“Fred wrote to Congress to complain about this policy nearly four months before Silvia ____________” What we want to say is — Fred wrote to Congress, and Silvia also wrote to Congress, but Fred did what he did before Silvia did what she did. The question is — how do we end that sentence eloquently [...]
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Top Six GMAT Grammar Tips for Sentence Correction
First, a hard Sentence Correct for practice. 1 The term “Immaculate Conception”, a doctrine that the Roman Catholic Church formally proclaimed in 1854, not referring to the conception of Jesus, which, according to Christianity, occurred miraculously despite his mother Mary being a virgin, but to the conception of Mary in the womb of her mother, [...]
GMAT Grammar: Appositive Phrases
Friends, Romans, countrymen: it is time to learn about appositive phrases! But first, a practice sentence. 1. Being America’s national bird, the Bald Eagle has little natural predators like the Great Horned Owl, and their population dwindling to almost nothing up to the point of DDT being banned. Being America’s national bird, the Bald Eagle [...]
Substantive Clauses on the GMAT
Understand this very tricky grammatical structure for GMAT Sentence Correction. Practice Question First, give these two SC questions a try. 1) Why the various Generals of the Army of the Potomac before Ulysses S. Grant were so singularly unsuccessful against Robert E Lee are debated about in no less than five hundred historically oriented [...]
Participle Phrases on the GMAT
Understand this common grammatical structure, on GMAT SC questions! Present participles When we take a verb and stick the “-ing” ending on it, we change it into the present participle, which can function as a noun modifier, i.e., as an adjective. Examples: the flowing river, the talking horse, the flying trapeze. A participle can [...]
GMAT Sentence Correction: If vs. Whether
“I don’t know if you will find this post helpful” Do you spot the error in the preceding sentence? This error is common in casual spoken English, but it will cost you on the GMAT Sentence Correction. In that sentence, the word “if” is incorrect: it should be replaced by the word “whether.” When [...]
GMAT Grammar: Vital Noun Modifiers
Learn about the importance of this elite category of modifiers. Not all modifiers are created equal! All noun modifiers, by definition, give additional information about the noun they modify. BUT, the importance of that additional information can vary significantly. Consider the following two sentences, both with modifiers underlined. 1) Last year, I visited the [...]
That vs. Which on the GMAT
Learn the important distinction between “that” vs. “which” on GMAT Sentence Correction. That vs. which? Restrictive vs. Non-restrictive A restrictive modifier limits the conceivable scope of a general noun to a relevant subset. For example, consider the difference in the following two sentences: 1) I avoid dogs that appear too excited. 2) I avoid [...]
GMAT Grammar: Adjectival Phrases and Clauses
Deepen your comprehension of these complex grammatical forms so you use them effectively on GMAT Sentence Correction What is an adjectival phrase? What is an adjectival clause? What’s the difference between them? Points of Grammar: An adjective is a word that modifies a noun. They are the colorful emotional words that spice up the [...]
GMAT Grammar: Adverbial Phrases and Clauses
Understand these complex grammatical forms so you can master them on GMAT Sentence Correction What is an adverbial phrase? What is an adverbial clause? What’s the difference between them? Do they have to contain adverbs? Points of Grammar: An adverb is a word that modifies a verb, an adjective, or another adverb. We can [...]
