All New SAT Writing and Language Resources
Example Questions
Example Question #2 : Parallel Constructions
Because school was out, she went to the ocean, saw a whale, and she tried her best to communicate with friends.
trying
and tried
tried
NO CHANGE
and tried
When encountering a list, ensure that each item in the list is presented in the same way, maintaining a parallel structure. In this case, the list begins with two items, “went to the ocean” and “saw a whale,” given in past tense. For this reason, “trying” doesn’t fit, because it is given in the present tense. If “tried” is chosen, the list has no coordinating conjunction, which is necessary to a grammatical list. With no change, the “she” is redundant, as the previous item has been presented without a subject. For this reason, “and tried” is the best answer, as it completes the list without redundancy and while maintaining a parallel structure.
Example Question #3 : Parallel Constructions
Kaitlyn was certain that she was talented, driven, and had the focus enough to complete the work on time.
was focused
focused
could focus
NO CHANGE
focused
When encountering a list, ensure that each item in the list is presented in the same way, maintaining parallel structure. In this case, the list begins with two adjectives describing Kaitlyn. For this reason, “had the focus,” which attributes focus to Kaitlyn by suggesting that she “had” it, is not parallel to the other items. Similarly, “could focus” presents a modal verb describing her ability to focus, instead of a mere adjective. The redundancy of “was,” which appears before the list and in “was focused,” shows that it is not a viable option. The remaining choice, “focused,” is an adjective which is parallel to the other two in the list, and is thus our correct answer.
Example Question #4 : Parallel Constructions
It might be more efficient to pry the door open than to keep banging on it.
kept banging
keep banging
NO CHANGE
keeping to bang
NO CHANGE
When contrasting two items, it’s important they remain parallel in their structure. In this case, the comparison is being drawn between one option, “to pry the door open,” given as an infinitive, and a less efficient alternative. One candidate, “keep banging,” is given in the simple present tense, which does not match the infinitive form of the other option. Similarly, “kept banging” is given in the simple past tense, not the infinitive. Another possibility, “keeping to bang,” might at first seem to incorporate an infinitive, but is in reality altogether ungrammatical. However, if the sentence remains unchanged, “to keep banging,” an infinitive, is correctly parallel to “to pry.”
Example Question #1 : Parallel Constructions
Once the two of us took the floor, it became clear to everyone at the party that my dance moves are much better than these done by my dad.
those of
DELETE the underlined portion
NO CHANGE
the dance moves done by
those of
When drawing a comparison between two items, it’s important they remain parallel in their structure. In this case, “my dance moves” cannot be compared directly to “my dad,” but instead must be contrasted with the dance moves of the speaker’s dad, meaning the underlined portion should not be deleted. On the other hand, “these done by” appears to be an attempt to compare the dance moves in parallel, but “these” suggests a proximity to the moves that do not make sense in context. Of the remaining two options, “the dance moves done by” is clunkier and less succinct than “those of,” which successfully draws a parallel comparison while avoiding redundancy and unnecessary wordiness.
Example Question #371 : New Sat
His favorite part about going to school every day wasn’t playing basketball, but rather having seen his friends.
seeing
NO CHANGE
having this opportunity to see
DELETE the underlined portion
seeing
When contrasting two items, it’s important they remain parallel in their structure. In this case, because the first item, “playing basketball,” is given as a gerund verb, the second item should be given the same way. This means that the underlined portion should not be deleted. Although “having seen” is a gerund, it is given in the past tense, which is not parallel to “playing basketball,” which is in the present tense. Of the remaining choices, “having this opportunity to see” is clunkier than “seeing,” which retains parallel structure without being unnecessarily verbose or using “this,” which is unnecessary in this context.
