SAT Writing : SAT Writing

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for SAT Writing

varsity tutors app store varsity tutors android store varsity tutors ibooks store

Example Questions

Example Question #481 : Sat Writing

1 Today, different methods are adopted to strive off these threats to biological diversity. 2 By now, the occurrence of invasive species is a common place problem. 3 It occurs when a non native species of plant or animal is introduced into a new environment. 4 Invasive species cause problems, such as kudzu, Asian carp, and zebra mussels. 5 Habitats can be destroyed and human economies can be damaged by the invidious effects of species that are inoculated or even charming pets in other ecosystems. 6 For example, rabbits in Australia. 7 They were introduced in the 1780s by British penal colony ships and became widespread after an 1859 outbreak, destroying millions of dollars worth of crops. 8 Pheromone traps can lure in insect pests and genetic modification can cause invasive carp to produce only male offspring, limiting their reproduction. 9 Given our widespread global commerce and travel, however, it may be impossible to foresight all damage done by species that end up somewhere they don’t belong.

Which sentence needs a hyphen added to it?

Possible Answers:

Sentence 5

Sentence 1

Sentence 2

Sentence 4

Sentence 3

Correct answer:

Sentence 3

Explanation:

Typically, prefixes such as “non” must be hyphenated with the next word. Correctly punctuated, the phrase would read “non-native species.”

Example Question #482 : Sat Writing

1 Today, different methods are adopted to strive off these threats to biological diversity. 2 By now, the occurrence of invasive species is a common place problem. 3 It occurs when a non native species of plant or animal is introduced into a new environment. 4 Invasive species cause problems, such as kudzu, Asian carp, and zebra mussels. 5 Habitats can be destroyed and human economies can be damaged by the invidious effects of species that are inoculated or even charming pets in other ecosystems. 6 For example, rabbits in Australia. 7 They were introduced in the 1780s by British penal colony ships and became widespread after an 1859 outbreak, destroying millions of dollars worth of crops. 8 Pheromone traps can lure in insect pests and genetic modification can cause invasive carp to produce only male offspring, limiting their reproduction. 9 Given our widespread global commerce and travel, however, it may be impossible to foresight all damage done by species that end up somewhere they don’t belong.

What is the best title for this passage?

Possible Answers:

"Invasive Species: Here or There?"

"Invasive Species: An Ongoing Problem"

"Invasive Species: Secret Advantages?"

"Invasive Species: This Means War"

"Invasive Species: Deadly Killers"

Correct answer:

"Invasive Species: An Ongoing Problem"

Explanation:

All of the titles except “Invasive Species: An Ongoing Problem” are either too vague or represent specific topics that are not the central focus of the passage.

Example Question #483 : Sat Writing

1 As anyone who has tried it can tell you, Filipino food is an exciting intriguing blend of flavors. 2 Due to interaction with various nations and cultures, it’s cuisine is marked by influences from Austronesia, Spain, China, Malaysia, and the United States. 3 Some typical dishes including pancit, longganisa, lumpia, kare-kare, pinakbet, sinigang, and adobo. 4 For example, one could find everything from Spanish paella and Chinese spring rolls (locally called lumpia) if you walked into a Filipino restaurant.

5 Another important compound of Filipino cuisine is street food. 6 These street foods include many fried foods, such as bananas, plantains, dumplings, squid balls, battered quail eggs, and fruit or vegetable spring rolls.7 Taho, a warm street food, is composed of bean curd, a caramel syrup or arnibal, and tapioca pearls.8 Don’t forget dessert! 9 With such a variety of flavors, textures, and cooking styles, there’s certainly to be something for every gourmand.

Which sentence needs a comma added to it?

Possible Answers:

Sentence 7

Sentence 5

Sentence 1

Sentence 3

None of the sentences requires another comma.

Correct answer:

Sentence 1

Explanation:

In Sentence 1, we have two separate adjectives preceding a noun. The standard punctuation rule is to use a comma between these two adjectives.

Example Question #484 : Sat Writing

1 Today, different methods are adopted to strive off these threats to biological diversity. 2 By now, the occurrence of invasive species is a common place problem. 3 It occurs when a non native species of plant or animal is introduced into a new environment. 4 Invasive species cause problems, such as kudzu, Asian carp, and zebra mussels. 5 Habitats can be destroyed and human economies can be damaged by the invidious effects of species that are inoculated or even charming pets in other ecosystems. 6 For example, rabbits in Australia. 7 They were introduced in the 1780s by British penal colony ships and became widespread after an 1859 outbreak, destroying millions of dollars worth of crops. 8 Pheromone traps can lure in insect pests and genetic modification can cause invasive carp to produce only male offspring, limiting their reproduction. 9 Given our widespread global commerce and travel, however, it may be impossible to foresight all damage done by species that end up somewhere they don’t belong.

