Police Officer Selection Test (POST) Written Communication and Grammar Syllabus

Written Communication and Grammar syllabus — full chapter and topic list

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

1. 1

   Grammar and Usage

   4 topics

   • Parts of Speech
     • Nouns, pronouns, and antecedent agreement
     • Verbs, tense consistency, and voice
     • Adjectives, adverbs, and modifiers
   • Subject-Verb Agreement
     • Compound and collective subjects
     • Intervening phrases and inverted order
   • Pronoun Case and Reference
     • Subjective, objective, and possessive case
     • Avoiding vague or ambiguous reference
   • Sentence Structure
     • Fragments and run-on sentences
     • Misplaced and dangling modifiers
2. 2

   Mechanics: Spelling, Punctuation, Capitalization

   3 topics

   • Spelling
     • Commonly misspelled and confused words
     • Homophones (their/there, your/you're, its/it's)
   • Punctuation
     • Commas, semicolons, and colons
     • Apostrophes for possession and contraction
     • Quotation marks for statements and dialogue
   • Capitalization
     • Proper nouns, titles, and place names
     • Capitalization in report headings
3. 3

   Clarity and Word Choice

   3 topics

   • Concise and Precise Wording
     • Eliminating redundancy and wordiness
     • Choosing exact, specific terms
   • Word Usage and Diction
     • Commonly confused word pairs (affect/effect, accept/except)
     • Formal versus informal register
   • Sentence Combining and Logical Order
     • Combining short sentences effectively
     • Arranging sentences into coherent paragraphs
4. 4

   Report Writing Fundamentals

   3 topics

   • Translating Notes into Narrative
     • Organizing facts chronologically
     • Converting fragmented notes to complete sentences
   • The Six Investigative Questions
     • Who, what, when, where, why, and how
     • Ensuring completeness of a report
   • Objectivity and Accuracy in Reports
     • Recording facts without opinion or conclusion
     • Using first-person, active voice

Written Communication and Grammar flashcards for Police Officer Selection Test (POST)

25 of 52 cards from the Written Communication and Grammar deck — real questions with worked answers.

1. What are the eight traditional parts of speech in English?

   Noun, pronoun, verb, adjective, adverb, preposition, conjunction, and interjection.

2. What is the difference between a common noun and a proper noun?

   A common noun names a general person, place, or thing (officer, city) and is not capitalized; a proper noun names a specific one (Officer Reyes, Chicago) and is always capitalized.

3. What is the function of an adverb, and what does it modify?

   An adverb modifies a verb, an adjective, or another adverb, typically telling how, when, where, or to what degree (e.g., quickly, yesterday, very).

4. What is the role of a conjunction, and what do the coordinating conjunctions spell?

   A conjunction connects words, phrases, or clauses. The seven coordinating conjunctions are remembered by FANBOYS: for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so.

5. What is a preposition, and what is a prepositional phrase?

   A preposition shows the relationship of a noun/pronoun to another word (in, on, under, between). A prepositional phrase is the preposition plus its object (e.g., 'under the vehicle').

6. What is the basic rule of subject-verb agreement?

   A verb must agree with its subject in number: a singular subject takes a singular verb, and a plural subject takes a plural verb (The officer writes / The officers write).

7. When a subject and verb are separated by a phrase (e.g., 'The box of files'), what determines the verb's number?

   The true subject, not the noun in the intervening phrase. 'The box of files is heavy' — the verb agrees with 'box' (singular), not 'files'.

8. How do you handle subject-verb agreement with subjects joined by 'or' or 'nor'?

   The verb agrees with the subject nearer to it. 'Neither the sergeant nor the officers were present'; 'Neither the officers nor the sergeant was present.'

9. Are indefinite pronouns like 'each,' 'everyone,' 'either,' and 'neither' singular or plural for verb agreement?

   They are singular and take a singular verb (Everyone is ready; Each of the suspects was questioned).

10. For subject-verb agreement, how are collective nouns like 'jury,' 'team,' or 'committee' usually treated?

    As singular when acting as one unit (The jury has reached a verdict), taking a singular verb.

11. What is the difference between subjective (nominative) and objective pronoun case?

    Subjective case pronouns (I, he, she, we, they) act as subjects; objective case pronouns (me, him, her, us, them) act as objects of verbs or prepositions.

12. How do you decide between 'who' and 'whom'?

    Use 'who' as the subject (it does the action) and 'whom' as the object (it receives the action). Tip: if you can substitute 'he/she,' use 'who'; if 'him/her,' use 'whom.'

13. In 'between you and me,' why is 'me' correct rather than 'I'?

    'Between' is a preposition, so its object must be in the objective case; 'me' is objective, while 'I' is subjective.

14. What is a faulty (ambiguous) pronoun reference, and why is it a problem in reports?

    It occurs when a pronoun could refer to more than one antecedent, making the meaning unclear (e.g., 'He told him his car was towed'). In reports it creates confusion about who did what.

15. What is the rule for pronoun-antecedent agreement?

    A pronoun must agree with its antecedent in number, person, and gender (A witness must sign his or her statement; Witnesses must sign their statements).

16. What is an independent clause?

    A group of words with a subject and a verb that expresses a complete thought and can stand alone as a sentence.

17. What is a dependent (subordinate) clause?

    A group of words with a subject and verb that does not express a complete thought and cannot stand alone (e.g., 'when the officer arrived').

18. What is a sentence fragment?

    An incomplete sentence that is missing a subject, a verb, or a complete thought and is punctuated as if it were a full sentence.

19. What is a run-on sentence, and what is a comma splice?

    A run-on joins two independent clauses with no punctuation or conjunction; a comma splice joins two independent clauses with only a comma. Both are errors.

20. Name the four sentence structures classified by clause type.

    Simple (one independent clause), compound (two or more independent clauses), complex (one independent + one or more dependent clauses), and compound-complex (two or more independent + at least one dependent clause).

21. What is a dangling modifier?

    A modifying phrase that has no clear word to modify in the sentence (e.g., 'Walking to the car, the radio went off' — who was walking?).

22. What is the spelling rule commonly stated as 'i before e'?

    'I before E, except after C, or when sounded as A as in neighbor and weigh' (believe, receive, freight). Common exceptions include weird, seize, and either.

23. When adding a suffix beginning with a vowel to a word ending in silent 'e,' what is the general rule?

    Drop the silent 'e' (make → making, hope → hoping). Keep the 'e' before a consonant suffix (hope → hopeful) and before suffixes when needed to keep a soft c/g (notice → noticeable).

24. What is the rule for forming the plural of a noun ending in 'y'?

    If a consonant comes before the 'y,' change 'y' to 'i' and add 'es' (city → cities); if a vowel comes before the 'y,' just add 's' (key → keys).

25. What is the difference in spelling/use between 'their,' 'there,' and 'they're'?

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

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