SAT Writing and Language Test

- JUST READ AS IF I AM READING THE READING PASSAGES BECAUSE IT IS

REALLY IMPORTANT TO KNOW EACH DETAIL OF THE PASSAGE
- BEFORE ANSWERING A QUESTION, ALWAYS MAKE SURE IF THE QUESTION
REQUIRES ME TO ACTUALLY READ THE WHOLE PARAGRAPH FIRST BEFORE
ANSWERING
- LOOK AT ALL CHOICES AND EXPLANATIONS WITH "YES", "YES", "NO, "NO">
EVEN IF I THINK THAT IT IS "NO", THE ANSWER COULD BE "YES", IF THE
EXPLANATION IS STRONG AND ACTUALLY MAKES SENSE AND CORRECT:
JUST LOOK AT ALL OF THE EXPLANATIONS AND DECIDE WHETHER THEY
ACTUALLY PROVE THAT THE SENTENCE IS NECESSARY OR UNNECESSARY

- NEVER NEGLECT GRAMMAR RULES: 1.) I SHOULD USE A COMMA WHEN

CONNECTING AN INDEPENDENT AND DEPENDENT CLAUSE IN ANY ORDER
{For Ex.: It is a place (independent), attracting visitors from there (dependent)},
AND I SHOULD USE A COMMA TOGETHER WITH A COORDINATING
CONJUNCTION FOR CONNECTING TWO INDEPENDENT CLAUSES 2.)
SEMICOLON IS ONLY USED TO CONNECT TWO INDEPENDENT CLAUSES,
NOT AN INDEPENDENT AND A DEPENDENT CLAUSE 3.) Em Dash (In place of
commas, parentheses, and colons: For more emphasis, but less formal) VS En Dash
(Replaced with "to"), conflict/connection VS Hyphen (For compound terms, such as
state-of-the-art) 4.) The phrase "such as" requires a comma in front of it only if
its part of a nonrestrictive clause: How can you tell its nonrestrictive? Take the
phrase out and see whether the sentence is still true 5.) Use parentheses for
enclosing information that is interesting but not essential to the sentence 6.) A
COLON is typically used between two independent clauses, unless the first
independent clause is IDENTIFYING a specific WORD/PHRASE (Ex. ...fulfilled
its purpose: distributing and developing) 7.) "LESS" is for non-countable
objects, while "FEW" is for countable ones 8.) WITHIN A SENTENCE, IT IS NOT
NECESSARY THAT THERE SHOULD BE TWO DASHES: USE A SINGLE DASH
WHEN THERE IS A PARENTHETICAL/ADDITIONAL ELEMENT THAT ADDS AN
OPINION TO THE MAIN POINT OF THE SENTENCE (Ex. The novel is evolving---
for better or for worse) 9.) WHEN TO USE COMMA WITH "WHICH" & "WHO":
When the information provided by the clause is required to identify the person
(or thing), then there are no commas: For example> Sarah has always been
close to her parents, who live in the same village as us. (The clause "who live
in the same village as us" is not required to identify Sarah's parents, SO THERE
SHOULD BE A COMMA BEFORE "WHO") 10.) PUNCTUATION: BE CAREFUL
WHEN I DECIDE WHETER TO ADD "JUST APOSTROPHE", OR "APOSTROPHE
+ S": For example> If Cones is a name, then Cones's is correct, but if cones is
