Cracking The SAT Premium

CAN YOU REALLY TEST WRITING ON A MULTIPLE-CHOICE

EXAM?

We’d say no, but ETS and the College Board seem to think the answer is yes. To that end, you will have
35 minutes to answer 44 multiple-choice questions that ask about a variety of grammatical and stylistic
topics. If you like to read and/or write, the SAT may frustrate you a bit because it may seem to boil
writing down to a couple of dull rules. But as you will see, we will use the next few chapters to suggest a
method that keeps things simple for pro- and antigrammarians alike.

WHERE DID ALL THE QUESTIONS GO?

One thing that can seem a little strange about the Writing and Language Test of the SAT is that many of the
questions don’t have, well, questions. Instead, many of the questions look something like this:

The history of   1 language although    it  may sound   like    a   boring  subject,    is  a   treasure    trove   of

historical, cultural,   and psychological   insights.

1.

A) NO CHANGE

B) language,    although    it  may sound   like    a   boring  subject

C) language,    although    it  may sound,  like    a   boring  subject,

D) language,    although    it  may sound   like    a   boring  subject,

How are you supposed to pick an answer when there’s no question?

Well, actually, what you’ll find throughout this chapter and the next two chapters is that you’re given a lot
of information in this list of answer choices.

Look at these pairs, and you’ll see just what we mean. As you read through these pairs of answer choices,
think about what each question is probably testing.

i. A) could of

B) could    have

ii. A) tall,    dark,   and handsome

B) tall,    dark    and handsome

iii. A) let them    in

B) let  Sister  Susie   and Brother John    in

iv. A) We   arrived in  Paris   on  a   Sunday. Then    we  took    the train   to  Nantes. Then    we  took    the

train   to  Bordeaux.

B) We   arrived in  Paris   on  a   Sunday. Then    we  took    the train   to  Bordeaux.   Then    we  took    the