English and Language Usage: Grammar, Punctuation, and Style
What the English and Language Usage section tests
Items test grammar and usage, punctuation, sentence structure, spelling, and style (word choice and clarity).
Concepts to master
- Subject-verb agreement: the verb matches the subject, not an intervening phrase. "The box of tools is heavy."
- Pronoun-antecedent agreement: pronouns match their nouns in number and gender. "Each student must bring his or her book" (singular).
- Verb tense consistency: keep tenses consistent unless the meaning requires a shift.
- Commas: separate items in a series, set off introductory phrases, and join an independent clause to a dependent clause - but do not join two independent clauses alone (comma splice).
- Apostrophes: possessives (the dog's bone) vs. plurals (the dogs barked); "its" is possessive, "it's" means "it is."
- Modifiers: place them next to the word they describe to avoid dangling or misplaced modifiers.
- Style: prefer concise, clear wording; avoid redundancy ("free gift") and wordiness.
Traps to watch
- Comma splices - two complete sentences joined by only a comma.
- Collective and indefinite subjects ("everyone," "each," "the team") taking singular verbs.
- Its vs. it's and your vs. you're.
- Misplaced modifiers at the start of a sentence.
Worked example
"Running down the street, the tree branches hit the boy." The opening phrase describes the boy, not the branches. Corrected: "Running down the street, the boy was hit by tree branches."
Rule of thumb: identify the subject, then check that its verb and any pronouns agree with it.