SAT Prep: Characteristics of Effective Writing

Sequence of tenses... Which is correct?

• After he broke his arm, he is home for two weeks.

• After he broke his arm, he was home for two weeks.

Shift of pronoun: Which is correct?

• If you are tense, one should try to relax.

• If you are tense, you should try to relax.

Parallelism: Which is correct?

• The master carpenter showed us how to countersink the nails, how to varnish the wood, and getting a smooth surface was also demonstrated.

• The master carpenter showed us how to countersink the nails, varnish the wood, and get a smooth surface.

Noun-number agreement: Which is correct?

• Ann and Sarah want to be a pilot.

• Ann and Sarah want to be pilots.

Subject-verb agreement: Which is correct?

• There is eight people on shore.

• There are eight people on shore.

Coordination and subordination: Which is correct?

• Nancy has a rash, and she is probably allergic to something.

• Nancy has a rash; she is probably allergic to something.

Logical comparison: Which is correct?

• Harry grew more vegetables than his neighbor's garden.

• Harry grew more vegetables than his neighbor.

Modification and word order: Which is correct?

• Barking loudly, the tree had the dog's leash wrapped around it.

• Barking loudly, the dog had wrapped his leash around the tree.

Ambiguous and vague pronouns: Which is correct?

• In the newspaper they say that few people voted.

• The newspaper reported that few people voted.

Diction: Which is correct?

• He circumvented the globe on his trip.

• He circumnavigated the globe on his trip.