Question ID fd5268ad
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty
SAT Reading and Writing Standard English Form, Structure, Medium
Conventions and Sense
ID: fd5268ad
Oglala Lakota poet Layli Long Soldier’s star quilt poems offer an unusually open-ended reading experience.
With ______ eight panels of text stitched together in the shape of a traditional eight-pointed Lakota star quilt,
the poems present viewers with a seemingly infinite number of ways to read them.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. their
B. it’s
C. they’re
D. its
ID: fd5268ad Answer
Correct Answer: A
Rationale
Choice A is the best answer. The convention being tested is the use of possessive determiners. The plural possessive
determiner "their" agrees in number with the plural noun "the poems," thus indicating that the poems had eight panels of text
stitched together in the shape of a traditional eight-pointed Lakota star quilt.
Choice B is incorrect because "it’s" is the contraction for "it is" or "it has," not a possessive determiner. Choice C is incorrect
because "they’re" is the contraction for "they are," not a possessive determiner. Choice D is incorrect because the singular
possessive determiner "its" doesn’t agree in number with the plural noun "the poems."
Question Difficulty: Medium
Question ID 296f8a05
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty
SAT Reading and Writing Standard English Form, Structure, Medium
Conventions and Sense
ID: 296f8a05
Based on genetic evidence, archaeologists have generally agreed that reindeer domestication began in the
eleventh century CE. However, since uncovering fragments of a 2,000-year-old reindeer training harness in
northern Siberia, ______ may have begun much earlier.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. researcher Robert Losey has argued that domestication
B. researcher Robert Losey’s argument is that domestication
C. domestication, researcher Robert Losey has argued,
D. the argument researcher Robert Losey has made is that domestication
ID: 296f8a05 Answer
Correct Answer: A
Rationale
Choice A is the best answer. The convention being tested is subject-modifier placement. This choice makes the noun phrase
“researcher Robert Losey” the subject of the sentence and places it immediately after the modifying phrase “since…Siberia.”
In doing so, this choice clearly establishes that researcher Robert Losey—and not another noun in the sentence—is who
uncovered fragments of a 2,000-year-old reindeer training harness in northern Siberia.
Choice B is incorrect because it results in a dangling modifier. The placement of the noun phrase “researcher Robert Losey’s
argument” immediately after the modifying phrase illogically suggests that the “argument” is what uncovered fragments of a
2,000-year-old reindeer training harness in northern Siberia. Choice C is incorrect because it results in a dangling modifier.
The placement of the noun “domestication” immediately after the modifying phrase illogically suggests that “domestication”
is what uncovered fragments of a 2,000-year-old reindeer training harness in northern Siberia. Choice D is incorrect because
it results in a dangling modifier. The placement of the noun phrase “the argument” immediately after the modifying phrase
illogically suggests that the “argument” is what uncovered fragments of a 2,000-year-old reindeer training harness in
northern Siberia.
Question Difficulty: Medium
Question ID cf86d6fd
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty
SAT Reading and Writing Standard English Form, Structure, Medium
Conventions and Sense
ID: cf86d6fd
By the time Hawaiian king Kamehameha III ______ the throne, the number of longhorn cattle, first introduced
to the islands in 1793, had drastically increased, and so too had the need for paniolo (Hawaiian cowboys) to
manage the wild herds that then roamed throughout the volcanic terrain.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. ascended
B. will ascend
C. ascends
D. is ascending
ID: cf86d6fd Answer
Correct Answer: A
Rationale
Choice A is the best answer. "Ascended" is in the simple past tense. Since Kamehameha became king in the past, this makes
the most sense.
Choice B is incorrect. "Will ascend" is in the future tense, but we wouldn’t know about Kamehameha III’s ascent if it hadn’t
happened yet. The information in the sentence, as well as the tense of other verbs, tells us that the events described
happened in the past. Choice C is incorrect. "Ascends" is in the simple present tense. However, the information in the
sentence, as well as the tense of other verbs, tells us that the events described happened in the past. Choice D is incorrect.
"Is ascending" is in the continuous present tense, which we use to show that something is ongoing, but this doesn’t make
sense here—the information in the sentence, as well as the tense of other verbs, tells us that the events described happened
in the past.
