Sentence Correction

Question 1

idiom

X was dated…

Answer 1

at Y

Question 2

meaning - word placement

ONLY
What is the meaning of each:
A) I sleep only on Thursday
B) I only sleep on Thursday

Answer 2

(who - did what)

A) I sleep on a single day of the week, and that day is Thursday (I - sleep)
B) The single activity I do on Thursday is sleep (I - only sleep)

Question 3

strategy

Sentence Correction Process

Answer 3

1 - Take a FIRST GLANCE
2 - READ for Meaning
3 - Find a STARTING POINT (can I tackle this? - yes or no)
4 - ELIMINATE all incorrect choices - if not done, find another starting point for the remaining options

Question 4

when I see…

AND

I will think…

Answer 4

I’ll think…

PARALLELISM: X and Y -or- X,Y, and Z

Could be a list, modifier, compound subject or verb, two independent clauses.

Question 5

meaning - “cousin” words/expressions

Unaccompanied v Not accompanied

Answer 5

unaccompanied = alone for a purpose

not accompanies = happens to be alone

Question 6

modifier structure

[Opening Modifier] , …

Answer 6

…[Noun that is being modified]

Question 7

idiom

Apprenticeship X

Answer 7

as

ex. I had an apprenticeship as a baker

Question 8

meaning

WITH
what does it mean and when to use

Answer 8

Means: One noun is with another noun.

Use: Only use for the above meaning. DO NOT use to replace “despite” or other more descriptive terms.

Question 9

meaning - “cousin” words/expressions

Aggravate vs. Aggravating

Answer 9

aggravate = worsen
aggravating = irritating

Question 10

meaning - “cousin” words/expressions

Known as vs. Known to be

Answer 10

known = named

known to be = acknowledged as

Question 11

meaning - “cousin” words/expressions

Loss of vs. Loss in

Answer 11

loss of = no longer in possession of

loss in = decline in value

Question 12

meaning - “cousin” words/expressions

Mandate vs. Have a mandate

Answer 12

mandate = command

have a mandate = have authority from voters

Question 13

meaning - “cousin” words/expressions

Native of vs. Native to

Answer 13

native of = person from

native to = species that originated in

Question 14

meaning - “cousin” words/expressions

Range of vs. Ranging

Answer 14

range of = variety of

ranging = varying

Question 15

meaning - “cousin” words/expressions

Rate of vs. Rates for

Answer 15

rate of = speed or frequency of

rates for = prices for

Question 16

meaning - “cousin” words/expressions

Rise vs. Raise

Answer 16

rise = general increase
raise = a bet or salary increase

Question 17

meaning - “cousin” words/expressions

Try to do vs. Try doing

Answer 17

try to do = seek to accomplish

try doing = experiment with

Question 18

strategy - subject-verb agreement

When identifying the Subject and Verb. what does “Eliminate the Middleman” and “Skip the Warmup” mean? What are common middlemen and warmups?

Answer 18

1) Eliminate the Middleman: GMAT will add words between subject and verb to hide the subject. Learn to identify the middlemen in order to ignore them.
2) Skip the Warmup: GMAT will add words in front of the subject you want. Learn to identify them in order to ignore them and ID the subject you want

Common middlemen and warmups

1) Prepositional Phrases: a group of words headed by a preposition (of, in, to , for, with, on, by, at, from). You can generally eliminate these to find the subject (exceptions: SANAM indefinite pronouns, idiomatic phrases designating quantities or parts).
2) Subordinate Clauses: clauses that begin with connecting words (e.g. who, which) and cannot stand alone.
3) Other Modifiers: other words that modify or describe other portions of the sentence such as Present Participles (-ing forms derived from verbs) and Past Participles (-ed, and -en forms derived from verbs). Commas are also helpful signs.

ref. Chapter 3 Sentence Correction strategy guide

Question 19

strategy - subject-verb agreement

How can you use structure to find the subject of the verb?

Answer 19

To avoid falling for tempting nouns thrown in by GMAT, use the structure of the sentence to identify the correct verb.

