Usage

A small percent of Writing and Language questions are usage questions. These questions test a combination of vocabulary (including in context vocabulary, and the nuances of how very similar words are used) and particular (often idiosyncratic) rules about how particular words are used in particular situations. 

These are the hardest questions on this section to prep for.  Students who get them right typically do so by "gut" -- they have heard and read these words used, and they know which ones "sound right."  These questions are particularly hard for non-native English speakers and for students who don't read much. We recommend that students try using their gut on these problems.  If they usually get them wrong, these are good questions to skip.  There are no rules to learn (and far too many individual words to learn) to master these questions in time for the test. Students should try their gut and if they're not great at English, go with their "go to guess letter" for these questions. 

Types of usage questions:

  • Phrase questions: These questions use a common English language phrase that isn't necessarily commonsensical or rule driven. They are testing to see if the students know the words.

Example 1:

I'm disinterested to watch the Super Bowl.

  1. NO CHANGE
  2. disinclined
  3. disinterred
  4. dispassionate

None of these words really look right, on a purely grammatical level.  However, most adult native English speakers are familiar with the phrase "I'm disinclined to" in order to show that they are not leaning towards doing something. 

In our experience, students are very unlikely to choose B, making this a trick question.  When they try to go through the question logically, B seems like the least likely answer.  Thus, students who find that they struggle with these questions will almost always get them wrong if they try to follow their gut.  They are better off just guessing randomly. 

Example 2:

I was sorry to hear that her brother was experiencing law troubles and was worried about being sentenced to prison. 

  1. NO CHANGE
  2. legal troubles
  3. troubles with the law
  4. penal issues

Here, both B and C are correct. B is the better choice because it's more concise (a blurring of the lines between types of questions). Technically "legal" is an adjective and "law" is a noun, so a student might be able to infer that "legal troubles" is better than "law troubles" but we talk about things like "law school" which uses law as an adjective, so again, this is something that students would only know if they had heard it correctly enough times for "legal troubles" to feel correct. 

Again, if you get enough of these problems wrong, just guess on them. Over time, in college, you'll develop this gut, but you don't have it yet and you can't cram it. 

  • Vocabulary questions: These questions depend on very subtle differences between word meanings to determine the correct answer. 

Example 1:

The teacher spoke to us with a very self-aggrandizing tone and made us feel like we should fail the class. 

  1. NO CHANGE
  2. lofty
  3. condescending
  4. haughty

All of these words suggest that the teacher thinks she's great. But, which suggests that she is making the students themselves feel bad? C is the best answer.  Lofty just means "high" or "high minded," and a teacher with a lofty tone might be hard to follow but would not make the students feel bad.  A "self-aggrandizing" teacher would make students snicker and dislike a teacher but not necessarily put them down.  "Haughty" is the closest to condescending, which is literally talking down to someone, but is usually used when a people are trying to make someone else feel bad rather than making themselves look good.  C is the best answer, but hard to choose unless you really know the words.

Example 2:

She was facing formidable obstacles and we hoped that she would overcome them. 

  1. NO CHANGE
  2. mammoth
  3. impenetrable
  4. superfluous

Here, mammoth looks good.  Huge obstacles are hard to overcome, but "formidable" incorporates the notion that the obstacles are big AND worthy of fear.  It's slightly better in context. Impenetrable also sounds good, but doesn't work because there's no way she could overcome them.  And superfluous means "extra, too much" so is wrong, but feels like it could be right to someone who does not know the word.  

These questions are best left to the vocab experts. 

  • Obscure preposition/transition questions: These questions are not common, but they test prepositions, conjunctions, and transitions that are not often used. 

Example 1:

Jessica is going to try to quickly skim around the book before the test. 

 

  1. NO CHANGE
  2. past
  3. by
  4. through

Sometimes these questions test word pairs.  We "skim through" things.  You either know the pairing or you don't. This one isn't too hard.  And some will be ones that you know.  Read them, see if you know them.  But, if you don't, they can be hard to figure out.  These are good candidates for guessing.

Example 2:

The candidate discussed a proposal about which he knew very little.  

  1. NO CHANGE
  2. of that
  3. from whom
  4. that

"About which" effectively shortens and smooths out the sentence "The candidate discussed a problems which he knew very little about," but it is not a common phrase. Any of the choices could "sound right" to someone who isn't familiar with the phrases.  Another candidate for a guess if you don't know the answer to this one automatically.

Overall, usage questions are the hardest ones to learn.  You'll know some; you will have no idea about others.  Students who enjoy language, read a lot, and talk with people who use very proper English will be better able to tell which answers "sound" correct.  But, if these are hard for you, it's more useful for you to spend your time on other questions that you can figure out through logic and grammar rules.  If these are hard, they are good ones to guess on and move on. 

Practice Problems:

  • Usage (prepositions and conjunctions) Practice

    Pay close attention to the prepositions in the sentences below.  Circle and correct any incorrect prepositions.

    1. In accordance to the Geneva Convention, most countries refrain in torturing prisoners of war. 
    2. The success of early reading books is attributed from Theodore Geisel. 
    3. The student is seeking his teacher’s approval with his proposal.
    4. My mother is always finding new errors that she can blame to me. 
    5. Until I took that advanced seminar I never realized I was capable in mastering foreign materials. 
    6. I can’t believe that he continues to complain through the airport’s treatment with him. 
    7. Her intense desire about self-improvement evolved for a meditation retreat she attended. 
    8. I am incredibly impressed in her son and I can only hope with similar behavior from my own child. 
    9. The results of her exam are far from the scores that she hoped to achieve.
    10. I have developed a great fondness of the cookies she makes that consist in sugar, butter and almond flour. 
    11. In a world in which we are often only interested by things that directly affect us, it is necessary into learn to take other’s interests to heart. 
    12. I am acutely  aware of my teacher staring at me and measuring my  participation of the class discussion. 
    13. The child does not have a strong grasp by the material and the teacher is not happy in it. 
    14. She has a deep and abiding believe of the power of fairy tales.
    15. I belong in a club that is innovative and interesting but a little careless about its money. 
    16. An SAT is made up by 10 sections and if you are planning to take it, you should practice long tests.
    17. When I graduate from high school I will cease  to care with any of my classmates.
    18. I pray in the strength to recover in cancer.
    19. Christian Scientists view doctors and other medical professionals by a threat to their faith. 
    20. Although she loves her boss, she is capable of differing with him over a plethora of philosophical ideals. 
    21. I am not averse with  the notion of starting over again. 
    22. In order to provide proper treatment, it is critical to distinguish metastatic cancer to isolated cancer. 
    23. The teacher is deeply suspicious by  his students’ unconventional methods for  preparing from exams.
    24. I am Jewish,  but I do not always adhere with the stricter religious rules. 
    25. The desert is at once arid but prone to disastrous flash floods. 
    26. As a class, we strive for succeed with all that we attempt.
    27. They regard all young people to be possible hoodlums.
    28. When a child excels with a subject, a teacher should then insist in the student’s best effort in similar subjects. 
    29. The doctor prohibits his patient by over-exerting himself in order to protect him with himself. 
    30. Compared to brain surgery, the drug treatment is minimally invasive and we hope that he will respond well in it. 

    Answer Key:

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