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I.EightTypesofErrorsintheSentenceCorrectionSection(thisisanoverviewofgrammarrulesmany
studentscanskimthroughthissectionbecausesomepartsarebasic).
II.ThreeStepMethodfortheSentenceCorrectionQuestions(thisisanoverviewofstrategytoapproach
theSentenceCorrectionsection).
Thescopeofthisgrammarguideistogiveyouabasicintroductiontogrammar.Ifyoustillneedhelp,
considerbuyingabookongrammar.
I.EightTypesofErrorsintheSentenceCorrectionSection
TheGMATtestsonlyalimitednumberofgrammarerrortypes.
A.SubjectVerbAgreement
B.Modifiers
C.Parallelism
D.PronounAgreement
E.VerbTimeSequences
F.Comparisons
G.Idioms
A.SubjectVerbAgreement
Theverbandsubjectmustagree.Ifthesubjectissingular,thentheverbmustbesingular.Ifthesubjectis
plural,thentheverbmustbeplural.Testwriterswilltrytofoolyoubyusingunusualphrasesthatmakeit
difficulttotellifthesubjectissingularorplural.
1.Ifasingularsubjectisseparatedbyacommafromanaccompanyingphrase,itremainssingular:
Thechild,togetherwithhisgrandmotherandhisparents,isgoingtothebeach.
wrong
:Frank,accompaniedbyhisstudent,wereatthestudio.
right:Frank,accompaniedbyhisstudent,wasatthestudio.
2.Collectivenouns,suchasfamily,majority,audience,andcommitteearesingularwhentheyactina
collectivefashionorrepresentonegroup.Theyarepluralwhentheyactasindividuals.
CollectivenounswillusuallybesingularinSentenceCorrectionsentences.
Amajorityoftheshareholderswantsthemerger.
Herethe"majority"actsasasingularandthereforehasasingularverb,"wants."
Thejurywereindisagreement.
Collectivenoun,pluralverb(becausetheyareactingasindividuals).Note:thisisveryrareandhighly
unlikelytocomeupontestday.
3.Phrasesseparatedbyandarepluralphrasesseparatedbyoraresingular.
Ted,John,andIaregoing.
Becausetheyarejoinedbyand,thepluralformisused
4.Neither/norandeither/orareaspecialcase.Iftwosubjectsarejoinedbyorornor,theverbshould
agreewiththesubjectthatisclosertoit.
Neitherthesupervisornorthestaffmemberswereabletocalmthedistressedclient.
5.Becarefultochoosetherightsubjectinsentencesinwhichtheverbprecedesthesubject.
wrong:ThereismanyreasonswhyIcan'thelpyou.
right:TherearemanyreasonswhyIcan'thelpyou.
Herereasonsisthesubject.
Bewareofconfusingsingular/pluralwords:SingularPluralMediumMediaDatumData
B.Modifiers
1.ErrorsintheUseofAdjectivesandAdverbs.
CheckifawordmodifierisanADJECTIVEoranADVERB.Makesurethecorrectformhasbeenused.
AnADJECTIVEdescribesanounandanswersthequestionshowmany,whichone,whatkind?Sheisa
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goodtennisplayer.
(Whatkindoftennisplayer?)
AnADVERBdescribeseitheraverboranadjectiveandanswersthequestionswhen,where,why,inwhat
manner,andtowhatextent?
Sheplaystenniswell.(Sheplaystennishow?)Thisexerciseisrelativelyeasy.(Howeasy?)Mostadverbs
areformedbyaddinglytotheadjective,suchas,"Heworkedquickly."
EXCEPTIONS:
AdjectiveAdverb
early
fast
good
hard
late
early
fast
well
hard(hardlymeansalmostnot)
late(latelymeansrecently)
wrong:Sheisarealgoodswimmer.
right:Sheisareallygoodswimmer.
"really"isactingasanadverbtomodifytheadjective"good"
wrong:Thenewstudentspeaksbad.
right:Thenewstudentspeaksbadly.
"Badly"modifieshowthestudentspeaks.
