Romans also had high regard for
cats, which were considered a symbol of liberty. During the Middle Ages in Europe,
however, cats came to be associated with evil. Many cats were killed because they were
thought to be representatives of witches and the devil. Unfortunately, there were few
cats left to hunt and kill rats, which could spread the plague throughout Europe.
Although some people are still superstitious about cats, more than one third of all
households in this country have at least one domesticated cat.
3B: Combining Simple Sentences to Create Compound Sentences,
page 9 (Answers may vary.)
The state of Washington has a landscape that is full of contrasts. To the west,
Washington is bordered by the Pacific Ocean, and there are many large islands,
waterways, and rivers. This area is famous for salmon and trout fishing. Near the coast,
annual rainfall is as much as 180 inches in some places, so there are thick, lush

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evergreen rain forests, yet the middle of the state consists of a high mountain range.
These mountains have many snow-covered peaks; in fact, several peaks rise to more
than 9,000 feet. Many people come to Washington to ski every year; furthermore, hikers,
rock climbers, and mountain bikers enjoy the many recreational opportunities in these
mountains. There are quite a few inactive volcanoes in this range; however, one
volcano, Mount St. Helens, erupted in 1980. The western part of the state is very wet,
but east of the Cascade Mountains, there are dry, treeless plains. This area is very
productive; irrigation turns the dry land into rich farmland.
3C: Using Coordination and Subordination, page 10
(Answers may vary.)
Some celebrities use their power and influence to help people around the world
who suffer from poverty, disease, or violence, and may lack opportunities for
education. Near Johannesburg, South Africa, Oprah Winfrey established The Oprah
Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls, which helps young women in grades 7-12
achieve their full potential through education. It will make a real difference in the future
for South African women. Actor George Clooney, who made his first trip to Darfur in
2006, has become a spokesperson for raising awareness about the suffering of people in
Darfur; furthermore, he has become an advocate for taking action against the genocide
there. Another actor, Michael J. Fox, was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease in 1991,
when he was only 30 years old. He has become a leading activist in the fight to find a
cure for Parkinson’s. He speaks publicly on behalf of others who cannot speak for
themselves. They might be cured by stem-cell treatments.
4A: Recognizing Comma Splices and Run-ons, page 11
*During the last few years, more and more people have come to rely on
computers / the number of Internet users is increasing every day. By 2007, there were
more than 237 million Internet users in North America. *Some people use the Internet
for business or educational purposes,/ others use it mainly for entertainment.
Entertainment possibilities include meeting people in chat rooms, playing games online,
and downloading pictures of your favorite sports figures or movie stars. *Another
possibility is cyber-dating,/ keep in mind, however, that meeting a “cyber-date” in real
life could be dangerous. People you meet online may not always tell the truth about
themselves. *For example, someone who claims to be twenty-five may actually turn out
to be fifteen or forty-five / unethical individuals may also lie about other things, such as
their job, their physical appearance, or their marital status. Although you may be lucky
enough to get acquainted online with people who become lifelong friends, it is
important to be cautious.

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4B: Correcting Comma Splices and Run-ons, page 12
(Answers may vary. Sample answers are given.)
*A cute, friendly gecko tries to persuade us to buy a certain brand of insurance,
but a quacking duck encourages us to choose a different company. *Talking sheep have
an opinion about which mattress will help us sleep soundly, while happy cows want us
to believe that California cheese is the best. *Television commercials use any techniques
they can to capture viewers’ attention because their goal is to persuade consumers to
buy their products. Celebrities endorse a variety of items, from sports drinks to
medicines to credit cards. *Many commercials appeal to younger viewers, who are the
prime target of a large number of advertisers. *Enthusiastic singers and dancers try to
persuade young people to buy clothes at certain stores; if they wear these clothes they
will be part of the popular “in crowd.” *Although teenagers don’t have unlimited
funds, they have a great deal of influence on household spending, and advertisers hope
they will form lifetime shopping habits. The same brands that they buy and use as
teenagers are likely to remain their favorite brands ten or twenty years from now.
4C: Correcting Comma Splices and Run-ons, page 13
(Answers may vary. Sample answers are given.)
*The Amazon River in South America is the second longest river in the world.
The only river that is longer is the Nile in Africa. *However, the Amazon carries a
greater volume of water than any other river, and it has more tributaries, or smaller
rivers that feed into it. *The Amazon begins at Lake Lauricocha in the Andes Mountains
of Peru; then several other rivers join it to become part of the Amazon as it flows
eastward, finally emptying into the Atlantic Ocean. Before reaching the ocean off the
eastern coast of Brazil, the Amazon has traveled a total length of more than 4,000 miles.
*The velocity of the river averages about 1.5 miles per hour, and eight trillion gallons of
water per day are emptied into the Atlantic by the mighty Amazon. More than three
hundred species of mammals make their homes in the Amazon rain forest, as well as
thousands of species of fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and insects. *Piranhas, which
are found in parts of the river, can quickly kill and eat the flesh of a person. Toucans,
which are birds with huge beaks, do not live in the wild anywhere except the Amazon
area. *Freshwater dolphins, which are called botos or pink dolphins, also live in parts of
the river.
4D: Correcting Comma Splices and Run-ons, page 14
(Answers may vary. Sample answers are given.)
*Khaled Hosseini, who now lives in San Jose, California, writes about his native
country of Afghanistan. His first novel, The Kite Runner, almost instantly became a

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