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SATACADEMY

Standard English Conventions (Language) – Sample

These skills focus on grammar, usage, and punctuation.

Category % Correct
Standard English Conventions (Language):  64
Comma Rules/Run-ons/Fragments 62
Concision/Syntax/Active Voice 20
Pronoun Use/Case/Ambiguity 81
Verb Tense/Mood/Noun Agreement 73
Possessives 80
Precise Language/Homophones 100
Misplaced Modifiers/Prepositions 57
Comparisons 33
Other Punctuation 0
Parallel Structure 45

Category Frequency (Avg 26 of 44 questions)

WRITING & LANGUAGE GENERAL ADVICE

Key Skills:

  1. Do NOT rely solely on what “sounds good.”
  2. Learn the formal rules of grammar and practice consistently. This exam section is dictated by formal rules like math, and strong language skills develop over time as you encounter numerous variations. We suggest you begin by mastering the two core skills associated with the most frequently appearing language questions and then build from there with the lessons and tips below

 

  • Learn how to construct sentences from clauses to avoid fragments and run-ons.
  • Learn to identify the most concise answer option that adheres to the rules.

The SAT and PSAT Writing & Language exams are 44 question reading exams with two basic parts: writing and language. The approximately 26 language questions, as opposed to the writing style questions, can usually be identified by a lack of written question; typical answer options display only A. NO CHANGE and then B, C, and D. Language questions require students to identify the correct grammar, including in-sentence and end-of-sentence punctuation. The top grammar topics include punctuation rules used to combine independent clauses and dependent clauses, syntax and concise language, diction or word choice, and verb tense and agreement. We suggest you begin by learning the rules related to clauses and sentence construction as this will be the backbone that runs throughout your grammar analysis.

The exam will not identify the grammar topics tested, only present underlined words that may or may not need correction. Unlike writing style questions, the grammar questions almost entirely focus on the sentence in question, not other parts of the passage. This enables students to work through questions as they proceed through the passage. Often two or more grammar topics are tested in each question. A quick vertical scan of language related questions will frequently reveal the main issues to consider. For example,

A) quantities, which
B) quantities (which
C) quantities which
D) quantities; (which

A) worse, then
B) worse than
C) worse then
D) worse, than

The above answer options on the left highlight two main issues: a choice must be made between a comma, no comma, or a semicolon and a choice must be made between parenthesis or no parenthesis. On the right, students must decide to include or exclude the comma and whether the precise word is “then” or “than.” Sometimes students will have to resolve both issues correctly, but in many cases, one overriding issue that may not even be obvious at first will present the key to solving language questions. There are a few general guidelines to keep in mind when answering any question on this exam section.

Section Hints & Guidelines:

  1. Read the complete sentence with underlined words and try to assess whether it is correct or what correction must be made.
    1. It is impossible to read partial sentences around the underlined section only and assess correct grammar. Back up and read the sentence from the start.
  2. Try to assess for yourself what is going on in the sentence irrespective of the answer options. This is analogous to predicting the answer in your own words before reviewing SAT reading answer options.
    1. The exam frequently disguises the punctuation or grammar issues in question. 
    2. Assess the structure of independent and dependent clauses regardless of the grammar issue in most cases. This analysis sometimes trumps other issues.
    3. Pay close attention to the punctuation outside the underlined portion. These punctuation marks cannot change, so they provide useful clues to the intended structure and punctuation of the sentence as a whole. 
  3. Read all four answer options and plug each one back into the sentence to check it even if you think you already know the answer.

CATEGORY ADVICE & PRACTICE EXAMPLES

Reviewing various lesson links and related practice exercises is one of the best ways to get up to speed on the different grammar rules.

Start By Learning How To Construct Sentences Here

  • Search Our Grammar toolbox
    • Phrases & Clauses
    • Run-Ons
    • Compound and Complex Sentences
    • Conjunctions
    • Comma Rules 1
    • Comma Rules 2
    • Semicolons, Colons
    • Parentheses, Dashes
  • Search Outside Links
    • Coordinating Conjunctions
    • Commas with Appositives (Precise Identifiers)

Related Exercises

Comma Rules Exercise
Run-Ons/Fragments Exercise
Dashes, Parentheses, Colons, Semicolons, Commas
Colons, Parallelism, & Other Punctuation

How do I answer “Comma Rules/Run-Ons/Fragments” questions?

These frequently appearing language related questions require test takers to identify the properly constructed sentence among different answer options. It is nearly an impossible task to proceed successfully based on what “sounds good” without a solid understanding of the rules. For example, most untrained students will think one of the following uncomplicated sentences is correct.

The boy went to the store, he bought some milk and bread.

The boy went to the store and he bought some milk and bread.