2.ErrorsofAdjectiveswithVerbsofSense.ThefollowingverbsofsensearedescribedbyADJECTIVES:
belooksmelltastefeelseem
wrong:Afterthethreeweekvacation,shelookedverywell.
right:Afterthethreeweekvacation,shelookedverygood.
NOTE:"Sheiswell"means"Sheishealthy"ordescribesaperson'swellbeing.
wrong:Thestrawberryshortcaketastesdeliciously.
right:Thestrawberryshortcaketastesdelicious.
3.LocationofModification.
Amodifierisaword,phrase,orclausethatdescribesanotherpartofthesentence.Youshouldplacea
modifierascloseaspossibletowhatitismodifying.Modifierssometimesappeartomodifywordsthatthey
don'tmodify.
Testwritersoftenusetrickstoconfusestudentswithmodification:that/whichclauses,especiallyonesthat
comeattheendofsentencessentencesbeginningorendingwithdescriptivephrases
ExamplesFaultymodificationsofteninadvertentlychangethemeaningofsentences.
1.Onarrivingatthetrainstation,hisfriendsmethimandtookhimimmediatelytohisspeaking
engagementinSpringfield.
Thissoundsasifthefriendsarrivedatthetrainstation.Itshouldsay,"WhenJayarrivedatthetrain
station,hisfriendsmethimandtookhimtohisspeakingengagementinSpringfield."
Wheredid"Jay"comefrom?Sometimesoneoftheanswerchoicesmightinjectnewnamesintoa
sentence.Thisisappropriateheresincethepronounshadnospecificantecedents.
C.Parallelism
Similarelementsinalistshouldbeinsimilarform.Writersoftenuseaparallelstructurefordissimilaritems.
Parallelconstructionsmustbeexpressedinparallelgrammaticalform:allnouns,allinfinitives,allgerunds,
allprepositionalphrases,orallclausesmustagree.
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wrong:Allbusinessstudentsshouldlearnwordprocessing,accounting,andhowtoprogramcomputers.
right:Allbusinessstudentsshouldlearnwordprocessing,accounting,andcomputerprogramming.
Thisprincipleappliestoanywordsthatmightbegineachiteminaseries:prepositions(in,on,by,with),
articles(the,a,an),helpingverbs(had,has,would)andpossessives(his,her,our).Eitherrepeattheword
beforeeveryelementinaseriesorincludeitonlybeforethefirstitem.Anythingelseviolatestherulesof
parallelism.
Ineffect,yourtreatmentofthesecondelementoftheseriesdeterminestheformofallsubsequent
elements:
wrong:Heinvestedhismoneyinstocks,inrealestate,andahomeforretiredperformers.
right:Heinvestedhismoneyinstocks,inrealestate,andinahomeforretiredperformers.
Whenproofreading,checkthateachitemintheseriesagreeswiththewordorphrasethatbeginsthe
series.Intheaboveexample,"investedhismoney"isthecommonphrasethateachitemshares.You
wouldread,"Heinvestedhismoneyinrealestate,(investedhismoney)instocks,and(investedhis
money)inahomeforretiredperformers."
D.PronounAgreement
Itisoftendifficulttotellwhatnounapronounreplacesandwhatcase(subjectiveorobjective)shouldbe
used.Whichpronounyouusedependsonifthepronounisbeingusedasthesubjectortheobjectofa
sentence.
SubjectObjectivehehimsheherwhowhomImetheythemweus
1.PronounSubject/Object.
CheckifapronounistheSUBJECTortheOBJECTofaverborpreposition.
wrong:Howcouldsheblameyouandhefortheaccident?
right:Howcouldsheblameyouandhimfortheaccident?
Example
(She/her)wasbettersuited.
Herethepronounisthesubjectoftheverbsuited,meaning"she"actsasthesubjectandisthecorrect
answer.
WHO/WHOM
Ifthepronounisactingasasubject,itshouldbewho.Ifitisactingasanobject,itshouldbewhom.
ExampleIdon'tknow(who/whom)Stevenmeant.
Whom
isintheobjectformbecauseitistheobjectofmeant(withSteveasthesubject).
