PSAT Writing : Analyzing, Combining, and Moving Content
Study concepts, example questions & explanations for PSAT Writing
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Example Questions
Example Question #1 : Identifying Sentence Relationships
Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
Most cacti are covered in sharp spikes, as my dog found out by attempting to sniffed one. No error
spikes, as my dog
one
No error
Most cacti are
to sniffed
to sniffed
The latter half of the sentence takes place in the past, as we can tell from the verb phrase "found out." However, that does not mean that all past-tense verbs are correctly used. In particular, "to sniffed" is incorrect in this sentence, as the verb following "attempting" needs to be an infinitive. Changing "to sniffed" to "to sniffing" would correct the sentence's error.
Example Question #10 : Analyzing Content
(1) In spite of the numerous museums and schools dedicated to its appreciation, modern art still has yet to achieve the level of popular appreciation that many other art forms experience. (2) Many remain critical of the so-called "non-figurative" turn of European art that occurred in the latter part of the nineteenth and early part of the twentieth century that has had such a profound impact on art production since. (3) Contributing artists Van Gogh, Cézanne and Kandinsky each experimented with constitutive aspects of art works. (4) That is to say, they focused on issues such as how light interacts with objects, how depictions of visual space in a work tease normal perceptual capacities, or how color induces emotional responses. (5) Although they didn't always focus on the "realistic" depiction of figures in a pictorial scene, they nevertheless made significant and lasting contributions to how we think about the techniques and aspects that make up art objects and practice.
How can the significance of the underlined sentence to the overall paragraph best be described?
The underlined sentence provides three reasons for which it makes little sense to talk of a consolidated and abstract notion such as "modern art."
The underlined sentence illustrates the experimental contributions that each of the individual artists listed in the sentence before it made to modern art.
The underlined sentence lists the contributions that museums and schools have since been dedicated to preserve and protect.
The underlined sentence explains why these figures of modern art have not received the appreciation that they so deserve.
The artistic approaches listed in the underlined sentence explain the necessity for the non-figurative turn in European art.
The underlined sentence illustrates the experimental contributions that each of the individual artists listed in the sentence before it made to modern art.
That "the underlined sentence illustrates the experimental contributions that each of the individual artists listed in the sentence before it made to modern art" is the best answer here because the other claims are either unjustified or inadequate.
Example Question #1 : Combining Sentences
(1) Kabuki performances first appeared in 1603, when a woman named Izumo no Okuni began performing a new style of drama and dance routines outside of Kyoto. (2) This new form of entertainment quickly got popular throughout Japan.
(3) Kabuki was known for its extravagant costumes and elaborate make-up. (4) The stage was what really set it apart from other forms of theater at the time. (5) It included a walkway protruding from the stage out through the audience. (6) Actors would use this walkway to make surprise entrances. (7) More advanced features were added, such as rotating stages and trapdoors to lift actors onto or down from the stage almost instantly. (8) All of these were used to create dramatic emphasis.
Which is the best way to combine Sentences 3 and 4?
Kabuki was known for its extravagant costumes and elaborate make-up, but the stage was what really set it apart from other forms of theater at the time.
Kabuki was known for its extravagant costumes and elaborate make-up, however, the stage was what really set it apart from other forms of theater at the time.
Kabuki was known for its extravagant costumes and elaborate make-up, and the stage was what really set it apart from other forms of theater at the time.
Known for its extravagant costumes and elaborate make-up, the stage was what really set it apart from other forms of theater at the time.
Kabuki was known for its extravagant costumes and elaborate make-up, because the stage was what really set it apart from other forms of theater at the time.
Kabuki was known for its extravagant costumes and elaborate make-up, but the stage was what really set it apart from other forms of theater at the time.
The conjunction should illustrate the contrast between the two sentences. While "however" is a contrasting conjunction, in context, it would need to begin a new sentence after a semicolon.
Example Question #1 : Separating, Combining, Or Moving Sentences
(1) The sport of lacrosse, while perhaps not as widely popular today in the United States as baseball or football, is far older. (2) These games served many important cultural functions. (3) They were used to settle disputes between tribes, as festival events, and to train young men to become warriors and hunters.
(4) Hundreds of men and women from rival tribes or villages would gather to play at once. (5) The playing field was sometimes several miles long. (6) The original game was very different from the organized sport played today. (7) A single game would be played from dawn until sunset, and be followed by dancing and feasting.
(8) Modern, standardized versions of lacrosse started to be played in the 1850s and soon became very popular throughout Canada and the United States. (9) For over a century, it has been one of the most widely played sports in high schools in both nations.