plural, then cones' is correct 11.) DO NOT PLACE A COMMA BEFORE IF
WHEN IT IS FOUND IN THE MIDDLE OF THE SENTENCE: ONLY PUT COMMA IF
THE SENTENCE STARTS WITH IF
- THE BEST CONCLUSION/INTRODUCTION MUST ALWAYS BE RELATED TO THE
CENTRAL IDEA OF THE PASSAGE: EVEN IF THE CHOICE SOUNDS SO NICE
 AS AN INTRO/CONCLUSION, DO NOT CHOOSE IT, IF IT DOES NOT DIRECTLY
TALK ABOUT THE MAIN POINT OF THE PASSAGE: MAKE SURE TO SET A
CLEAR DIFFERENCE BETWEEN HOW I WANT TO MAKE THE CONCLUSION
AND THE MOST APPROPRIATE CONCLUSION: A CONCLUSION CAN TAKE
ANY FORM AS LONG AS IT IS APPROPRIATE AND MOST RELATED TO THE
MAIN IDEA, SO DONT JUST CHOOSE WHAT I PREFER: CHOOSE WHATS
MOST APPROPRIATE! As much as possible, prevent general/vague
conclusions: BETTER TO BE AS SPECIFIC AS I CAN MOST RELATED TO THE
MAIN IDEA W/ APPROPRIATE SENTENCE STRUCTURE
- THERE IS A DIFFERENCE BETWEEN "CONCLUSION FOR THE PARAGRAPH"
AND "CONCLUSION FOR THE PASSAGE"
- MAKE SURE TO 100% UNDERSTAND WHAT THE CHOICE ACTUALLY MEANS
BEFORE ELIMINATING IT AS A POSSIBLE CHOICE
- "WHICH CHOICE PROVIDES THE MOST RELEVANT DETAIL?"> USUALLY, THE
MOST UNEXPECTED CHOICE IS THE ANSWER, SO DO NOT AUTOMATICALLY
CROSS OUT A CHOICE, EVEN IF IT SOUNDS WEIRD, BECAUSE THE CORRECT
ANSWER WILL MOST PROBABLY GIVE A VERY SPECIFIC EXAMPLE WITH KEY
WORDS THAT ARE MOST RELATED TO THE MAIN POINT OF THE PARAGRAPH
- THE BEST SUPPORTING EVIDENCE AMONG THE CHOICES WILL MOST
PROBABLY BE THE CHOICE WITH VERY SPECIFIC STATISTICS
- ALWAYS FOLLOW PARALLELISM!
- *DO NOT ALWAYS THINK THAT THE "SHORTEST ANSWER" IS THE CORRECT
ANSWER!!! IT ALWAYS DEPENDS ON THE SITUATION!!!*
- THE SENTENCE THAT CONNECTS THE FIRST SENTENCE WITH THE REST OF
THE PARAGRAPH, OR IF THE QUESTION ASKS FOR THE SENTENCE THAT
WILL BRIDGE TWO SENTENCES, ALWAYS CHOOSE THE SENTENCE THAT
INCLUDES THE MAIN SUBJECT OF THE PREVIOUS AND NEXT PART: (FOR
EX.> IF THE PREVIOUS SENTENCE TALKS ABOUT ECONOMICS, AND THE
NEXT PARTS TALK ABOUT FISHING, THEN THE BRIDGING SENTENCE MUST
CONTAIN INFORMATION ABOUT BOTH ECONOMICS AND FISHING)
- When I am asked to find the best place in the passage to insert a paragraph,
MAKE SURE TO CONSIDER EACH CHOICE GIVEN AND INSERT IT IN EACH:
CHOOSE THE SPOT THAT WILL MAKE THE PASSAGE FLOW THE MOST AND
MAKE THE PARAGRAPH BE AT ITS MOST APPROPRIATE PLACE! (Check if the
introduced subject of the paragraph was mentioned in earlier passages)
- ALWAYS MAKE SURE TO CHECK WHETHER THE ADDED/DELETED
SENTENCE HAVE KEY INFORMATION THAT WOULD FURTHER SUPPORT THE
PARAGRAPH, OR IF IT IS UNNECESSARY TO PUT THE SENTENCE!