2.Checkifthepronounanditsverbagreeinnumber.
Rememberthatthefollowingaresingular:
anyoneanythingeacheithereveryoneeverythingneithernoonenothingwhatwhateverwhoever
Theseareplural:
bothmanyseveralothersfew
wrong:Everyoneontheprojecthavetocometothemeeting.
right:Everyoneontheprojecthastocometothemeeting.
Theforms"either...or"and"neither...nor"aresingularandtakeasingularverb.However,ifthenoun
closesttotheverbinthe"neither..nor"or"either...or"isplural,thentheverbisplural.
wrong:Neitherhisbodyguardsnorhewerethere.
right:Neitherhisbodyguardsnorhewasthere.
3.Checkifpossessivepronounsagreeinpersonandnumber.
wrong:Someofyouwillhavetobringtheirownbeer.
right:Someofyouwillhavetobringyourownbeer.
Some
issingular.
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wrong:Ifanyonecomesover,taketheirname.
right:Ifanyonecomesover,takehisname.
Thesubjectisanyone,whichissingular,whichrequiresasingularpronoun,his.
4."Objects"oftobeverbsareinthesubjectform.
wrong:Itmusthavebeenherwhocalled.
right:Itmusthavebeenshewhocalled.
5.Arelativepronoun(which,thatorwho)referstothewordprecedingit.Ifthemeaningisunclear,the
pronounisinthewrongposition.Theword"which"introducesnonessentialclausesand"that"introduces
essentialclauses."Who"referstoindividuals"that"referstoagroupofpersons,class,type,orspecies.
wrong:Thelineatthebankwasveryslow,whichmademelate.
right:Iwaslatebecauseofthelineatthebank.
ORThelineatthebankmademelate.
6.Informsusingimpersonalpronouns,useeither"one..one's/hisorher"or"you..your."
wrong:Oneshouldhavetheirteethcheckedeverysixmonths.
right:Oneshouldhaveone's/hisorherteethcheckedsixmonths.
ORYoushouldhaveyourteethcheckedeverysixmonths.
wrong:Oneshouldtakeyourresponsibilitiesseriously.
right:Oneshouldtakeone's/hisorherresponsibilitiesseriously.
ORYoushouldtakeyourresponsibilitiesseriously.
Exception:notethatitsisapossessiveofit,andit'sisthecontractionof"itis."
E.VerbTimeSequences
AcommonerrorintheGMATistomisuseverbtense.Differentverbtensesindicatetheorderinwhich
separateactionsoreventsoccur.ManyGMATsentencesarecomplicatedandinvolveseveraldifferent
actionsoccurringatdifferenttimes.Thecorrecttensesmakethesequenceofactionsclear.Todetermine
whethertheverbsinasentenceareinthepropertenses,pickoneeventasa"base"actionandthen
determinewhenothereventsoccurredrelativetoit.DeterminewhethertheeventsoccurredPRIORTOthe
baseaction,AFTERthebaseaction,orATTHESAMETIMEASthebaseeventtookplace.Actionsthat
startbeforethebasemaycontinueafterthebase.
VERBTENSETIPS
1.Youshouldlookoutforingforms.Typicallyingformsarecommonlyusedasjunkanswersonthe
GMAT.
IamwalkingIwaswalkingIhadbeenwalking
AsfarastheGMATisconcerned,thereareonlytwobasicreasonstouseaningform:
toemphasizethecontinuingnatureofanactionortoemphasizethattwoactionsareoccurring
simultaneously.
Inotherwords,theGMATusuallywantsyoutopickasimplertense,onethatdoesn'tusetheingform,
unlessanactioniscontinuingorhappeningduringanotheraction.Agoodwaytorememberthisruleisto
thinkofthewordduringanditsingending.2.Bealertfortheappearanceofseveralverbs,indicating
eventsthatseemtohavehappenedinsequenceoratdifferenttimes.Inwhichcase,pickoneverbasthe
"base"intimesequence.
Example
Ifthecyclistwinstherace,itwillberepresentinganextraordinarycomebackfromhisearliercancer.
