Police Officer Selection Test (POST) Spelling, Grammar, and Vocabulary Skills Syllabus

Spelling, Grammar, and Vocabulary Skills syllabus — full chapter and topic list

Expand any chapter to see its topics and sub-topics. This is the whole examinable outline for Spelling, Grammar, and Vocabulary Skills in Police Officer Selection Test (POST), not a summary of it.

1. 1

   Targeted Spelling

   3 topics

   • Spelling Rules and Patterns
     • Plurals, prefixes, and suffixes
     • Doubling consonants and dropping silent letters
   • High-Frequency Error Words
     • Words commonly missed on the exam
     • Police and legal terminology spelling
   • Identifying Misspelled Words in Context
     • Choosing the correctly spelled option
     • Proofreading sample sentences
2. 2

   Vocabulary Building

   3 topics

   • Synonyms and Antonyms
     • Selecting closest meanings
     • Identifying opposites
   • Word Roots, Prefixes, and Suffixes
     • Common Latin and Greek roots
     • Deducing meaning from word parts
   • Law Enforcement Terminology
     • Common legal and procedural terms
     • Radio codes and abbreviations
3. 3

   Sentence and Paragraph Editing

   3 topics

   • Error Identification
     • Spotting grammar and usage errors
     • Locating the error within a sentence
   • Sentence Correction
     • Choosing the best revision
     • Preserving original meaning
   • Paragraph Coherence
     • Logical sentence order
     • Transitions and flow

Spelling, Grammar, and Vocabulary Skills flashcards for Police Officer Selection Test (POST)

23 of 50 cards from the Spelling, Grammar, and Vocabulary Skills deck — real questions with worked answers.

1. What is the basic spelling rule for adding a suffix beginning with a vowel to a word ending in a silent 'e'?

   Drop the silent 'e' before the suffix (e.g., hope + ing = hoping; write + ing = writing).

2. State the 'i before e' spelling rule and its main exception.

   'i' before 'e' except after 'c' (believe, receive), or when sounded as 'a' as in 'neighbor' and 'weigh.' Exceptions include weird, seize, foreign, height.

3. When do you double the final consonant before adding a suffix like '-ing' or '-ed'?

   Double it when a one-syllable word ends in a single consonant preceded by a single vowel (stop + ed = stopped), or in a multisyllable word when the final syllable is stressed (begin + ing = beginning).

4. What is the rule for changing 'y' to 'i' when adding a suffix?

   Change 'y' to 'i' when it follows a consonant (carry + ed = carried), but keep the 'y' when it follows a vowel (play + ed = played) or before '-ing' (carrying).

5. How do you form the plural of nouns ending in a consonant + 'y'?

   Change the 'y' to 'i' and add '-es' (baby → babies; city → cities).

6. How do you make most nouns ending in 'f' or 'fe' plural?

   Change 'f' or 'fe' to 'v' and add '-es' (leaf → leaves; knife → knives). Exceptions: roof → roofs, chief → chiefs.

7. When do you add '-es' (rather than just '-s') to form a plural?

   Add '-es' to nouns ending in s, ss, sh, ch, x, or z (bus → buses; box → boxes; church → churches).

8. What is the correct spelling and difference between 'separate' and a common misspelling?

   It is spelled 'separate' (with 'par' in the middle), not 'seperate'; it means to set apart or divide.

9. Distinguish the high-frequency error words 'their,' 'there,' and 'they're.'

   'Their' = possessive (their car); 'there' = place or existence (over there); 'they're' = contraction of 'they are.'

10. Distinguish 'your' from 'you're.'

    'Your' = possessive (your badge); 'you're' = contraction of 'you are.'

11. Distinguish 'its' from 'it's.'

    'Its' = possessive (the dog wagged its tail); 'it's' = contraction of 'it is' or 'it has.'

12. Distinguish 'affect' from 'effect.'

    'Affect' is usually a verb meaning to influence (it affected him); 'effect' is usually a noun meaning a result (the effect was clear).

13. Distinguish 'accept' from 'except.'

    'Accept' is a verb meaning to receive or agree to; 'except' is a preposition meaning excluding.

14. Distinguish 'principal' from 'principle.'

    'Principal' = a head person or main/primary (the principal reason); 'principle' = a fundamental rule or belief.

15. What is the correct spelling of the word meaning a place to detain a person, and a common error?

    It is spelled 'definitely' is unrelated; the correct word is 'occurred' for happening — note 'occurred' has double 'c' and double 'r'.

16. How is the word 'embarrass' correctly spelled?

    'Embarrass' contains a double 'r' and a double 's' (em-barr-ass).

17. How is the word 'necessary' correctly spelled?

    'Necessary' has one 'c' and two 's's (ne-cess-ary).

18. What strategy helps you identify a misspelled word within a sentence on a multiple-choice test?

    Read each underlined or listed word carefully in isolation, sound it out syllable by syllable, and check it against known spelling rules and common error patterns.

19. In the sentence 'The officer recieved the report,' which word is misspelled and what is correct?

    'Recieved' is misspelled; the correct spelling is 'received' (i before e except after c).

20. In the sentence 'The suspect was arrested for the occurence,' which word is misspelled?

    'Occurence' is misspelled; the correct spelling is 'occurrence' (double 'r' and ending '-ence').

21. What is a synonym? Give an example.

    A synonym is a word with the same or nearly the same meaning as another word (e.g., 'big' and 'large').

22. What is an antonym? Give an example.

    An antonym is a word with the opposite meaning of another word (e.g., 'hot' and 'cold').

23. Give a synonym and an antonym for 'apprehend' (as used in law enforcement).

    Synonym: arrest/capture/seize. Antonym: release/free/liberate.

See more Spelling, Grammar, and Vocabulary Skills flashcards →

Planning Spelling, Grammar, and Vocabulary Skills for Police Officer Selection Test (POST)

Spelling, Grammar, and Vocabulary Skills (Police Officer Selection Test (POST)) FAQ