SAT2015年10月每日一题写作题整理

Writing > Improving Sentences

Part or all of the following sentence is underlined; beneath the sentence are five ways of phrasing the underlined material. Select the option that produces the best sentence. If you think the original phrasing produces a better sentence than any of the alternatives, select choice A.

1. Rote learning, the process of memorizing by repetition, is how many young children learn the alphabet or the multiplication tables.

(A) is how

(B) is used for when

(C) this is how

(D) the way

(E) which is used when

答案：A

解析：

Choice (A) is correct. It avoids the errors of the other options by using a main verb, "is," to link the subject of the sentence, "Rote learning," to a description of the ways in which this type of learning is used.

2. Japanese literature is noted for distinctive forms of drama as well as their poetry. No error

(A) is noted for

(B) distinctive

(C) as well as

(D) their poetry

(E) No error

答案：D

解析：

The error in this sentence occurs at (D), where there is improper pronoun use. There is nothing in the sentence to which the plural possessive pronoun "their" can logically refer. The pronoun "their" should be deleted from the sentence so that the sentence clearly expresses both things that Japanese literature is noted for ("distinctive forms of drama" as well as "poetry").

3. A renowned French American artist who worked in New York until her death at age 98, Louise Bourgeois's sculptures often resembled giant spiders, earning her the nickname "the Spiderwoman."

(A) Louise Bourgeois's sculptures often resembled giant spiders

(B) Louise Bourgeois created sculptures that often resembled giant spiders

(C) Louise Bourgeois's sculptures had often resembled giant spiders

(D) the sculptures of Louise Bourgeois, they often resembled giant spiders

(E) Louise Bourgeois created sculptures they often resembled giant spiders

答案：B

解析：

Choice (B) is correct. It avoids the modification error of the original by providing the proper noun "Louise Bourgeois" to serve as the subject of the sentence. In the original sentence, the phrase "A renowned French American artist who worked in New York until her death at age 98" illogically modified Bourgeois's sculptures instead of Bourgeois herself.

4. The largest European type of newt grows to about seven inches, while the largest American type, the California newt, it grows to about six inches. No error

(A) largest

(B) type of

(C) but

(D) while

(E) No error

答案：D

解析：

The error in this sentence occurs at (D), where there is an unnecessary pronoun. The pronoun "it" should be deleted so that the comparison is clear: one type of newt "grows to about seven inches," and the other "grows to about six inches."

5. Its fossil record virtually unchanged over 100 million years, the Ginkgo tree is one of the oldest living species of tree.

(A) Its fossil record

(B) Its fossil record was

(C) Its fossil record, which is

(D) Its fossil record exists

(E) Its fossil record, because

答案：A

解析：