SEVEN GRAMMAR RULES
You should be well practiced by now. On the test, be on the look out especially for the first two rules.
SHORT LIST:
1.
2.
3.
Parallel Structure
a. Check every list, every comparison, every “not only… but also…”, etc.
Modifiers before Subjects
a. Born in 1881, Ataturk’s bravery…
Pronouns
a. it they (The Turkish government has done every in their its power)
b.
you
one (When one goes to Paris, you should visit the Eiffel Tower)
c.
4.
5.
6.
7.
the reader = he or she (When the reader reaches this passage, they are he or she
is shocked to find out their favorite characters have been killed.)
d. man who killed me; man whom I killed.
Verbs – tense and numbers
a. Works of art are
b. The significance of the clues is
Punctuation
a. If you can use a period (.), you cannot use a comma (,).
b. If you can use a comma (,), you cannot use a period (.). You can never connect
two full sentences with a comma—I don’t care what the rules are in Turkish!!
c. If you can use a period (.), you can use a semi-colon (;).
d. You can only use a colon (:) after a full sentence.
Trigger words
a. Learn your trigger words, y’all! Use Anki.
Wordiness
a. Redundancy (He went annually every year)
b. Hated phrases (the reason why, the fact that, this being the case, being)
c. If you’ve check all of these and there’s more than one option that is grammatically
correct, choose the one that uses fewer words.
Jared Conrad-Bradshaw
jaredconradbradshaw@gmail.com
DETAILED LIST:
1. Parallel Structure.
For every single list, every single comparison, every single “not only…but also”, every single
“both…and…”, etc., make sure all the elements follow the same format.
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I love singing and to dance dancing.
She’s a mother, a wife, and bakes excellent pies an excellent pie-maker.
The air on the Asian Side just feels cleaner than the European Side that on the European
Side. (We’re comparing specifically the air on side to the air on the other, not just one side
to the other)
The engineers make higher wages than that those of janitors. (“wages” are plural,
that!those)
2. Dangling Modifiers before Subjects
The modifier must be right next to the thing it modifies. These are occasionally in places other
than the very beginning of the sentence, but if you get used to seeing them at the beginning of the
sentence, you’ll be in good shape. The subject of the dependent clause should be the same as the
subject of the main clause.
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After receiving his doctorate at Princeton, the university hired him as an assistant professor
and promoted him to full professor in 1965 he was hired as an assistant professor and
later was promoted to full professor in 1965. (Who received his doctorate? He did, not the
university. This one got passed the NYT copyeditor—don’t let it get passed you.)
A true renaissance man, Descartes’s abilities stretched far beyond merely writing essays
had abilities which went beyond merely writing essays.
After a week of lying low, there is evidence the White House is turning up the pressure on
the Saudis according to sources.
3. Pronouns
Pronouns are things like he, she, it, they, their, etc. Check that every single one is right for the
noun it refers to and that it can refer only to one thing.
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Facing a budget crunch because of high salaries, the soccer team evaluated every one of
their its players to see if any could be traded. (How many soccer teams? One. their!its; I
hope you also saw that modifier before the subject)
When an engineer enters a room, they he or she makes their his or her presence known.
(This is so ugly, but this is the way the SAT wants it. If you ever see “he or she” as an
answer choice, it might well be right—double check.)
Jared Conrad-Bradshaw
jaredconradbradshaw@gmail.com
When one reads this passage, you automatically feel happy. (You can’t have both; it needs
to either be two “you”s or two “one”s.)
Beavers have a tremendous impact on the natural environment, according to the scientists
who wrote these studies. They Beavers build dams that completely alter the ecosystem.
(This one is hard because it’s so obviously “beavers”, and not scientists or studies who build
dams, but that’s just what we think—it’s not what the SAT thinks. Whenever you have a
noun like “Beavers” show up among the options on your test, you have to double to make
sure it’s wrong.)
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Relative Pronouns:
who is used with people.
which is never used with people.
that can be used with people, but it can never be used to give “extra information”, so (in
this sense) it will never come after a comma.
Here’s the most important thing, that I learned. (That without a comma is fine here)
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Who vs. who vs. whose
Who replaces the subject, whom replaces the object, whose replaces the possessive pronoun so:
He’s the son of the man whom I killed. I killed him. (The m of whom is the same as the
m of him and them).
He’s the man who tried to kill me. He tried to kill me.
He’s the man whose wife I used to date. I used to date his wife.
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4. Verbs – tense and number
Of course, look around for tense other places in the paragraph, but remember—more than half
these questions are really about number, not tense.