- "WHICH CHOICE BEST SUPPORTS THE CLAIM MADE IN THE PREVIOUS
SENTENCE?": THIS QUESTION ALREADY MEANS THAT ALL OF THE
FOLLOWING CHOICES MUST BE TRUE AND I AM ASKED TO CHOOSE THE
BEST SUPPORTING EVIDENCE TO THE MAIN POINT OF THE PREVIOUS
SENTENCE WHEN EACH CHOICE IS TRUE: IN THIS CASE, CHOICES WITH
STATISTICS AND CONCRETE EVIDENCE ARE USUALLY THE CORRECT
ANSWERS
- Choose the simplest and most APPROPRIATE: CHOOSE THE MOST PRECISE
ANSWER AND THAT IS USUALLY THE SHORTEST ANSWER, BUT IN SOME
CASES, THE MOST PRECISE ANSWER IS THE LONGEST (Ex. "Ins and outs of
the art world" is more precise than "art")
- BE VERY OBJECTIVE (FOLLOW THE TONE OF THE PARAGRAPH): PREVENT
PHRASES LIKE: "THEY CHOSE TO IGNORE", "THEY FAILED TO REALIZE",
"THEY DON'T SEEM TO MIND": THE BETTER CHOICE IS "THEY ARE NOT
ADDRESSING" (FACTUAL TONE)
- KNOW WHICH SPECIFIC THING I AM COMPARING OR THE SUBJECT THAT
THE CHOICE IS REFERRING TO
- UNDERSTAND WHAT EACH CHOICE MEANS BEFORE CHOOSING ANYTHING:
THERE IS A GREAT CHANCE THAT I WILL BE WRONG, IF I AM UNSURE OF
THE MEANING OF A CERTAIN CHOICE
- MAKE SURE THAT EVERYTHING MAKES SENSE WHEN I CHOOSE: COMMON
SENSE!!! MAKE SURE THAT THE WORD/PHRASE/SENTENCE ACTUALLY
MAKES SENSE!!! DO NOT CHOOSE CHOICES THAT SOUND AWKWARD!!!
- Between two possible choices, always choose the one that has evidence for
such a claim in the passage
- Be careful of EACH AND EVERY WORD OF THE CHOICE: ONE WORD CAN
CHANGE THE ENTIRE MEANING OF THE CHOICE WITHOUT ME NOTICING IT:
SO, ALWAYS BE CAREFUL (Ex. It is the only mention of the Old South in the
entire passage: It is correct to say that it was the only mention of the Old South
in the sentence or paragraph, BUT NOT IN THE ENTIRE PASSAGE)
- NEVER EVER JUST FOCUS ON ONE PART OF THE SENTENCE, ALWAYS MAKE
SURE TO READ THE WHOLE SENTENCE (For Ex., I wouldn't know, if a comma
would precede a verb, if I am not sure that there are three verbs within a
sentence): So, READ THE WHOLE SENTENCE!
- If the question is: Which of the following TRUE statements best maintains the
focus?, IT IS ALREADY GIVEN THAT ALL OF THE STATEMENTS ARE TRUE, SO
THERE IS NO NEED TO FIND OUT WHETER OR NOT THE SENTENCES ARE
ACTUALLY TRUE, BUT RATHER I SHOULD BE FOCUSING ON CHOOSING THE
BEST STATEMENT THAT WILL MAINTAIN THE FOCUS OF THE SENTENCE
- When giving a CONTRAST, NEVER CHANGE THE MAIN FOCUS OF THE
SENTENCE, JUST A CONTRAST IN A CERTAIN DETAIL THAT WAS PRESENTED
IN THE SENTENCE, BUT NOT THE WHOLE IDEA OF THE SENTENCE
- When choosing the best concluding sentence, always choose the sentence that
FOCUSES ON THE MAIN SUBJECT OF THE PARAGRAPH: Never choose the
one that talks about something that should be placed in the next paragraph, or
that does not focus on the topic/subject of the paragraph, or that is repetitive/
unfit for a conclusion
- Always check whether or not the information stated in the given sentence in
the question is correct BY LOOKING AT THE GRAPH: ALWAYS MAKE SURE TO
CLARIFY BEFORE STATING THAT THE SENTENCE IS NECESSARY TO ADD IN
THE PARAGRAPH BECAUSE IT IS AUTOMATICALLY WRONG, IF IT DOES NOT
CONFORM WITH THE GRAPH'S DATA
- When deciding whether the information in the choice conforms to that of the
graph, do not automatically think that large numbers are wrong, especially in
percentage: 900% is actually 9/10 and can be converted to 90%, so make sure
to choose the one that is closest to the data presented in the graph: Usually,
numbers are more correct than descriptive choices that are obviously wrong
- If I come across a question asking me to place a sentence at the most logical
part of the paragraph with numbers on them, make sure to insert it in every
location that is part of the choices and think carefully whether it sounds
smooth or not: BEFORE CHOOSING THE "DELETE THE SENTENCE" OPTION,
MAKE SURE THAT THE SENTENCE DOES NOT HAVE ANY "KEY
INFORMATION" THAT READERS NEED TO KNOW ABOUT, WHICH WILL
CLARIFY THE PARAGRAPH FURTHER: AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE, DON'T MAKE
THE READER INFER, UNLESS THE SENTENCE IS REPETITIVE, OR VERY