In fact, both are examples of inappropriate run-on sentences because they do not properly punctuate the combination of two independent clauses. The first sentence is an example of a comma splice, whereas the second sentence fails to incorporate a comma with the conjunction “and”—a special rule for independent clause combinations. Independent clauses have both noun and verb, and they complete a thought, so they can stand alone as a sentence. Two clauses that can stand alone must be

  1. separated by a period
  2. combined by a semicolon (;) unless the ideas are unrelated
  3. combined by a comma and coordinating conjunction (FANBOYS) e.g., “, and” or “, but”

Don’t worry if you do not understand some of the terms yet. They will become more familiar with practice. Hopefully, you appreciate the need to learn the parts of a sentence and can begin to understand and think of sentences as combinations of independent and dependent clauses (an unusual exercise for many at first). A knowledge of in-sentence punctuation including comma rules, semicolons, colons, and parenthetical punctuation will also become essential to succeed on these questions. See the Interactive Lessons above and the category reference links to learn the various rules. The time and effort learning these rules and applying them to SAT problems will be worth the effort. Once learned and practiced, the process to solve these questions generally requires students

  1. Read the entire sentence from beginning to end. Caution: Do not try to read only the area around the underlined portion because you will often fail to understand the entirety of the sentence and its construction.
  2. Identify the different independent and dependent clauses and assess whether the existing answer is a complete, properly punctuated sentence.
  3. If there is any inconsistency between the punctuation and the clause combinations, attempt to correct the sentence in your own words before reviewing the answer choices. Frequently, the test will use commas and other punctuation to confuse students into thinking one rule applies (e.g., separating extra information by commas) when another rule (e.g., serial commas in a list) is the real issue at hand. Take time to read and understand the whole sentence to correct any big picture issues before reviewing the answers.
  4. Review the answer options and do not forget to use elimination. Occasionally, two answers appear to work, but one subtle feature like a comma separating an essential clause will help students eliminate one anwer and identify the unique, correct answer. Also, sometimes two answers will be essential equivalents and should be eliminated because they are not unique.

Category Tips & Hints

These rules of thumb help high achieving test takers improve their results. Make sure to review the various lesson links above to fully understand the tips covered below. 

  1. Make sure to read the entire sentence from beginning to end for questions about in-sentence punctuation questions.
  2. Coordinating conjunctions (FANBOYS) do not require commas in situations other than independent clause combinations. Once students learn to use coordinating conjunctions with independent clauses, they often think commas should be placed before “and” or “but” everywhere. Not true. The rule is a special case, and conjunctions normally do not include commas.
  3. Independent-independent clause combinations usually get resolved on the exam by converting one clause to a dependent clause and then applying independent-dependent clause combination rules.
  4. That vs. Which: Determining whether dependent clauses are essential and do not require commas or extra information that requires separation by commas can be aided by some detailed knowledge of particular, frequently appearing words. For example, the relative pronouns “that” and “which” can often be used interchangeably to provide the same meaning. However, “that” almost always begins an essential clause that will not require commas to separate the clause. “Which” is the opposite case: it usually denotes a non-essential clause that must be separated by commas.
  5. While vs. Whereas: “While” and “whereas” also can have the same meaning, a contrasting alternative, but “while” can also mean the passage of time. In the former situation where “while” has the same meaning as “whereas,” the “while” clause is treated as parenthetical extra information and requires separation by commas. If “while” denotes the passing of time, it is restrictive and does not require commas unless it is the introductory clause, which requires separation by commas as a general rule.
  6. Does an appositive need commas? Students will frequently confront whether an appositive is restrictive (essential and no commas required) or non-restrictive (can be removed and commas required).
    1. Profession + Name vs. Name + (comma) + Profession. If the profession precedes the name (e.g., writer and poet William Shakespeare), there is usually no need for commas, whereas the reverse order may require commas. e.g., Shakespeare, the writer and poet, loved a good comedy.
    2. Also, My sister Linda came home. Linda, my sister, came home.
    3. Why the difference? In both cases above, the first examples begin with nouns that are not precise identifiers: writer and poet or my sister (note I have many sisters) do not specifically identify any one person or thing, so the appositive phrase that follows is essential or restrictive—no commas needed. The second examples above begin with William Shakespeare and Linda respectively, which do precisely identify the person. As a result, the appositive phrase is not essential; it is extra information that should be separated by commas. Note precise identifiers are not limited to names. See this link for more examples and good further explanation.
  7. Is it even an appositive?
    1. Adjectives are not appositives. The twenty-six-year-old Ben Johnson began his medical career. Twenty-six-year-old is an adjective, not an appositive, so no comma is required. Note the hyphenated adjective. Hyphens combine short nouns to make adjectives like a man-eating tiger.
  8. Commas before prepositions are (almost always) wrong on the exam. In practice, answer choices separating prepositional phrases that appear in the middle or at the end of a sentence are essential, so commas are almost never correct. e.g. Usain Bolt won the 100-meter sprint at the Modesto Relays in California, with a time of 9.86 seconds. Only the last prepositional “with” phrase is extra information that would be separated by commas.
  9. Check the clauses around colons and semicolons. The clause before and after a semicolon must be independent. The clause before a colon must be independent. Otherwise, the answer option is incorrect.

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