ACT English : Correcting Grammatical Errors

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for ACT English

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Example Questions

Example Question #58 : Conventional And Idiomatic Usage Errors

Choose the answer that best corrects the underlined portion of the sentence. If the underlined portion is correct as written, select “NO CHANGE.”

Did you figure out the right bus to get in this time?

Possible Answers:

the right bus to get on

NO CHANGE

the right bus to get of

the right bus to get into

the right bus to get inside of

Correct answer:

the right bus to get on

Explanation:

This question asks you about the correct preposition to use after a verb. When discussing boarding a bus, the preposition "on" should be used: "to get on a bus." This rule is idiomatic and must be memorized. 

Example Question #61 : Other Usage Errors

Are you trying to stick to a budget? Using coupons for purchases, also known as “couponing” is a great way to save money on groceries. Coupons are a little piece of paper that can give you a discount on what you buy. You will be amazed at the great bargains and amazing savings you can get!

It’s easy to get started. When you open up your daily newspaper, one might find a glossy insert full of coupons. Some of the coupons will be for things you don’t buy, some will be for things you buy all the time. Go through the coupons and chop out the ones you can use.

The key to successful couponing is getting multiple copies of coupon circulars. Ask your friends, your neighbors, and family if they have any extras. Some coupon users even go through the recycling at their office to find more coupons! Have you ever heard of such a thing in your life! Completely devoted, these circulars help coupon users to get even more savings.

Couponing might sound like hard work, but for many people, it’s also a hobby. Not only does it help them save hundreds of dollars per year, but also it gives them a fun challenge every time they do their shopping. 

Choose the answer that best corrects the underlined portion of the sentence. If the underlined portion is correct as written, choose "NO CHANGE."

Possible Answers:

key into

key for

NO CHANGE

key in

key of

Correct answer:

NO CHANGE

Explanation:

This question asks you about the correct preposition to use with a noun. When the noun "key" is used to describe an important secret or way of mastering something, the preposition that should follow is "to." This rule is idiomatic, which means it must be memorized. 

Example Question #62 : Other Usage Errors

Maybe your thinking of getting a dog; but you are not sure how it will affect your budget. Don’t worry! It’s possible to enjoy the companionship with a dog without spending too much of your precious dollars.

First, you will want to make a list of all the necessary items needed before you bring Fluffy home. Compare costs at different pet stores, grocery stores and big box stores. You will need to buy food, a leash, and purchase toys for your dog.

When it comes to the many dog food choices, you don’t want to just buy the cheaper option. You will want to do some research to see what is healthiest for your dog! One of the best ways to save money on dog food is to buy it in bulk.

Don’t forget to plan for some other big expenses, the vet consultation, wellness exam, and any treatments your dog needs. When you bring your pet to the vet, they may need shots, which can vary for price. Call different clinics in the area and ask how much they charge for the standard immunizations? You might find that there is a lot of differences between offices.

The key to sticking to your budget is planning everything out! With good preparation and organization, a dog will not cost you more money than you planned for.

Choose the answer that best corrects the bolded and underlined portion of the passage. If the bolded and underlined portion is correct as written, choose "NO CHANGE."

Possible Answers:

NO CHANGE

companionship to a dog

companionship for a dog

dog companionship 

companionship of a dog

Correct answer:

companionship of a dog

Explanation:

This question asks you about the correct preposition to use with a verb. This sentence is describing the ability to enjoy a dog's companionship. The correct preposition to use to indicate this possession is "of:" "the companionship of a dog."

Example Question #68 : Other Usage Errors

Maybe your thinking of getting a dog; but you are not sure how it will affect your budget. Don’t worry! It’s possible to enjoy the companionship with a dog without spending too much of your precious dollars.

First, you will want to make a list of all the necessary items needed before you bring Fluffy home. Compare costs at different pet stores, grocery stores and big box stores. You will need to buy food, a leash, and purchase toys for your dog.