OBVIOUS THAT IT IS UNNECESSARY TO BE PUT IN THE PARAGRAPH
- Make sure that the sentence is not a repetition previously stated in the passage
- Remember that each question will refer to a certain sentence, BUT NEVER
JUST FOCUS ON THAT SENTENCE BECAUSE THE PREVIOUS AND NEXT
SENTENCE MAY LEAD ME TO THE CORRECT ANSWER: EVERYTHING IN THE
PARAGRAPH IS INTERCONNECTED, SO MAKE SURE TO REFER TO THE
WHOLE FLOW
- Choose the best noun/adjective/verb, even though the choices are very similar to
each other: Usually, the other choices are better because they are more
appropriate or more commonly used: MAKE USE OF CONTEXT CLUES WITHIN
THE PARAGRAPH: IF THERE ARE ONE OR TWO WORDS THAT I DO NOT
KNOW THE MEANING OF, BUT IT FEELS WRONG TO CHOOSE THE OTHER
CHOICES THAT I KNOW, THEN IT IS BETTER TO CHOOSE AMONG THE
CHOICES THAT I DO NOT KNOW: Always say the sentence out loud, and if it
sounds weird, then do not choose the word: The choices may all mean very
similar, but what sounds good and most appropriate is most probably the best
answer: So, always need to consider "SOUND" and "MEANING" because both
aspects should be appropriate: Make sure that the choice won't make the
sentence sound awkward: MAKE SURE THAT THE CHOICE IS NOT
EXAGGERATED
- KNOW WHAT THE QUESTION IS DIRECTING TO: MAY NOT NECESSARILY BE
T H E B E S T E N D I N G A S L O N G A S T H E S TAT E M E N T M E E T S T H E
REQUIREMENTS OF THE QUESTION
- Need to Specify: CHOOSE THE MOST SPECIFIC CHOICE: MAKE SURE THAT
THERE IS NO AMBIGUITY: DON'T CHOOSE "THEM", OR "US", ESPECIALLY IF
THEY DON'T REFER TO ANYTHING THAT WAS SAID PREVIOUSLY: IF THE
PRONOUN MAY REFER TO MORE THAN ONE SUBJECT, THEN IT IS ALWAYS
BE BETTER TO BE SPECIFIC AND REDUNDANT: REDUNDANCY CAN MAKE
WORDS MORE SPECIFIC!!!
- Tip: Underline the purest form of the subject that the underlined portion is
referring to: Try to simplify the sentence by underlining key words
- Usually, the sentence that is to be added comes after/before the sentence that is
directly talking about the subject of the added sentence (For example, the added
 sentence is about data gathering and the previous sentence actually give examples
of data gathering)
- The sentence that best connects with the previous paragraph usually explains/refers
to the very last sentence of the previous paragraph
- If the main point of the paragraph is communication, then do not choose the phrase
that will veer away from this main point, such as "accepting constructive criticism"
because "explaining ideas clearly" is more related to communication
- Do not put transition words, if they are not needed, but when there is a need,
make sure to choose the most appropriate transition word according to how
they are usually used in a particular sentence and make sure that there is a
flow with the previous and next sentence: Ex. No need to state "furthermore", if
the sentence is just talking about what happened next, especially in the introduction/
conclusion, Ex. "Then" is more appropriate than "however", if the information is just
restating what was stated earlier (especially in the conclusion) because "however"
usually introduces a new counterargument
- JUST RETAIN THE IMPORTANT SENTENCES NEEDED THAT SUPPORT THE
MAIN FOCUS OF THE PARAGRAPH AND ELIMINATE ANYTHING ELSE
UNNECESSARY
- Possible Case: There are three choices with the same key word presented in
different forms and there is one choice that has a completely different key
word: But, the correct answer is the one with a different key word because it
best fits the context of the sentence: Thus, read everything carefully, never
conform to any pattern, and pick the best answer that fits the context of the
sentence (For example: The gang was ____ a number of charges: The best
phrase to input is "prosecuted on", rather than "persecuted for/on/with":
Prosecuted best fits with the word charges that are all related to crime and law
- Do not think that the sentence is automatically wrong, if it contains unfamiliar
