tl;dr: This guide will show you how to conquer the ACT English section. The three categories you'll encounter are Production of Writing, Knowledge of Language, and Conventions of Standard English. The guide covers all the logistics and content you need to know, along with simple tips to help you succeed. You'll learn about the different types of questions you can expect: Usage & Mechanics and Rhetorical Skills, as well as the strategies for each. You've got this!
When you take the ACT exam, you will have 4-5 sections on the test, depending on whether you choose to take the essay section! 📃The sections are:
The ACT starts with the jam-packed English section. Don't worry! In this guide, you'll be prepared to conquer this section.
In this section, you answer 75 multiple-choice questions in 45 minutes. This section covers 5 passages that have a variety of rhetorical situations. The ACT breaks this section down into 3 categories:
You can use these simple tips on any passage you come across:
1. Make Complex Simple 🤷🏽♀️
Even though there are three categories for this section, they are extremely vague and don't provide concrete descriptions for the questions you can expect. However, there are two general types of questions in the English section:
Under this umbrella, 3 content types are tested: punctuation, sentence structure, and grammar & usage.
These questions constitute about 7-11 questions in the entire section.
Within Sentence Punctuation
| Name | Function |
| : | To introduce a list or a reason |
| ; | To separate 2 different independent clauses in the same sentence without a conjunction |
| -- | To show a break or separation in a sentence, to show emphasis |
End of Sentence Punctuation
| Name | Function |
| : | To introduce a list or a reason |
| ; | To separate 2 different independent clauses in the same sentence without a conjunction |
| -- | To show a break or separation in a sentence, to show emphasis |
Commas are used for numerous things:
Commas act as pauses, notifying the reader to separate words, phrases, and ideas. However, if you use a comma to connect two independent clauses, you have just created a comma splice. A comma will never replace any end of sentence punctuation or a semicolon.
Answers & Explanations
16.) F—That comma is signaling an appositive, which adds non-essential information to the passage. If anything would be changed, there would be an extra comma after "talkers," disrupting the flow of the passage and eliminating Choices G, H, & J.
17.) C—Here, there is a misunderstanding between a participle phrase and an appositive. The extra comma after "information" may signal an appositive; however, the purpose of the underlined portion is to signal a participial phrase. As a result, we need to remove the additional comma, eliminating Choices A, B, & D. Apostrophes have three uses: to form possessive nouns, to create contractions, and to indicate plurals of letters, numbers, and symbols.
Answer and Explanation
G—Earlier in the paragraph, we saw that there was a "bleacher section full of parents," signaling more than one adult. The underlined portion is referencing all of the adults' behavior. Therefore, the correct answer is Choice G.
Punctuation questions are fast to answer correctly and incorrectly. Keep these things in mind the next time you face one:
By keeping these things in mind, you'll be able to tackle any punctuation question that comes your way.
These questions constitute about 11-15 questions in the entire section.
Pronoun and subject-verb agreement are prevalent in this section.
Questions involving pronouns tend to focus on the relationship of the pronoun and what it is taking the place of. If you can explicitly tell the antecedent of a pronoun, then use the pronoun. Otherwise, use the noun instead of the pronoun.
Possessive pronouns don't have apostrophes, but pronoun contractions do.
Examples of possessive pronouns your, their, its
Examples of pronoun contractions you're, they're, it's
G—If you only read up to the underlined portion, then you might believe that Choice H is correct. However, if you keep reading, it says "what they're," signaling that a plural noun is being replaced. However, it's unclear what that plural noun is. Therefore, Choice G is the only correct answer.
***SOS, the contractions picture WILL NOT upload, idk what is happening***
Adjectives describe nouns and pronouns. They typically answer questions such as "what" and "what kind?"
Adverbs describe adjectives, verbs, and even other adverbs. They typically answer questions such as "how" and "how much?"
Comparative modifiers are used to compare one thing to another.
Usually the word is followed by "than." One-syllable words have "-er" added to the end.
Fast becomes faster.
Smooth becomes smoother.
