GMAT: Target Test Prep Must Know (Verbal Sentence Correction)

2.9 Compound Subjects A compound subject is a subject composed of multiple nouns joined by a coordinating conjunction such as "and", "or", or "nor." Normally, when two singular nouns are joined by "and," they form a plural subject and therefore demand a plural verb. Normally, compound subjects consisting of plural nouns follow the same rule. 2.10 Two Nouns Joined By "And" May Form a Singular Subject Subjects composed of two nouns joined by the coordinating conjunction "and" take a singular verb when the two nouns name a single entity such as "bed and breakfast", or "rice and beans." 00:06 01:29 2.11 Additive Phrases Don't Create Plural Subjects Additive phrases, which begin with words such as "along with", "as well as", in addition to, "including", "accompanied by", or "together with", do not create plural subjects. A singular subject followed by an additive phrase remains singular. 2.12 Or, Nor, Either...Or, And Neither...Nor The verb in a clause or sentence containing a compound subject joined by the conjunctions "or," "nor," "either...or," or "neither...nor" must agree with the subject noun to which it is closest. 2.13 Inverted Sentences In an inverted sentence, the verb precedes the subject, but the subject and verb must still agree. 2.15 Collective Nouns Followed by Prepositional Phrases When the context of a sentence containing a subject made up of a collective noun followed by a prepositional phrases makes it clear that the group is acting as a single unit, a singular verb is required. When the context of a sentence containing a subject made up of a collective noun followed by a prepositional phrases makes it clear that the group is NOT acting as a single unit, rather as individuals, a plural verb is required. 2.16 The Collective Nouns "Majority" and "Minority" Like other collective nouns that we have discussed, the collective nouns "majority" and "minority" can be considered singular or plural depending on the contexts in which they appear. Also, like other collective nouns, "majority" and "minority" can be used alone or combined with prepositional phrases. 2.18 Subjects with Certain Preceding Elements When a subject begins with the word(s) "every," "each," "many a," or "many an," the subject always takes a singular verb. 2.21 Singular Indefinite Pronouns Singular indefinite pronouns always take singular verbs. These pronouns are: "anybody," "anyone," "anything" "each," "*either," "everybody," "everyone," "everything," "neither¹," "nobody," "no one," "nothing" "one," "somebody," "someone," "something," and "whoever²" * and ¹: Note that, when "either" is used in an "either...or" construction, we must follow the rules concerning "either...or" The same applies to "neither" in a "neither...nor" construction -- as in, it must agree with the subject to which it is closest. ²: Note that, when "whoever" precedes a plural noun, as in, for example "whoever the owners," the plural noun may be the subject and take a plural verb, as in: Whoever the owners are, they are doing a great job of preserving the wetlands on the property. 2.22 Plural Indefinite Prounouns A plural indefinite pronoun always takes a plural verb. These pronouns include: "both," "few," "many," and "several." 2.23 Other Indefinite Pronouns--Sometimes Singular, Sometimes Plural The SANAMM indefinite pronouns, "some," "any," "none," "all," "more," and "most," can be singular or plural depending on their referents. When a subject begins with one of these indefinite pronouns, we can't ignore the prepositional phrase that comes between the subject and the verb. 2.24 Subject-Verb Agreement Involving The Word "Number" Subjects that begin with "THE number of" take singular verbs. Subjects that begin with "A number of" take plural verbs. 2.24 Subject-Verb Agreement Involving The Word "Percentage" A subject that begins with "THE percentage of" takes a singular verb. A subject that begins with "A percentage of" takes a verb that agrees in number with what the percentage is a percentage of. 2.26 Subject- Verb Agreement Involving Fractions A subject that begins with a fraction such as "half" or "one-fourth" can take a singular or plural verb depending on what the fraction is a fraction of. When a subject begins with a fraction, we cannot ignore a prepositional phrase that comes between the fraction and the main verb. 2.27 Subject-Verb Agreement And The Word "Percent" In a situation involving a subject that is a portion described via the use of the word "percent," whether the subject is singular or plural depends on whether what the portion is a portion of is singular or plural. 