punctuations, such as : ; - or other unfamiliar sentence structures because it
CAN BE CORRECT: Do not always follow my own style, but rather choose the
best structure that will fit the context/flow of the sentence (Ex. "The idea is
obviously very attractive: an obscure method of photography available at little
expense" is better than "With the idea being very attractive, an obscure method
of photography is available at little expense", because the cost is not an
additional information, but rather supports the idea of being attractive and
directly identifies what is attractive and considering the "attractiveness" as the
main point
- AVOID REDUNDANCY: (Ex. Illegal activities, street crime, corruption ,etc: Illegal
activities should be DELETED because crime and corruption is already part of
the general category of illegal activities)
- If the question is: "Which choice most effectively 'sets up' the examples in the
following sentences?", it means that I should choose the best sentence that
serves as the topic sentence that the following examples in the next sentences
will mainly talk about: So obviously, I definitely need to examine the next
sentences/examples to choose the best topic sentence

Actual Examples:
- ........, but also helped (Wrong), ............., but THEY also helped (CORRECT)
- Take pears, for instance, unless (Wrong), Take pears for instance, unless (Wrong),
Take pears, for instance: unless they are...... (CORRECT)
- Artists associated with this began to... (Wrong), Artists associated with this
movement began to... (CORRECT: MORE SPECIFIC)
- While...has all but disappeared/remains the only option, the explosion of social media
has... (WRONG: Inconsistent information/Too extreme) While...still has an important
place, the explosion of social media has... (CORRECT: Less extreme/Has the
keyword "still" for contrast, which is part of the requirement in the question)
- UNNECESSARY INFORMATION SHOULD ALWAYS BE SEPARATED WITHIN A
SENTENCE THROUGH THE PROPER PUNCTUATION: WRONG>(Ex. However,
although well compensated earning in 2012 a salary of P500, employees are not
satisfied) CORRECT>(Ex. However, although well compensated, earning in 2012 a
salary of P500, employees are not satisfied): Separate using a comma or
parentheses
- CHOOSE THE SIMPLEST, EVEN IF I DON'T KNOW THE MEANING OF THE
WORD AND THE REST OF THE CHOICES SOUND COMPLICATED, BUT HAVE
THE SAME MEANING: (Ex. A.paid basically no attention to, B.just said whatever
to, C.Completely didn't pay attention to, D.was dismissive of), (The correct
answer is "D", because it has the same meaning with the rest of the choices,
but it is written in the simplest manner), (In these cases, always choose the
simplest, even if I don't know the meaning of the word, since it is quite obvious
that all of the choices mean the same)
- WRONG: ...modeling, which is SLOW REQUIRING precise geometry. CORRECT:
... modeling, which is slow and requires precise geometry. (Less awkward and
clearer: Separates two distinct ideas)
- It is not necessary that "WHO" should be placed right after a person: Always
choose the most precise and appropriate choice
- Do not think that "AT" is the only preposition used for places: IN SOME CASES,
"ON" AND "IN" COULD WORK AS LONG AS THE SENTENCE MAKES SENSE!
- USE "WOULD HAVE HAD" WHEN THE SENTENCE IS DESCRIBING A
POTENTIAL OUTCOME IF CONDITIONS WERE DIFFERENT: IMAGINING WHAT
WOULD HAVE HAPPENED WHEN SOMETHING DIFFERENT OCCURS
- Correct>"Ford said of his friend, the novelist Joseph Conrad" (By adding
"novelist", the sentence properly introduces a new person to the readers
through relevant information)
- A pronoun needs to match its antecedent: If the antecedent does not specify
gender, then it is appropriate to use "he or she"
- CORRECT> When starting in a career field, building your experience can give
you profit. (SOUNDS GOOD AND CLEAR) INCORRECT> Just starting in a
career field, building experience can give you profit. (UNCLEAR AND SOUNDS
AWKWARD)
- CORRECT> Intestines react as if the virus attacked and become inflamed.
