Grammar

Standard English Conventions is roughly 26% of the Reading & Writing section — sentence structure, punctuation, agreement, verb form, and modifiers. These are rule-based questions: there is exactly one grammatically correct answer, and the test will never give you two answers that both work. Learn the rules below and the points are free. Rhetoric questions (transitions and synthesis) sit alongside them and test logic, not grammar — they're here too.

Index. The diagnostic move · Sentence boundaries · Verb form in sentences · Joining clauses · Commas · Semicolons · Colons · Dashes & parentheses · Apostrophes · No-punctuation traps · Describing phrases · Lists · Subject-verb agreement · Verb tense · Pronouns · Modifiers · Parallelism & comparisons · Transitions · Rhetorical synthesis

The diagnostic move: read the answers first

Conventions questions all carry the same prompt — "Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?" — so the prompt tells you nothing. The answers tell you everything. Whatever is changing across the four choices is the topic being tested; everything else in the sentence is fixed and irrelevant.

• Punctuation moving around → structure / punctuation. Find the independent clauses and decide how they may be joined.
• Same verb, different tense or number → verbs. Find the subject; check number first, then tense.
• Verb forms like to do vs. doing vs. does → complete sentence. Check whether the sentence already has a main verb.
• its / it's / their / they're → pronouns + apostrophes. Find the noun it refers to; decide contraction vs. possessive.
• Apostrophes shifting on a noun (baby's / babies') → possessive vs. plural.
• Whole clauses rearranged → modifiers (what is the opening phrase describing?).
• "most logical transition" → rhetoric, not grammar. Every choice is correct English; pick the one whose meaning fits.
• Bullet-point notes → rhetorical synthesis. Match the stated goal.

Sentence boundaries

What a sentence needs

• Subject + main verb + complete thought. At minimum a sentence needs a subject (the noun/pronoun doing something) and a main verb. The dog eats. Malia will sing. Snow was falling.
• Some verbs need an object. give and want can't stand alone — Jackson wants is incomplete; The dog eats peanut butter is fine.

Independent vs. dependent clauses

• Independent clause = a complete sentence. Subject, verb, complete thought — it can stand alone.
• Dependent clause. It still has a subject and a verb, but it begins with a subordinating word (because, since, that, if, though, when, while, until, where, as soon as, whenever) that demotes it. It can't stand alone.
• Fragment. A phrase or dependent clause punctuated like a sentence — missing a subject, missing a main verb, or failing to finish a thought.

✗ The large animal in the forest. (no verb — fragment)

✓ The large animal in the forest is sleeping.

✗ Whenever we go to the stadium. (subject + verb, but the subordinator whenever leaves the thought incomplete)

✓ Whenever we go to the stadium, we love to watch our favorite team.

Compare: they wanted to watch a movie (independent) vs. because they wanted to watch a movie (dependent — same words, plus a subordinator).

Fragments, run-ons, and comma splices

• Fragment. A dependent clause or phrase punctuated like a full sentence.
• Run-on. Two independent clauses jammed together with no punctuation, or with only a coordinating conjunction and no comma.
• Comma splice. Two independent clauses joined by a comma alone — the single most-tested error. A comma can never link two independent clauses by itself.

✗ He brushed his teeth, he went to bed. (comma splice)

✗ He brushed his teeth he went to bed. (run-on)

✗ He brushed his teeth and he went to bed. (FANBOYS without a comma)

✓ He brushed his teeth, and he went to bed.

Note: He brushed his teeth and went to bed is also fine — one subject, two verbs, so no comma. The error only appears once the second clause gets its own subject (he).

Question or statement?

• A statement provides information; a question asks for it. Occasionally the test asks which the blank should be.
• In a question, the verb comes first and a two-word verb splits: did it provide…? A statement keeps normal word order: a choice that provided…
• An indirect question is still a statement — no question mark. Historians wonder whether the migration was a punishment. / I would like to find out who my teacher will be.

✗ While many students are quiet, I prefer to ask my teacher what I need to know? (indirect — no "?")

✓ Where is the nearest subway station? (direct question)

Verb form in complete sentences

• An -ing verb or a to verb cannot be the main verb. When the answers offer to access / accessing / accesses / accessed, the question is testing complete sentences, not tense.
• Method: find the subject, then check whether the sentence already has a main verb. If it doesn't, the blank must supply one — so kill the -ing and to forms. If it already has one, the -ing/to form may be correct.
• An -ing word can be a subject (a gerund): Swimming is my favorite sport.
• An -ing word can be part of a main verb with a helper: He is jogging. The competitors were preparing.
• A to verb follows a main verb or noun idiomatically: want to, need to, like to, a mission to, courage to.

