SAT Writing : SAT Writing

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for SAT Writing

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Example Questions

Example Question #31 : Identifying Phrase, Clause, And Sentence Errors

The United States has been a country of immigrants since its foundation. This is still true today. The United States allows more people to immigrate to it then any other country. This stream of immigration have resulted in an extremely diverse population with many different cultures and languages. As most public schools in the United States provide a monolingual education, immigrant parents are often unsure of whether or not they should teach their children their heritage language.  

There are many myths surrounding the idea of bilingual education that prevent its widespread implementation in public schools. However, bilingual education has actually been shown to produce higher achievements in both languages. As well as enhance problem solving and critical thinking skills. Because some public school systems have successfully implemented bilingual education, there are still enormous difficulties in terms of resources and support from the U.S. Board of Education.

Which of the following sentences is grammatically incorrect and must be modified?

Possible Answers:

This is still true today.

However, bilingual education has actually been shown to produce higher achievements in both languages. 

As well as enhance problem solving and critical thinking skills.

There are many myths surrounding the idea of bilingual education that prevent its implementation in public schools.

The United States has been a country of immigrants since its foundation.

Correct answer:

As well as enhance problem solving and critical thinking skills.

Explanation:

"As well as enhance problem solving and critical thinking skills" is a sentence fragment because it is missing a subject. "As well as" is not a subject and does not do the action of the verb.

Example Question #32 : Identifying Phrase, Clause, And Sentence 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.

Your paper initially seemed very complex, but after I read it. I understood it to be much simpler than I had initially thought.

Possible Answers:

but after I read it. I understood it

but after I read it, I understood it

but after I read it; I understood it

but after I read it, I have understanding that it

but after reading it and understanding it

Correct answer:

but after I read it, I understood it

Explanation:

"After I read it" is not an independent clause, and it is being used as one, because it is forming the second half of a compound sentence. Compound sentences can only be constructed out of independent clauses that could each make sense and be grammatically complete on their own. So, to fix this error, we need to combine the two sentences into one, so that the prepositional phrase "after I read it" is part of a complete independent clause. The answer choice changing the sentence's period out for a semicolon does not solve the grammatical issue at all, so it cannot be correct. The answer choice that introduces the phrase "I have understanding that it" is unnecessarily awkwardly phrased, so it can't be correct either. The answer choice that uses "and" to connect the two sentences might look like a potentially correct answer, because it is combining the two sentences into a compound sentence, but "and understanding" merely extends the prepositional phrase "after I read it" into "after reading it and understanding it to be much simpler than I had initially thought." So, it merely exacerbates our initial problem, because the second part of the newly-created compound sentence has no verb. So, the correct answer is "Your paper initially seemed very complex, but after I read it, I understood it to be much simpler than I had initially thought."

Example Question #1 : Identifying Adjective And Adverb Errors

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

Contrary to popular belief, if one were to compare the hunting prowess of female lions with that of male lions, the females would be the best hunters. No error

Possible Answers:

female lions with male lions

No error

were to compare

best

to popular belief

Correct answer:

best

Explanation:

"The best hunters" is the error here, making this a comparative error. The correct word would be "better" here because the sentence draws a comparison between two groups—females and males. Whenever a comparison is drawn between two items, it is correct to use the "-er" form of the word; this is known as the "comparative" form of the word. Whenever a comparison is drawn between three or more things, you use the "-est" form of the word, known as the "superlative" form. A comparison is used to compare one item to one other item; superlatives are used to distinguish one item from many other items.

Example Question #201 : Sat Writing

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

She is beginning to get frustrated with you're use of pejorative terms, which, albeit in jest, is quite excessive. No error

Possible Answers:

which

albeit

No error

you're

She is beginning

Correct answer:

you're

Explanation:

In this more complicated sentence, the error is a simple and common one—"you're" is the error. The correct word would be the possessive form, "your." This is "your use," as in the "use" belonging to you. "You're" is a contraction, meaning "you are," which clearly doesn't make sense preceding "use." In speech these words sound alike, making them homonyms.

Example Question #1 : Correcting Punctuation Errors

No longer confined to his hospital bed; the man still did not feel up to taking a walk around the block.

Possible Answers:

No longer confined to his hospital bed though the man still did not feel up to taking a walk around the block.

No longer confined to his hospital bed the man still did not feel up to taking a walk around the block.

No longer confined to his hospital bed; the man still did not feel up to taking a walk around the block.

No longer confined to his hospital bed, and the man still did not feel up to taking a walk around the block.

No longer confined to his hospital bed, the man still did not feel up to taking a walk around the block.

Correct answer:

No longer confined to his hospital bed, the man still did not feel up to taking a walk around the block.