SolutionThewinwillnotbe"representinganextraordinarycomeback"itwill"representacomeback."
F.Comparisons
Youshouldcompareonlythingsthatcanbelogicallycompared.Faultycomparisonsaccountfora
significantnumberoferrorsinGMATSentenceCorrectionquestions.Mostrelatetotheverysimpleidea
thatYOUCAN'TCOMPAREAPPLESTOORANGES.Youwanttocomparethingsthataregrammatically
similaryoualsowanttocomparethingsthatarelogicallysimilar.Forinstance,youcan'tlogicallycompare
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apersontoaqualityoranitemtoagroup.Youhavetocompareoneindividualtoanother,onequalityto
another,oronegrouptoanother.
Youshouldlookoutforkeycomparisonwords,suchas:
likeascomparedtolessthanmorethanotherthatofthoseof
Anumberofconstructionscallforyoutoalwaysexpressideasinparallelform.Theseconstructionsinclude
EitherXorY...
NeitherXnorY...
NotonlyXbutalsoY...
XorYcanstandforaslittleasonewordorasmuchasawholeclause,butinanycase,thegrammatical
structureofXorYmustbeidentical.
wrong:Theviewfromthisapartmentisnotnearlyasspectacularasfromthatmountainlodge.
right:Theviewfromthisapartmentisnotnearlyasspectacularastheonefromthatmountainlodge.
Checktoseewhetherthecomparisonisbothlogical(accordingtothestandardsofGMATEnglish)and
grammatical.
1.Jerrygiveslesstocharitythananyotherchurchmember.
YouwanttocomparewhatJerrygivestowhatanyotherchurchmembercontributes.Thesimplestwayto
fixthisandmakeitsuitableGMATEnglishistoadda"does"after"churchmember".Thus,thestatement
nowdirectlycompareswhatJerrygivestowhatotherchurchmembersgive.(Note:ifJerryweretogive
somethingquantifiable,likedollarsthenitwouldbe,"Jerrygivesfewerdollars..."insteadofless.)
2.Thenewermodelweighed20poundslessthanthatoftheoldermodel.
Ithastobeeither:"Thenewermodelweighed20poundslessthantheoldermodeldid."or"Thenewer
model'sweightwas20poundslessthanthatoftheoldermodel."
3.Thesportswriterquestionedtheskillofbasketballplayerscomparedtotennisplayers.
Ithastobe"theskillofbasketballplayers"comparedtothatof"tennisplayers."Itmustbephrasedthe
"skillofbasketballplayerscomparedtotheskilloftennisplayers."
G.Idioms
LookforthesecommonidiomtricksonGMATquestions:
Consider,regard...as,thinkof...as:thereisnoasafterconsider,whilebothregardandthinkofneedthe
as.
Tobe/being:Ingeneral,avoidtheconstructiontobe/beingbecausetheyareusuallypassive.Tobe/being
arecommonlyusedinjunkanswerchoices.
IdiomsinBoldtendtobemorecommonontheGMATAaccesstoThecompanyhasaccesstolarge
capitalreserves.actasThepoisonpillinthecontractactsasapreventativemeasureagainsthostile
takeovers.allowsforThedesignoftherobotarmallowsforgreatflexibility.as....asChocolatetastesas
goodasicecream.associatewithHeassociatesbeerwithpotatochips.attributetoThepoorfirstquarter
resultsareattributedtotherestructuring.aresponsibilitytoTheCEOhasafiduciaryresponsibilitytoall
shareholders.aresultofTherecentNasdaqdeclineisaresultofhigherinterestrates.asequenceofThe
Sumeriantextwasasequenceofincomprehensiblesymbols.agreewithTheTeamstersdonotagreewith
theRepublicansonmanyissues.amongUsedwhendiscussingmorethantwoitems.Hewasthefinest
policemanamongthehundredsofrookies.asgoodas/orbetterthanThenewsoftwareisasgoodasor
betterthananythingonthemarketasgreatasThenewhouselooksasgreatasIhadhoped.attendto
(someone)Theemergencyroomdoctorattendedtotheinjuredvictim.attributeXtoY/XWeattributethe
resultstothenewmanagement.attributedtoYTheextinctionofthedinosaurshasbeenattributedtoan
asteroidcollision.
