SAT Writing : Identifying Sentence Errors
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Example Questions
Example Question #4 : Identifying Punctuation Errors: Other Punctuation
Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
Jamie and Geanna could not agree on what day would be best to go to the music festival; Jamie wanted to go see a great DJ on Saturday; while Geanna wanted to see her favorite band on Sunday. No error.
festival;
No error
what
Saturday;
would be best
Saturday;
The semicolon after "Saturday;" is the error in the sentence, and should be replaced with a comma to correctly separate the clauses.
Example Question #4 : Identifying Punctuation Errors
Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
Nathan has never been known as a shy person; and he proved that again tonight by jumping on stage and singing with the band. No error.
by jumping
person;
No error
singing
has never been
person;
The semicolon after "person" is incorrectly used in this sentence, and should be replaced with a comma.
Example Question #5 : Identifying Punctuation Errors: Other Punctuation
Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
The guests will have several desserts to choose from; chocolate cake, lemon sorbet, peach pie, and flan. No error
sorbet,
from;
choose
No error
desserts
from;
Here, we’re separating an independent clause (“The guests will have several desserts to choose from”) from a list (“chocolate cake, lemon sorbet, peach pie, and flan”), so the correct punctuation is a colon and not a semicolon. Semicolons are only used to separate two independent clauses, not an independent clause and a list.
Example Question #11 : Identifying Punctuation Errors: Other Punctuation
Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
The carousel, originally introduced to Europe during the Crusades, was derived from a jousting game; and later became a staple at fairs and amusement parks. No error
No error
Crusades,
game;
fairs and amusement parks
carousel, originally
game;
A semicolon is used to connect two independent clauses. In this case, the phrase after the semicolon is not an independent clause but rather a compound predicate of the subject "The carousel." No punctuation is needed here.
Example Question #12 : Identifying Punctuation Errors: Other Punctuation
Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
The ballerina's exceptional twirling and precise body control left the audience members in awe; her mastery, accomplished through years of intense training, was not lost on even the inexperienced spectators. No error
mastery,
No error
not lost on
awe;
exceptional twirling and precise body control
No error
A semicolon is used to connect two independent clauses. The two clauses separated here by the semicolon are both independent, so the semicolon use is correct.
Example Question #13 : Identifying Punctuation Errors: Other Punctuation
Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
Fire-breathing seems quite foolish and dangerous to an uninformed observer; but any experienced fire-breather knows how to properly minimize the potential risks. No error
No error
observer; but
quite foolish and dangerous
properly minimize
any experienced fire-breather knows
observer; but
This is an incorrect use of a semicolon. A semicolon is used to separate two independent clauses, but the second clause starts with the conjunction "but." In this instance, either a comma should be used instead of a semicolon or the conjunction "but" should be deleted to make the semicolon appropriate.
Example Question #14 : Identifying Punctuation Errors: Other Punctuation
Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
Milwaukee was chosen as the host site for the conference not because of any bias the board members held; but rather because of its central location. No error
its
held; but
site
No error
was chosen
held; but
A semicolon is used to separate two independent clauses, but the second of the clauses here is dependent. The clause that follows the semicolon here could not stand alone as its own sentence, and thus is not an independent clause. The appropriate punctuation to use here would be a comma.
Example Question #15 : Identifying Punctuation Errors: Other Punctuation
Select the underlined portion of the sentence below that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
He ran to and from the store; several times. No error
;
No error
He ran
times.
and
;
Semicolons are predominantly used to separate two independent clauses. In the sentence above, the semicolon is incorrect because it is not separating two such clauses. The best way to correct this sentence would be to simply remove the semicolon.
Example Question #16 : Identifying Punctuation Errors: Other Punctuation
Select the underlined portion of the sentence below that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
My dad likes to tell a lot of bad jokes; it's quite intolerable. No error
it's
tell
No error
My dad
;
No error
Semicolons are predominantly used to separate two independent clauses. In the sentence above, the semicolon is used correctly. There are no other errors in the example sentence. The verb "tell" is in the correct tense; "it's" is the correct contraction.
Example Question #17 : Identifying Punctuation Errors: Other Punctuation
Select the underlined portion of the sentence below that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.
I ran to the market; back again in a single afternoon. No error
single afternoon
in
;
No error
ran
;
Semicolons are predominantly used to separate two independent clauses. In the sentence above, the semicolon is incorrect because it is not separating two such clauses. The best way to fix this sentence would be to replace the semicolon with the word "and." The correct version of this sentence would read: "I ran to the market and back again in a single afternoon."
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