New SAT Writing and Language : New SAT Writing and Language
Study concepts, example questions & explanations for New SAT Writing and Language
All New SAT Writing and Language Resources
Example Questions
Example Question #1 : Avoiding Ambiguity And Redundancy In A Full Sentence
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.
How should the underlined section be corrected?
These circulars, completely devoted, help coupon users get even more savings.
NO CHANGE
These circulars help completely devoted coupon users get even more savings.
These circulars help coupon users get even more savings, completely devoted.
Completely devoted, these circulars help get even more savings for coupon users.
These circulars help completely devoted coupon users get even more savings.
This question asks you to correct a misplaced modifier error. The modifying phrase, "completely devoted," should be placed as close as possible to the phrase it modifies, "coupon users." Otherwise, the misplaced modifier confuses the sentence's meaning, making it sound as though the circulars themselves are devoted.
Example Question #424 : Improving Paragraphs
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.
The writer is considering deleting the underlined sentence. Should he or she do so, and why or why not?
None of these answers is accurate.
No, this sentence includes a comma splice
No, this sentence gives a key definition that is directly relevant to the main point of the passage
Yes, this sentence is too basic in nature, and below the high scholarly tone of the rest of the passage
Yes, this sentence gives information that is contradicted later in the passage
No, this sentence gives a key definition that is directly relevant to the main point of the passage
This question is asking you to assess the contextual relevance of a section of the passage. The underlined portion gives key, basic definitional information, relating directly to the main focus of the passage. The practice of "couponing" which is the focus of the passage is fundamentally based on the more basic knowledge of a what coupon even is, which is provided in this sentence.
Example Question #121 : New Sat
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.
How should the underlined section be corrected?
key into
key in
key of
NO CHANGE
key for
NO CHANGE
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 #2 : Avoiding Ambiguity And Redundancy In A Full Sentence
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.
How should the underlined section be corrected?
Upon opening up your daily newspaper, one might find a glossy insert full of coupons
When you open up your daily newspaper, you might find a glossy insert full of coupons.
NO CHANGE
When you open up your daily newspaper, one finds a glossy insert full of coupons.
When they open up your daily newspaper, they find a glossy insert full of coupons.
When you open up your daily newspaper, you might find a glossy insert full of coupons.
This question asks you to correct ambiguity caused by a subject shift. The first part of the sentence uses the second-person subject, “you,” but the second part of the sentence switches to the third-person neutral subject, “one.” This reduces the clarity and consistency of the text. To correct this error, replace “one” with “you.”
Example Question #122 : New Sat
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.
How should the underlined section be corrected?
NO CHANGE
It does help them save hundreds of dollars per year, it also gives them a fun challenge every time they do their shopping.
Not only does it help them save hundreds of dollars per year, and it gives them a fun challenge every time they do their shopping.
Not only does it help them save hundreds of dollars per year, it gives them a fun challenge every time they do their shopping.
Not only does it help them save hundreds of dollars per year. It gives them a fun challenge every time they do their shopping.
NO CHANGE
This question asks you to select the correct correlative conjunctions to use in a sentence. This sentence is correct as written, making use of the correlative conjunctions "not only... but also" to express inclusion. These correlative conjunctions should be included in the same sentence, and both should be used.
Example Question #163 : Improving Paragraphs
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.
How can the underlined two sentences best be combined?
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!
Coupons are a little piece of paper that can give you a discount on what you buy; and you will be amazed at the great bargains and amazing savings you can get!
There is no grammatically correct way to combine these sentences as they are written
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!
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!
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!
These two sentences are correctly formed independent clauses. The only correct sentence combination provided uses a semicolon, in place of a period, to connect the two clauses. No other punctuation is required. A comma paired with a coordinating conjunction would also correctly combine these sentences.
Example Question #546 : Sat Writing
The Moluccas is a chain, or archetype, of islands belonging to Indonesia. Historically, these islands were known as the Spice Islands for their abundance of nutmeg, cloves, mace, and pepper, this profundity of spices eventually drew colonial attention. Spices such as cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, anise, and pepper were particularly popular during the medieval times. In the 1600s, the Spice Wars arose as a result of competing Portuguese and Dutch interest’s in the Spice Islands. The bloody conflict ended in the deaths of many native Moluccans as well as European traders, wherefore both Portugal and the Netherlands gained and lost territories ranging from Africa and South America. For this day, strife occasionally breaks out on the islands although it is now motivated by religious and not colonial disagreements. It is located just west of New Guinea in the Pacific Ocean, and its more than 1,000 islands are home to more than 2 million people today.
Which of these sentences requires the addition of a semi-colon?
The bloody conflict ended in the deaths of many native Moluccans as well as European traders, wherefore both Portugal and the Netherlands gained and lost territories ranging from Africa and South America.
The Moluccas is a chain, or archetype, of islands belonging to Indonesia.
Spices such as cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, anise, and pepper were particularly popular during the medieval times.
In the 1600s, the Spice Wars arose as a result of competing Portuguese and Dutch interest’s in the Spice Islands.
Historically, these islands were known as the Spice Islands for their abundance of nutmeg, cloves, mace, and pepper, this profundity of spices eventually drew colonial attention.
