500 McGRAW-HILL’S SAT
Consider Alternatives:There Are Often
Several Ways to Fix a Mistake, So Be Flexible
The coaches weren’t as interested in winning games
during spring training, they considered itas an
opportunity to experiment with different permuta-
tions of players.
(A) spring training, they considered it
(B) spring training; but they considered it
(C) spring training, but
(D) spring training as they were in using it
(E) spring training they were in using it
You might notice that the original sentence is a
“run on” (see Chapter 15, Lesson 15) because it joins
two independent clauses with only a comma. Usually,
run-ons can be fixed by replacing the comma with a
semicolon, colon, or conjunction. So you might go
through the choices and eliminate those that also
don’t contain a semicolon, colon, or conjunction,
leaving you with (B) and (C), but these don’t work.
Choice (B) incorrectly combines the semicolon and
the conjunction, and choice (C) is illogical. Choice (D)
is the correct answer because it is the only one that
logically completes the ascomparison.
Simplify and Check:All Else Being Equal,
Shorter Is Better
If you’ve developed a good ear by reading a lot
of good prose, trust it. If a sentence sounds
okay, it probably is, and you should be inclined
to choose (A). But some writing problems are
hard to identify. For instance, some needlessly
wordy phrases don’t sound so bad at first. Even
if a sentence sounds okay, always read any
choices that are shorterthan the original. If a
choice says the same thing in fewer words, it’s
probably better.Several reviewers suggested that the article was not
only frequently inaccurate, but additionally it was
needlessly obtuse and, ultimately, it was insubstantial.
(A) but additionally it was needlessly obtuse and,
ultimately, it was insubstantial
(B) but it was also needlessly obtuse and it was ulti-
mately also insubstantial
(C) but they also commented on the needless obtuse-
ness and also the ultimate insubstantiality
(D) although it was also needlessly obtuse and ulti-
mately insubstantial
(E) but also needlessly obtuse and ultimately
insubstantial
What’s wrong with the original sentence? You
might have a tough time identifying the grammatical
problem, but notice that it is wordy and awkward.
Don’t pick (A) immediately just because no mistake
jumps out. Notice that (B), (D), and (E) are more con-
cise than the original. The most concise is (E), which
is the correct answer. (In fact, the grammatical problem
isweak parallelism, which is discussed in Chapter 15,
Lesson 3.)Check:Check for Dangling Modifiers
Every “improving sentences” section is likely to have
one or more dangling modifier questions (Chapter 15,
Lessons 7 and 8). Make sure that you know how to
handle them by applying this simple rule:Any modifying phrase must be as close as pos-
sible to the word it modifies.Chosen from the best players from around the
county, the coaches found the recruits to be very easy
to work with.
(A) Chosen from the best players from around the
county
(B) Being chosen from the best players from through-
out the county
(C) Having chosen the best players from around the
county
(D) Being the best players from throughout the en-
tire county
(E) The best players having been chosen by them
from throughout the county
The underlined phrase is a participial phrase
based on the participle chosen.Whowas chosen? The
recruits, not the coaches.Sincecoachesis closer to the
modifying phrase than recruitsis, the modifier is mis-
placed (see Chapter 15, Lessons 7 and 8). Notice that
choice (C) changes the participle from chosentohav-
ing chosen so that it modifies coaches, the noun that
follows. This choice makes it clear that the coaches
have chosen the best players.Analyze:Inspect the Sentence for “Extra”
ProblemsRemember that the sentence may have more
than one problem. Always reread the sentence
with your choice to make sure that there are
no “extra” problems.