Add an adverb before certain two-syllable modifiers and before most of the longer modifiers
Generous becomes more generous.
Loud becomes more loud.
Irregular modifiers take the comparative form by becoming another word entirely
Superlative modifiers are used to compare to one or many items. They are often followed by the word "of".
Add "–est" after most of the one-syllable modifiers and after certain two-syllable modifiers.
Happy becomes happiest.
Big becomes biggest.
Add an adverb before certain two-syllable modifiers and before most of the longer modifiers.
Generous becomes most generous.
Loud becomes most loud.
Irregular modifiers take the superlative form by becoming another word entirely.
Idioms are present in two ways: prepositional idioms and idioms with gerunds & infinitives.
Preposition idioms test whether you are able to recognize if something "sounds right" by correcting prepositions in phrases.
F—The sentence talks about administrative responsibility related to public education. Since the sentence talks about the relationship within public education, the proper answer would be Choice F. It is also the most "correct sounding" answer.
Gerunds are verbs that act as nouns and end in "-ing." Infinitives are verbs used as nouns and are constructed by using the word "to" plus a verb.
C—The sentence needs to end with a period as shown above. However, all of the answer choices other than Choice C prompt the reader to expect additional information, which is incorrect.
Grammar & usage questions tend to be tricky if you don't keep these things in mind:
These constitute about 15-19 questions in this section.
A subordinate clause—also known as a dependent clause—can not stand on its own.
An independent clause can stand on its own.
Table of Sentence/Phrase Connectors/Separators
NameFunction.To separate two unrelated sentences, making 2 separate sentences;To separate two somewhat related sentences to make 1 sentence, + coordinating conjunction (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so)To connect two sentences that are related; + subordinating conjunction/conunction adverb + ,To connect two sentences that are related, but where one sentence is more important than another, + gerund (verb ending with -ing)To show that two sentences are related in somewhat of a causual relationship
B—Before you tackle the answer choices, you must understand what an em dash is. It can replace a comma, but a comma does not always replace an em dash. Also, look at both sides of the em dash—are they both independent clauses? In this case, yes, they are. Therefore, a comma cannot combine two independent clauses, making Choice B the correct answer. Misplaced modifiers are present for attention to detail. Certain phrases will be in the wrong places; however, you must notice and correct them accordingly. You may get a statement like "Aaron turned off the blender, watching the news on YouTube," you have to move the action to just follow the noun it modifies, or move the noun just before the action it does. For example, the correct version of the above is, "Aaron, watching the news on YouTube, turned off the blender."
C—You must identify awkward phrasing wherever the modifier is. The only place where it's unacceptable is Choice C.
Inappropriate shifts in construction ask you to make sure that pronoun and verbs agree in tense and number. Singular nouns go with singular verbs and pronouns and likewise for plurals. Check within that sentence or nearby sentences to detect verb shifts, but this won't work 100% of the time.
You must pay attention to every small detail when tackling these questions. Here's a list of tips to help you conquer these questions:
Under this umbrella 3 rhetorical areas are tested: strategy, organization, and style.
These constitute around 11-15 questions in this section.
Within this section, you will add, revise, or delete sentences to fix grammatical mistakes or maintain the flow of the excerpt, justifying how a sentence fits with the purpose, audience, and focus of a paragraph or the essay as a whole.
B—It's important for you to look at the sentences before and after to understand the logical flow of the passage. If the sentence was deleted, then we wouldn't have known that Houdini was a skeptic of the supernatural. However, it doesn't say tell the reasons why but helps the reader understand the next couple of sentences in the passage.
You must use the correct strategy to win this battle (see what I did there?).
Questions can ask about opening, transitional, and closing phrases or statements that may add or deter from the focus of the paragraph.
A—Transitional phrases are used to smoothly move from one point to the next. In this passage, a process is being described. Choice B is contradictory and doesn't match the focus of the paragraph. Choice C is elaborating on an idea with an example, but the next point isn't an example of the preceding sentence.
You will look at the order and focus of sentences or paragraphs to make sure the ideas logically flow.