Example Question #5 : Parallel Constructions
There’s nothing that makes me happier than a chance to go to the beach, unfurl my towel, open up my umbrella, and to get to relax for a little while.
to relax
relax
get to relax
NO CHANGE
relax
When encountering a list, ensure that each item in the list is presented in the same way, maintaining parallel structure. In this case, the first three items in the list are actions, given in the simple present tense. Accordingly, “to relax,” which is in the infinitive form, is not effectively parallel to the previous listed actions. A similar option, “to get to relax,” is also an infinitive, albeit a more complex one, and is incorrect for the same reasons. Though “get to relax” is given in the simple present tense, “get to” is redundant with a descriptor which precedes the list, “a chance,” as both convey the same sense of opportunity. For this reason, “relax,” which is parallel in its use of the simple present and in no way redundant, is the best choice.
Example Question #31 : Grammar: Modifiers And Sentence Construction
Claire’s new job offer presented an opportunity for growth, stability, and to see the world differently.
seeing the world different
NO CHANGE
a different outlook on the world
a differently outlook on the world
a different outlook on the world
When encountering a list, ensure that each item in the list is presented in the same way, maintaining parallel structure. In this case, the first two items in the list are nouns. If the sentence remains unchanged, “to see the world differently,” a verb phrase in the infinitive form, is not parallel to the nouns presented previously. Likewise, “seeing the world different” is a verb in the present participle tense, meaning it is not parallel, and also uses an adjective, “different,” to modify the verb, which is ungrammatical. Of the remaining two options, both are noun phrases, meaning they are parallel in structure, but “a differently outlook on the world” ungrammatically modifies a noun with an adverb, meaning that “a different outlook on the world” is the correct choice, as it is both parallel and grammatical.
Example Question #308 : Sat Writing
There are two different ways to consider the so-called “Dark Ages.” On the one hand, you can think of the period directly after the fall of the Roman Empire, when civilization began to collapse throughout the Western Empire. On the other hand, you can consider the period that followed this initial collapse of society. It is a gross simplification too use the adjective dark to describe the civilization of either of these periods.
As regards the first period, it is quite a simplification to consider this period to be a single historical moment. It is not as though the civilization switched off like a lightbulb. At one moment light and then, at the next, dark. Instead, the decline of civilization occurred over a period of numerous decades and was, in fact, already occurring for many years before the so-called period of darkness. Thus, the decline of civilization was not a rapid collapse into barbarism, but instead, was a slow alteration of the cultural milieu of a partition of Europe. Indeed, the Eastern Roman Empire retained much of it’s cultural status during these years of decline!
More importantly, the period following the slow collapse of the Western Empire was much less “dark” than almost every popular telling states. Indeed, even during the period of decline, the seeds for cultural restoration was being sown. A key element of this cultural revival were the formation of monastic communities throughout the countryside of what we now know as Europe. Although these were not the only positive force during these centuries, the monasteries had played an important role in preserving and advancing the cause of culture through at least the thirteenth century and arguably until the Renaissance.
How should the underlined section be changed?
Thus, the decline of civilization was not a rapid collapse into barbarism but, instead, was a slow alteration of the cultural milieu of a portion of Europe.
NO CHANGE
Thus, the decline of civilization was not a rapid collapse into barbarism, but instead was a slow alteration of the cultural milieu of a portion of Europe.
Thus, the decline of civilization was not a rapid collapse into barbarism but, instead, were a slow alteration of the cultural milieu of a portion of Europe.
Thus, the decline of civilization was not a rapid collapse into barbarism but, instead, was a slow alteration of the cultural milieu of a portion of Europe.
As written, this sentence has two issues. The first is its use of a comma directly before the conjunction "but." Such a comma is used only when you have two independent clauses being joined. Since the subject does not change, you do not have two wholly independent clauses. Secondly, the sentence needs a comma before the word "instead" to set that word off from the rest of the sentence, as it slightly interrupts the flow of the main idea.
Example Question #1 : Commas
There once was a shepherd boy whom sat on the hillside watching the village sheep. He was hot and exhausted fanning himself, rapidly in a feeble attempt to cool himself down. On top of that, he had never been so bored before. To amuse himself, he decided to play a joke. He put his hands around his mouth and yelled in a loud voice, "Wolf! Wolf! A wolf is chasing the sheep!”
They came running. They asked the boy, “What’s going on? Did you yell ‘A wolf is chasing the sheep?’”
The boy laughed. “It was just a joke, everyone.”
