A sentence correction question will present you with a sentence, part or all of which will be underlined. Beneath the sentence will be five answer choices, each of which presents a different way to replace the underlined part of the sentence. The first of the answer choices will always be identical to the underlined portion. The next four will be different. These questions test your ability to use English accurately and effectively, so the answer you select should be both grammatically correct and the most effective (concise, clear, and not awkwardly phrased) of the choices.
Tips for answering sentence correction:
>The first step you should always take on SC is eliminating any answer choices that contain DEFINITE errors.If you’re certain, for example, that a pronoun has no antecedent, or that the subject of the sentence doesn’t agree with the verb, or that a modifier is misplaced... then cross the answer choice out.Have a good command of the following topics:-
1. pronouns (it, they, that, those)
2. modifiers (that, which, “-ing”, “-ed”, etc.)
3. parallelism, including special parallelism triggers (both/and, either/or, not/but)
4. basic comparisons, especially “like,” “unlike”, and “as”
5. subject-verb agreement
6. verb tenses, especially past perfect tense
7. a few other minor-but-straightforward topics: semicolons, “due to”, and countable vs. non-countable modifiers
If you master these seven topics, you’ll be able to eliminate roughly half of the wrong answer choices.
>NEVER rely on your ear. Don't eliminate an answer choice just because it sounded wrong to you. Focus on the details, and find grammatical errors.
>If you’re having trouble figuring out what the sentence is saying, try ignoring the modifiers and finding just the main subject(s) and verb(s). Then, mentally add the modifiers back in, one at a time.
>If a verb changes between singular and plural across the different answer choices, start by finding the subject that goes with that verb. The subject is the only thing that determines whether a verb should be singular or plural.
>Try summarizing jargon-y parts of the sentence in your own words or simplifying names and titles. Instead of “employees of a Fortune 500 corporation,” think “workers.” Instead of “the most valuable approach to solving any problem,” think “the best approach.”
>Go through each option one at a time. But remember, the sentence might need no correction. In this case, choose the first option.
>It’s a good idea to make a list of the idioms that come up again and again as you’re preparing.
>Stuck between two answer choices? Focus on the differences. If you don’t see a grammar error, it’s also possible that the two answer choices have different meanings. If one of the answer choices has a meaning that doesn’t make logical sense, or if it seems like it could mean two different things, eliminate it. But what if both meanings seem reasonable? You’ll rarely get to this point, but if you do, go with the meaning that’s closer to the original sentence.
>Remember, If you dive into a Sentence Correction problem looking for the perfect sentence, you’ll be disappointed. It’s always better to eliminate wrong answers than to search for the right answer.
Video topic: Adjectives and Adverbs
Video topic: Tenses
Video topic: Subject-verb Agreement
Video topic: Modifiers (Basics)
Video topic: Modifiers (Practice questions)
Video topic: Idioms
Video topic: Modifiers- Placement
Video topic: Pronouns + Subject-verb agreement
Video topic: Parallelism
Video topic: Preposition, Word Usage, and Fragmented Sentence