✗ These pacemakers using electrical impulses to regulate a heartbeat. (no main verb — to regulate can't count)

✓ These pacemakers use electrical impulses to regulate a heartbeat.

Verbs in a list or pair stay in the same form

Two or more verbs that share a subject must match form.

✗ The athletes are running, lift weights, and to study technique.

✓ The athletes are running, lifting weights, and studying technique.

✓ White spruce seeds can travel long distances and access areas with little competition. (no second subject after and, so the form must match travel)

The five ways to join clauses

Two independent clauses CAN be joined with…

• A period — they just become two sentences.
• A semicolon, anytime a period would work.
• A comma + a FANBOYS word — For, And, Nor, But, Or, Yet, So. The comma is required when a full clause sits on each side.
• A colon, if the second part explains, defines, or lists from the first.
• A subordinator that demotes one clause to dependent (because, although, when, while, since, if), after which a comma — or nothing — is fine.

✓ English punctuation is not always easy: there are often several ways to punctuate a sentence.

✓ Witten earned his reputation as a scientist, but he was originally interested in politics.

✓ Although I am excited to go to the concert, there is no way I want to wait in line.

Two independent clauses can NEVER be joined with…

• A comma alone (comma splice).
• A FANBOYS word alone, with no comma.
• No punctuation at all (run-on).

An independent + a dependent clause (either order)

• CAN be joined with a comma — or nothing. Dependent-first usually takes a comma; independent-first usually doesn't (a comma appears mainly for contrast).
• CANNOT be joined with a period, a semicolon, a colon, or a FANBOYS word. Those all demand a complete sentence on the relevant side.

✓ Because it was raining, I brought my umbrella. / I brought my umbrella because it was raining.

✗ This material is not authentically African; because it symbolizes how culture is constructed. (because… is dependent — a semicolon needs two independent clauses)

✓ This material is not authentically African because it symbolizes how culture is constructed.

Transitions decide which side of the join they sit on

When a transition like however can attach to either clause, look at the previous sentence. A contrast word belongs with the idea that actually contrasts.

✗ …improved cognitive skills later in life, however. Professor Deary warns… (the first clause has nothing to contrast with)

✓ …improved cognitive skills later in life. However, professor Deary warns…

Commas

Do use a comma…

• After an introductory phrase or dependent clause. If the grass is dry, water the lawn. Once upon a time, the kingdom was under attack.
• To separate items in a list of three or more. flour, sugar, and eggs.
• Around a nonessential / parenthetical phrase — a matching pair. Neil Armstrong, the first person on the moon, is from Ohio. Our house, which we moved into last year, is in good condition.
• Before a FANBOYS word that joins two independent clauses. My sister was hungry, so she grabbed a snack.
• Between adjectives whose order doesn't matter. the fluffy, friendly puppy (= the friendly, fluffy puppy).

Don't use a comma…

• To join two independent clauses by itself (comma splice).
• Right before a list begins. I will pick up oranges, apples, and bananas — no comma after pick up.
• Between adjectives whose order is fixed. the first female governor, not the first, female governor.
• To break up an essential phrase or a phrase starting with that. The book that I almost finished is suspenseful.
• To split a subject from its verb (see the no-punctuation traps).

Conjunctive adverbs need a semicolon, not a comma

Words like however, moreover, nevertheless, subsequently, thus, indeed are weaker joiners than FANBOYS. When they connect two complete sentences, use ; adverb, not a comma.

✗ He was promoted, however, he disliked the new schedule.

✓ He was promoted; however, he disliked the new schedule.

Fine when not joining two clauses: Most birds can fly. The penguin, however, cannot.

Semicolons

• Joins two complete sentences. If a period could go there, a semicolon can too — and only then. A fragment on either side kills it.
• Separates list items that already contain commas. The single exception to the "semicolon = period" rule. If you see multiple semicolons in a sentence whose halves aren't both complete, it's this list use.

✓ This is the best book I have ever read; I cannot put it down.

✗ While I am excited to go to the concert; there is no way I want to wait. (While… is dependent)

✓ I want to visit Boston, Massachusetts; Ithaca, New York; and Providence, Rhode Island.