(CLEAR, SEQUENCES ARE ORGANIZED AND READERS KNOW WHAT COMES
AFTER WHAT) INCORRECT> Intestines react as if the virus attacked as they
 become inflamed (INTESTINES DO NOT REACT AND BECOME INFLAMED AT
THE SAME TIME: UNCLEAR)
- CORRECT> With reserves such as coal and oil, Antarctica is indeed a rich
continent (ALL OF THE ANSWER CHOICES CLAIM THAT ANTARCTICA IS A
RICH CONTINENT, SO THIS SENTENCE EXPRESSES THE SAME
RELATIONSHIP MOST ELEGANTLY IN FEWER WORDS: MOST PRECISE
ANSWER) INCORRECT> Because of its many reserves such as coal and oil,
Antarctica is indeed a rich continent (LESS PRECISE AND LESS SIMPLE)
- ALWAYS VERIFY WHETHER "IT" MATCHES THE NOUN IT STANDS FOR AND
CHOOSE A BETTER REPLACEMENT IF NEEDED (Ex. CORRECT> When the
protocol banning extraction is re-examined in 2048, AN ENERGY HUNGRY
WORLD will be waiting to capitalize on mineral claims in Antarctic locations.)
(INCORRECT> When the protocol..., IT will be waiting to capitalize...> THE "IT"
IS VERY UNSPECIFIC AND IT IS NOT REFERRING TO THE PROTOCOL
BANNING, BUT RATHER THE WORLD: ALWAYS CHECK WHETHER THE WORD
WILL MAKE THE SENTENCE UNDERSTANDABLE)
- "ARMED WITH THESE FACTS" VS "MINDFUL OF THIS SETBACK": TO CHOOSE
THE BEST TRANSITION, ALWAYS CHECK WHETHER THE PREVIOUS
PARAGRAPH TALKED ABOUT ONLY ONE PROBLEM OR MANY PROBLEMS:
SAT FAVORS "ARMED WITH THESE FACTS", IF THE PREVIOUS PARAGRAPH
DISCUSSED NOT JUST ONE, BUT MANY PROBLEMS
- MAKE SURE TO SEPARATE UNNECESSARY INFORMATION THROUGH
COMMAS, PARENTHESES, AND DASHES: FOR EXAMPLE> ..., weightlessness,
or microgravity similar to what is experienced in space, is achieved. (IT IS
NECESSARY TO PUT A COMMA BEFORE "OR" AND BEFORE "IS" IN ORDER
TO SEPARATE THE UNNECESSARY PHRASE)
- IF THE QUESTION IS: "AT THIS POINT, THE WRITER IS CONSIDERING ADDING
THE FOLLOWING. SHOULD THE WRITER MAKE THIS ADDITION HERE?"> DO
NOT AUTOMATICALLY DECIDE "YES" OR "NO" WITHOUT READING ALL OF
THE CHOICES, BECAUSE THE ANSWER COULD BE THE OPPOSITE OF MY
ANSWER BASED ON THE REASONING THAT THE CHOICE GIVES
- CORRECT> "THESE TEACHERS INSTRUCT CHILDREN LISTENING, LEARNING,
AND ENJOYING SCHOOL" (MORE PARALLEL AND PRECISE) INCORRECT>
"THESE TEACHERS INSTRUCT CHILDREN IN LISTENING, LEARNING, AND
ENJOYING SCHOOL" (NOT PARALLEL AS "IN" SHOULD BE INCLUDED
BEFORE "LEARNING" AND "ENJOYING" AS WELL TO MAKE THE SENTENCE
GRAMMATICALLY CONSISTENT)
- THERE MUST ALWAYS BE A PUNCTUATION BEFORE AND AFTER A
TRANSITION WORD (SUCH AS "HOWEVER") WITHIN A SENTENCE:
CORRECT> This is your home. However, Jeff bought it. (PERIOD AND COMMA)
INCORRECT> This is your home, however Jeff bought it. (ONLY COMMA
BEFORE, BUT THERE IS NO PUNCTUATION AFTER)
- "BEING" CAN BOTH BE A GERUND (FORM OF A NOUN) OR A PRESENT
