The GMAT will test your ability to improve incorrect sentences.
The Graduate Management Admission Test is used for entry into many Master of Business Administration programs. In addition to reading comprehension questions, issue and argument essays, critical reading questions and problem-solving exercises, the GMAT includes a verbal section containing sentence correction tasks. These exercises measure your ability to recognize and correct improper uses of grammar and stylistic errors.
Test Structure
For each sentence correction task, you will be presented with a sentence that has an underlined portion.This section may contain elements (often two or more) that need to be changed, or it may be correct. Choices of substitutions for the underlined words follow the sentence. Choice A is always identical to the underlined portion of the sentence; if the sentence appears to be correct as it stands, choose answer A. If the underlined portion contains errors, choose an answer that corrects all of those errors without introducing new ones. Since the GMAT is timed, work as quickly as possible.
Parallel Construction
When you analyze a sentence, look out for parallel construction errors. Parallel construction uses the same pattern of words to indicate that two or more ideas are equally important. To prepare, you might want to read Martin Luther King Jr.'s famous "I Have a Dream" speech, which contains many examples of parallel construction. When King says, "We will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together," he is using parallel construction by employing the infinitive for all of his verbs.
Idioms
Compare the use of prepositions such as "to," "at," "in," "with" or "for" in the underlined portion and the answer choices. If they differ, it's possible that an idiomatic expression is being used. Brush up on the correct use of idiomatic expressions like "agree on" and "in the likelihood that" by studying a list of idiomatic expressions.
Word Usage
Some words in the English language have a strong similarity to other words and are easily confused. The GMAT may test your knowledge of when to use one word over another similar, but incorrect, word. One example is the use of the words "lay" or "lie." A child may lie to a teacher, or he may be lying in bed. A hen lays eggs, while the girl laid the plates on the dinner table. Other words that are easily confused are "affect" and "effect," "healthy" and "healthful," and "uninterested" and "disinterested."
Pronouns
Pronouns like "he," "she," and "they" replace nouns and must agree in number and person. Words like "everybody" and "everyone" are singular, so a sentence should read, "Everybody should do his best," not "Everybody should do their best." If a sentence starts out in the first person by using "I," it should not switch to the second person ("you") or the third person ("she").
Using pronouns in an ambiguous manner can lead to unintended humor. Consider the sentence, "Children can be harmed by prescription drugs, so it is best to keep them locked away." The noun described by the pronoun "they" is not clear. It is therefore not apparent whom or what should be locked away--the drugs or the children.
Tags: underlined portion, choose answer, easily confused, Everybody should, idiomatic expressions