Explanation:

The sentence is divided by a semicolon, although the two phrases are not able to be complete sentences on their own. This is always incorrect, and a sentence with an introductory clause, like this one, needs to have both phrases separated by a comma; therefore, the correct answer is "No longer confined to his hospital bed, the man still did not feel up to taking a walk around the block."

Example Question #1 : Improving And Correcting Sentences

[1] Modern ice hockey was developed in Canada during the 19th century. [2] Two students from McGill University came up with the first rules. [3] A couple of years later, the sport made its way to the United States. [4] The game became a part of the Olympics in 1924.

[5] I first learned about hockey during the sixth grade. [6] When I watched my first game on the television. [7] After that first game, I begged my parents to let me play. [8] They agreed, I started playing on my first team later that year.

[9] For the first year, I was not very good. [10] I could barely skate! [11] However, after hours and years of practicing, I finally made it on to my high school varsity team. [12] Ice hockey was first played in the United States by universities. [13] Now, as I start applying to colleges, I hope to be able to play for my college. [14] I want to continue playing to achieve my dream of playing for the United States Olympic team.

Which of the following is the best revision to Sentence 8, which is reproduced below?

"They agreed, I started playing on my first team later that year."

Possible Answers:

They agreed, I started playing on my very first team later that year.

They agreed. I started playing on my first team in the latter half of that year.

They agreed; I started playing on my first team later that year.

They agreeing to my playing on a team later that year.

They agreed, but I started playing on my first team later that year.

Correct answer:

They agreed; I started playing on my first team later that year.

Explanation:

Sentence 8 is a run-on suffering from a comma splice. This is a type of error in which two independent clauses (clauses that can stand by themselves as complete sentences) are combined using a comma. Two independent clauses can be combined into a compound sentence by using a comma followed by a conjunction to connect them or by using a semicolon to connect them. The correct answer fixes the run-on sentence by using a semicolon to connect the two independent clauses without introducing any new errors.

Example Question #1 : Rewriting A Full Sentence

[1] American architecture has many distinctive styles and signature elements. [2] While perhaps newer than its counterparts, Southwestern architecture draws on Spanish and Native American influences that are hundreds or thousands of years old. [3] These influences can be seen in the use of native building materials such as adobe and pine timber, both easily found in the Southwest, and in the use of a central plaza or veranda. [4] Traditional building elements include walls with rounded corners, exposed timber beams, flat roofs, and a simple, uncluttered aesthetic. [5] Some houses are built around a central courtyard; while others open onto a patio flanked by ornate grillwork. 

[6] Pueblo Revival buildings are dignified by their vigas, which are roof beams that extend beyond the outer edge of walls. [7] Recessed windows and doorways with arched tops are also very common in this style of architecture. [8] Some famous examples of Pueblo Revival buildings include the New Mexico Museum of Art, the Painted Desert Inn, and various edifices at the University of New Mexico in Santa Fe.

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.

Possible Answers:

Some houses are built around a central courtyard while others, open onto a patio, flanked by ornate grillwork. 

Some houses are built around a central courtyard—while others open onto a patio flanked by ornate grillwork. 

Some houses are built around a central courtyard; while others open onto a patio flanked by ornate grillwork. 

Some houses are built around a central courtyard. While others open onto a patio flanked by ornate grillwork. 

Some houses are built around a central courtyard, while others open onto a patio flanked by ornate grillwork. 

Correct answer:

Some houses are built around a central courtyard, while others open onto a patio flanked by ornate grillwork. 

Explanation:

Sentence 5 incorrectly uses a semicolon to separate two clauses that should instead be set off by a comma. The correct version of the sentence is: “Some houses are built around a central courtyard, while others open onto a patio flanked by ornate grillwork.”

Example Question #2 : Rewriting A Full Sentence

[1] The contemporary feminist movement had its origins more than two thousand years ago. [2] Because many people don’t realize it, some of the first feminists were men. [3] Early feminists such as Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton were most concerned in achieving education and legal recognition such as property and voting rights. [4] Other early feminists avidly rejected society’s narrow domestic vision for women. [5] These feminists ranged from Jane Austen to George Eliot.

[6] Still other feminists were concerned with obtaining equal educational and employment opportunities for women. [7] In the field of medicine, there was Florence Nightingale, Clara Barton, and Margaret Sanger, in the field of education there was Virginia Woolf and Mary Wollstonecraft. [8] During the twentieth century, issues such as reproductive rights, pay equality, and protection against sexual harassment would arise. [9] Recently, men’s rights activists have been opposing the work of contemporary feminists, claiming that the movement seeks to divest men of power and oppress them for the benefit of women. [10] Thanks largely to the efforts of these courageous early feminists, women today enjoy more equal rights than at any other time in Western history.