PARTICIPLE (FORM OF A VERB): BE CAREFUL OF WHICH ONE IT REFERS TO
BECAUSE PARALLELISM IS VERY IMPORTANT IN WRITING
- "PRIOR" DOES NOT HAVE TO HAVE "TO" AFTER IT: STILL CORRECT> THE
TREE WAS DISCOVERED TWO YEARS PRIOR. (PRECISE AND EFFECTIVE)
- "HAD" (JUST IN THE PAST, BUT NOT ANYMORE) VS "HAS" (HAPPENED FROM
THE PAST UNTIL NOW): For example> From its beginning, the movement has
opposed unequal treatment (CORRECT: THE KEY PHRASE "FROM ITS
BEGINNING" MEANS THAT IT HAPPENED FROM THE PAST UNTIL NOW: LOOK
FOR KEY WORDS)
- USING A "COLON" IS PREFERRED OVER "WHERE" IN THIS EXAMPLE: "The
noise and airways overreact: delicate tissues become inflamed." (THE COLON
LOGICALLY TRANSITIONS TO AN EXPLANATION OF THE FIRST CLAUSE), (IF I
REPLACE THE COLON WITH WHERE, THE SENTENCE WILL NOT BE
CORRECT BECAUSE "WHERE" SHOULD BE PLACED RIGHT AFTER "NOSE
AND AIRWAYS" BUT NOT "OVERREACT", WHICH IS NOT A PLACE)
- "AS.....AS" (ALWAYS NEED TO FOLLOW THIS FORM FOR COMPARATIVE
IDIOMS): CORRECT> AS CLEVER AS, INCORRECT>AS CLEVER/AS CLEVER
THAN
- "He provided fertile ground in which to nurture his talents" (CORRECT: MORE
PRECISE) VS "He provided fertile ground nurturing young Armstrong's special
talents" (INCORRECT: UNCLEAR AND VERY AWKWARD): ALWAYS PREVENT
SENTENCES THAT HAVE A DIRECT VERB RIGHT AFTER A NOUN BECAUSE
USUALLY THEY ARE TWO SEPARATE IDEAS AND THERE IS A NEED TO PUT
WORDS THAT WILL CLEARLY TRANSITION BETWEEN THOSE TWO IDEAS
- "LOUIS ARMSTRONG DID MORE THAN ANY OTHER MUSICIAN HAS EVER
DONE" (CORRECT: USING "OTHER" MAKES A LOGICAL COMPARISON, SINCE
HE CANNOT DO MORE THAN HE, HIMSELF, DID) VS "LOUIS ARMSTRONG DID
MORE THAN ANY MUSICIAN HAS EVER DONE" (INCORRECT: MAKES
ILLOGICAL COMPARISON)
- "HE DID MORE THAN ANY OTHER PERSON HAS EVER DONE" (CORRECT: THE
SUBJECT IS A PERSON AND THE DIRECT COMPARISON INVOLVES ANOTHER
PERSON) VS "HE DID MORE THAN WHAT ANY OTHER PERSON HAS EVER
DONE" (INCORRECT: THE SUBJECT IS A PERSON, SO THE DIRECT
COMPARISON SHOULD BE ANOTHER PERSON, NOT "WHAT" THE PERSON
DID)
- FOR HYPOTHETICAL SITUATIONS, USE SUBJUNCTIVE MOOD (verb form
used to express a wish, a suggestion, a command, or a condition that is
contrary to fact.): FOR EXAMPLE> THE TRUTH, WHICH WOULD BE
LAUGHABLE IF IT WERE NOT SO PATHETIC, IS THAT THE VICE PRESIDENT
HAS NO RESIDENCE AT ALL (CORRECT: WAY CLEARER WITH THE USE OF
WHICH), INCORRECT> THE TRUTH, BRING LAUGHABLE IF IT WAS NOT SO
PATHETIC, IS THAT (INAPPROPRIATE SENTENCE STRUCTURE: ALWAYS
BETTER TO USE WHICH EVEN IF SENTENCE GETS LONGER)
- PARALLELISM: HE BELIEVED THAT IT ALLOWED HIM TO SEE NEW
RELATINOSHIPS, IN MUCH THE SAME WAY AS RELATIVITY ALLOWED
EINSTEIN SIMILAR INSIGHTS (CORRECT: PARALLEL IN USING ALLOWED
AND MORE PARALLEL STRUCTURE, EVEN IF IT IS LONGER THAN OTHER
CHOICES