When it comes to the many dog food choices, you don’t want to just buy the cheaper option. You will want to do some research to see what is healthiest for your dog! One of the best ways to save money on dog food is to buy it in bulk.

Don’t forget to plan for some other big expenses, the vet consultation, wellness exam, and any treatments your dog needs. When you bring your pet to the vet, they may need shots, which can vary for price. Call different clinics in the area and ask how much they charge for the standard immunizations? You might find that there is a lot of differences between offices.

The key to sticking to your budget is planning everything out! With good preparation and organization, a dog will not cost you more money than you planned for.

Choose the answer that best corrects the bolded and underlined portion of the passage. If the bolded and underlined portion is correct as written, choose "NO CHANGE."

Possible Answers:

vary the price

vary with price

NO CHANGE

vary what price

vary in price

Correct answer:

vary in price

Explanation:

This question asks you about the correct preposition to use after a verb. The preposition "in" should generally be used after the verb "vary" when describing a quality that varies.

Example Question #66 : Other Usage Errors

The rainforest in Borneo which is home to a declining orangutan population is in danger because of the slash and burn agriculture practices of palm oil plantations. As a student of environmental science and policy, I had the opportunity to travel to Borneo with a team of scientists and learn more about the situation.  It was my first time visiting the rainforest, and I was excited to hike, camp, and learning.   At night, we cooked dinner over a small camp stove, but during the day we ate plants along the trail. The biologists's extensive training in botany helped them identify which plants were edible during their trek through the rainforest.  I felt very fortunate to see this beautiful, endangered forest. One of the scientists told me that much of the trails in the forest are impassable during the rainy season.

After a few days of trekking, we arrived in a part of the forest that was supposed to be a protected area.  However, the local minister of forestry was known for catering to the wishes of large palm oil plantation owners. The minister was determined to support the lucrative palm oil industry, irregardless of the costs. Consequently, he had recently allowed the area’s largest company to conduct slash-and-burn farming within the boundaries of the protected area. The scientists told me that these practices not only harmed orangutan habitats, and they contributed to global warming by releasing large amounts of carbon dioxide when peat burns on the forest floor.

Choose the answer that best corrects the bolded and underlined portion of the passage. If the bolded and underlined portion is correct as written, choose "NO CHANGE."

Possible Answers:

regardless of

regardless from

NO CHANGE

irregardless to

irregardless from

Correct answer:

regardless of

Explanation:

"Regardless of" is the correct idiomatic expression. While people say "irregardless" in everyday speech, it is not grammatically correct. 

Example Question #67 : Other Usage Errors

The rainforest in Borneo which is home to a declining orangutan population is in danger because of the slash and burn agriculture practices of palm oil plantations. As a student of environmental science and policy, I had the opportunity to travel to Borneo with a team of scientists and learn more about the situation.  It was my first time visiting the rainforest, and I was excited to hike, camp, and learning.   At night, we cooked dinner over a small camp stove, but during the day we ate plants along the trail. The biologists's extensive training in botany helped them identify which plants were edible during their trek through the rainforest.  I felt very fortunate to see this beautiful, endangered forest. One of the scientists told me that much of the trails in the forest are impassable during the rainy season.

After a few days of trekking, we arrived in a part of the forest that was supposed to be a protected area.  However, the local minister of forestry was known for catering to the wishes of large palm oil plantation owners. The minister was determined to support the lucrative palm oil industry, irregardless of the costs. Consequently, he had recently allowed the area’s largest company to conduct slash-and-burn farming within the boundaries of the protected area. The scientists told me that these practices not only harmed orangutan habitats, and they contributed to global warming by releasing large amounts of carbon dioxide when peat burns on the forest floor.

Choose the answer that best corrects the bolded and underlined portion of the passage. If the bolded and underlined portion is correct as written, choose "NO CHANGE."

Possible Answers:

but also contributed

but did contribute

contributed

NO CHANGE

and also contributed

Correct answer:

but also contributed

Explanation:

When using the phrase "not only....." the second part of the phrase (which incorrectly reads "and they contributed" in the passage) must begin with "but also."  

