Identifying Sentence Fragment and Sentence Combination Errors - SAT Writing

Card 0 of 6

Question

Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.

We could swear Bessie the cow was always happy she always had a smile on her face whenever we saw her. No error

Answer

The above sentence is a compound sentence, and therefore, there needs to be a semicolon between "happy" and "she" to properly denote the beginning of the second independent clause.

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Question

Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.

Jessica threw the flying disc over to Daniel and he spun around in a big circle before throwing it back over Jessica's head. No error

Answer

The above sentence is a compound sentence, and therefore needs a comma in between "Daniel" and "and" to properly separate the two independent clauses of the sentence.

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Question

Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.

The scientists grappled with the theoretical physics problem all night they emerged exhausted from the lab in the morning without an answer. No error

Answer

The above sentence is a compound sentence, and therefore we need to include a semicolon between "night" and "they" in order to properly separate the two independent clauses.

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Question

Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.

After her brother ate her sandwich, Andrea was angry. And frustrated. No error

Answer

"And frustrated" is a sentence fragment because it does not contain a subject. Since "and" is not being used as a coordinating conjunction in this instance no punctuation, not even a comma, is needed between "angry and frustrated."

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Question

Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.

Although jaguars and leopards are similar in appearance, the jaguar is the larger animal and the leopard is the fastest. No error

Answer

When comparing only two things, in this case, the jaguar and the leopard, the suffix “-er” should be used instead of the suffix “-est.” The sentence should end “the faster,” not “the fastest.”

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Question

Select the underlined word or phrase that needs to be changed to make the sentence correct. Some sentences contain no error at all.

Many of the students who dislike Ms. Simmons would likely learn a lot less if they were to have a more relaxed teacher. No error

Answer

Every aspect of this sentence is grammatically correct and there is no error. "Who" is correctly used, rather than whom, in this instance; "would" is the correct verb in the correct case.

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