B—The parent doubts that T-ball is organized according to the parents. To amplify this effect, Choice B is the correct answer.
Keep your thoughts organized and these tips in mind when answering these questions:
Keeping writing style, tone, clarity in mind, you may have to eliminate ambiguity, wordiness, and redundant material, clarifying vague or awkward material.
G—The most specific description would be hexagonal. Thus, Choice G is correct.
It's all about the style 😎. The author's style must be maintained throughout the passage.
Notes from Underground
A lot of people hate to ride the New York City subways, but I love them because 1) I like to get places fast. A musician balancing a cello case, two Buddhist monks in saffron robes, and a group of stockbrokers in crisp, 2) charcoal gray suits get on at Wall Street. A passenger placidly sews while the subway train flings and jolts. A teenager 3.) whose holding a shoebox containing a kitten as tiny as a gingersnap smiles 4.) even if a line of girls in frilly white communion dresses file by. About three and a half million people a day ride the 5.) subways I think maybe 6.) I might possibly have met them all.
Sometimes a Salvation Army volunteer boards the subway train with sandwiches and juice to give to the needy. “Put your pride to the side!” the volunteer shouts, and I’ve seen many people put out their hands. 7.) The speaker also raises money. 8.) Its impossible to predict which people will dig into their pockets or 9.) if they were to open their purses, and I’ve stopped trying to guess.
Last week some fellow passengers and I watched an elderly man with a portable chessboard 10.) playing chess against himself. Just yesterday I sat across the aisle 11.) with a woman who was composing music 12.) in pink-tinted glasses in a notebook. She tapped her foot as she reviewed what she’d written and then stopped tapping and jotted more notes as the train 13.) hurtled along.
Today is my mother’s birthday. I decided to surprise her with lilac blooms from my backyard, so this morning, carrying a shopping bag full of the flowers, I boarded a crowded “E” train and rode it to the very last stop in the Bronx. Strangers smiled and took pains not to crush the flowers, even when the train jerked to a halt. 14 I got off at an elevated station and, lifting the splendid bouquet, rushed down to my mother, feeling delighted that I’d brought the blooms all the way from Brooklyn on the subway train.
1. At this point, the writer wants to provide one reason why she likes to ride the subways. Which choice is most relevant to the information provided in this first paragraph?
B. I never know what I’ll see there.
C. they are so much cheaper than taxis.
D. they are places of enormous quiet and calm.
G. charcoal gray suits,
H. charcoal, gray suits
J. charcoal gray, suits
F. NO CHANGE G. as H. whereas J. such that
A. NO CHANGE B. subways, and C. subways, which D. subways actually
F. NO CHANGE G. perhaps I’ve H. I’ve possibly J. I’ve 7.
A. NO CHANGE B. Therefore, the C. In conclusion, the D. In other words, the
F. NO CHANGE G. It’s H. Its’ J. That’s
A. NO CHANGE B. would have opened C. open D. might be opening
10. Which of the following alternatives to the underlined portion would NOT be acceptable? F. who played G. as he played H. played J. who was playing
A. NO CHANGE B. to C. at D. from
12. The best placement for the underlined portion would be: F. where it is now. G. after the word woman. H. after the word was. J. after the word composing.
13. Which choice most effectively emphasizes the rapid speed of the train? A. NO CHANGE B. continued on its way. C. moved on down the tracks. D. proceeded toward the next stop. 14. If the writer were to delete the preceding sentence, this paragraph would primarily lose a statement that: F. provides physical descriptions of people on the subway train. G. supports the opening sentence of the essay. H. provides evidence that people can be friendly on the subway train. J. gives an explanation for the narrator’s actions.
And that's it! You have successfully acquired the skills to ace this section. Make sure to keep on practicing and using the strategies stated in this guide. For more specific ACT English practice, check out this article on word choice or get some extra ACT Practice on grammar conventions! If you need extra ACT help overall, check out this list of awesome resources we've compiled to assist you strive for that 36! You got this 🥳.