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.

Possible Answers:

In the field of medicine, there was Florence Nightingale, Clara Barton, and Margaret Sanger; in the field of education there was Virginia Woolf and Mary Wollstonecraft.

In the field of medicine—there was Florence Nightingale, Clara Barton, and Margaret Sanger—in the field of education there was Virginia Woolf and Mary Wollstonecraft.

In the field of medicine, there was Florence Nightingale Clara Barton and Margaret Sanger, in the field of education there was Virginia Woolf and Mary Wollstonecraft.

In the field of medicine, there was Florence Nightingale, Clara Barton, and Margaret Sanger; in the field of education there was Virginia Woolf, and Mary Wollstonecraft.

In the field of medicine, there was Florence Nightingale, Clara Barton, and Margaret Sanger, in the field of education there was Virginia Woolf and Mary Wollstonecraft.

Correct answer:

In the field of medicine, there was Florence Nightingale, Clara Barton, and Margaret Sanger; in the field of education there was Virginia Woolf and Mary Wollstonecraft.

Explanation:

Sentence 7 contains two independent clauses incorrectly separated by a comma. This is known as a "comma splice." Correctly punctuated, the sentence would read: “In the field of medicine, there was Florence Nightingale, Clara Barton, and Margaret Sanger; in the field of education there was Virginia Woolf and Mary Wollstonecraft.”

Example Question #1 : Correcting Grammatical Errors In A Full Sentence

1 Although vegetarianism is sometimes considered a recent phenomenon, the practice actually has roots in both ancient India and ancient Greece. 2 In Greece, being vegetarian was a way to abstain from eating ‘beings with souls,’ and vegetarianism was primarily practiced by small religious sects or certain philosophical thinkers. 3 Ancient Indian vegetarianism may have been more widespread, as it was mandatory for many Hindus, Jains, and Buddhists. 4 Buddhist scholars argue whether Gautama Buddha ever ate meat. 5 Obviously, vegetarianism is a constantly evolution practice that has changed considerably over the past several thousand years.

6 During the Middle Ages, vegetarianism remained largely outside the cultural milieu in Europe. 7 Certain aseptic religious sects may have avoided eating meat, but the practice didn’t truly gain ground in Western Europe until the Age of Enlightenment. 8 During and before that time, many people still argued that animals existed only for the benefit of humankind. 9 They were opposed by other people who thought that that was an anthropocentric viewpoint.

10 Over time, vegetarianism gradually gained diction with influential thinkers and by the twentieth century, organizations such as the International Vegetarian Union, the North American Vegetarian Society, and the Animal Aid were appearing. 11 What new form will vegetarianism take in the future?

Which of the following sentences contains a comma error?

Possible Answers:

Sentence 2

Sentence 10

Sentence 4

Sentence 6

Sentence 8

Correct answer:

Sentence 10

Explanation:

Sentence 10 contains two independent clauses (“Over time, vegetarianism gradually gained diction with influential thinkers” and “by the twentieth century, organizations such as the International Vegetarian Union, the North American Vegetarian Society, and the Animal Aid were appearing”) that are joined by a conjunction (“and”). All sentences that contain two independent clauses separated by a conjunction must also have a comma before the conjunction, so the current version of Sentence 10 is incorrect.

Example Question #2 : Improving And Correcting Sentences

1 French high-wire artist Philippe Petit has a long history of daredevil and breathtaking performances. 2 Although none are so well known as his 1974 tightrope walk between the Twin Towers in New York City. 3 Petit made more than two hundred trips to the Twin Towers in surrogate preparation for the eminent walk. 4 Supposedly, he spent more than six years practicing on a low wire at a property in upstate New York and laying his plans. 5 He first read an article about the Twin Towers in his dentist’s office while they were still being built.

6 On August 7, 1974 Philippe Petit made the walk. 7 With the help of his tepid friends, he snuck into the buildings, strung a cable more than a quarter mile above the ground, and began the walk. 8 The buildings were still under construction. 9 The performance lasted for more than half an hour and included Petit walking, running, and even lying down on the rope. 10 Whereas Petit was arrested when he returned to the ground, the judge only sentenced him to perform for city children in Central Park. 11 After the Twin Tower walk, Petit continues to give lectures, write books, and perform everywhere from the Eiffel Tower to Niagara Falls.

Which of these sentences contains a comma error?

Possible Answers:

Sentence 7

Sentence 10

Sentence 9

Sentence 8

Sentence 6

Correct answer:

Sentence 6

Explanation:

Commas are needed both before and after a year number when it appears in the middle of a sentence with a month and day immediately preceding it. Sentence 6 should read “On August 7, 1974, Philippe Petit made the walk.”

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