Correcting Punctuation Errors: Commas for Dependent Clauses - SAT Writing

The phrase underlined at the end of the sentence is one whole and complete phrase. Thus, the use of a comma anywhere in the phrase is grammatically incorrect. "Speculation by scholars" is the correct answer choice.

The only problem with the sentence is that it is a compound sentence, shoved into a run on sentence. The sentence consists of two complete thoughts, joined by the conjunction "which." All such sentences must be divided by a comma before the conjunction, making "than the youngest kid, which allowed him" the correct answer choice.

The underlined portion of the sentence contains a small punctuation problem. Specifically, the phrase "as the pain was too much to bear," is a phrase that explains the sentence, but is not necessary to its construction. All such phrases need a comma to separate them from the body of the sentence. "Rarely talked to his children as the pain was too much for him to bear," is the best answer choice.

The phrase "as it was all they had to eat" is used as an explanatory phrase, which is unnecessary to the construction of the sentence. Such a phrase needs to be set apart from the rest of the sentence by a comma; therefore, the correct answer is "the poor meat, as it was all they had to eat."

The phrase "preferring to use simplifying language" is a dependent clause, a clause that cannot be used as a complete sentence but instead relies on other information. Although it cannot stand alone, it still needs to be separated from the rest of the sentence by a comma; therefore, the correct answer is " displays of his verbal acuity, preferring to use simplified language."

The phrase "wherever he felt like it" is a dependent clause that explains more about the main body of the sentence. All dependent clauses must be set apart from the rest of the sentence by a comma. As such, "spitting constantly, wherever he felt like it" is the correct answer choice.

The phrase "despite having none to conduct" is a dependent clause, a clause that cannot stand as a complete sentence on its own, but provides extra explanation to the body of the sentence. A dependent clause always needs to be set apart from the rest of the sentence by a comma. The only answer choice that does this is "The former bandleader still dreamed about conducting an ensemble despite having none to conduct."

The phrase "which stressed their underlings" is a dependent clause, or a clause that relies on the main body of the sentence for its full meaning. Any dependent clause must be set apart from the main body of the sentence by a comma. The answer choice that appropriately uses such a comma is "The managers decided to make a change for no particular reason, which stressed their underlings."

Inserting a comma between "nothing" and "but" is incorrect, as the sentence is one complete thought, and should not be broken up by a comma. The only thing that needs to be changed is that the comma needs to be removed from the sentence. Therefore, the correct answer choice is "The fourth place finisher at the Olympics receives nothing but the satisfaction of representing his or her country and competing."

The sentence in the question is a compound sentence, one that joins two complete thoughts to show their relationship to each other. While the conjunction "as" connects the two parts, it also needs a comma to join the two thoughts together correctly. Therefore, the correct answer choice is "The issue proved to be a hot topic for years, as ten years later it was still being debated in leading universities."

The sentence is written as a compound sentence, containing two complete independent clauses, but does not properly connect them. A compound sentence must be connected either by a semicolon or a comma and conjunction, which in this sentence is "because." Therefore, the correct answer choice is "Home cooks are at a disadvantage to professional chefs, because the quality of their equipment is not at the same level."

The phrase "with the only exception being Fridays" is a dependent clause, and needs to be clearly distinguished from the main clause of the sentence. The best way to do this is by setting a comma between the two parts. The only answer choice that correctly places a comma in the sentence is "He typically worked late, with the only exception being Fridays."

Since "but she wasn't sure she would be able to write a novel" is a dependent clause (composed of a conjunction, a subject, and a verb), there needs to be a comma before the conjunction "but" in order to seperate it from the independent clause.

A dependent clause, or a clause which cannot stand on its own, must be separated from the main clause in a sentence by a comma. The full dependent clause in the example sentence is the introductory phrase "When you talk to your mother like that," not "when you talk to your mother like." Thus, the comma attempting to separate the introductory clause in the sentence above actually creates a comma splice error. The best way to correct the underlined portion above is, "When you talk to your mother like that, you bring shame on the whole family."

A dependent clause, or a clause which cannot stand on its own, must be separated from the independent clause in a sentence by a comma. In the example sentence "it's just what he does" is a dependent clause that explains the main clause, and thus must be separated from the main clause with a comma.

The example sentence is a compound sentence, one that joins two complete thoughts together to show their connection to one another. Here, the conjunction "as" must be preceded by a comma. The correct answer choice is the one which reproduces the example sentence as written.

The example sentence is a compound sentence, one which connects two independent clauses together in one sentence to show that they are connected ideas. The coordinating conjunction "because," as used in the example sentence, necessitates a comma.

“Although many species of cacti are native to the Sonoran desert” is a dependent clause, and “only one variety has distinctive bright blue flowers” is an independent clause. Dependent clauses must be separated from independent clauses with commas.

“As soon as my sister leaves the house” is a dependent clause, and “I’m going to have to frost the cake for her surprise party” is an independent clause. Dependent clauses must always be separated from independent clauses with commas.