2.29 Unusual Singular And Plural Forms Singular/Plural: alumnus/alumni criterion/criteria datum/data ("data" can be used to convey a singular meaning or a plural meaning...so remember that data can be plural) fungus/fungi medium/media (when "media" refers to the press, it is often considered a collective noun that takes a singular verb. a "medium" who takes to spirits always takes -s to become plural "mediums" as does the size medium) phenomenon/phenomena nucleus/nuclei syllabus/syllabi 2.29 Nouns That Appear to be Plural, But Are Actually Singular i.e. "mathematics," "measles," and "news". When these words act as subjects, they take singular verbs. Note that some of these nouns that appear to be plural are fields of study that end in -ics, such as "politics," "economics," "ethics," "statistics," "linguistics." When used to denote a field of study, these nouns are always singular. However, some of them can also be used to refer to a set of something (for instance, beliefs) and in those cases they are plural. 2.30 Nontraditional Subjects Subjects in the forms of infinitives, gerunds, and noun phrases/clauses always take singular verbs. 3.5 Pronouns Agreeing in Number with Their Antecedents Pronouns that correctly refer to "each" or "every" are always singular, regardless of whether "each" or "every" begins a phrase that contains a plural noun or that described a group. The indefinite pronoun "everyone" is always singular. That it is singular makes sense, as "everyone" is really just "every" and "one" combined, and pronouns that correctly refer back to phrases that begin with "every" are always singular. Other common singular indefinite pronouns are "anyone," "someone," "no one," and "nobody." 3.6 The Sentence Uses an Incorrect Pronoun Case If the pronoun is doing the action, a subject pronoun must be used. If the pronoun is being acted upon or is the object of a preposition, an object pronoun must be used. If the pronoun is indicating ownership, a possessive pronoun must be used. Subject/Object/Possessive I /me /mine you/you/yours he, she, it / him, her, it / his, hers, its we, us, ours you, you, yours they, them, theirs who, whom, whose whoever, whomever which, that, what / which, that, what everybody / everybody / everybody's 3.7 "Who"/"Whoever" And "Whom"/"Whomever" Whenever we have to choose between "who"/"whoever" And "whom"/"whomever", if the pronoun serves as the subject, the correct pronoun to use is the subject "who"/"whoever." Be careful not to eliminate a choice that includes a possessive pronoun-gerund combination just because it "sounds funny." 3.8 Illogical Antecedents When the word "term" is used in reference to the name of something, make sure that any pronouns meant to refer to that thing refer to the thing itself and not to the word "term." When a word such as "term," "label," or "name" introduces a noun in quotes, be on the lookout for a pronoun-antecedent error in the sentence. 4.2 Adjectives and Adverbs Adjectives can modify only nouns or pronouns. Adverbs can modify verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs. A word ending in -ly typically will not modify a noun, because most -ly words are adverbs. 4.3.2 Misplaced Adverbs Generally, the best placement of a limiting adverb is immediately before the word or phrase it is meant to modify. 4.8 Relative Clauses In Sentence Correction questions, the word "that" and "which" are not interchangeable. The relative pronoun "that" introduces restrictive relative clauses, whereas the relative pronoun "which" introduces nonrestrictive relative clauses. To determine whether an underlined cause is restrictive or nonrestrictive, eliminate it from the sentence. If it can be eliminated without the meaning of the sentence changing, it is nonrestrictive and will use the pronoun "which". 4.9.3 "That," "Who," and "Whom," And "Which" The relative pronoun "that" should be used to refer only objects or ideas, not people. Similarly, the relative pronoun 'which" cannot be used to refer to people. The relative pronouns "who" and "whom" are used to refer to human antecedents. The subject pronoun "who" performs the action in a clause, whereas the object pronoun "whom" is acted upon. 4.9.3 Single Entities: "That," "Who," "Whom," And "Which" Entities made up of people such as teams, groups, or classes, are considered things when the context treats such an entity as a single unit and, in such cases, are referred to via the use of the relative pronouns "that" or "which" 4.9.4 Whose The relative pronoun "whose" can refer to things or people. "Whose" is the English language's only possessive relative pronoun. 