If there is a PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE know that, with some idiomatic exceptions, the noun cannot be the subject of the sentence.

If there is a MAIN CLAUSE and a SUBORDINATE CLAUSE, match up the main clause subject with the main clause verb, then match up the subordinate clause subject with the subordinate clause verb.

ref. Chapter 3 Sentence Correction strategy guide

Question 20

tips - subject-verb agreement

SINGULAR OR PLURAL?

A singular subject linked to other nouns by an additive phrase.

Answer 20

Singular

ex. Joe, accompanied by Jessica and Shawn, IS

Question 21

tips - subject-verb agreement

SINGULAR OR PLURAL?

Subjects joined by ‘and’

Answer 21

Plural

ex. Jessica and Shawn ARE going to the beach

Question 22

tips - subject-verb agreement

SINGULAR OR PLURAL?

Subjects joined by or or nor

Answer 22

Depends - should match the subject closes to the verb

(ex. Neither the coach nor the players ARE
Neither the players nor the coach IS)

Question 23

tips - subject-verb agreement

SINGULAR OR PLURAL?

Collective Nouns (a noun that refers to a group of people or objects)

Answer 23

Almost always Singular (unless you want to emphasize the individual actors)

The crowd in the stands IS cheering
The army or a hundred IS attacking

Question 24

tips - subject-verb agreement

SINGULAR OR PLURAL?

Indefinite Pronouns (pronouns that are not specific about the thing to which it refers)

Answer 24

Most indefinite pronouns (such as those ending in -one, -body, -thing) are usually Singular

There are 5 indefinite pronouns that can be either, the SANAM pronouns.
Some
Any
None 
All
More/Most

Question 25

tips - subject-verb agreement SINGULAR OR PLURAL? SANAM Pronouns (what are they?)