Tense:
You guys don’t have much trouble with tense except too many of you don’t understand the past
perfect (had + V3; had gone, had eaten) and choose it because it looks fancy. Remember that the
past perfect is rarely the right answer and implies something took place in the past before
something else in the past. It’s always relative, it’s always comparative.
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I called and called but no one picked up because John had already left the house.
It had been raining all night when he woke up.
Number:
If it’s in the form X of Ys or X that gives Ys, we must conjugate our verb according to the X not the
Y.
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The significance of the new documents unearthed by the prosecution have has yet to be
fully felt. (The significance has.)
The acts of betrayal, surprising even from a man of his reputation, is are too much for me
to take. (Acts are.)
Jared Conrad-Bradshaw
jaredconradbradshaw@gmail.com
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Genetic analysis of bones discovered in a Siberian cave hint hints that the prehistoric
world may have been filled with “hybrid” humans. (The analysis hints—again, this is a
real example that made into the NYT.)
5. Punctuation
There are four basic rules I want you to know down pat (i.e. know thoroughly, know like it’s
memorized):
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If you can use a period (.), you cannot use a comma (,).
If you can use a comma, you cannot use a period.
If you can use a period, you can use a semi-colon (;).
The thing that comes before a colon (:) must be a full sentence.
Now, the more detailed rules for all the punctuation marks.
Period (.)
A period has one use: divide two sentences. A sentence must have a subject and verb, and
often has an object after the verb.
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I can’t go out this week. I have a big test on Saturday.
Ahmet studied hard and got a 1600. Mehmet didn’t study got a 1200.
I just ate a huge meal. However, I’m hungry again. (Note the transition word.)
Semi-colon (;)
A semi-colon has two uses.
1. like a period (99% of the time, a semi-colon will be like this on the SAT):
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I can’t go out this week; I have a big test on Saturday.
Ahmet studied hard and got a 1600; Mehmet didn’t study got a 1200.
I just ate a huge meal; However, I’m hungry again. (Note the transition word.)
2. like a comma in complex lists (I’ve seen this on the SAT reading section, but not
actually the SAT writing section):
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I’ve lived in Boston, MA; Chicago, IL; New York, NY; and Istanbul, Turkey.
At the best bagel shops, I recommend you get plain cream cheese; smoked salmon and
cream cheese; or the works, which is smoked salmon, cream cheese, tomato, red onion, and
capers.
Colon (:)
A colon has three uses.
IMPORTANT NOTE: ON THE SAT, THE COLON WILL ALWAYS COME AFTER A FULL
SENTENCE.
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Her hobbies were: rapping and drug dealing. (“Her hobbies were” is not a full sentence.)
Jared Conrad-Bradshaw
jaredconradbradshaw@gmail.com
This practically mostly comes up on the SAT with “including” and “such as”:
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There are many factors crucial for success on the SAT, including: ample practice, a large
vocabulary, and a bit of luck. (“There are many factors crucial for success on the SAT,
including:” is not a full sentence.)
You can still do a few things to improve your score such as: review your errors, read this
punctuation guide, and get enough sleep the night before the exam. (“You can still do a few
things to improve your score such as:” is not a full sentence.)
1. to introduce a list:
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I love all kinds of movies: action blockbusters, romantic comedy chick-flicks, dumb
comedies, European art films, you name it.
Two things are certain in life: death and taxes.
2. to introduce a quote (this is rare in English and usually implies a modicum of
formality—I would essentially never use this in my writing, and instead would use a
comma):
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Shakespeare was the first to say: “To thine own self be true.”
Trump’s appeal can be summed up by his ubiquitous slogan: “Make America Great Again.”
He then repeated the slogan of douchebags everywhere: “Work hard. Play hard.”
3. When what comes after the colon explains, specifies, or otherwise expands on the
sentence that came before the colon:
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The jury foreman announced the verdict: not guilty by reason of insanity.
The protagonist’s actions are all based on that most elemental of motivations: revenge.
The world is a stage: play your role.
Never forget this simple piece of advice: think before you speak.
The world is full of imperfect democracies. Consider Turkey, for instance: the country has
been rocked by three coups, one “post-modern” coup, and an additional failed coup
attempt since democracy was established in 1950. (Please pay attention to this format,
Take X, for example: now I’m discussing why X is a good example. It comes up
periodically on the SAT and needs a colon after “for example”).
Comma (,)
The comma has seven uses.
1. Between two adjectives.
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The quick, brown fox jumped over the lazy dog.
The big, bad wolf tried to murder the three little pigs (numbers do not count as adjectives
here).
2. Separating items in a list
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I ate a pizza, a hamburger, and myriad fries. (notice there’s a comma before “and” and
“or” in lists in English.)
