Grammar and Conventions
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SAT: Grammar and Conventions
Subject-Verb Agreement
The verb must agree with the subject in number:
- "The list of items is long." (subject = list)
Pronoun Rules
- Must match antecedent in number
- Must clearly refer to one antecedent
Punctuation
- Commas: Lists, introductory elements, non-essential info
- Semicolons: Join two independent clauses
- Colons: After complete sentence, before list or explanation
- Dashes: Set off non-essential information
Modifiers
The modifier must describe the subject:
- Wrong: "Walking to school, the rain started."
- Right: "Walking to school, I got caught in the rain."
Parallel Structure
Items in a list must be in the same grammatical form.
Verb Tense
Stay consistent unless there is a logical reason to change.
SAT Tip: Read the whole sentence before answering. Context determines the correct answer.
📚 Practice Problems
1Problem 1easy
❓ Question:
Choose the correct option: "The researchers hoped (that/which) their findings would influence policy."
💡 Show Solution
"That" is correct here.
"That" introduces a noun clause functioning as the object of "hoped."
"The researchers hoped that their findings would influence policy." ✅
Rule for "that" vs. "which":
- That = restrictive (essential) clause — no commas
- Which = nonrestrictive (nonessential) clause — with commas
"The study that was published last year..." (specifies which study — essential) "The study, which was published last year,..." (adds extra info — nonessential)
Answer: "that"
SAT shortcut: If there are no commas → "that." If there are commas → "which."
2Problem 2medium
❓ Question:
Choose the correct possessive: "(Its/It's) (their/there/they're) responsibility to fix (whose/who's) mistake?"
💡 Show Solution
Break it down word by word:
(Its/It's): "It is" fits, so It's ✅ (contraction of "it is")
(their/there/they're): "they are" fits, so they're ✅ (contraction of "they are")
(whose/who's): "who is" fits, so who's ✅ (contraction of "who is")
Complete sentence: "It's they're responsibility to fix who's mistake?"
Wait — let me re-read. If the sentence means "It is their responsibility to fix whose mistake?":
It's (it is) their (possessive, belonging to them) responsibility to fix whose (possessive, belonging to whom) mistake?
Key rules:
- Its = possessive / It's = it is
- Their = possessive / They're = they are / There = location
- Whose = possessive / Who's = who is
Answer: "It's their responsibility to fix whose mistake?"
SAT Tip: Expand the contraction. If "it is" works → "it's." If not → "its."
3Problem 3medium
❓ Question:
Fix the verb tense error: "The team finished the project last week and will submit it yesterday."
💡 Show Solution
Error: Verb tense inconsistency
"Finished" → past tense (correct, matches "last week") "Will submit" → future tense BUT "yesterday" is in the past
Fix: "The team finished the project last week and submitted it yesterday." ✅
Another possible fix (if the action hasn't happened): "The team finished the project last week and will submit it tomorrow." ✅
Rule: Verb tenses must be logically consistent with time markers.
Past time markers: yesterday, last week, in 2020, previously Present: now, currently, today, at this moment Future: tomorrow, next week, soon, eventually
Answer: Change "will submit" to "submitted" (or change "yesterday" to "tomorrow").
SAT Strategy: When you see verb tense answer choices, look for time clue words in the sentence to determine the correct tense.
4Problem 4hard
❓ Question:
Fix the sentence: "The artist, who many critics consider to be one of the greatest painters of the century, have recently opened a new exhibition."
💡 Show Solution
Error 1: Subject-verb agreement "The artist... have recently opened" → Subject is "artist" (singular) → should be "has"
Error 2: Pronoun case (subtle) "who many critics consider" → "who" is the OBJECT of "consider" (critics consider ___) → should be "whom"
Corrected: "The artist, whom many critics consider to be one of the greatest painters of the century, has recently opened a new exhibition." ✅
Why this is tricky:
- The long clause between commas makes you lose track of the subject ("artist")
- "Who" vs. "whom" depends on function within the clause: "critics consider [whom]"
Answer: Change "who" to "whom" and "have" to "has."
SAT Pattern: Long sentences with intervening clauses are designed to make you forget the original subject.
5Problem 5expert
❓ Question:
Choose the correct version: (A) "Having completed the experiment, the results surprised the researchers." (B) "Having completed the experiment, the researchers were surprised by the results." (C) "Having completed the experiment, it was surprising to the researchers."
💡 Show Solution
This tests dangling modifiers:
"Having completed the experiment" must modify the noun that immediately follows it — whoever completed the experiment.
(A) "the results surprised" → Did the RESULTS complete the experiment? No! ❌ (Dangling modifier)
(B) "the researchers were surprised" → Did the RESEARCHERS complete the experiment? Yes! ✅ (Correctly attached)
(C) "it was surprising" → Did "IT" complete the experiment? No! ❌ (Dangling modifier)
Answer: (B)
Rule: A participial phrase at the beginning of a sentence MUST modify the subject that follows the comma.
Pattern to memorize: "[Participial phrase], [DOER OF THE ACTION] + [rest of sentence]."
"Running down the street, I tripped." ✅ "Running down the street, the sidewalk tripped me." ❌ (Sidewalks don't run)