Answer 25

``` Some Any None All More/Most ``` Depends - you can usually look at the noun in the Of- phrase that follows but be careful None of and Any of followed by a plural noun can be singular NOTE: not one is always singular

Question 26

tips - subject-verb agreement SINGULAR OR PLURAL? Subjects preceded by 'each' or 'every'

Answer 26

Singular (ex. Every dog HAS paws Each of them IS pretty)

Question 27

tips - subject-verb agreement SINGULAR OR PLURAL? Subjects preceded by 'the number of'

Answer 27

Singular | ex. The number of hardworking students in this class IS large

Question 28

tips - subject-verb agreement SINGULAR OR PLURAL? Subjects preceded by 'a number of'

Answer 28

Plural | ex. A number of students in the class ARE hard workers

Question 29

tips- subject-verb agreement SINGULAR OR PLURAL? Quantity phrases that are not 'the number of' or 'a number of' such as, Majority, Minority, Plurality

Answer 29

Depends If you want to indicate individual parts, use Plural (ex. The majority of the students ARE hard workers In the Senate, the majority HAS coalesced into a unified voting block)

Question 30

tips - subject-verb agreement SINGULAR OR PLURAL? Subject phrases and clauses

Answer 30

Singular (ex. Having good friends IS... Whatever they want to do IS...)

Question 31

tips On a general level, what are you looking for when analyzing a GMAT sentence?

Answer 31

GMC Grammar Meaning Concsion

Question 32

tips On a specific level, what are you looking for when analyzing a GMAT sentence?

Answer 32

1) Subject-Verb agreement 2) Parallelism 3) Pro-nounts 4) Modifiers 5) Verb Tense, Mood, Voice 6) Comparisons 7) Idioms remember there are also some odds and ends to help you ID the correct sentence 1) Connecting words 2) Connecting Punctuation 3) Quantity

Question 33

tips - connecting punctuation Whats is a Conjunctive Adverb?

Answer 33

A conjunctive adverb is an adverb that connects two independent clauses. Semicolons are often followed by conjunctive adverbs. Transitional elements are not true conjunctions like and. As a result, you must use semicolons, not commas, to join the sentences.

Question 34

idiom dated X...

Answer 34

dated AT

Question 35

modifiers Opening modifier,

Answer 35

Modifies the main noun that follows the comma

Question 36

modifier ...that...

Answer 36

Modifies the preceding noun

Question 37

odds and ends What are connecting words?

Answer 37

Words that link phrases and clauses into complete grammatical sentences.

Question 38

odds and ends What are coordinating conjunctions? List the most common.

Answer 38

Together with a comma, coordinating conjunctions can link two main clauses to form a grammatical sentence. FOR, AND, NOR, BUT, OR, YET, SO These words are neutral and they allow the two clauses to coexist equally

Question 39

odds and ends What is a subordinator (connecting word)? List examples of common subordinators.

Answer 39

A subordinators creates a subordinate clause, which can in turn attach to a main clause with a comma. ALTHOUGH BECAUSE BEFORE AFYER SINCE WHEN IF UNLESS THAT THOUGH WHILE

Question 40

modifier , who

Answer 40

modifies a preceding person

Question 41

modifier , which

Answer 41

modifies a preceding thing

Question 42

modifier , where

Answer 42

modifies a preceding place

Question 43

modifier , whose

Answer 43

modifies a preceding noun

Question 44

modifier , when

Answer 44

modifies a preceding time

Question 45

modifiers noun modifiers

Answer 45

describe a noun important for it to be clear which noun is being modified, it should be close to what it is modifying

Question 46

modifiers adverbial modifiers

Answer 46

can modify verbs, entire clauses, other modifiers they can be further away from what they are modifying (unlike noun modifiers)

Question 47

modifier ,-ing

Answer 47

something that follows from what is modified. CANNOT modify a noun it needs to relate to what it is modifying, usually a cause and effect relationship

Question 48

modifier - quantity words countable or uncountable? MANY

Answer 48

COUNTABLE ex. many hats

Question 49

modifier - quantity words countable or uncountable? MUCH

Answer 49

UNCOUNTABLE ex. much patience

Question 50

modifier - quantity words countable or uncountable? NOT MUCH

Answer 50

UNCOUNTABLE ex. not much patience

Question 51

modifier - quantity words countable or uncountable? LITTLE

Answer 51

UNCOUNTABLE ex. little patience

Question 52

modifier - quantity words countable or uncountable? NOT MANY

Answer 52

COUNTABLE ex. not many hats

Question 53

modifier - quantity words countable or uncountable? FEW

Answer 53

COUNTABLE ex. few hats

Question 54

modifier - quantity words countable or uncountable? FEWER

Answer 54

COUNTABLE ex. fewer hats

Question 55

modifier - quantity words countable or uncountable? LESS

Answer 55

UNCOUNTABLE ex. patience

Question 56

modifier - quantity words countable or uncountable? FEWEST

Answer 56

COUNTABLE ex. fewest hats

Question 57

modifier - quantity words countable or uncountable? FEWER THAN

Answer 57

COUNTABLE ex. fewer than 10 hats

Question 58

modifier - quantity words countable or uncountable? LEAST

Answer 58

UNCOUNTABLE ex. least patience

Question 59

modifier - quantity words countable or uncountable? LESS THAN

Answer 59

UNCOUNTABLE ex. less than a certain amount of patience

Question 60

modifier - quantity words countable or uncountable? AMOUNT

Answer 60

UNCOUNTABLE ex. amount of patience

Question 61

modifier - quantity words countable or uncountable? NUMBER

Answer 61

COUNTABLE ex. number of hats

Question 62

modifier - quantity words countable or uncountable? NUMEROUS

Answer 62

COUNTABLE ex. numerous hats

Question 63

modifier - quantity words countable or uncountable? GREAT

Answer 63

UNCOUNTABLE ex. great patience

Question 64

modifier - quantity words countable or uncountable? GREATER

Answer 64

UNCOUNTABLE ex. greater patience

Question 65

modifier - quantity words countable or uncountable? MORE NUMEROUS

Answer 65

COUNTABLE ex. more numerous hats

Question 66

idiom defined X...

Answer 66

as Y