We must protect everyone—man, woman, and child.
I’ll either be an engineer, a lawyer, or a doctor once I graduate college.
3. When there’s anything before the subject of the main clause)
Jared Conrad-Bradshaw
jaredconradbradshaw@gmail.com
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Every morning, I eat oatmeal.
Born in 1881, Picasso was a man of his era.
If you go, I will follow you.
o BUT: I will follow you if you go (no comma because I is the subject of the main
clause)
4. Dates and times
This one isn’t logical! Just memorize it.
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Paris, France, is nicer than Paris, Texas. (note the comma after France)
July 4th, 1776, is an important date in U.S. history.
5. To give extra information.
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The duck, a mallard, attacked my friend.
Hillary Clinton, the Democrat’s candidate in 2016, has yet to weight in on the 2020 race.
o BUT: My friend who’s driving us to the concert just got here (No comma because
this sentence specifies which friend. Which friend? The one who’s driving me.)
o NOTE: If we give a title (in Turkish, unvan) before the noun, the noun isn’t extra
information.
! The poet Billy Collins was a favorite of my first crush.
! Billy Collins, a poet, was a favorite of my first crush.
! The song “Witchblades” by Lil Peep x Lil Tracy is my jam.
! “Witchblades”, a song by Lil Peep and Lil Tracy, is my jam.
6. Quotes with “said” words.
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She screamed, “I’ll fucking murder you.”
“I’d like to see you try,” he responded.
“Now, now,” the judge began, “let’s have order in the court.”
o BUT: She said that she’d kill him. (No commas because it’s indirect speech).
o She said she didn’t like Marvel movies because they’re “stupid” and “suck” (here,
it’s mostly indirect speech even though we quote a few words and phrases—still no
commas).
7. Before or After Transitions
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See the Transitions/Conjunctions sheet.
The President was shot. However, the Vice-President is fine.
The President was shot. The Vice-President is fine, however.
The President was shot. The Vice-President, however, is fine. (There’s a nice little envelope
of commas around transition words.)
o Note: After a semi-colon, we cannot use a FANBOY word (For, And, Nor, But, Or,
Yet, So); we have to use a transitions.
o EXAMPLE: She loved him; but however, he loved another. (Still use the comma.)
Dash (—)
Two uses
1. Like a semi-colon or a colon (not in lists with semi-colon or quotes with colon):
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I can’t go out this week—I have a big test on Saturday. (Semi-colon example)
Jared Conrad-Bradshaw
jaredconradbradshaw@gmail.com
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I love all kinds of movies—action blockbusters, romantic comedy chick-flicks, dumb
comedies, European art films, you name it. (Colon example)
The jury foreman announced the verdict—not guilty. (Colon example)
2. Like a comma or parenthesis giving extra information
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The duck—a mallard—attacked my friend.
Hillary Clinton—the Democrat’s candidate in 2016—has yet to weight in on the 2020 race.
Apostrophe (’)
Kedi – cat
Kediler – cats
Kedinin – cat’s
Kedilerin – cats’ (only plural words get s’ instead of ’s)
Jared’in – Jared’s
James’in – James’s
Its – (onun)
It’s – it is/it has
Their – (onların)
They’re – they are
There – (orada)/(var)
6. Trigger Words
These words should set alarm bells off in your head. “Wait, what’s the difference?”
I mainly say use ERICA MELTZER’s “DICTION” DECK ON ANKI NOW.
Effect – etki (noun)
Affect – etkilemek (verb)
Then – (o zaman)
Than – (used in comparisons)
Eminent – top of their field, i.e. An eminent scholar
Imminent – about to happen, i.e. If we don’t do something about climate change, an ecological
disaster is imminent.
Fewer – used with countable noun. We’ll have few problems if you go.
Less – used with uncountable nouns. There will be less trouble if you leave.
7. Wordiness
1. Redundancy (unnecessary because of repetition)
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I went to the conference annually every year.
Initially, the cost of playing the game was inexpensive.
She gave birth to two twins.
The painting was intricate and highly detailed (intricate means highly detailed).
Jared Conrad-Bradshaw
jaredconradbradshaw@gmail.com
2. Hated phrases
The SAT just straight-up hates some phrases. These will rarely, if ever, be the correct answer.
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the reason why (reason=neden, why=neden—technically, it’s redundant)
this being the case
the fact that,
being (meaning because), for example,
o Being a doctor, he had access to poison.
3. Fewer words
If you’ve checked everything else, and more than one answer looks correct and these
answers mean basically the same thing, choose the one with fewer words.
Jared Conrad-Bradshaw
jaredconradbradshaw@gmail.com