The people fumed, but they all returned to their homes.
The next day, the boy bored again decided to amuse himself again. He bellowed, “Wolf! Wolf!” Again, the townspeople came running. Once they arrived and witnessed the laughing boy, they realized they’d been tricked a second time. Nonetheless, they returned home and irritated resolved to never fall for the trick again for third time.
The next day, the boy was watching his sheep. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a wolf appeared from behind the bushes. With its teeth bared, the boy cowered as the wolf approached the sheep. Terrified, he called, “Help! A wolf! A wolf is here!” The people ignored his cries. “That mischievous boy,” they all said to one another. “He must think he can fool us again.” But not one of them came running.
No one was there to witness as the wolf ate every last sheep on the hillside, as the boy helplessly cowered behind a bush. As the boy hid, he shook his head. “I shall never fib again,” he resolved to himself.
How should the underlined section be corrected?
Its teeth was bared as the wolf approached the sheep and the boy was cowering as it did so.
With bared teeth the boy cowered as the wolf the sheep approached.
NO CHANGE
With its teeth bared, the wolf approached the sheep as the boy cowered.
With its teeth bared, the wolf approached the sheep as the boy cowered.
In the original sentence, the boy is the subject of the sentence, so the phrase "with its teeth bared" would be a modifier for him. The author was intending to use this phrase to describe the wolf, so one has to choose an option in which the phrase clearly modifies the wolf. In "With its teeth bared, the wolf approached...," the wolf is the subject of the sentence, so the modifier applies correctly.
The sentence, "With bared teeth the boy cowered as the wolf the sheep approached" does not fix the modifier, and it is confusing to read without a comma setting off the prepositional phrase, "with bared teeth." The sentence, "Its teeth was bared as the wolf approached the sheep and the boy was cowering as it did so," is needlessly wordy. The sentence, "With his teeth bared, the boy cowered as the wolf approached the sheep" still has a misplaced modifier, and now that "his" is added, it is significantly more confusing.
Example Question #562 : Correcting Punctuation Errors
There once was a shepherd boy whom sat on the hillside watching the village sheep. He was hot and exhausted fanning himself, rapidly in a feeble attempt to cool himself down. On top of that, he had never been so bored before. To amuse himself, he decided to play a joke. He put his hands around his mouth and yelled in a loud voice, "Wolf! Wolf! A wolf is chasing the sheep!”
They came running. They asked the boy, “What’s going on? Did you yell ‘A wolf is chasing the sheep?’”
The boy laughed. “It was just a joke, everyone.”
The people fumed, but they all returned to their homes.
The next day, the boy bored again decided to amuse himself again. He bellowed, “Wolf! Wolf!” Again, the townspeople came running. Once they arrived and witnessed the laughing boy, they realized they’d been tricked a second time. Nonetheless, they returned home and irritated resolved to never fall for the trick again for third time.
The next day, the boy was watching his sheep. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a wolf appeared from behind the bushes. With its teeth bared, the boy cowered as the wolf approached the sheep. Terrified, he called, “Help! A wolf! A wolf is here!” The people ignored his cries. “That mischievous boy,” they all said to one another. “He must think he can fool us again.” But not one of them came running.
No one was there to witness as the wolf ate every last sheep on the hillside, as the boy helplessly cowered behind a bush. As the boy hid, he shook his head. “I shall never fib again,” he resolved to himself.
How should the underlined section be corrected?
they returned home and irritated, resolved
they returned home and, irritated, resolved
they returned home and irritably resolving
NO CHANGE
they returned home and irritated resolved,
they returned home and, irritated, resolved
The word "irritated" is an interrupter, and should be set off by commas on either side. Adding a comma after "irritated" makes the first part of the phrase "they returned home and irritated," which is incorrect as "returned" and "irritated" are not parallel.
Changing the phrase to "irritably resolving" ruins the parallelism of the sentence, with "resolving" not matching "returned". Adding a comma to the end of the phrase does not fix the issue of the interrupter, and it also ruins parallelism by making "returned" and "irritated" a pair. Therefore, the only correct answer is "they returned home and, irritated, resolved."