Historically, these islands were known as the Spice Islands for their abundance of nutmeg, cloves, mace, and pepper, this profundity of spices eventually drew colonial attention.
The second sentence of the paragraph, "Historically, these islands were known as the Spice Islands for their abundance of nutmeg, cloves, mace, and pepper, this profundity of spices eventually drew colonial attention," uses a comma to separate two independent clauses. Adding a semicolon will fix this error. Another option would be to replace the semi-colon with a comma and an appropriate coordinating conjunction. The other sentences, while including some grammatical errors, would neither benefit from nor even permit the addition of a semi-colon.
Example Question #425 : Improving Paragraphs
The Moluccas is a chain, or archetype, of islands belonging to Indonesia. Historically, these islands were known as the Spice Islands for their abundance of nutmeg, cloves, mace, and pepper, this profundity of spices eventually drew colonial attention. Spices such as cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, anise, and pepper were particularly popular during the medieval times. In the 1600s, the Spice Wars arose as a result of competing Portuguese and Dutch interest’s in the Spice Islands. The bloody conflict ended in the deaths of many native Moluccans as well as European traders, wherefore both Portugal and the Netherlands gained and lost territories ranging from Africa and South America. For this day, strife occasionally breaks out on the islands although it is now motivated by religious and not colonial disagreements. It is located just west of New Guinea in the Pacific Ocean, and its more than 1,000 islands are home to more than 2 million people today.
Which sentence should be deleted from the passage?
The Moluccas is a chain, or archetype, of islands belonging to Indonesia.
Historically, these islands were known as the Spice Islands for their abundance of nutmeg, cloves, mace, and pepper, this profundity of spices eventually drew colonial attention.
In the 1600s, the Spice Wars arose as a result of competing Portuguese and Dutch interest’s in the Spice Islands.
The bloody conflict ended in the deaths of many native Moluccans as well as European traders, wherefore both Portugal and the Netherlands gained and lost territories ranging from Africa and South America.
Spices such as cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, anise, and pepper were particularly popular during the medieval times.
Spices such as cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, anise, and pepper were particularly popular during the medieval times.
While it does discuss spices, the third sentence, "Spices such as cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, anise, and pepper were particularly popular during the medieval times," is the only sentence that does not discuss the Moluccas, the central topic of this passage. This question was asking you to assess the contextual relevance of a sentence providing detail. While passages like this one require specific details in order to justify their larger claims, not every detail is valuable. Random selections of trivia, even if tangentially related to the topic, should be deleted so as to preserve the passage's central focus. All of the other sentences provided related back to the central thesis and focus of the passage to a greater degree than is the third sentence.
Example Question #463 : Improving And Correcting Sentences
The Moluccas is a chain, or archetype, of islands belonging to Indonesia. Historically, these islands were known as the Spice Islands for their abundance of nutmeg, cloves, mace, and pepper, this profundity of spices eventually drew colonial attention. Spices such as cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, anise, and pepper were particularly popular during the medieval times. In the 1600s, the Spice Wars arose as a result of competing Portuguese and Dutch interest’s in the Spice Islands. The bloody conflict ended in the deaths of many native Moluccans as well as European traders, wherefore both Portugal and the Netherlands gained and lost territories ranging from Africa and South America. For this day, strife occasionally breaks out on the islands although it is now motivated by religious and not colonial disagreements. It is located just west of New Guinea in the Pacific Ocean, and its more than 1,000 islands are home to more than 2 million people today.
What should replace the underlined word "profundity"?
proliferation
proscenium
proclivity
NO CHANGE
profligacy
proliferation
"Profundity" is another word for profoundness or intellectual depth, which doesn’t fit the context of the sentence. We’re looking for a word that means abundance or rapid increase, which is the definition of “proliferation.” There were two equally valid paths to answering this question, one was based simply on word knowledge, if you knew the definitions of "profundity" and "proliferation" the answer was clear, and one was based on contextual awareness, the sentence was talking about the "abundance" and growth of spices as a commodity.
Example Question #2 : Revising Introductions And Transitions In A Sentence Fragment
The Moluccas is a chain, or archetype, of islands belonging to Indonesia. Historically, these islands were known as the Spice Islands for their abundance of nutmeg, cloves, mace, and pepper, this profundity of spices eventually drew colonial attention. Spices such as cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, anise, and pepper were particularly popular during the medieval times. In the 1600s, the Spice Wars arose as a result of competing Portuguese and Dutch interest’s in the Spice Islands. The bloody conflict ended in the deaths of many native Moluccans as well as European traders, wherefore both Portugal and the Netherlands gained and lost territories ranging from Africa and South America. For this day, strife occasionally breaks out on the islands although it is now motivated by religious and not colonial disagreements. It is located just west of New Guinea in the Pacific Ocean, and its more than 1,000 islands are home to more than 2 million people today.
How should the underlined section be changed?
NO CHANGE
At this day,
For this day;
To this day,
After these days,
To this day,
The sentence is explaining that a conflict still exists in the Moluccas up to and including the present day. The proper phrase to indicate this kind of temporal relationship is “To this day.”
All New SAT Writing and Language Resources