✓ The crew are Alex, a parent; Taylor, a teacher; and Ali, a community member. (semicolons keep the name/role pairs from blurring)

Colons

• A colon must follow a complete sentence (independent clause). What comes after introduces a list, a clarification, an explanation, or even another full clause.
• What follows need not be complete — it can be a single word, a list, or a sentence.
• The trap: never drop a colon straight after a verb or a preposition.

✗ My favorite colors are: silver, pink, and yellow. (colon after the verb "are")

✓ I have three favorite colors: silver, pink, and yellow.

✓ I have achieved my lifelong dream: hiking up a tall mountain.

✓ The goal was clear: the 10,000 inhabitants would generate rubber. (full clause after the colon, explaining the first)

Dashes & parentheses

Dashes

• A single dash marks a change of thought or sets off an end-of-sentence explanation. I would not go down that alley—it looks spooky.
• A pair of dashes encloses a parenthetical phrase, like commas or parentheses but with more punch. Las Vegas—a major tourist town—is surrounded by desert.
• Match your openings and closings. If a phrase opens with a dash it must close with a dash; you cannot mix a dash with a comma. This "consistent pair" rule applies to commas, dashes, and parentheses alike.

✗ Las Vegas—a major tourist town, is surrounded by desert. (dash opened, comma closed)

Parentheses

• Parentheses don't change the surrounding grammar or punctuation. Any comma or period stays outside the closing parenthesis.
• No extra comma inside when the parenthesis already supplies the pause.

✗ The dog eats a lot each day (food from a bag.)

✓ The dog eats a lot each day (food from a bag).

✓ When you eat breakfast (the most important meal), you have energy for hours.

Apostrophes

Nouns — possession

• Singular possessive: apostrophe + s. a person’s house, the dress’s sleeves.
• Plural possessive: make it plural, then apostrophe after the s. three pets’ fence, the stories’ meanings. What matters is how many owners, not how many things owned.
• Irregular plurals (already plural without -s): apostrophe + s. the children’s playground, the men’s team, the people’s letter.
• Joint ownership: one apostrophe on the last name. Pam and Andy’s family (they share it).
• Separate ownership: apostrophe on each. Aliyah’s and Olivia’s report cards (each has her own).
• Plain plural — no apostrophe at all. Humpback whales love the open ocean. A noun gets an apostrophe only if the next word is something it can possess.
• Check by removing the apostrophe + what follows — you should get back the plain word (dog’s → dog, friends’ → friends).

✗ The Broadway show’s set’s are hard to move. (the sets possess nothing)

✓ The Broadway show’s sets are hard to move.

Pronouns — contraction vs. possessive

• Apostrophe = contraction. it’s = it is/has, they’re = they are, you’re = you are, who’s = who is/has.
• Possessive pronouns never take an apostrophe. its, their, your, whose. (its’ is never a word.)
• Test by expanding: if "it is"/"they are" fits, use the apostrophe; otherwise use the plain possessive.

✗ The bicycle needs it’s tires inflated. ("it is tires"?)

✓ The bicycle needs its tires inflated.

Where punctuation is NOT allowed

Sometimes the right answer has no punctuation at all. The default is nothing — use a mark only when a rule demands it.

• Never put a single mark between a subject and its verb. A long subject still gets no comma. (A matched pair of commas around an interrupting phrase is fine.)
• No punctuation around specifying / essential information.
• No punctuation after a preposition (in, of, for, by, with, on, to).
• No comma before a list starts.
• Exception: a preposition fused to a verb as a set phrase (fond of, a fan of, talk to) can be followed by a colon before a list: three teams I am a fan of: the Bears, the Tigers, and the Cubs.

✗ American physicist Edward Bouchet, was the first to earn a Ph.D. in the U.S. (subject / verb split)

✓ American physicist Edward Bouchet was the first to earn a Ph.D. in the U.S.

✗ The sandwich I wanted to order, was no longer available.

✓ The sandwich I wanted to order was no longer available.

✗ The contest offered rewards of: gift cards, headphones, and sneakers. (colon after a preposition)

Punctuation with describing phrases

Titles & labels before a name — no comma

• A label that precedes a name, book title, or unfamiliar noun acts like an adjective. No comma between it and the name. Astronaut Mae Jemison, scientist Bert Vogelstein, Star Trek character Lieutenant Uhura.

✗ scientist, Bert Vogelstein

✓ scientist Bert Vogelstein

Specifying (essential) information — no commas

• If a phrase tells you which one, it's essential — no commas. Remove it and the sentence loses its meaning or becomes vague.
• Phrases beginning with that are always specifying. Never wrap them in commas.
• Prepositional phrases are usually specifying when they sit mid-sentence — no commas — but take a comma when they open the sentence.