Question Difficulty: Medium
Question ID 094e6e94
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty
SAT Reading and Writing Standard English Form, Structure, Medium
Conventions and Sense
ID: 094e6e94
The human brain is primed to recognize faces—so much so that, due to a perceptual tendency called
pareidolia, ______ will even find faces in clouds, wooden doors, pieces of fruit, and other faceless inanimate
objects. Researcher Susan Magsamen has focused her work on better understanding this everyday
phenomenon.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. she
B. they
C. it
D. those
ID: 094e6e94 Answer
Correct Answer: C
Rationale
Choice C is the best answer. "It" is a singular pronoun used to stand in for objects. Since the antecedent in this case is the
singular noun phrase "the human brain," "it" is a perfect pronoun to use here.
Choice A is incorrect. Although "she" is a singular pronoun, it is reserved for people and animals, not objects like "the human
brain." Choice B is incorrect. "They" is a plural pronoun, but we need a singular pronoun to represent the antecedent "the
human brain." Choice D is incorrect. "Those" is a plural pronoun, but we need a singular pronoun to represent the antecedent
"the human brain."
Question Difficulty: Medium
Question ID 8bd8f58c
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty
SAT Reading and Writing Standard English Form, Structure, Medium
Conventions and Sense
ID: 8bd8f58c
The violins handmade in the seventeenth century by Italian craftsman Antonio Stradivari have been
celebrated as some of the finest in the world. In close collaboration with musicians, Stradivari introduced
changes to the shape of a traditional violin, flattening some of the instrument’s curves and making ______
lighter overall.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. those
B. one
C. them
D. it
ID: 8bd8f58c Answer
Correct Answer: D
Rationale
Choice D is the best answer. The convention being tested is pronoun–antecedent agreement. The singular pronoun “it”
agrees in number with the singular antecedent “violin” and thus indicates that the traditional violin (and not its curves) was
made lighter.
Choice A is incorrect because the plural pronoun “those” doesn’t agree in number with the singular antecedent “violin.”
Choice B is incorrect because the singular pronoun “one” is ambiguous in this context; the resulting sentence leaves unclear
what Stradivari made lighter. Choice C is incorrect because the plural pronoun “them” doesn’t agree in number with the
singular antecedent “violin.”
Question Difficulty: Medium
Question ID 992e6994
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty
SAT Reading and Writing Standard English Form, Structure, Medium
Conventions and Sense
ID: 992e6994
Far from being modern inventions, ______ more than 5,000 years ago.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. Sumerians in ancient Mesopotamia used drinking straws
B. drinking straws were used by Sumerians in ancient Mesopotamia
C. the use of drinking straws by Sumerians in ancient Mesopotamia happened
D. ancient Mesopotamia was home to Sumerians who used drinking straws
ID: 992e6994 Answer
Correct Answer: B
Rationale
Choice B is the best answer. Modifiers and their subjects must go next to each other. The modifier “far from being modern
inventions” must be describing “drinking straws,” because those are the only possible inventions in this sentence.
Choice A is incorrect. Modifiers and their subjects must go next to each other. The modifier “far from being modern
inventions” can’t be describing “Sumerians,” because they are a group of people, not an invention. Choice C is incorrect.
Modifiers and their subjects must go next to each other. The modifier “far from being modern inventions” can’t be describing
“the use of drinking straws,” because it is not “the use” of drinking straws that is an invention—it is the drinking straws
themselves. Choice D is incorrect. Modifiers and their subjects must go next to each other. The modifier “far from being
modern inventions” can’t be describing “Ancient Mesopotamia,” because that is a place, not an invention.
Question Difficulty: Medium
Question ID 4efacd65
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty
SAT Reading and Writing Standard English Form, Structure, Medium
Conventions and Sense
ID: 4efacd65
Nuhād al-Ḥaddād, known as Fairuz, was one of the most beloved Lebanese singers of the twentieth century.
Her broad singing repertoire—which included traditional forms, such as the Arabic qasida and maqam,
alongside modern pop and jazz styles—lent Fairuz a timeless, cross-generational appeal, ______ her the
moniker “the soul of Lebanon.”
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. earned
B. had earned
C. earning
D. earn
ID: 4efacd65 Answer
Correct Answer: C
Rationale
Choice C is the best answer. The word "earning" is being used to introduce an additional modifying phrase, which describes
how Fairuz’s repertoire lent her cross-generational appeal. When a verb ends in -ing and doesn’t have a helper verb like "is"
before it, it can be used to modify a noun or verb. This is appropriate here.
