Sentence Correction Flashcards
idiom
X was dated…
at Y
meaning - word placement
ONLY
What is the meaning of each:
A) I sleep only on Thursday
B) I only sleep on Thursday
(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)
strategy
Sentence Correction Process
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
when I see…
AND
I will think…
I’ll think…
PARALLELISM: X and Y -or- X,Y, and Z
Could be a list, modifier, compound subject or verb, two independent clauses.
meaning - “cousin” words/expressions
Unaccompanied v Not accompanied
unaccompanied = alone for a purpose
not accompanies = happens to be alone
modifier structure
[Opening Modifier] , …
…[Noun that is being modified]
idiom
Apprenticeship X
as
ex. I had an apprenticeship as a baker
meaning
WITH
what does it mean and when to use
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.
meaning - “cousin” words/expressions
Aggravate vs. Aggravating
aggravate = worsen aggravating = irritating
meaning - “cousin” words/expressions
Known as vs. Known to be
known = named
known to be = acknowledged as
meaning - “cousin” words/expressions
Loss of vs. Loss in
loss of = no longer in possession of
loss in = decline in value
meaning - “cousin” words/expressions
Mandate vs. Have a mandate
mandate = command
have a mandate = have authority from voters
meaning - “cousin” words/expressions
Native of vs. Native to
native of = person from
native to = species that originated in
meaning - “cousin” words/expressions
Range of vs. Ranging
range of = variety of
ranging = varying
meaning - “cousin” words/expressions
Rate of vs. Rates for
rate of = speed or frequency of
rates for = prices for
meaning - “cousin” words/expressions
Rise vs. Raise
rise = general increase raise = a bet or salary increase
meaning - “cousin” words/expressions
Try to do vs. Try doing
try to do = seek to accomplish
try doing = experiment with
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?
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
strategy - subject-verb agreement
How can you use structure to find the subject of the verb?
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
tips - subject-verb agreement
SINGULAR OR PLURAL?
A singular subject linked to other nouns by an additive phrase.
Singular
ex. Joe, accompanied by Jessica and Shawn, IS
tips - subject-verb agreement
SINGULAR OR PLURAL?
Subjects joined by ‘and’
Plural
ex. Jessica and Shawn ARE going to the beach
tips - subject-verb agreement
SINGULAR OR PLURAL?
Subjects joined by or or nor
Depends - should match the subject closes to the verb
(ex. Neither the coach nor the players ARE
Neither the players nor the coach IS)
tips - subject-verb agreement
SINGULAR OR PLURAL?
Collective Nouns (a noun that refers to a group of people or objects)
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
tips - subject-verb agreement
SINGULAR OR PLURAL?
Indefinite Pronouns (pronouns that are not specific about the thing to which it refers)
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
tips - subject-verb agreement
SINGULAR OR PLURAL?
SANAM Pronouns (what are they?)
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
tips - subject-verb agreement
SINGULAR OR PLURAL?
Subjects preceded by ‘each’ or ‘every’
Singular
(ex. Every dog HAS paws
Each of them IS pretty)
tips - subject-verb agreement
SINGULAR OR PLURAL?
Subjects preceded by ‘the number of’
Singular
ex. The number of hardworking students in this class IS large
tips - subject-verb agreement
SINGULAR OR PLURAL?
Subjects preceded by ‘a number of’
Plural
ex. A number of students in the class ARE hard workers
tips- subject-verb agreement
SINGULAR OR PLURAL?
Quantity phrases that are not ‘the number of’ or ‘a number of’ such as, Majority, Minority, Plurality
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)
tips - subject-verb agreement
SINGULAR OR PLURAL?
Subject phrases and clauses
Singular
(ex. Having good friends IS…
Whatever they want to do IS…)
tips
On a general level, what are you looking for when analyzing a GMAT sentence?
GMC
Grammar
Meaning
Concsion
tips
On a specific level, what are you looking for when analyzing a GMAT sentence?
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
tips - connecting punctuation
Whats is a Conjunctive Adverb?
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.
idiom
dated X…
dated AT
modifiers
Opening modifier,
Modifies the main noun that follows the comma
modifier
…that…
Modifies the preceding noun
odds and ends
What are connecting words?
Words that link phrases and clauses into complete grammatical sentences.
odds and ends
What are coordinating conjunctions? List the most common.
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
odds and ends
What is a subordinator (connecting word)?
List examples of common subordinators.
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
modifier
, who
modifies a preceding person
modifier
, which
modifies a preceding thing
modifier
, where
modifies a preceding place
modifier
, whose
modifies a preceding noun
modifier
, when
modifies a preceding time
modifiers
noun modifiers
describe a noun
important for it to be clear which noun is being modified, it should be close to what it is modifying
modifiers
adverbial modifiers
can modify verbs, entire clauses, other modifiers
they can be further away from what they are modifying (unlike noun modifiers)
modifier
,-ing
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
modifier - quantity words
countable or uncountable?
MANY
COUNTABLE
ex. many hats
modifier - quantity words
countable or uncountable?
MUCH
UNCOUNTABLE
ex. much patience
modifier - quantity words
countable or uncountable?
NOT MUCH
UNCOUNTABLE
ex. not much patience
modifier - quantity words
countable or uncountable?
LITTLE
UNCOUNTABLE
ex. little patience
modifier - quantity words
countable or uncountable?
NOT MANY
COUNTABLE
ex. not many hats
modifier - quantity words
countable or uncountable?
FEW
COUNTABLE
ex. few hats
modifier - quantity words
countable or uncountable?
FEWER
COUNTABLE
ex. fewer hats
modifier - quantity words
countable or uncountable?
LESS
UNCOUNTABLE
ex. patience
modifier - quantity words
countable or uncountable?
FEWEST
COUNTABLE
ex. fewest hats
modifier - quantity words
countable or uncountable?
FEWER THAN
COUNTABLE
ex. fewer than 10 hats
modifier - quantity words
countable or uncountable?
LEAST
UNCOUNTABLE
ex. least patience
modifier - quantity words
countable or uncountable?
LESS THAN
UNCOUNTABLE
ex. less than a certain amount of patience
modifier - quantity words
countable or uncountable?
AMOUNT
UNCOUNTABLE
ex. amount of patience
modifier - quantity words
countable or uncountable?
NUMBER
COUNTABLE
ex. number of hats
modifier - quantity words
countable or uncountable?
NUMEROUS
COUNTABLE
ex. numerous hats
modifier - quantity words
countable or uncountable?
GREAT
UNCOUNTABLE
ex. great patience
modifier - quantity words
countable or uncountable?
GREATER
UNCOUNTABLE
ex. greater patience
modifier - quantity words
countable or uncountable?
MORE NUMEROUS
COUNTABLE
ex. more numerous hats
idiom
defined X…
as Y