Example Question #62 : Conventional And Idiomatic Usage Errors

Over winter break, our AP Spanish class took a trip to South America to practice the language and learn more about different Spanish-speaking cultures.  Before we left, every student had to get their vaccinations for yellow fever and typhoid. Our first stop was Bolivia. When we landed at El Alto airport the highest in the world, we could see the city of La Paz sprawling up the hillsides in the shadow of the Andes.   The first day in La Paz, we went to the Witches’s Market, run by local yatiri. The yatiri are medical practitioners who perform healing rituals in they’re communities. At the market, we saw dried frogs, llama fetuses, herbs, and seeds, used in various rituals. After we visited La Paz, we traveled to Cochabamba.  Cochabamba is Bolivia’s culinary capital, with delicious specialties such as salteñas and rellenos. In Cochabamba, we also climbed 1400 steps to see the Cristo de La Concordia statue, the tallest of it’s kind in South America. Next, we visited the salt flats of Uyuni.  Several lagoons dotted the high desert landscape, some of who were full of flamingos!

 

On our way out of Bolivia, we stopped at Lake Titicaca on the Peruvian border. Because the lake’s elevation is over 12,000 feet, some of my classmates experienced a bit of altitude sickness.  Despite the altitude sickness, everyone said they loved seeing the beautiful scenery and visiting the mysterious “floating islands” made of reeds.   When we crossed the border into Peru, one of my classmates thought she had lost her passport. I would of had a panic attack! She ended up finding it buried in a pocket of her backpack and we were on our way. 

 

My favorite part of Peru was our trek to the ancient Incan ruins of Machu Picchu. We spent four days hiking in the Andes on a trail to the ruins. Our guides, whom spoke Spanish, English, and Quechua, were very knowledgeable about the history, flora, and fauna in the region.  Upon waking up the next morning, a beautiful sunrise greeted us and cast the mountains in its soft pink glow. After we explored the ruins, we took a train ride back to Cuzco.  The next day, we flew to Lima and prepared to return home. I was sad to leave, but I know I would be back some day!

Select the answer choice that best corrects the bold underlined portion of the passage. If the sentence is correct as written, select NO CHANGE.

Possible Answers:

I could of had a panic attack!

I would have had a panic attack!

I would of been having a panic attack!

I would have to be having a panic attack!

NO CHANGE

Correct answer:

I would have had a panic attack!

Explanation:

Even though people often say "would of" (or "could of" or "should of") in everyday speech, the correct idiomatic expression is "would (or could or should) have." In this case, "would have" is correct.

Example Question #1461 : Correcting Grammatical Errors

Adapted from “Authority: The Unavoidable” in What’s Wrong with the World by G.K. Chesterton (1912)

The important point here is only that you cannot get rid of authority in education. It is not so much that parental authority ought to be preserved. The more, important truth, is that such authority cannot be destroyed. Mr. Bernard Shaw once said that he had hated the idea of forming a child's mind. In that case, Mr. Bernard Shaw had better hang himself, for he hates something inseparable from human life. I only mentioned [earlier in the book] the drawing out of the child’s abilities in order to point out that even this mental trick does not avoid the idea of parental or scholastic authority. The educator's drawing out is just as arbitrary and coercive as the instructor’s action, for he draws out what he chooses. He decides what in the child shall be developed and what shall not be developed.

The only result of all this pompous distinction between the “educator” and the “instructor” is who the instructor pokes where he likes and the educator pulls where he likes. Exactly the same intellectual violence is done to the creature whom is poked and pulled. We must all except the responsibility of this intellectual violence, whether from poking or from pulling.

Education is violent; because it is creative. It is such because it is human. It is as reckless as playing on the fiddle, as dogmatic as drawing a picture, as brutal as building a house. In short, it is what all human action is, it is an interference with life and growth. After that it is a trifling and even a jocular question whether we say of this tremendous tormentor, the artist Man, that he puts things into us like a pharmacist or draws things out of us.