BbasedonTheresultsarebasedonacomprehensivetenyearstudy.begintoHewillbegintostudy
twelvehoursbeforethetest.believeXtobeYAfterseeingtheflyingsaucer,IbelieveUFOstobeareal
phenomenon.betweenUsedwhendiscussingtwothings(iftherearemorethantwo,thenuseamong
instead).HecouldnotdecidebetweenCornFlakesorRaisinBran.CcareaboutHowmuchdobusiness
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schoolscareaboutyourscore?centerson+nounTheGMATcentersontheknowledgeofbasicmathand
writing/readingskills.choosetoThenumberofstudentswhochoosetogotobusinessschoolhas
increasedinthelasttenyears.consistentwithYourgradesarenotconsistentwithyourabysmalGMAT
scores.contendthatHecontendsthattheGMAThasaculturalbias.consider+nounHowimportantdo
youconsiderthetest?continue+toIfyoucontinuetostudy,youwillsucceed.contrastAwithBIfyou
contrastAwithB,youcanseethedifference.converttoYoumayconvertmuscletofatifyoustudytoo
much.compareAtoB(comparetostressessimilarities).ThemusiccriticfavorablycomparedhimtoBob
Dylan.compareAwithB(comparewithstressesdifferences).Broccoliisgoodforyoucomparedwithice
cream.counton+nounHecountsonmanagementsupport.concernedwithTheyareconcernedwith
investorrelationsmorethanactualprofitability.conformtoWhenyouworkatanewcompany,youshould
trytoconformtoitscorporateculture.
DdecidetoWedecidedtocontinue.decideonWedecidedonthenewformat.dependonTheglobal
economydependsonimprovingproductivity.differentfromTheCATisverydifferentfromthepaperand
pencilGMAT.difficulttoManystudentsfindtheCATdifficulttotake.distinguishbetweenXandY
Distinguishbetweendomesticandinternationalproduction.distinguishXfromYJuriesmustattemptto
distinguishtruthfromfalsehood.dependsonwhetherOurplaceintheplayoffsdependsonwhetherwewin
tonight.
Etobe+essentialto+nounSpeedisessentialtosuccessintheInternetmarketplace.exceptforHedid
wellontheGMAT,exceptforthesentencecorrectionquestions.
FfleefromTheconvictfledfromthecountry.GgrowfromDellComputergrewfromastartuptoa
Fortune500companyinlessthanfifteenyears.growoutofNeedlesstosay,theyquicklygrewoutoftheir
firstoffice.
Hhelp+noun+toTheirdirectbusinessmodelhelpedthemtogrowrapidly.
IindicatethatDell'srecentstocktroublemayindicatethattheirgrowthwillnotcontinuetobeasrapid.
investinHeistooriskaversetoinvestinthestockmarketidenticalwithHisDNAisidenticalwithhistwin's.
incontrasttoThecandidateclaimstosupporttaxcuts,incontrasttohispriorstatements.independent
fromTheFederalReserveBoardissupposedtobeindependentfrompoliticalconsiderations.indifferent
towardsSomecountriesareindifferenttowardshumanrights.LleadstoRapidgrowthoftenleadsto
problems.likeUsuallyonlyusedfordirectcomparison:HewalkslikeJoewalks.localizedinMostInternet
venturecapitalislocalizedinafewareasoftheworld.Mmistake+noun+forImistookyouforanold
friend.modeledafterThejudicialbuildingismodeledaftertheParthenon.morethaneverCompanies
demandMBAgraduatesnowmorethanever.
NnativetoThereisauniquebusinessculturenativetotheU.S.anativeofItinfectsthosewhoarenot
evenanativeofAmerica.needtoLivinginNewYorkCityisanexperienceeveryoneneedstotry.tobe+
necessary+toItisnecessarytogetahighGMATscoretogetintoStanford.neither...norNeitherTomnor
Samhasthenecessaryskillstofinishthejob.notonly...butalsoStanfordnotonlyhasthehighestGMAT
average,butalsothehighestGPA.
