PSAT Writing : Identifying Sentence Errors

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for PSAT Writing

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Example Questions

Example Question #41 : Identifying Sentence Errors

Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.

While some people find that juggling muliple jobs exhausts them, others find it very energizing. No error

Possible Answers:

While

find

others 

exhausts

No error

Correct answer:

No error

Explanation:

There is no error in this sentence. 

Example Question #31 : Identifying Other Errors Or No Error

Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.

Tourists that visit Thailand can do a lot on a tight budget because everything is very inexpensive, at least when compared to prices in the United States. No error

Possible Answers:

at least 

No error

that

because 

can 

Correct answer:

No error

Explanation:

There is no error in this sentence. 

Example Question #32 : Identifying Other Errors Or No Error

Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.

After smelling the cookies her roommate was baking in the kitchen, Veronica had an extremely hard time focusing on her biology homework. No error

Possible Answers:

After smelling the cookies

was baking

focusing on her biology homework

had

No error

Correct answer:

No error

Explanation:

This sentence is grammatically correct as written and needs no stylistic changes made to it.

Example Question #44 : Identifying Sentence Errors

Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.

After eating turkey, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, and dinner rolls at my family's Thanksgiving dinner, I am always surprised that I can find room to have pumpkin pie for dessert.

Possible Answers:

that I can find room to have pumpkin pie for dessert

turkey, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, and dinner rolls

at my family's Thanksgiving dinner,

After eating

No error

Correct answer:

No error

Explanation:

This sentence is grammatically correct and needs no stylistic changes made to it.

Example Question #51 : Psat Writing Skills

Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.

Some people think that they are better than everyone else, but others don't think highly enough of themselves. No error

Possible Answers:

others

everyone else

better

No error

highly enough of themselves

Correct answer:

No error

Explanation:

This sentence is grammatically correct as written, and needs no stylistic improvements made to it.

Example Question #46 : Identifying Sentence Errors

Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.

Haiti, which suffered a devastating earthquake in 2010, is one of the poorest countries in the Western hemisphere, where nearly eighty percent of the population lives below the poverty line. No error

Possible Answers:

No error

where

in

lives

which

Correct answer:

No error

Explanation:

This sentence is correct as written. None of the SAT's "go-to" errors are present in the sentence. Both the subject and verb of the sentence agree; "which" is used correctly; and the prepositions in the sentence are properly used as well.

Example Question #42 : Identifying Other Errors Or No Error

Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.

The environmental activists successfully effected social change; the legislators decided to table the bill that would have allowed corporations to pollute local rivers with impunity. No error

Possible Answers:

No error

to table

would have allowed

with

effected

Correct answer:

No error

Explanation:

The difference between "effect" and "affect" is tested routinely on the SAT. "Effect" is a noun meaning the result of an action; "affect" is a verb meaning change. However, "effect" can also be used as a verb that means cause, so it is used correctly in the sentence. There are no errors in the sentence, so "No error" is the best option.

Example Question #43 : Identifying Other Errors Or No Error

Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.

Lindsey, Krista, and Whitney pooled their allowances to buy a new game for them to share. No error

Possible Answers:

to buy

and Whitney

for them to share

No error

their

Correct answer:

No error

Explanation:

This sentence has no grammatical errors. It correctly utilizes the oxford comma to separate "Krista" from "Whitney" in the list of subjects, the plural pronoun "their," the infinitive "to buy," and the prepositional phrase "for them to share."

Example Question #44 : Identifying Other Errors Or No Error

Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.

Charlie preferred tackling new and exciting challenges to repeating the same boring proceduresNo error

Possible Answers:

preferred

No error

to

new and exciting

the same boring procedures

Correct answer:

No error

Explanation:

The sentence is correct as written! "Preferred" is in the correct tense, "new and exciting" are adjectives modifying a noun, "to" is the correct word to make a comparison, and "the same boring procedures" is an appropriate noun phrase.

Example Question #45 : Identifying Other Errors Or No Error

Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.

Joan always wanted to be a famous surgeon when she grew up, but my ambition was to be a landscape architect. No error

Possible Answers:

she

No error

was to be a

famous

but

Correct answer:

No error

Explanation:

This sentence is correct as written! "Famous" is an adjective describing a noun, "she" is a pronoun that agrees with its antecedent, "but" is the appropriate conjunction, and "was to be a" is a correct combination of verbs and an indefinite article.

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