✓ The person who sold me my bike offered me a discount. (which person? — essential)

✓ The paper airplane that travels farthest wins. / The dog sniffing the fence is mine.

✓ Squirrels at the top of the tree were playing. vs. At the top of the tree, squirrels were playing.

✗ The person, who sold me my bike, offered me a discount. (wrongly treats essential info as extra)

Extra (nonessential) information — "put punctuation around it"

• Removable extra info gets a matching pair — two commas, two dashes, or two parentheses.
• A description beginning with "a / an / the" is extra and can go before or after the name, but must be set off. (This is the exception to the "title takes no comma" rule.)
• The delete test: remove the phrase. Sentence still complete and clear? It's extra — punctuate it. Now vague? It's essential — leave it bare.

✓ Mae Jemison, an astronaut, became interested in space.

✓ An astronaut, Mae Jemison became interested in space.

✓ Sprinkles, his missing pet cat, had been found.

Lists

• Three or more items take commas between them, with and or or before the last item. pumpkin pie, pecan pie, or apple pie.
• The Oxford comma isn't tested. The correct answer will include the comma before and/or, but you won't be forced to choose for or against it.
• List items must be in the same form. Spotting the parallel form often tells you where a comma belongs.
• If items contain internal commas, separate them with semicolons (see Semicolons). Multiple semicolons in the answers signal a complex list.

✓ The book featured a canoe being sailed, a man performing a dance, and an expedition being completed. (three parallel noun phrases)

✓ Cantu a tenòre, a style from Sardinia; Buddhist chant, practiced in Tibet; and Inuit throat singing, a contest in Canada.

Subject-verb agreement

• Singular subject → singular verb; plural → plural. Number is tested separately from tense — find the subject first and you usually don't need to think about tense at all.
• Find the subject; it's before the verb but rarely right before it. Mentally strip out describing phrases that intervene.
• Ignore the prepositional phrase between subject and verb. Words after of, in, from, to describe the subject but aren't it.
• Collective nouns are singular: pack, group, flock, class, herd, company, team, family.
• Indefinite pronouns are singular: everybody, everyone, anybody, anyone, no one, someone, each, either, neither.
• Compound subjects joined by and are plural: my English teacher and my math teacher give…
• Neither/nor pairs take a singular verb: they refer to items one at a time. Neither snow nor rain keeps the mail away.

✗ The pack of wolves are howling.

✓ The pack of wolves is howling.

✓ One of her many focuses was photography. (subject is One, not focuses)

Two quick tests

• Subject: put is / are after it. The team is → singular.
• Verb: put it / they before it. it wants → singular; they want → plural. (Unlike nouns, a verb ending in -s is usually singular.)

Verb tense & form

• Keep tense consistent with the surrounding verbs and time markers. A nearby yesterday or a neighboring past-tense verb (fell, turned, barked) pulls the blank into the past.
• Match helper verbs correctly. Use have taken (not have took), have chosen (not have chose), would have (not would had).
• Present perfect (has/have been) fits an ongoing, not-yet-finished action.
• Future-after-future: a still-unevaluated event takes will do; a present-tense clause after "after/when" can stay present (I will read after I complete my homework).
• Decision order: (1) if -ing/to forms appear, it's about a complete sentence; (2) otherwise check number against the subject; (3) only then check tense.

✗ I went to Florida, and I have a memorable experience.

✓ I went to Florida, and I had a memorable experience.

✓ She identified the mechanism and then received the Nobel Prize. (matches the earlier identified)

Pronouns

Number — it vs. they

• A pronoun must match its antecedent in number. A singular noun takes it; a plural noun takes they. On the SAT, they is always plural — regardless of how we speak.
• Find and highlight the noun the pronoun stands for, then kill any answer of the wrong number.

✗ The smoke detector has dead batteries, which is why they are beeping. (the detector beeps)

✓ …which is why it is beeping.

Vague pronouns get replaced by a name

• If a pronoun could point to two nouns, the SAT swaps in the actual name. Don't fear "assuming" the replacement — if a pronoun is ambiguous, the named choice is correct.

✗ When Darnell and Liam go to the game, he always pays.

✓ …Darnell always pays.

"Just say no" to weird pronoun options

• you / we are wrong unless the passage already addresses the reader that way.
• one can't stand in for a specific noun introduced with "the."
• this / these / those without a following noun are usually too vague.

Contraction vs. possessive (apostrophes)

• Apostrophe = contraction (it’s, they’re, who’s); possessive pronouns have none (its, their, whose). The test loves its/it's and their/they're.