Pprohibitfrom+gerundYouareprohibitedfromusingacalculatorontestday.potentialtoAgraduateofa
topbusinessschoolhasthepotentialtomakeover$100,000.
RrangefromXtoYTheGMATscoresattopbusinessschoolswillrangefrom650to750.refertoIfyou
haveanymorequestions,youshouldrefertoagrammarbook.regardasWharton'sfinanceprogramis
regardedasthefinestintheworld.require+noun+toYourequireaGMATscoretogotomostU.S.
businessschools.rivalrybetweenXandYTherivalrybetweentheBostonRedSoxandtheNewYork
Yankeesisoneofthemostcelebratedinprofessionalsports.responsibleforThemanagerisresponsible
forsevenentrylevelemployees.retroactivetoThetaxpolicychangeisretroactivetolastyear.
SsaveforSaveforWilliam,nooneelsepassedtheexam.savefromManypeopleusebusinessschoolto
savethemfromdulljobs.sothatSoshouldnotbeusedasanadjective:GMATpreparationisso...boring.
Useitwith"that."Thisguideisdesignedsothatyoumayraiseyourscore.subscribetoBusinessschool
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studentsshouldsubscribetotheWallStreetJournal.TtietoThecontractshouldbetiedtoconcessions.
transmittoThecommunicationssystemwilltransmittoanyonewithinrange.Uused+infinitiveJapanused
tobethemodelindustrialeconomy.tobe+usedto+gerundAfterfivepracticetests,hewasusedtothe
GMATCATformat.Themosteffectivewaytolearnidiomsistopracticethem.Wheneveryougetanidiom
questionwrong,writedowntheidiom.Makealistandmemorize.Thereareafinitenumberofidiomsthat
couldbetestedontheGMAT,andwithenoughpractice,youshouldbeabletocovermostofthem.
Examples
1.Whenchoosingacaryouoftenhavetochoose(between/among)practicalityandperformance.
Betweeniscorrect.Use"between"todistinguishtwothings,such"practicality"and"performance."Use
"among"formorethantwothings.Thebankrobbersdividedthestolenmoney"among"thefiveofthem."
2.Asmallorderoffrenchfrieshasmuch(fewer/less)friesthanthesupersizedorder.
Feweriscorrect.Feweranswersthequestion"Howmany?"relatingtosomethingthatcouldbecounted
individually."Less"referstothingssuchaspudding,cake,orflour,whichcannotbereasonablyquantified
3.IpreferMozart(to/over)Beethoven.
"Preferto"istheproperexpression.
4.Timothytalks(like/as)hisfriendsdo.
Thisisoneofthefewinstances"like"shouldbeusedinEnglish."Like"isusedhereasadirect
comparison.
5.Hewasstudying(in/at)arateoftwopracticeGMATsperday.
It's"atarateof,"insteadof"inarateof."
6.Thejointventurecontractcoverssuchquestions(like/as)thedivisionofprofitsandcosts.
"Coversas"isbetterhere."Like"shouldbeusedveryrarely,onlyfordirectcomparisons(Joeplayslike
hisbrother).
7.DanMarinoisregarded(as/tobe)oneofthegreatestquarterbackstoeverplayfootball.
Theidiomis"regardedas."
II.ThreeStepMethodtotheSentenceCorrectionQuestions
A.Readthesentence.
B.Figureoutwhatthequestionistesting.
C.Eliminateanswerchoices.
A.Readthesentence.
Donotsimplyreadtheunderlinedpartofthesentence.Readthecompletesentence.Choice(A)will
alwaysbeacopyoftheoriginalunderlinedpartofthesentence.Ifyoucannotfindanyerrorsintheoriginal
sentence,chooseA.Don'tworryaboutspelling,capitalization,orpunctuationtheyarenotcoveredin
SentenceCorrectionquestions.
B.Figureoutwhatthequestionistesting.