Which is the best way to combine Sentences 4 and Sentence 5?
Hundreds of men and women from rival tribes would gather to play at once and they would play on fields sometimes several miles long.
Hundreds of men and women from rival tribes would gather at once to play on fields sometimes several miles long.
Hundreds of men and women from rival tribes or villages would gather to play at once, but the playing field was sometimes several miles long.
On playing fields sometimes several miles long, gathering to play would be hundreds of men and women from rival tribes.
Gathering at once were hundreds of men and women from rival tribes, who played on fields sometimes several miles long.
Hundreds of men and women from rival tribes would gather at once to play on fields sometimes several miles long.
Simplicity is the best option here. Keep the sentence direct, eliminate redundancies, and complicate the sentence structure as little as possible. The correct answer is "Hundreds of men and women from rival tribes would gather at once to play on fields sometimes several miles long."
Example Question #1 : Combining Sentences
(1) Cowboys have long been a symbol in American society. (2) On the one hand, they represent American strength, adventurousness, and indefatigability. (3) But they also call up images of oppression, racism, and exploitation. (4) However, both of these romanticized views of cowboys betray the dull routine and everyday realities of the lives that many cowboys lived.
(5) Some cowboys worked at the same farms for much of their lives, while others periodically moved cattle from place to place without ever participating in a gun fight or being harangued by unexpected or hidden enemies. (6) Today, their figurative descendants can still be found living in agricultural areas, working hard to ensure that steady supplies of milk, meat and other agricultural products find their ways to stores and your dining room table.
Which of the following is the best option for combining Sentences 2 and 3?
On the one hand, they represent American strength, adventurousness, and indefatigability; on the other hand, they call up images of oppression, racism, and exploitation.
On the one hand, they represent American strength, adventurousness, and indefatigability, on the other, they call up images of oppression, racism, and exploitation.
On the one hand, they represent American strength, adventurousness, and indefatigability, because they call up images of oppression, racism, and exploitation.
On the one hand they represent American strength, adventurousness, and indefatigability on the other, they call up images of oppression, racism, and exploitation.
On the one hand, they represent American strength, adventurousness, and indefatigability; moreover, on the other, they call up images of oppression, racism, and exploitation.
On the one hand, they represent American strength, adventurousness, and indefatigability; on the other hand, they call up images of oppression, racism, and exploitation.
Using a semicolon to connect the two clauses is the best option here. In the sentence's original form, the second sentence is actually a fragment because it is a dependent clause because it begins with the conjunction "but." If the period at the end of the first sentence were changed to a comma, it would be correct to use a conjunction like "but"; however, the answer choice that does this uses the conjunction "because," which suggests that the sentences are related as cause and effect when this isn't the case. Of the two answer choices that introduce a semi-colon, one adds the extraneous word "moreover"; the simpler option is the correct one.
Example Question #1 : Combining Sentences
Which is the best way to combine Sentences 2 and 3?
[1] State-level legislative attempts to regulate immigration, both legal and illegal, over the previous twenty years reflect the diverse perspectives of multiple groups. [2] Activist groups contributed their own perspectives toward immigration legislation. [3] These activist groups included many diverse voices. [4] Ultimately, however, the majority of proposed legislation regarding immigration in Arkansas failed to become law and most proposed immigration legislation died in committee before reaching a floor vote.
Many diverse voice perspectives were contributed toward immigration legislation by activist groups.
Activist groups contributed their own perspectives toward immigration legislation like many diverse voices.
Many diverse voices were perspectives contributed toward immigration legislation from activist groups.
Their own perspectives toward immigration legislation were contributed, including many diverse voices.
Activist groups that included many diverse voices contributed their own perspectives toward immigration legislation.
Activist groups that included many diverse voices contributed their own perspectives toward immigration legislation.
The best way to combine the two sentences is "Activist groups that included many diverse voices contributed their own perspectives toward immigration legislation." This combination reflects the main point of both sentences.
The other sentence options were all more ambiguous and/or awkwardly phrased:
The sentence combination "Their own perspectives toward immigration legislation were contributed, including many diverse voices" implies that the names of activist groups are pieces of immigration legislation.
Another incorrect answer, "Activist groups contributed their own perspectives toward immigration legislation like many diverse voices," also implies that activist groups are pieces of immigration legislation.
Another incorrect option, "Many diverse voices were perspectives contributed toward immigration legislation from activist groups," does not make sense because it implies that each of the activist groups were "perspectives."
"Many diverse voice perspectives were contributed toward immigration legislation by activist groups" is not the best answer because "Diverse voice perspectives" does not make sense and the entire sentence is uses the passive voice.
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