5.2.1 Present Tense We typically use the present tense to describe things that happen routinely or to discuss facts and universal truths that do not change over time. The present tense is used to describe events in a literary work. 5.2.7 Present Perfect Tense The present perfect tense is used in describing an event that began in the past and continues into the present, or one that happened in the past and continues to affect the present. Present perfect tense = "have" or "has" + past participle. When "since" means "from the time of" or "from the time when," the present perfect tense, or the past perfect tense, is strongly preferred. The present perfect tense may be used in sentences that include a preposition such as "in," "within," "for," "during," or "over" immediately followed by the phrase "the past [x amount of time]." 5.2.8 Past Perfect Tense The past perfect tense = "had" + the past participle of a verb and is used in describing a past action that occurred before another past action. The past perfect tense can be used to indicate that an event occurred before a specified date or time period in the past. Not every sentence about something occurring by the time in the past has to use the past perfect. If a sentence about something occurring by a time in the past is not about an action or event completed by a time in the past, it can use another tense. 5.2.9 The Past Present Tense is Unnecessary When The Time Sequence is Clear Without It If a sentence makes clear the time sequence of past events without the use of the past perfect tense, the use of the past perfect tense is not necessary. 5.2.12 The Continuous Tenses The purpose of the continuous tenses is to bring the reader's attention to the temporarily ongoing nature of an action. The present continuous tense is used to describe events that are temporarily ongoing in the present. This tense is formed by joining a present tense form of the verb "to be" with the present participle (-ing form) of the base verb. The past continuous tense is used to describe an action or event that WAS ongoing but has ended. Can also be used to describe an event that was occurring in the background when a more notable event occurred. The future continuous tense is used to describe an action or event that will be ongoing, but has not yet begun. 5.3.3. Subjunctive Mood "If" clauses that describe hypothetical situations must use the subjunctive mood. The past subjunctive form of the verb "to be" is "were," and "were" is often used in sentences about hypothetical situations. (i.e. "I wish that I were done with my GMAT preparation" Another form of the subjunctive that can appear in a Sentence Correction question is formed via the combination of "were" and an infinitive. (i.e. "Bankruptcy could be avoided if the city were to manage its finances better.") Although, not every clause that uses "if," "as if," or "as though" demands the use of the subjunctive mood, i.e. examples about REAL, not hypothetical, situations 5.3.3. Subjunctive Mood ("to be") The subjunctive form of the verb "to be" used in command sentences is always "be." Other verbs used in command sentences will be expressed in their unconjugated form. (i.e. "The general requires that you be at your command post from midnight to 8 a.m.") Verbs that are often followed by the command subjunctive: Advise Ask Command Decree Demand Desire Determine Dictate Insist Mandate Order Pray Prefer Propose Recommend Request Require Stipulate Suggest Urge 6.4.2 Deciding Between Answer Choices That Use The Active Voice or Passive Voice When we report on findings or scientific research, we typically want to put he person or people doing the research in the background and bring the findings to the forefront. The passive voice helps us to accomplish this goal. We often place the emphasis on the thing receiving the action, rather than the doer, when the action is the result of an event or force of nature. Sometimes the doer of an action is unidentified in a sentence, because the doer is either not important or not known. In such situations, the passive voice is often used. The passive voice is often used in sentences about the ingredients or contents of something, which use phrases such as "made up of," "made of," "composed of," and "filled with," preceded by a form of the verb "to be." We use the passive voice in these cases to keep the emphasis on the whole rather than on its parts. 2.9 The Compound Sentence A compound sentence is composed of at least two independent clauses. The coordinating conjunctions (FANBOYS) = For, And, Nor, But, Or, Yet, So. Compound sentence = [independent clause] + [,] + [coordinating conjunction] + [independent clause] + [.]. The comma is NOT optional. Linking two independent clauses with no intermediary word or punctuation is always incorrect, as is linking two independent clauses with only a comma (known as a "comma splice). Linking two independent clauses with only a coordinating conjunction is always incorrect. 2.10 A Semicolon Can Be Used to Connect Two Independent Clauses When a semicolon is used as a substitute for a comma and a coordinating conjunction, an independent clause must be found on each side of the semicolon. 