Thisisamultiplechoiceexam,soyouknowthatoneoftheanswerchoicesmustberight.Therefore,you
maylookatthedifferentanswerchoicesandseewhatthechangesaretofigureouttheprobleminthe
sentence.
Example
"Onarrivingatthetrainstation,hisfriendsmethimandtookhimimmediatelytohisspeaking
engagement."
Givetheseanswersaquickglance:
a)Onarrivingatthetrainstation,hisfriendsmethimandtookhimimmediatelytohisspeaking
engagement.
b)Arrivingatthetrainstation,hisfriendswhomethimimmediatelytookhimtohisspeakingengagement.
c)Whenhearrivedatthetrainstation,hisfriendsmethimandtookhimimmediatelytohisspeaking
engagement.
d)Whenhearrivedatthetrainstation,hewastakenimmediatelytohisspeakingengagement.
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e)Afterarrivingatthetrainstation,hewasimmediatelytakentohisspeakingengagement.
NoticethatcertainpartsofthesentenceschangefromchoiceAtochoiceE.Thesearethe"controversial"
partsofthesentencethatcontainvariableelements.
a)Onarrivingatthetrainstation,hisfriendsmethimandtookhimimmediatelytohisspeaking
engagement.
b)Arrivingatthetrainstation,hisfriendswhomethimimmediatelytookhimtohisspeakingengagement.
c)Whenhearrivedatthetrainstation,hisfriendsmethimandtookhimimmediatelytohisspeaking
engagement.
d)Whenhearrivedatthetrainstation,hewastakenimmediatelytohisspeakingengagement.
e)Afterarrivingatthetrainstation,hewasimmediatelytakentohisspeakingengagement.
Theboldedpartsofthesentencerepresentareasthatchangethenonboldedaretheareasthatarefixed
throughouttheanswerchoicesandthereforemustnothaveproblems.Thus,wemaynarrowtheproblem
areasofthesentence.ChoiceCiscorrectbecauseitclarifiesthesubjectofthemodifyingphrase.
C.Eliminateanswerchoices.
Theprocessofeliminationisveryimportanthere.Eliminateachoiceonceyoufindoneerrorinit.
Gradually,youshouldbedowntooneortwochoices,andyoumaymakeareasonableguess.Usethe
processofeliminationscrappaperchartstonarrowyourchoices.
D.SampleQuestions
1.Thethreatofdiscriminationlawsuitshelpsensure<thatpaybethesameforjobshistoricallyheldby
minoritiesasforjobsrequiringcomparableskillthatare>usuallyheldbywhites.
(A)thatpaybethesameforjobshistoricallyheldbyminoritiesasforjobsrequiringcomparableskillthat
are
(B)thatpayforjobshistoricallyheldbyminoritiesshouldbethesameasforajobrequiringcomparable
skills
(C)topaythesameinjobshistoricallyheldbyminoritiesasinjobsofcomparableskillthatare
(D)topaythesameregardlessofwhetherajobwashistoricallyheldbyminoritiesorisonedemanding
comparableskills
(E)topayasmuchforjobshistoricallyheldbyminoritiesasforajobdemandingcomparableskills
InchoiceB,'should'isillogicalafter'requires',oratleastunnecessary,andsoisbetteromittedinchoices
BandE,'job'doesnotagreeinnumberwithjobsandinchoicesB,D,andE,thewordingillogically
describesthe'comparableskills'ratherthanthe'jobs'asbeing"usuallyheld,bywhites."ChoicesC,D,and
Eproducetheungrammaticalconstruction'requiresof...employerstopay',inwhichofmakesthephrase
incorrect.InC,.theuseofinratherthan'for'isunidiomatic,and'jobsofcomparableskill'confusedly
suggeststhatthejobsratherthantheworkerspossesstheskills.InD,thephrasebeginning'regardless..
.'isawkwardandwordyinadditiontobeingillogical.ChoiceAisbest
2.Handalepumpsmayslightlyimprovetheflavorofaleovergaspoweredkegs,butmodernpub
managerscontendthat<handalepumpscosttwiceasmuchasgaspoweredkegs>.
