Homophones

Homophones are words that sound the same

but have different meanings. Here are some
examples of homophones that have appeared
the practice SATs: fare/fair, cite/sight/site,
then/than, there/their/they're, and its/it’s. You
should know what each of these words means
and how it's used.
The sentence is comparing the cafe to a fair. Based on the
context, the word “fair,” which means an exhibition, usually with
food and entertainment, is correct. There are multiple meanings
of the word “fare,” but it often refers to the money you pay for
transportation, as in “bus fare.” Clearly, the word “fare” doesn’t
make sense in this context, so you can immediately eliminate
answer choice C.
Next, we need to determine if we should use “then” or “than.” You
use the word “than” to make comparisons and “then” to refer to
time. Because the sentence is comparing the cafe to a fair, the
correct answer is B
Use the Fewest Words Possible

Typically, the shortest grammatically correct answer choice

that expresses the same information as the original
sentence will be the right answer. Shorter sentences are
more concise and easier to understand. On the SAT,
or phrases may be unnecessarily added to a sentence.
Here’s an example sentence with a redundancy error:

Every year, Jane runs the Los Angeles Marathon annually.

Answer choices A, B, and C
are redundant. The phrase
“and other countries” already
implies that there are other
items on the list. The
correct answer is D.
Use the Correct Idiomatic Expression

Idiom questions can be challenging because they don't conform

to specific rules. You have to rely on your knowledge of specific
phrases and standard English conventions to answer these
questions correctly. In most idiom questions on the SAT, you'll be
asked to determine which preposition to use in a given sentence.
Check out this example sentence with a prepositional idiom error:

Incorrect: After getting suspended, Herbert decided to focus at

improving his behavior.
Correct: After getting suspended, Herbert
decided to focus on improving his behavior.
The correct expression is
“as a means of,” and the
answer is B.
Keep Verb Tenses Consistent

The general rule regarding verb consistency is that verbs

should remain consistent in tense or form throughout a
sentence. Here’s an example of a consistency error:

Last week, Frank rented a car and drives to Las Vegas.

Last week, Frank rented a car and drove to Las
Vegas.
In this sentence, the verbs “is” and “serves”
indicate that the underlined verb should be
in the present tense. Answer choices B and D
are not present tense verbs. Answer choice A
is wrong because the “it” is redundant. The
correct answer is C.
 Surround Non-Restrictive Clauses and Appositives With Commas
The SAT tests a number of comma rules, and these are two that you need
to know.

Relative Clauses:
Restrictive vs. Non-Restrictive
Relative clauses are dependent clauses that describe a noun and start with
a relative pronoun or adverb like “who,” “that,” “which,” or “where.” The
basic rule is that restrictive clauses shouldn’t be surrounded by commas
and non-restrictive clauses should be.

What’s a Restrictive Clause?

Restrictive clauses are necessary to the meaning of the sentence. You
take a restrictive clause out of a sentence without effectively changing the
meaning of the sentence.
Here’s an example:
Students who read regularly are prepared for the SAT.
What’s a Non-Restrictive Clause?

A non-restrictive clause isn't essential to the

meaning of the sentence. If you got rid of
the clause, you'd have less information, but
the overall meaning of the sentence would
remain the same. Here's an example
with the non-restrictive clause underlined.
Joe’s parents, who constantly call him,
are very overprotective.
What Is an Appositive?
An appositive is a descriptive phrase that doesn't include
a verb. Similar to a non-restrictive clause, an appositive
can be removed without changing the meaning of the
sentence.
Here's an example with the appositive underlined:
Val, a Wisconsin native, loves fried cheese curds.
If we get rid of the appositive, the sentence still has the
same meaning:
Val loves fried cheese curds.
In this sentence, “the centerpiece” is an appositive that adds more
information about the mural. Because appositives must be
surrounded by commas, there should be a comma after
“centerpiece.” Immediately, we know that A and C are wrong. In
answer choice D, the dash can be used like a comma, but you can’t
separate a clause with a comma and a dash. There would have to be a
dash after “mural” for answer choice D to be right.
The correct answer is B.
Commas Can't Separate Two Complete Thoughts

A comma splice is when two independent clauses,

clauses, or complete thoughts, are separated by a
comma, and comma splices create a grammatical
error known as a run-on sentence. A run-on
sentence occurs when two or more independent
clauses aren't separated by the correct
punctuation.
Ken likes Selena Gomez, she is his favorite singer.
This is an example of a comma splice. The
sentence up until “legs” is a complete thought
that could stand alone as a sentence, and the
rest of the sentence starting with “they” is also
a complete thought. Both A and B are comma
splices. Answer choice D is wrong because a
conjunction is needed to connect “are
characterized” and “are covered.” The correct
answer is C.
 Semicolons Separate Two Complete Thoughts
Semicolons function like periods; they separate two independent
clauses.
You should be able to replace semicolons with periods. On the SAT,
you may find a randomly placed semicolon, or you may need to
replace a comma with a semicolon to fix a comma splice. Here are
example sentences with semicolons used correctly and incorrectly:

