Term
|
Definition
Subject and Verb are both singular or both plural.
Note: Key words can change plural subjects into singular subjects (anyone, any, each, none, not one) |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Past Perfect
Past
Present Perfect
Present
Future Perfect
Future
Perfect Tenses are time-dependent and rely on "have/had" |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Time-dependent and rely on "have/had" |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
"As" compares clauses
"Like" compares nouns |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Started in the past and in happening currently
"have, has" |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Something happened before something else. (Two things happened at different times in the future)
"had" |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
An action that will be completed between now and some point in the future.
"Will have" |
|
|
Term
| Fewer/fewest versus Least |
|
Definition
DICTION:
Fewest is countable.
Less is not countable. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
DICTION:
***ONLY MODIFY PREVIOUS WORD, NOT ENTIRE PHRASE.!!!***
Is the info core to the sentence?
WHICH is meant to provide a descriptive phrase that is non-essential to the sentence.
THAT provides further information necessary to the meaning of the rest of the sentence. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
DICTION:
Sentence needs a semicolon |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
DICTION:
Who: Nominative (Subject-Responsible)
- Who did this? Who is responsible? Who is the subject?
Whom: Accusative (Person Receiving an Action)
- to Whom?
- Whom should we support? |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
1. formulate an answer
2. work from wrong to right |
|
|
Term
| Primary Sentence Correction Factors |
|
Definition
Verbs
Pronouns
Idioms
Diction
Parallelism |
|
|
Term
| Secondary Sentence Correction Factors |
|
Definition
Conciseness
Active vs. Passive Voice
Consistency of Tone |
|
|
Term
| Active versus Passive Voice |
|
Definition
Active: Subject performs verb's action
Passive: Subject is acted upon by the verb. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
1. Subject Verb Agreement
2. Verb Tense |
|
|
Term
| Clauses often have prepositional phrases |
|
Definition
| identify subject and verb in clause |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
"It" is singular, i.e. The Group
"They" is plural. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Need to move from a tense that is "more past"
Past -> Present
Present -> Future
Past Perfect -> Present Perfect |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Hypothetical.
Used to express a degree of unreality. Uses "were" (verb tense forms of to be) If I were you
stays in the infinitive form of the verb. "to sign, to be, to love" etc.
verb after "that" plus verb in infinitive form.
(advice, advisable, ask, arrange, better, demand, desirable, direct, directive, essential, imperative, important, insist, instruct, etc. pg 109 |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
word ending in "ING"
Imperatives must bee followed by a gerund.
Ask, demand, desire, essential, imperative, imporant, insit, mandate, mandatory, necessary, prefer.
(walking, dreaming, smoking, sleeping, doing) |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
PRONOUN:
David's dog
Selma's favorite flavor
A possessive does not function as a noun and cannot be an antecedent. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
PRONOUN:
"It" will often not have a clear antecedent.
Check:
1. Is there pronoun ambiguity?
2. Is there pronoun agreement?
EX: The shop sold chocolate and strawberry ice cream, and it was all organic.
correct: ... and all products were organic.
Difficult to determine if the shop, the products, the ice cream, etc. were organic. |
|
|
Term
I + ME,
HE + HIM, SHE + HER,
WHO + WHOM |
|
Definition
Easy to decide "who" or "whom" by determining the answer to who/whom.
PG 112
Q: For whom is the ice cream?
A: The ice cream is for him.
Q: Who ran the race?
A: He ran the race. |
|
|
Term
| "in which" versus "where" |
|
Definition
Where = location both literal and figurative
In which = process or situation |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Pages 194 - 198:
Collective agreement to use words certain way even if it may seem contrary to grammatical rules of the language.
"I am 29 years old" vs. "I have 29 years" |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
"Whether or not" -- use "WHETHER
"Numbers of" -- use simply "NUMBER OF"
"Do it" -- use "DO SO"
On the basis -> Based On |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
LIKE says that what follows is intended as a frame of reference to indicate the group of things you're talking about BUT is itself not included in the group
SUCH AS means that what follows are examples of the things that are part of the group you're talking about.
• Can you buy me some fruit like oranges or grapefruit?
This sentence would mean that you do NOT want oranges or grapefruit; instead, you'd prefer some fruit similar to oranges and grapefruit. For example, you may want pomelo, lemons, or limes.
• Can you buy me some fruit such as oranges or grapefruit?
Oranges and grapefruit are examples of the type of fruit we want. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Less vs. Fewer
Which vs That
Common mistakes (words that)
- have similar sound
- have similar meaning
- have both |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Must refer to specific time, place or person.
Incorrect: A cause of skin cancer is when people go outside without sunscreen.
Correct: A cause of skin cancer is going outside without sunscreen. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
If two items being compared, used comparative word (better, taller)
If three or greater - sentence needs superlative (best, tallest) |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Items being listed or being compared should share a logical similarity and common grammatical form - including proper idiomatic structure.
Redundant prononuns should not occur. |
|
|
Term
| Comparisons using AS or THAN |
|
Definition
subject pronoun must be used (Fred is taller than I.)
(Jim did as much damage to the car as he.) |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| If there's the first as, there must be a second as. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
proper noun - replaces "a"
adjective - "one scoop of ice cream"
impersonal, objective pronoun - "one must try harder"
Sayings "one in ___" and "more than one ___" always take a singular form/verb
"one or more ___" is plural verb tense |
|
|
Term
Between versus Among
"-er" versus "-est"
more versus most |
|
Definition
if two items compared - use "between" or "er"
if more than two compared use "among" or "est"
Adjectives and adverbs with three or more syllables require comparison with more and most. Thos with two syllables can require either –er/ -est or more/most.
i.e. easy, easiest versus more ready, most ready.
TIP: WHEN IN DOUBT PICK MORE/MOST FORM.
AVOID AMONGST. |
|
|
Term
| "One or other" vs. "One or another" |
|
Definition
one or other: between first or second that is out of two choices
one or another: between multiple choices not restricted to two
EX: I have two sisters. One is a doctor, and the other one is an artist.” - TestMagic Erin
If the claims of coastal nations to 200-mile territorial seas were accepted on a worldwide basis, more than thirty per cent of the world’s ocean area would come under the jurisdiction of one or other national states.
(A) one or other national states
(B) one or another national state
(C) one or the other national state
(D) some or another of the national states
(E) each and every national state
...correctanswerisb...
The three plays in Preston Jones’s “A Texas Trilogy” are completely independent, and each has only a peripheral relationship with the other.
(A) independent, and each has only a peripheral relationship with the other
(B) independent, and each has only a peripheral relationship one with another
(C) independent, and they have only a peripheral relationship with the others
(D) independent and have only a peripheral relationship with one another
(E) independent and have only a peripheral relationship each with the other
...correct:d.... |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
whether is used when there are alternate choices
IF is conditional. (If you prepare you will get a good score) |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
testtip: use of "being" in GMAT is wrong more often than it is right.
Order pf preference: being < since < because
When it's correct:
1. idiomatic phrasing
2. absolutes (being + noun + noun complement) note: verb cannot be finite in an absolute. |
|
|