Which sentence needs a comma added to it?

Possible Answers:

Sentence 6

Sentence 8

Sentence 4

Sentence 2

No sentence is lacking a comma.

Correct answer:

Sentence 8

Explanation:

In Sentence 8, we have two independent clauses (“Pheromone traps can lure in insect pests” and “genetic modification can cause invasive carp to produce only male offspring, limiting their reproduction”) incorrectly separated with only a conjunction. We always need either a semicolon or a comma with a  coordinating conjunction to separate two independent clauses.

Example Question #485 : Sat Writing

1 As anyone who has tried it can tell you, Filipino food is an exciting intriguing blend of flavors. 2 Due to interaction with various nations and cultures, it’s cuisine is marked by influences from Austronesia, Spain, China, Malaysia, and the United States. 3 Some typical dishes including pancit, longganisa, lumpia, kare-kare, pinakbet, sinigang, and adobo. 4 For example, one could find everything from Spanish paella and Chinese spring rolls (locally called lumpia) if you walked into a Filipino restaurant.

5 Another important compound of Filipino cuisine is street food. 6 These street foods include many fried foods, such as bananas, plantains, dumplings, squid balls, battered quail eggs, and fruit or vegetable spring rolls.7 Taho, a warm street food, is composed of bean curd, a caramel syrup or arnibal, and tapioca pearls.8 Don’t forget dessert! 9 With such a variety of flavors, textures, and cooking styles, there’s certainly to be something for every gourmand.

Which of the following topics would best complement the passage if added in a sentence?

Possible Answers:

A guide to dining etiquette in the Philippines

A list of common Filipino beverages

A list of Filipino feast days and festivals

A guide to pronouncing the food names listed in the passage

A list of Filipino recipes influenced by American foods

Correct answer:

A list of common Filipino beverages

Explanation:

Since the passage’s main goal is to familiarize the reader with a variety of Filipino dishes and meals, adding a sentence about Filipino beverages would round out the discussion nicely. All of the other topics are either too specific or irrelevant to the main focus of the passage.

Example Question #62 : Inserting Or Deleting Content

1 As anyone who has tried it can tell you, Filipino food is an exciting intriguing blend of flavors. 2 Due to interaction with various nations and cultures, it’s cuisine is marked by influences from Austronesia, Spain, China, Malaysia, and the United States. 3 Some typical dishes including pancit, longganisa, lumpia, kare-kare, pinakbet, sinigang, and adobo. 4 For example, one could find everything from Spanish paella and Chinese spring rolls (locally called lumpia) if you walked into a Filipino restaurant.

5 Another important compound of Filipino cuisine is street food. 6 These street foods include many fried foods, such as bananas, plantains, dumplings, squid balls, battered quail eggs, and fruit or vegetable spring rolls.7 Taho, a warm street food, is composed of bean curd, a caramel syrup or arnibal, and tapioca pearls.8 Don’t forget dessert! 9 With such a variety of flavors, textures, and cooking styles, there’s certainly to be something for every gourmand.

Which sentence needs an apostrophe added to or deleted from it?

Possible Answers:

Sentence 6

Sentence 8

Sentence 2

Sentence 4

None of these sentences requires an apostrophe to be added or deleted.

Correct answer:

Sentence 2

Explanation:

The correct possessive of “it” is always “its” and never “it’s.” "It's" is a contraction of "it is."

Example Question #486 : Sat Writing

1 While many people feel strongly about the genetic modification of foods. 2 Most do not understand the full nature of genetically modified (GM) plants and animals. 3 For example, did you even know that GM was the abbreviation for genetically modified? 4 Genetic modification is defined as the artificial manipulation of a specie’s DNA usually for the purpose of improving crop yield, resistance to disease, or nutritive value. 5 And did you know it has been going on for millennia, because ancient farmers were selectively breeding foods to provide better flavor, produce smaller seeds, or withstand drought and flooding?

6 Today, however, having more sophisticated tools allow scientists to transfer genes from one organism with another, this purposely provokes better pest resistance and other desirable characteristics. 7 Opponents of genetic modification argue that the DNA modifications are unstable, undesirable, and unhealthy for the environment. 8 Additionally, some are also arguing that consuming GM foods is unsafe for humans, despite much scientific evidence to the contrary.

