SAT: Sentence Completions English SAT Preparation

Sentence Completions Appear on 2 25-minute critical reading sections About 7-8 questions on each section Arranged in order of difficulty Questions appear at the start of each section (reading passages at end)

Method Cover Answers Verbalize Answer Use Process of Elimination Read through sentence to gain idea of what it’s about Verbalize Answer Choose a word or phrase to fill in blank Use Process of Elimination Compare choices to your own word/phrase

Practice Example Bill Cosby showed a keen understanding of family life, providing a(n) ________ role model for other parents to use. What’s your word or phrase for the blank?

Say it in your own words: Bill Cosby showed a keen understanding of family life, providing a(n) ________ role model for other parents to use. Positive Good Exemplary

Match your Answer with Choices: Bill Cosby showed a keen understanding of family life, providing a(n) ________ role model for other parents to use. A. Embarrassing B. Confused C. Superficial D. Dogmatic E. Positive

Match your Answer with Choices: Bill Cosby showed a keen understanding of family life, providing a(n) ________ role model for other parents to use. A. Embarrassing B. Confused C. Superficial D. Dogmatic E. Positive Correct Answer: E. Positive

Strategies: Clues There is only one correct answer per question. ETS offers a CLUE in each sentence completion to make only one answer complete. A sentence w/no clue could have multiple answers, so the clue will lead you to the correct answer.

Use the Clue No Clue Clue Talkative Fun Loyal Hardworking Annoying All options w/no clue, but only one works w/clue: Hardworking No Clue The teacher told the student, “You’re the most ______ student in my class.” Clue At the academic awards ceremony, the teacher told the student, “You deserve this award because you earned the highest grade and are the most _______ student in my class.”

Strategies: Trigger Words Work in Conjunction with the clue to help you figure out the meaning of the word in the blank. I like her, and she’s very ____. I like her, but she’s very ____. Trigger words offer extra clues to meaning.

Trigger: Contradiction Although Despite However Though Yet But Even Though In Contrast Rather On the Contrary Rather than work on his homework, the boy chose to _______ on his day off. Answer ≠ work!

Trigger: Continuation And Not Only Indeed Even Because But Also In Fact Not only was the weather cold and dreary, but it was also ________.

Trigger: Time After During Then While Before Meanwhile When Until We will practice the recitation until everyone is able to ________.

Trigger: Negatives No Nobody Neither Not No One I will neither _________ nor accept the boy’s reckless behavior.

Trigger: Cause & Effect As Because Since For If So That Since the weather is so dreadful, we will have to ______ the picnic for another day.

Strategy: Degree of Difficulty The first 2 or 3 questions are easiest. Middle few are of medium difficulty. Last two or three are most difficult. This can help you eliminate answer choices, for each level of difficulty.

Practice: Degree of Difficulty Once I got to know the reportedly snobby stranger, I was surprised by her _______. Warmth, Congeniality, Friendliness, Kindness, Eccentricity If this is a later question in the section, answer will not be warmth, friendliness, or kindness: too easy! Have to choose between congeniality or eccentricity, even if you don’t know what the words mean!

Strategy: Positive or Negative Word You may not be sure what the word should be, but you know it’s either positive or negative from the context of the sentence. When the student was ____ by the entire faculty for an award, it was an honor for her and her family. Word must be positive.

Positive or Negative Words When the student was ____ by the principal, her family was extremely disappointed. Word must be negative. To select an answer from the choices using + or – clues, you must have seen the word before to be able to judge if it is positive or negative. Don’t have to know exact definitions, but to guess how it is used, need to recognize it.

Two Blanks: One at a Time Treat as one blank at a time. Cover answers Come up with a word for one blank Eliminate any incorrect options Do the same for the other blank.

Two Blanks: Practice Susan did not resent the arduous work, for she believed that every _____ that demands thought, attention, and independent judgment ____ the quality of daily life. task…heightens profession…belittles hobby…undercuts folly…exalts diversion…disrupts

Two Blanks: Practice Susan did not resent the arduous work, for she believed that every _____ that demands thought, attention, and independent judgment ____ the quality of daily life. task…heightens profession…belittles hobby…undercuts folly…exalts diversion…disrupts Correct Answer: A. task…heightens

Vocabulary- Important Component Because of his _____ disposition, you can never predict what he will do. A. sound B. Spartan C. stentorian D. mercurial E. Herculean

Vocabulary Professional Critics derided the actor’s performance as lacking subtlety and depth, and predicted that his fame would be______. A. esoteric B. ephemeral C. dramatic D. lucrative E. pejorative

Vocabulary The ______ of the wax museum’s statues astounded us; the Elvis sculpture appeared so lifelike that I half expected it to speak. A. verisimilitude B. integrity C. placidity D. fecundity E. deviousness