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P-2 Semicolons

Edit each of the following sentences to replace commas with semicolons as necessary.

Answers to even-numbered items can be found at the back of the book.

EXAMPLE

Most major sports organizations ban steroids,; still, some athletes rely on them.

1. Steroids are performance-enhancing drugs, indeed, they build muscle mass and strength,

which lead to better results in competition.

2. Steroids are synthetic forms of the male hormone testosterone, megadoses of steroids give

users an unfair advantage.

3. Males in good health usually produce less than ten milligrams of testosterone a day,

athletes on steroids swallow or inject hundreds of milligrams a day.

4. In adults, steroids cause rapid weight gain, problems with blood clotting, and heart attacks,

in adolescents they can shut down bone growth.

5. Signs of steroid use are jaundice, or yellow skin, sudden combative behavior, excessive

vomiting that lasts more than a few days, and swollen feet.

6. Athletes who later admitted steroid use include Mark McGwire and Barry Bonds, the

baseball stars, Marion Jones, the track star, and Lance Armstrong, the cyclist.

7. McGwire surpassed Roger Maris’s season home-run record of sixty, Bonds beat McGwire’s

number and set the record for most career home runs as well.

8. In 2013, Alex Rodriguez was suspended for 211 games for allegedly using steroids, thirteen

other major-league baseball players were also suspended, but A-Rod was the only one to

appeal his suspension.

9. A 2012 report by the Associated Press claimed college football players use steroids, it

suggested that colleges knowingly look the other way.

10. Books about steroid use in athletics include Game of Shadows, 2007, Bases Loaded, 2009,

and Steroids: A New Look, 2011.

Name: _____________________________________________________ Class/section: ________________________________