GMAT Exam: A Simple Guide To Solving Sentence Correction Questions

GMAT Sentence Correction Questions
There will be about 15 Sentence Correction questions in the 40 or so Verbal questions you’ll be asked on the GMAT. In other words, there are slightly more Sentence Correction questions than Critical Reasoning or Reading Comprehension questions. Remember, you have 75 minutes to complete the Verbal section of the test.

This type of question is both good and bad news. The good news is that because the English language employs a limited number of grammar and mechanical conventions, there are only so many varieties of Sentence Correction questions that you can be asked.

That means that more than any other Verbal question, you can actually study for this part of the test: Go through this review of the relevant grammatical and mechanical rules in the English language.

We also strongly suggest reading in the weeks before your test: choose a novel or book of nonfiction that you can trust to be written in standard American English. Just having those sentences running under your eyes will help.

The bad news is that for many people, just mentioning the rules of English grammar is off-putting. And even if you feel fairly confident, it’s easy to get confused when you have to answer multiple questions about them.

There are basically three ways a sentence can be wrong on the GMAT: It could violate a rule of grammar. It could be worded in an unclear way. Or it could be worded in a nonstandard way (in other words, it sounds funny).

As with every other part of the test, steady work will win the race: be as well prepared as you can, and then move carefully and diligently through the questions. Don’t panic, make your best guess and keep going!

Instructions
Before we dive into those grammatical rules, let’s take a look at the instructions you’ll receive on your computer screen as you begin the Sentence Correction portion of the GMAT:

The following questions present a sentence, part of which or all of which is underlined. Beneath the sentence you will find five ways of phrasing the underlined part. The first of these repeats the original; the other four are different. If you think the original is best, choose the first answer; otherwise choose one of the others.

These questions test correctness and effectiveness of expression. In choosing your answer, follow the requirements of standard written English; that is, pay attention to grammar, choice of words, and sentence construction. Choose the answer that produces the most effective sentence; this answer should be clear and exact, without awkwardness, ambiguity, redundancy, or grammatical error.
To review these directions for the subsequent questions of this type, click on HELP.

As you can see from reading the instructions, this is going to be yet another very dry section of the test. The questions test you on your knowledge of formal written English. This isn’t the English we use in talking with each other or writing a quick e-mail; this is the kind of English you would use in writing a business report.

As the instructions suggest, you will be looking at an entire sentence, or a part of a sentence, that has been underlined. Your job is to spot the grammatical error in the sentence and choose the answer choice that is the best way of saying the same thing in more precise, formal English.
You may be given a sentence or sentence part that actually is correct as presented. If that’s the case, just choose answer choice A, because that is always the same as whatever is presented in the prompt.

Approximately 20 percent of the Sentence Correction questions will not contain an error, so A will be your choice. You should expect to choose it about three times on the test!

Remember: the sentences you’re given on the GMAT will not always need to be corrected. Expect to choose A at least twice and possibly up to four times on your test!

Problem-Solving Strategies For Solving Sentence Correction Questions
If you’re familiar with our suggestions for other portions of the Verbal part of the GMAT, you won’t be surprised by our suggestions here:

- First read the entire question. Some of the sentences are quite long, even stretching to what looks like a paragraph. (While you’re at it, make sure you’re on a Sentence Correction portion of the test and not a Critical Reasoning passage; they can look very similar!) Don’t just read the underlined portion of the sentence. It won’t make sense without the entire passage.
- Before you look at the answer choices, try to figure out if there’s something wrong with the underlined portion of the question. (A hint: it might be helpful to mouth the sentence, since you can’t say it aloud. Errors are sometimes easier to spot that way.) If you think there is an error—still before looking at the answer choices—try to articulate to yourself what the problem is. Is it a subject-verb disagreement? The wrong verb tense?
- Test all of the answer choices. On the other hand, if you think the sentence is correct as is, make a note, but you’ll still need to test all of the answer choices to make sure that they are not somehow more correct. It’s helpful to articulate to yourself why you think the sentence is correct as it is so that you do not get confused.
- Next, try out the answer choices. You want to attempt to eliminate them as quickly as possible. Obviously, if you’ve found an error, that rules out A, so now you have a 25 percent chance of being correct, even if you guess! If you can, choose the one answer choice you think is correct.
- If you’re stuck between two answer choices, compare them to each other. They can’t be identical, so one will fix one aspect of the underlined passage and the other will fix something else. Which seems better? That’s the one you choose.

Also Read: A Review of English Grammar and Mechanics