Question ID b74f676f 2.

Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Reading and Writing Standard English Form, Structure,

Conventions and Sense

ID: b74f676f
Classical composer Florence Price’s 1927 move to Chicago marked a turning point in her career. It was there that
Price premiered her First Symphony—a piece that was praised for blending traditional Romantic motifs with
aspects of Black folk music—and ______ supportive relationships with other Black artists.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. developing
B. developed
C. to develop
D. having developed

ID: b74f676f Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is the best answer. The missing verb is part of the same clause as the verb "premiered," and "Price" is
the subject of both. So we need the past-tense form "developed" in order to match "premiered."

Choice A is incorrect. This choice creates a verb form error. The missing verb is part of the same clause as the
verb "premiered," and "Price" is the subject of both. So we need the past-tense form "developed" in order to
match "premiered." Choice C is incorrect. This choice creates a verb form error. The missing verb is part of the
same clause as the verb "premiered," and "Price" is the subject of both. So we need the past-tense form
"developed" in order to match "premiered." Choice D is incorrect. This choice creates a verb form error. The
missing verb is part of the same clause as the verb "premiered," and "Price" is the subject of both. So we need
the past-tense form "developed" in order to match "premiered."

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 684b8bd2 2.2

Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Reading and Writing Standard English Form, Structure,

Conventions and Sense

ID: 684b8bd2
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: 684b8bd2 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 c52652c9 2.3

Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Reading and Writing Standard English Form, Structure,

Conventions and Sense

ID: c52652c9
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: c52652c9 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 36944347 2.4

Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Reading and Writing Standard English Form, Structure,

Conventions and Sense

ID: 36944347
Official measurements of the Mississippi River’s length vary: according to the US Geologic Survey, the river is
2,300 miles long, whereas the Environmental Protection Agency records its length as 2,320 miles. This disparity
can be explained in part by the fact that rivers such as the Mississippi expand and contract as ______ sediment.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. they accumulate
B. one accumulates
C. it accumulates
D. we accumulate

ID: 36944347 Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is the best answer. The noun that goes with "expand and contract" is "rivers," a plural noun. "They" is
a third-person plural pronoun, so it can correctly stand in for "rivers."

Choice B is incorrect. This choice creates a pronoun-antecedent agreement error. "One" is a singular pronoun,
but the noun that goes with "expand and contract" is "rivers," a plural noun. Choice C is incorrect. This choice
creates a pronoun-antecedent agreement error. "It" is a singular pronoun, but the noun that goes with "expand
and contract" is "rivers," a plural noun. Choice D is incorrect. This choice creates a pronoun-antecedent
agreement error. The noun that goes with "expand and contract" is the plural noun "rivers." Rivers are not
people, so "we" can’t be used to stand in for it.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 8d53e7a0 2.5

Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Reading and Writing Standard English Form, Structure,

Conventions and Sense

ID: 8d53e7a0
Slam poet Elizabeth Acevedo’s debut novel The Poet X, winner of the 2018 National Book Award for Young
People’s Literature, is composed of ______ protagonist, fifteen-year-old Xiomara Batista.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. poems putatively written by the novel’s
B. poem’s putatively written by the novel’s
C. poem’s putatively written by the novels’
D. poems putatively written by the novels’

ID: 8d53e7a0 Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is the best answer. Nothing belongs to the “poems” in the sentence, so it should not be possessive—
just a simple plural noun. The protagonist does belong to the novel—it’s the protagonist of the novel—so “novel”
needs to be a singular possessive noun.

Choice B is incorrect. This doesn’t complete the text in a way that conforms to the conventions of Standard
English. This choice uses the singular possessive “poem’s,” but the text indicates that it should be the simple
plural “poems”: there is more than one poem, and nothing belongs to the poems. Choice C is incorrect. This
doesn’t complete the text in a way that conforms to the conventions of Standard English. This choice uses the
singular possessive “poem’s,” but the text indicates that it should be the simple plural “poems”: there is more
than one poem, and nothing belongs to the poems. This choice also uses the plural possessive “novels’,” which
is incorrect because there is only one novel. Choice D is incorrect. This doesn’t complete the text in a way that
conforms to the conventions of Standard English. This choice uses the plural possessive “novels’,” which is
incorrect because there is only one novel, so it should be the singular possessive “novel’s.” .

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 0bcb4417 2.6

Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Reading and Writing Standard English Form, Structure,

Conventions and Sense

ID: 0bcb4417
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: 0bcb4417 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 c8607bdf 2.7

Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Reading and Writing Standard English Form, Structure,

Conventions and Sense

ID: c8607bdf
“Praise Song for the Day,” Elizabeth Alexander’s 2009 inaugural poem, asserts that “We cross dirt roads and
highways…to see what’s on the other side.” Alexander’s use of “we” ______ Americans’ collective efforts and
shared desire to seek new opportunity.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. evokes
B. are evoking
C. have evoked
D. evoke

ID: c8607bdf Answer

Correct Answer: A

Rationale

Choice A is the best answer. The convention being tested is subject-verb agreement. The singular verb
"evokes" agrees in number with the singular subject "Alexander’s use."