Incorrect: Because Teresa wanted to please her family; she became a

doctor.
Correct: Teresa wanted to please her family; she became a doctor.
The second sentence is correct because the clauses on both sides of
the semicolon are independent and could stand alone as sentences.
The clause before the semicolon is not a complete
thought; therefore, the semicolon is being used
incorrectly. Answer choice C unnecessarily adds
“and,” and answer choice B is wrong because it
places a colon after a dependent clause. The
correct answer is D.
A Colon Must Come After an Independent Clause
Colons are usually used to introduce lists or explanations. The
rule for colons is that they must come after a complete
sentence. If you end the sentence where the colon is placed, the
sentence should make sense and be a complete thought.
Incorrect: Meena enjoys multiple genres of music like:
alternative, rap, heavy metal, and country.
Correct: Meena enjoys multiple genres of music: alternative, rap,
heavy metal, and country.
The first sentence is incorrect because the part of the sentence
that comes before the colon isn’t a complete thought.
Because the clause before the colon is a complete
thought and it's setting up a list, the colon is being used
correctly. The types of people listed after the colon
are the narrator's colleagues. Because "colleagues"
isn't part of the list, you can't substitute the colon for a
comma. Also, you can't use a semicolon in place of the
colon because there isn't a complete thought after the
punctuation. The correct answer is A.
 Use Apostrophes Correctly to Form Possessives
The SAT tests you on how to use apostrophes to correctly form
possessives. Luckily, the rules for forming possessives are pretty
straightforward. If the word is singular or plural but doesn’t end in “s,”
“s,” then you add an “s” after the apostrophe to form a possessive.
Here are a couple of examples:
I shall be paying a visit to the men’s restroom.
My computer’s monitor is rather dirty.
To create a possessive for a plural word that does end in “s,” just add
an apostrophe after the “s.” Check it out:
Juan thinks his parents’ rules are too strict.
Also, only use apostrophes for possessives or contractions.
Contractions are formed when you combine two words. Examples
include it’s (it is), don’t (do not), and isn’t (is not). Don’t use
apostrophes to create plural nouns.
Because the body is is being discussed in general terms, we should
use the singular possessive in this sentence; the sentence is referring
to the biological clocks of the body. We can immediately get rid of A
because “bodies” is a plural noun; it’s not in the possessive form.
Also, answer choice B is wrong because bodies’ is the plural
possessive form. Additionally, there shouldn’t be an apostrophe after
the “s” in “clocks.” Don’t use apostrophes to form plural nouns; only use
apostrophes for possessives and contractions. Similarly, answer choice
D is wrong because of the apostrophe before the “s” in clocks; the
correct answer is C.
 Subjects and Verbs Must Agree
Subjects and verbs must agree, meaning that you must use
the singular form of a verb with a singular subject and the
plural form of a verb with a plural subject. Here’s an
example:
Incorrect: High school students loves learning grammar
rules.
Correct: High school students love learning grammar rules.
To determine if there’s a subject verb agreement error, we
have to identify the subject that corresponds with the verb
“portrays.” What portrays animals? The works of art do. The
phrase in between the commas separates the subject from the
verb. The subject is plural because “works” is plural and “of
art” is a prepositional phrase. The plural form of “portrays” is
“portray,” and the correct answer is C. Answer choices B and
D are not plural verbs; “portraying” is a gerund that would
create a fragment, and “has portrayed” is the singular form of
the present perfect tense.
Pronouns Must Agree With Their Antecedents in Number
This rule means that a plural pronoun must refer to a plural
noun and a singular pronoun must refer to a singular
noun. Here's an example of a pronoun number agreement
error:
Kristin sold their car.
The pronoun “their” is referring to the car of Kristin. Because
Kristin is one person and “their” is a plural pronoun, this
sentence has a pronoun agreement error. This is the corrected
version:
Kristin sold her car.
It’s easy to make a careless mistake on this question because you
may see the singular pronoun “it” and assumed the underlined
pronoun should be singular as well. However, the pronouns have
different antecedents. The word “it” refers to 1-MCP, which is
singular, and “their” refers to apples, which is plural. The
possessive pronoun agrees with the antecedent, and there’s no
error.
Answer choice A is correct. Answer choice C is a singular
possessive pronoun, D is the contraction of “it is,” and B is a
homophone of the correct answer, but it’s the wrong word.
Completion Questions
Select the word that best completes each sentence.
1. The pop you get when you crack your knuckles (are, is) actually a bubble of gas
bursting.
2. Polar bears (is, are) left-handed.
3. The name of all the continents (ends, end) with the same letter that they start
with.
4. No president of the United States (were, was) an only child.
5. Everyone (are, is) entitled to my opinion.
6. Here is some good advice: Don’t sneeze when someone (is, are) cutting your hair.
7. If a man (are, is) wearing a striped suit, it’s against the law to throw a knife at him
in
Natoma, Kansas.
8. In 1659, Massachusetts (mades, made) Christmas illegal.
9. Unless you have a doctor’s note, it (are, is) illegal to buy ice cream after 6 P.M. in
Newark, New Jersey.
10. It is a misdemeanor to show movies that (depicts, depict) acts of felonious crime
in
1. The American slogan for Salem cigarettes, “Salem-Feeling Free,”
__________translated
into the Japanese market as “When smoking Salem, you will feel so refreshed
that your mind__________________ to be free and empty.”
(a) Was, seems
(b) Was, seem
(c) Were, seem
(d) Were, seems

2. Frank Perdue’s chicken slogan, “It takes a strong man to make a tender
chicken,”__________translated into Spanish as “It_____________ an aroused man to
make a
chicken affectionate.”
(a) Were, takes
(b) Were, take
(c) Was, takes
(d) Was, take
Completion Questions
1. is 2. are 3. ends 4. was 5. is 6. is 7. is 8. made 9.
10. depict 11. drive 12. is, buy

Multiple-Choice Questions
1. a 2. c 3