Choose the answer that best corrects the bolded portion of the passage. If the bolded portion is correct as written, choose "NO CHANGE."

Possible Answers:

Mr. Bernard Shaw had better hung himself

Mr. Bernard Shaw will hang himself

NO CHANGE

Mr. Bernard Shaw can hang himself

Correct answer:

NO CHANGE

Explanation:

To understand the correct answer, notice that the author wishes to say, "Mr. Bernard Shaw ought to hang himself." While perhaps a bit gruesome—in a sarcastic way—the expression says nothing about whether or not he can or will do so. The expression "had better" is a bit idiomatic, but it generally means "ought to," which is exactly what is needed in this sentence.

Example Question #1 : Comparative And Superlative Adjective And Adverb Errors

Adapted from The Varieties of Religious Experience by William James (1902)

In the matter of religions, it is particularly easy distinguishing the too orders of question. Every religious phenomenon has its history and its derivation from natural antecedents. What is nowadays called the higher criticism of the Bible are only a study of the Bible from this existential point of view, neglected to much by the earlier church. Under just what biographic conditions did the sacred writers bring forth their various contributions to the holy volume? What had they exactly in their several individual minds, when they delivered their utterances? These are manifestly questions of historical fact, and one does not see how the answer to it can decide offhand the still further question: of what use should such a volume, with its manner of coming into existence so defined, be to us as a guide to life and a revelation? To answer this other question we must have already in our mind some sort of a general theory as to what the peculiarities in a thing should be which give it value for purposes of revelation; and this theory itself would be what I just called a spiritual judgment. Combining it with our existential judgment, we might indeed deduce another spiritual judgment as to the Bibles’ worth. Thus, if our theory of revelation-value were to affirm that any book, to possess it, must have been composed automatically or not by the free caprice of the writer, or that it must exhibit no scientific and historic errors and express no local or personal passions, the Bible would probably fare ill at our hands. But if, on the other hand, our theory should allow that a book may well be a revelation in spite of errors and passions and deliberate human composition, if only it be a true record of the inner experiences of great-souled persons wrestling with the crises of his fate, than the verdict would be much favorable. You see that the existential facts by itself are insufficient for determining the value; and the best adepts of the higher criticism accordingly never confound the existential with the spiritual problem. With the same conclusions of fact before them, some take one view, and some another, of the Bible's value as a revelation, according as their spiritual judgment as to the foundation of values differ.

What is the appropriate form of the underlined word "favorable"?

Possible Answers:

NO CHANGE

more favorable

to the favorable

favorabler

Correct answer:

more favorable

Explanation:

(Note that there are other minor mistakes in this sentence, about which other questions will be asked.) Reading the whole sentence, you can see that the author is stating that prospects for the Bible's (or any book's) meaningfulness (according to the author, at least) would be better if it were "a true record of the inner experiences of great-souled persons . . ." The implication is that the verdict concerning (judgment of) such texts would be in a much more favorable status than if such an allowance were not made. That is, there is an implied comparison, which requires the comparative degree of the adjective "favorable." Because of its length, the word requires the use of "more" and not the "-er" suffix.

Example Question #1 : Comparative And Superlative Adjective And Adverb Errors

Choose the word or phrase that best completes the sentence.

He was the ________ of all the performers.

Possible Answers:

more funny

most funniest

funniest

funny

funnier

Correct answer:

funniest

Explanation:

Because the sentence implies that there were more than two performers, you need a superlative, not a comparative, adjective. Thus, "funnier" and "more funny" are both incorrect, because they are comparative forms of adjectives. "More" and "most" are used to modify the original adjective (in this case, "funny"), so "most funniest" is also incorrect. "Funny" by itself is neither a comparative nor a superlative adjective. Since it implies no comparison, "funny" cannot be the correct answer either. "Funniest" is the correct answer.

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