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Verbs Test
With Bugs...

Reading Level 3

Part One | Verb Phrases

Directions: Read each sentence and identify the complete verb phrase (main verb and any helping verbs). Circle your answer. 

1. 	Ladybug's sparkly shoes shimmered in the summer sunlight.	

a)	shimmered	b)	shimmered in	
c)	shoes shimmered	d)	shimmered in the	

2. 	Cricket will be playing his violin outside your window all night long.	

a)	playing	b)	be playing	
c)	will be playing	d)	will be playing his	

3. 	Flea and his ten thousand brothers were afraid of the ravenous Dragonfly.	

a)	were	b)	were afraid	
c)	afraid of	d)	were afraid of	

4. 	Bee's mother had warned him about Hornet and Wasp's negative influence on his life.	

a)	had	b)	had warned	
c)	warned	d)	had warned him	

5. 	Ladybug put on her favorite spotted dress and went to the spring dance with her friend Dragonfly.	

a)	put	b)	went to dance	
c)	put and dance	d)	put and went	

6. 	Ant could lift 50 times his weight in stale pizza crusts and crumbs from hotdog buns.	

a)	could	b)	lift	
c)	could lift	d)	could lift in	

7. 	The ill-reputed Hornet and Wasp are not allowed at the picnic with Ant and Ladybug.	

a)	are	b)	allowed	
c)	are allowed	d)	are allowed at	

8. 	Mantis brushed her mandibles and washed her hands after the meal with her boyfriend.	

a)	brushed	b)	brushed her	
c)	brushed and washed	d)	brushed her and washed her	

9. 	Bee will be buzzing by flowers and through showers for hours this spring.	

a)	buzzing	b)	will be	
c)	be buzzing	d)	will be buzzing	

10. 	Tick is having a warm, refreshing drink of camper's blood with a twist of Lyme disease.	

a)	is	b)	drink	
c)	drink of	d)	is having	

11. 	Butterfly fluttered by the fly beside the butter knife another time.	

a)	fluttered	b)	by	
c)	fluttered by	d)	fluttered by the	

12. 	Mantis invited her boyfriend over for an afternoon snack.	

a)	invited	b)	invited her	
c)	invited for an	d)	invited for snack	

13. 	Hornet and Wasp were flying around and looking for trouble as usual.	

a)	were flying	b)	were flying and looking	
c)	flying and looking	d)	were flying around and looking	

14. 	Can you hear Cricket's song in your lawn at dawn?	

a)	hear	b)	Can hear	
c)	Can you hear	d)	song	

Part Two | Conjugation, Tense, and Aspect

Directions: Read each sentence. Choose the answer that best completes it based on conjugation, tense, and aspect. Circle your answer. 

15. 	Ant ________ his crumbs with his friend Lady Bug until that treacherous Spider arrived.	

a)	were going to share	b)	we're going to share	
c)	was going to share	d)	will be sharing	

16. 	Wasp and Hornet ________ around the yard and looking for some unfortunate fool to sting.	

a)	flew	b)	was flying	
c)	had flown	d)	were flying	

17. 	"If I ________ Bee, I'd mind my own beeswax," said Hornet to his temperamental friend Wasp.	

a)	were	b)	we're	
c)	was	d)	where	

18. 	If Ant ________ that it was going to rain so heavily, he wouldn't have even came to the picnic.	

a)	knew	b)	had knew	
c)	had known	d)	knows	

19. 	The beautiful Mantis ________ at her bigheaded boyfriend and licking her lips.	

a)	looks	b)	looked	
c)	had looked	d)	was looking	

20. 	Tick ________ very thirsty by the time the careless campers begin to set up their tents.	

a)	is	b)	will be	
c)	had been	d)	has been	

21. 	After Grasshopper jumped through Spider's living room, Spider ________ that it was time to build a new home.	

a)	decide	b)	decided	
c)	decides	d)	will decide	

22. 	Flea ________ of his ten-thousand brothers borrowing his things without asking.	

a)	sick	b)	was sick	
c)	were sick	d)	we're sick	

23. 	Fly ________ the cookie crumbs, but he flew off to find something stinkier.	

a)	could a ate	b)	could of eaten	
c)	could a eaten	d)	could have eaten	

24. 	Spider, a natural homebody, ________ a new room to his home below the gutter.	

a)	be busy adding	b)	we're busy adding	
c)	was busy adding	d)	were busy adding	

25. 	Wasp ________ Bee pollinate the flowers, but Wasp was much too busy harassing children.	

a)	would a helped	b)	would of helped	
c)	would of help	d)	would have helped	

26. 	"________ too busy eating this dog," said Flea to his diseased and parasitic friend Tick.	

a)	Were	b)	We's	
c)	We're	d)	We was	

27. 	Fly ________ by Butterfly during Spider's suppertime.	

a)	flew	b)	flied	
c)	flyed	d)	flown	

28. 	Mantis ________ pantless in Kansas.	

a)	dances and prances	b)	dances and prancing	
c)	dancing and prances	d)	danced and prancing	

29. 	Ant ________ more food for the winter, but he was busy playing with that knucklehead Grasshopper.	

a)	should a stored	b)	should of store	
c)	should of stored	d)	should have stored	

30. 	Spider ________ before he took a rejuvenating nap.	

a)	is exhausted	b)	has been exhausted	
c)	had been exhausted	d)	was going to be exhausted	

31. 	Flea, Moth, and Tick ________ a riotous insect party in your sweater.	

a)	throwing	b)	is throwing	
c)	be throwing	d)	are throwing	

32. 	Fly ________ the nauseating scent of my locker.	

a)	love	b)	loves	
c)	be loving	d)	loving	

33. 	Ladybug, Bee, and Mantis ________ an afternoon tea party for the ladies.	

a)	planning	b)	is planning	
c)	are planning	d)	was planning