Choice B is incorrect because the plural verb "are evoking" doesn’t agree in number with the singular subject
"Alexander’s use." Choice C is incorrect because the plural verb "have evoked" doesn’t agree in number with the
singular subject "Alexander’s use." Choice D is incorrect because the plural verb "evoke" doesn’t agree in
number with the singular subject "Alexander’s use."

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID db2e480a 2.8

Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Reading and Writing Standard English Form, Structure,

Conventions and Sense

ID: db2e480a
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: db2e480a 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 a30567fd 2.9

Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Reading and Writing Standard English Form, Structure,

Conventions and Sense

ID: a30567fd
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: a30567fd 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 cd2443c0 2.10

Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Reading and Writing Standard English Form, Structure,

Conventions and Sense

ID: cd2443c0
A pioneer in the field of taphonomy (the study of how organic remains become fossils), ______ may be just as
prevalent in the fossil record as those of thick-shelled organisms.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. fossils of thin-shelled organisms, Anna Behrensmeyer demonstrated in a 2005 analysis,
B. Anna Behrensmeyer demonstrated in a 2005 analysis that fossils of thin-shelled organisms
C. it was demonstrated in a 2005 analysis by Anna Behrensmeyer that fossils of thin-shelled organisms
D. a 2005 analysis—by Anna Behrensmeyer—demonstrated that fossils of thin-shelled organisms

ID: cd2443c0 Answer

Correct Answer: B

Rationale

Choice B is the best answer. The convention being tested is subject-modifier placement. This choice makes
the noun phrase “Anna Behrensmeyer” the subject of the sentence and places it immediately after the
modifying phrase “a pioneer…fossils.” In doing so, this choice clearly establishes that Anna Behrensmeyer—
and not another noun in the sentence—is a pioneer in the field of taphonomy.

Choice A is incorrect because it results in a dangling modifier. The placement of the noun phrase “fossils of
thin-shelled organisms” immediately after the modifying phrase illogically suggests that the “fossils” are a
pioneer in the field of taphonomy. Choice C is incorrect because it results in a dangling modifier. The
placement of the pronoun “it” immediately after the modifying phrase illogically suggests that “it” is a pioneer
in the field of taphonomy. Choice D is incorrect because it results in a dangling modifier. The placement of the
noun phrase “a 2005 analysis” immediately after the modifying phrase illogically suggests that “a 2005
analysis” is a pioneer in the field of taphonomy.

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID e44db0a0 2.11

Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Reading and Writing Standard English Form, Structure,

Conventions and Sense

ID: e44db0a0
Because a cycle of lunar phases ______ 29.5 days to complete, it’s possible to observe two full moons in a single
month, one at the beginning and one at the end.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. are taking
B. have taken
C. take
D. takes

ID: e44db0a0 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is the best answer. The convention being tested is subject-verb agreement. The singular verb "takes"
agrees in number with the singular subject "a cycle of lunar phases."

Choice A is incorrect because the plural verb "are taking" doesn’t agree in number with the singular subject "a
cycle of lunar phases." Choice B is incorrect because the plural verb "have taken" doesn’t agree in number with
the singular subject "a cycle of lunar phases." Choice C is incorrect because the plural verb "take" doesn’t agree
in number with the singular subject "a cycle of lunar phases."

Question Difficulty: Medium

Question ID 67614549 2.12

Assessment Test Domain Skill Difficulty

SAT Reading and Writing Standard English Form, Structure,

Conventions and Sense

ID: 67614549
After winning the 1860 presidential election, Abraham Lincoln appointed Edward Bates, Salmon P. Chase, and
William H. Seward to his cabinet. Lincoln’s decision was surprising, since each of these men had run against him,
but historians have praised it, noting that Lincoln ______ his rivals’ diverse talents to strengthen his
administration.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
A. has leveraged
B. is leveraging
C. will leverage
D. leveraged

ID: 67614549 Answer

Correct Answer: D

Rationale

Choice D is the best answer. The subject of the verb is “Lincoln,” and the first sentence tells us that we’re
talking about something that Abraham Lincoln did in 1860. So the simple past tense “leveraged” fits the logic
of the text.

Choice A is incorrect. This choice creates a tense issue. “Has leveraged” is the present perfect tense, which is
used for an action that began in the past and continues into the present. Lincoln started leveraging his rivals’
talents in 1860—it’s definitely not still happening today. So the present perfect tense isn’t appropriate. Choice B
is incorrect. This choice creates a tense issue. “Is leveraging” is the present tense, but Lincoln leveraged his
rivals’ talents in 1860, so the present tense isn’t appropriate. Choice C is incorrect. This choice creates a tense
issue. “Will leverage” is the future tense, but Lincoln leveraged his rivals’ talents in 1860, so the future tense
isn’t appropriate.

Question Difficulty: Medium