✓ The slow loris is popular because of its large eyes.

Pronoun case

• Subject pronouns (I, he, she, we, they) do the action; object pronouns (me, him, her, us, them) receive it.
• Test a compound by dropping the other name. "Liam and me went" → "me went" is wrong → "Liam and I went."

Modifiers

• A describing phrase must sit next to what it describes. An opening phrase before a comma describes the very next noun.
• Dangling modifier: the noun after the comma isn't who's doing the action in the phrase.
• Misplaced modifier: the description drifts away from its noun.
• The fix: read the opening phrase, ask "who or what is doing this?" — that answer must be the first thing after the comma. When the answers rearrange whole clauses, this is what's tested.

✗ While eating grass in the meadow, a bear was encountered by the deer. (the bear is eating grass?)

✓ While eating grass in the meadow, the deer encountered a bear.

✗ Made with organic oils and plant butters, Noah sold out of his soaps. (Noah is made of oils?)

✓ Made with organic oils and plant butters, Noah’s natural soaps sold out.

✗ Your book will not become damaged, covered with a brown paper cover.

✓ Your book, covered with a brown paper cover, will not become damaged.

Parallelism & comparisons

• Items in a list or pair must share grammatical form. If a list runs your networking skills, your résumé, and…, the blank must continue with your references — same shape.
• Verbs sharing a subject stay in one form (see Verb form): filing papers, taking calls, and assisting clients.
• Compare like to like. A comparison must logically pair a part with a part — the literal meaning has to match the intended meaning.
• Word order must put the right thing in the right slot. Prefer the active, logical arrangement over passive or scrambled phrasing.

✗ The diameter of a circle goes through the center, which is twice the radius. (the center is twice the radius?)

✓ The diameter of a circle, which is twice the radius, goes through the center.

✗ Michael Jordan is as a basketball player who is incredible that is universally regarded. (scrambled)

✓ Michael Jordan is universally regarded as an incredible basketball player.

Transitions

You'll spot these instantly: the question always reads "Which choice completes the text with the most logical transition?" All four answers are grammatically fine — this is about meaning.

Basic approach

• 1. Highlight the related ideas in the sentences before and after the blank.
• 2. Annotate the relationship — do the ideas agree, disagree, or mark a time change?
• 3. Eliminate every transition going the wrong direction, then use process of elimination on what's left.

Classify, then pick

• Addition / agreement: Also, Additionally, Moreover, Furthermore, In addition, What's more.
• Comparison: Similarly, Likewise, By the same token.
• Contrast: However, On the other hand, Still, Though, Nevertheless, Nonetheless, Instead, Whereas, Rather (= instead).
• Cause & effect: Therefore, As a result, Thus, Consequently, Hence, To that end (= for that purpose / with that goal in mind), For that reason.
• Clarification: In other words, In fact, That is.
• Example / specifics: For example, For instance, Specifically, In particular.
• Time / sequence: First, Next, Then, Meanwhile, Eventually, Finally, Ultimately — only when a real time shift fits the tense.

Example: "Welner wanted to make care more accessible. ____ she invented an accessible exam table." The ideas agree and the second is the means to the first goal, so To that end fits — not Rather (contrast), Additionally (treats them as separate points), or Eventually (no time shift in present tense).

Rhetorical synthesis

You're given a bulleted list of student notes and asked which sentence best accomplishes a stated goal. These do not test punctuation, grammar, style, or concision — every choice is correct English. They test whether the sentence fulfills the goal.

Basic approach

• 1. Read the question and highlight every goal. "Present one impact native megafauna have," "emphasize a similarity between the two books," "introduce X to an audience familiar with Y."
• 2. Eliminate any answer that doesn't completely fulfill the goal — check all four. Most wrong answers are true statements that simply miss the goal: they mention only one of two things, state a contrast when a similarity was asked for, or stay too general.
• 3. Read the bullet points only to confirm if two answers seem to fit. You usually don't need them — the answers are generally accurate to the notes.

Example goal: "emphasize a similarity between the two books." The winner names both books and states a shared trait (both include scientific writing). A choice that contrasts them (combines science… while… combines three types of knowledge) fails — that's a difference, not a similarity. A choice naming only one book fails the "two books" part.

Example goal: "present one impact native megafauna have." The winner names a native megafauna and a specific impact (Bison doubled plant diversity). Choices that name megafauna with no impact, or claim impacts without a specific one, all fail though they're true.