2.11 Correct Use of a Colon in a Sentence Whenever we have a colon, what precedes the colon must be able to stand on its own as a complete sentence. A colon must be preceded by an independent clause. It may be followed by and independent clause, but it need not be. The colon can also be followed by an example or series of examples (ex. "My morning routine included some exercises: pushups and sit ups.") 2.12 Complex Sentences When the subordinate clause precedes an independent clause, the subordinate clause must be followed by a comma. When a subordinate clause comes after an independent clause, the comma between the two clauses is optional. 2.22 Using Semicolons to Clarify Lists Semicolons can be used to separate items in a list when using commas would make the list confusing. In order for the list to be properly constructed, the "and" that precedes the last element should be preceded by a semicolon. ex. At the dinner will be Fidel Castro, the Prime Minister of Cuba; John F. Kennedy, the President of the United States; and Nikita Khrushchev, Premier of Russia. 7.3 Parallelism in Lists Whatever is connected to or introduces a list is understood to carry over to each of the elements in a list. Thus, each of the elements in the list must work logically with the structure that introduces the list. ex. [Incorrect] In the trees of the Central American rainforest live frogs that have light green bodies, big red eyes, and their feet are bright orange. [Correct] In the trees of the Central American rainforest live frogs that have light green bodies, big red eyes, and bright orange feet. 7.5 Repeating Elements Essential to What Introduces A List Cannot be Hapharzardly Placed in a List A repeating element that is essential to what introduces a list must either appear once, before the first item in the list, OR appear in every one of the items in the list. Such a repeating element cannot appear haphazardly in the list. ex. [Incorrect] The groom was congratulated by his friends, his parents, and guests he was meeting for the first time. [Correct] The groom was congratulated by his friends, his parents, and by guests he was meeting for the first time. 7.6 Sometimes a Word in a List Must be Repeated for Clarity Sometimes, in order for a sentence including a list to clearly convey a logical meaning, it's necessary to repeat a preposition by placing the preposition before every item in the list. Sometimes, in order for a sentence including a list to clearly convey a logical meaning, it's necessary to repeat the word "that" by placing "that" before every item in the list. 7.9 Parallel Structures Involving Correlating Conjunctions The most important correlative conjunctions to learn are "both...and" "not only...but also" "not only...but...as well" "not...but" "either...or" "neither...nor" 7.11 The Placement of Words Between "But" And "Also" Can Result in an Illogical Sentence When "not only...but also" is used, the placement of words between "but" and "also" can result in an illogical sentence. ex. [Incorrect] When not only fried but high also in sodium, food can be rather detrimental to one's health. [Correct] When not only fried but also high in sodium, food can be rather detrimental to one's health. 8.5 Verbs in Comparisons Logical comparisons can be created via the substitution of "does" or "do" for repeated present tense action verbs or verb phrases and "did" for repeated past tense action verbs or verb phrases. 8.10 "Like" Versus "Such As" and "Including" The word "like" is strictly a comparison word and cannot be used to introduce examples. To introduce examples, we can use "such as." We can also use "including" to introduce examples. "Like" is used to compare two nouns that are similar, yet not the same. In other words, "like" is used in discussing a noun or nouns similar to another noun (the reference noun), but the reference noun is not the set to which the other noun or nouns belong. In contrast, "such as" is used to introduce a set of examples that are in the set mentioned before the list of examples. 8.11 "Like" Versus "As" The word "like" can be used only in comparisons of nouns and pronouns. It cannot be used to connect verbs or clauses. In a comparison involving two clauses, "as" must be used. 8.12 Comparisons that Involve Quantity Words and Countable or Uncountable Nouns ("Fewer" vs. "Less") "Fewer" modifies a countable noun, whereas "less" modifies an uncountable noun. 8.12 Comparisons that Involve Quantity Words and Countable or Uncountable Nouns ("Much" vs. "Many") Use "much" with uncountable nouns and "many" with countable nouns. 8.13 "Number" versus "Amount" We use "number" with countable nouns, and we use "amount" with uncountable nouns. 8.14 Correctly Using Quantity Words When Discussing Quantities of Time, Money, or Weight Nouns that name quantities of time, money, or weight are treated as uncountable nouns.