(A)handalepumpscosttwiceasmuchasmaintaininggaspoweredkegs
(B)handalepumpscosttwiceasmuchtomaintainasgaspoweredkegsdo
(C)maintaininghandalepumpscoststwiceasmuchasgaspoweredkegsdo
(D)maintaininghandalepumpscoststwiceasmuchasitdoesforgaspoweredkegs
(E)tomaintainhandalepumpscoststwiceasmuchasforgaspoweredkegs
Thissentencecomparesthecostsrequiredtomaintaintwokindsofroads.B,thebestchoice,isableto
maintainparallelisminthecomparisonaswell.ChoiceAincorrectlyshiftsthemeaningbycomparingthe
costofhandalepumpswiththecostofmaintaininggaspoweredkegs.ChoiceCdoestheopposite:it
comparesthecostofmaintaininghandalepumpswiththecostofgaspoweredkegsthemselves.Choice
Dfurtherconfusesthesentencebyaddinganonparallelclause,itdoesfor,inwhichithasnoclear
referent.ChoiceEintroducestheinfinitivephrasetomaintain..,andwronglyattemptstocompletethe
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(1)TARGETSSCCGL'2014'

comparisonwiththenonparallelprepositionalphrasefor....
3.Thisweek'sbingosessionwillhave<anevengreateramountofwinners>thanwonlastweek.
(A)anevengreateramountofwinners
(B)aneverlargeramountofwinners
(C)anamountofpeopleevenwinners
(D)anumberofpeopleevenwinners
(E)anevengreaternumberofwinners
Noticethatthreechoicescontainthewordamountandtwochoicescontainnumber.People,becausethey
canbecounted,comeinnumbersratherthanamounts.(E)isbestbecauseoftheremainingtwobecause
thephraseanevengreateramountofpeopleclearlyreferstomorepeople,whileanumberofpeopleeven
largercouldbereferringtobiggerpeople.
4.<With>onlyonepercentoftheworld'spopulation,theEnglishpeoplehavedramaticallyalteredthe
courseoftheworld.
A)With
B)Althoughaccountingfor
C)Being
D)Despitehaving
E)As
ThetrickwiththissentencecorrectionquestionisthecontrastbetweenthesizeoftheEnglishpopulation
andtheactivitiesofitscitizens.ChoicesDandBaretheonlyonesthatestablishthecontrast,andonlyB,
thebestchoice,expressesmeaningaccuratelywiththephrase'Althoughaccountingfor.''With'inchoiceA
and'Despitehaving'inchoiceDconfusinglysuggestthatEnglishpeoplesomehowpossess,ratherthan
constitute,onepercentoftheworld'spopulation.ChoicesEandClosethecontrastbetweentheopening
phraseandthemainclause,andAsisunidiomaticinE.
5.Thepublic'swidespreadinterestinthelifeof<ancientEgyptiansandtheirgeneralcuriosityabout
extraterrestriallifehas>generatedconsiderableinterestinsciencefiction.
A)ancientEgyptiansandtheirgeneralcuriosityaboutextraterrestriallifehas
B)ancientEgyptiansandtheyaregenerallycuriousaboutextraterrestriallifewhichhas
C)ancientEgyptians,aswellastheirgeneralcuriosityaboutextraterrestriallife,have
D)ancientEgyptians,aswellasitsgeneralcuriosityaboutextraterrestriallife,has
E)ancientEgyptians,aswellasgeneralcuriosityaboutextraterrestriallife,have
Thesamplesentencehastwoerrors.First,itisvagueaboutwhattheword'their'refersto(thepublicor
theancientEgyptians)andthenthereisaproblemwithsubject/verbagreement(publicissingular,
meaningthatithastomath'has'.Logically,itwouldseemthereferenceistothepublic,butpublicis
singularsowewouldhavetouseits,nottheir.Choice(B)isawkward.Choices(C),(D),and(E)change
thesentence'sstructuresothatthewordbeliefbecomestheonlysubjectnowweneedasingularverb.
Only(D)containsthesingularverbhas.

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