SAT Writing : Correcting Verb Mood Errors
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Example Questions
Example Question #33 : Correcting Verb Errors
Replace the underlined portion with the answer choice that results in a sentence that is clear, precise, and meets the requirements of standard written English.
Victory is the ultimate goal of any general, but too precise a focus can clouds a leader's judgement.
can clouds a leader's judgement.
can cloud a leaders judgement.
can clouds a leader's judgements.
can cloud a leader's judgement.
can clouds leader's judgement.
can cloud a leader's judgement.
The phrase underlined in the sentence uses the modal verb "can," which conditions what might happen in the future. The verb form "clouds" is incorrect as the verb after "can" still needs to feature the singular form necessary with the subject "focus." "Can cloud a leader's judgement" is the best choice among the answer.
Example Question #14 : Verb Mood Errors
Replace the underlined portion with the answer choice that results in a sentence that is clear, precise, and meets the requirements of standard written English. One of the answer choices reproduces the underlined portion as it is written in the sentence.
He said he wouldn’t have jumped into the murky lake if someone else hasn’t jumped before him.
if someone else were not to have jumped before him.
if someone else was not to have jumped before him.
if someone else hasn’t jumped before him.
if someone else would not to have jumped before him.
if someone else hadn’t jumped before him.
if someone else hadn’t jumped before him.
This sentence will try to trick you into using the subjunctive mood, but remember that the subjunctive is only used to describe hypothetical situations and dreams. Because the character actually did jump into the murky lake, the correct mood is simply the past indicative: “He said he wouldn’t have jumped into the murky lake if someone else hadn’t jumped before him.”
Example Question #3 : Correcting Verb Mood Errors
Replace the underlined portion with the answer choice that results in a sentence that is clear, precise, and meets the requirements of standard written English.
In order to correcting John's essay, the professor needed to examine a very obscure theory on paleontology.
In order to John's essay correct
In order to correct John's essay
In order to correcting John's essay
In order to corrected John's essay
In order to John's essay correcting
In order to correct John's essay
The phrase "to correcting" is grammatically incorrect in standard written English, and needs to be "to correct" in the underlined phrase.
Example Question #4 : Correcting Verb Mood Errors
Replace the underlined portion with the answer choice that results in a sentence that is clear, precise, and meets the requirements of standard written English. One of the answer choices reproduces the underlined portion as it is written in the sentence.
It's interesting to think of how my life would have changed had I choose to go to that college instead of the one I attended.
had I choosing to go
had I chosen to go
had I choose to go
had I choosed to go
had I chosed to go
had I chosen to go
The sentence indicates that the phrase "had I choose to go" should be in the past subjunctive mood, as it refers to an alternate present that would have stemmed from a hypothetical past choice. Therefore, the correct phrasing replaces "choose" with "chosen"—"had I chosen to go."
Example Question #2 : Correcting Verb Mood Errors
Replace the underlined portion with the answer choice that results in a sentence that is clear, precise, and meets the requirements of standard written English. One of the answer choices reproduces the underlined portion as it is written in the sentence.
We tell Rachel all the time that her choices today can impacts how she feels tomorrow.
can impacting how she feels tomorrow.
can impacted how she feels tomorrow.
can impacts how she feels tomorrow.
can impact how she feels tomorrow.
could impacts how she feels tomorrow.
can impact how she feels tomorrow.
In the underlined phrase, the modal verb "can" needs to be followed by a form of "impact" that properly reflects the plural noun "choices." Therefore, we need to replace the singular verb form "impacts" with "impact" to correctly refer to "choices."
Example Question #91 : Correcting Verb Errors
Replace the underlined portion with the answer choice that results in a sentence that is clear, precise, and meets the requirements of standard written English. One of the answer choices reproduces the underlined portion as it is written in the sentence.
In order to upgrading his computer, Tom had to delete many of his old downloaded movies to make space on his hard drive.
In order to upgrades his computer
In order to upgraded his computer
In order to upgrade his computer
In order to be upgraded his computer
In order to upgrading his computer
In order to upgrade his computer
The phrase "In order to upgrading" is incorrect in standard written English—"upgrading" needs to be replaced with the present verb form "upgrade."
Example Question #92 : Correcting Verb Errors
Replace the underlined portion with the answer choice that results in a sentence that is clear, precise, and meets the requirements of standard written English. One of the answer choices reproduces the underlined portion as it is written in the sentence.
In the middle of the drought, she looked out the window and thought, “Even if I were to lavish all my attention on the plants in the garden, they would still be killed by this heat.”
was to
were to
am to
will
do
were to
This sentence is correct as it is. Here, the statement in quotation marks is a counterfactual statement. This means that it talks about something that isn't actually the case in reality. The narrator is thinking about what might happen if she lavished care on her plants, but in reality, she is not lavishing care on her plants. Counterfactual statements use the verbs in the subjunctive. “Were” is the subjunctive form of the English verb “to be” (or “am,” in this sentence).
Example Question #5 : Correcting Verb Mood Errors
Replace the underlined portion with the answer choice that results in a sentence that is clear, precise, and meets the requirements of standard written English. One of the answer choices reproduces the underlined portion as it is written in the sentence.
If humans could fly, they will need gigantic wings and huge chest muscles to control those wings.
were needing
will need
needed
may need
would need
would need
This sentence expresses a counterfactual statement, so it needs verbs in the subjunctive mood. “Could” can be thought of as a past subjunctive form of the verb “can,” so there is no problem with the first part of the sentence; however, the verb in the second part of the sentence, “will need,” is in the indicative mood, not the subjunctive. To correct this, we have to change “will need” to its past subjunctive form, “would need.”
Example Question #6 : Correcting Verb Mood Errors
Replace the underlined portion with the answer choice that results in a sentence that is clear, precise, and meets the requirements of standard written English. One of the answer choices reproduces the underlined portion as it is written in the sentence.
According to the email that my boss sent, it is absolutely necessary that we all are on time to work.
be
being
were
will be
are
be
In English, the subjunctive mood of verbs is often used after certain expressions like “it is necessary that” or “it is important that.” The subjunctive is used to talk about wishes, desires, or thoughts about things that aren't actually the case. In this sentence, the expression “it is necessary that” introduces a phrase that must use the subjunctive, because it expresses something that the boss desires. So, we have to change the verb “are,” which is in the indicative mood, to its subjunctive form, “be.”
Example Question #7 : Correcting Verb Mood Errors
Replace the underlined portion with the answer choice that results in a sentence that is clear, precise, and meets the requirements of standard written English. One of the answer choices reproduces the underlined portion as it is written in the sentence.
The letter describes the young scientist as intelligent and hardworking, and says that he be the most promising researcher currently working in the field of infectious diseases.
was
is
would be
be
will be
is
In this sentence, the phrase “he be the most promising researcher” uses the subjunctive “be"; however, in English, the subjunctive should only be used in a phrase that talks about a desire, wish, or counterfactual statement—not when the phrase reports true facts (or what the person saying the phrase thinks are true facts about the world). In the view of the person who wrote the letter, the young scientist is currently the most promising researcher. So, we should use the verb “is,” which is in the indicative mood. “Is” is also right because it is in the present tense, like the rest of the sentence.
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