Where should the following sentence be inserted in the passage? “Although most GM foods today are plants, it is anticipated that more and more animals and even microorganisms will be genetically modified for our future consumption, so the topic remains a pertinent issue.”

Possible Answers:

After Sentence 6

After Sentence 3

After Sentence 7

After Sentence 8

After Sentence 5

Correct answer:

After Sentence 8

Explanation:

This sentence, which looks to the future and discusses the continued relevance of the passage’s topic, makes for an excellent conclusion. It belongs after the final sentence in the text.

Example Question #482 : Sat Writing

1 The lost-wax casting method may sound cryptic, but its really a fairly simple and comprehendible process. 2 It is also known as investment or precision casting. 3 It involves twelve steps in that an artist makes an original wax model; creates rubber and plaster molds from the model; fills the molds with wax; coats the new wax models with a ceramic material; and fires the wax-ceramic mixture into a kiln so that the outer layer becomes a reusable mold and the inner wax melts away. 4 Despite involves technical jingo such as spruing, metal-chasing, and burnout, it is a very versant process that can be applied to everything from jewelry making and sculpture, automobile and gun manufacturing.

5 Lost-wax has been used by sculptors from ancient Greece all the way to modern day Germany. 6 Lost-wax has even been applied to dentistry, it is most frequently used to make gold crowns and inlays.7 Why not give it a try? 

Which sentence needs a hyphen added to it?

Possible Answers:

Sentence 1

Sentence 3

Sentence 2

Sentence 5

Sentence 4

Correct answer:

Sentence 5

Explanation:

In Sentence 5, “modern day” should be hyphenated. Typically, compound adjectives that immediately precede nouns are always hyphenated.

Example Question #488 : Sat Writing

1 E.J. Bellocq, who was he? 2 Those outside the photography coterie may not have heard of him, but his life’s work inspired innumerable films and works of literature. 3 Born into a rich family in the French Quarter of New Orleans Bellocq made a living, taking official photographs of ships, machinery, and other commercial items for local companies. 4 As a result, he became known for his portraits of Chinatown opium dens, and prostitutes in Storyville, one of the seediest districts of early 20th century New Orleans.

5 Bellocq’s work is categorized by its attention to detail and its rich aesthetic sensibility. 6 In his personal life, he was known for being eccentric, unfriendly, partially crippled, and possibly insane. 7 In his veritable Storyville portraits, the women are nude or clothed, looking at or away from the camera, and posed reclining or standing up, revealing great versatility on Bellocq’s part. 8 Tragically many of his negatives and prints were destroyed or damaged by an uncertain hand (mostly likely his or his Jesuit brother).

Which sentence needs a hyphen added to it?

Possible Answers:

Sentence 6

Sentence 2

Sentence 4

Sentence 8

No sentences require commas.

Correct answer:

Sentence 4

Explanation:

Compound adjectives such as “20th century” must be hyphenated if they immediately precede a noun, as is the case here.

Example Question #70 : Inserting Or Deleting Content

1 E.J. Bellocq, who was he? 2 Those outside the photography coterie may not have heard of him, but his life’s work inspired innumerable films and works of literature. 3 Born into a rich family in the French Quarter of New Orleans Bellocq made a living, taking official photographs of ships, machinery, and other commercial items for local companies. 4 As a result, he became known for his portraits of Chinatown opium dens, and prostitutes in Storyville, one of the seediest districts of early 20th century New Orleans.

5 Bellocq’s work is categorized by its attention to detail and its rich aesthetic sensibility. 6 In his personal life, he was known for being eccentric, unfriendly, partially crippled, and possibly insane. 7 In his veritable Storyville portraits, the women are nude or clothed, looking at or away from the camera, and posed reclining or standing up, revealing great versatility on Bellocq’s part. 8 Tragically many of his negatives and prints were destroyed or damaged by an uncertain hand (mostly likely his or his Jesuit brother).

Which of the following sentence topics would fit best if added to the passage?

Possible Answers:

a list of the poems, novels, and short stories aspired by or alluding to Bellocq

a biographical note about Bellocq’s parents

a description of the photographic technology used by Bellocq

a discussion of early laws in Storyville and Chinatown

details about the event that crippled Bellocq

Correct answer:

a description of the photographic technology used by Bellocq

Explanation:

A description of photographic technology would be most relevant to the main topic of the passage: Bellocq’s photography.

Learning Tools by Varsity Tutors