Choice A is incorrect. The underlined verb is being used to introduce additional descriptive information, which is set off from
the rest of the sentence by a comma. Because there is no subject here, a finite form of the verb (like "earned") creates an
error. We need another form of the verb that doesn’t require a subject and can introduce descriptive information. Choice B is
incorrect. The underlined verb is being used to introduce additional descriptive information, which is set off from the rest of
the sentence by a comma. Because there is no subject here, a finite form of the verb (like "had earned") creates an error. We
need another form of the verb that doesn’t require a subject and can introduce descriptive information. Choice D is incorrect.
The underlined verb is being used to introduce additional descriptive information, which is set off from the rest of the
sentence by a comma. Because there is no subject here, a finite form of the verb (like "earn") creates an error. We need
another form of the verb that doesn’t require a subject and can introduce descriptive information.
Question Difficulty: Medium
Question ID 21922a16
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty
SAT Reading and Writing Standard English Form, Structure, Medium
Conventions and Sense
ID: 21922a16
The Proto-Nilotic language, common ancestor of fifty-five African languages with similar linguistic properties,
______ like all protolanguages, hypothetical: there’s no direct evidence these ancestral languages actually
existed.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. is,
B. are,
C. have been,
D. were,
ID: 21922a16 Answer
Correct Answer: A
Rationale
Choice A is the best answer. The convention being tested is subject-verb agreement. The singular verb "is" agrees in number
with the singular subject "the Proto-Nilotic language."
Choice B is incorrect because the plural verb "are" doesn’t agree in number with the singular subject "the Proto-Nilotic
language." Choice C is incorrect because the plural verb "have been" doesn’t agree in number with the singular subject "the
Proto-Nilotic language." Choice D is incorrect because the plural verb "were" doesn’t agree in number with the singular
subject "the Proto-Nilotic language."
Question Difficulty: Medium
Question ID a3f9a509
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty
SAT Reading and Writing Standard English Form, Structure, Medium
Conventions and Sense
ID: a3f9a509
Inventor John Friedman created a prototype of the first flexible straw by inserting a screw into a paper straw
and, using dental floss, binding the straw tightly around the ______ When the floss and screw were removed,
the resulting corrugations in the paper allowed the straw to bend easily over the edge of a glass.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. screw’s thread’s.
B. screws’ threads.
C. screw’s threads.
D. screws threads’.
ID: a3f9a509 Answer
Correct Answer: C
Rationale
Choice C is the best answer. The convention being tested is the use of plural and possessive nouns. The singular possessive
noun “screw’s” and the plural noun “threads” correctly indicate that there is only one screw and it has multiple threads.
Choice A is incorrect because the context requires the plural noun “threads,” not the singular possessive noun “thread’s.”
Choice B is incorrect because the context requires the singular possessive noun “screw’s,” not the plural possessive noun
“screws’.” Choice D is incorrect because the context requires the singular possessive noun “screw’s” and the plural noun
“threads,” not the plural noun “screws” or the plural possessive noun “threads.’”
Question Difficulty: Medium
Question ID 736ac5f3
Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty
SAT Reading and Writing Standard English Form, Structure, Medium
Conventions and Sense
ID: 736ac5f3
Anthropologist Lívia Barbosa, of the Universidade Federal Fluminense in Brazil, ______ food and sociability in
contemporary Brazil—specifically, how foods such as cabidela (a rice and rabbit dish) and churrasco (a
barbeque dish) function as central mechanisms in building social relationships, values, and identities.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. studies
B. are studying
C. have studied
D. study
ID: 736ac5f3 Answer
Correct Answer: A
Rationale
Choice A is the best answer. The convention being tested is subject-verb agreement. The singular verb "studies" agrees in
number with the singular subject "anthropologist Lívia Barbosa."
Choice B is incorrect because the plural verb "are studying" doesn’t agree in number with the singular subject "anthropologist
Lívia Barbosa." Choice C is incorrect because the plural verb "have studied" doesn’t agree in number with the singular subject
"anthropologist Lívia Barbosa." Choice D is incorrect because the plural verb "study" doesn’t agree in number with the
singular subject "anthropologist Lívia Barbosa."
Question Difficulty: Medium