What the exam asks
These questions appear in the Standard English Conventions block of every Reading and Writing module, mixed in with Boundaries and agreement questions and ordered from easiest to hardest. The stem never changes:
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
The four choices tell you which rule is being tested before you read a word of the passage:
| What the choices look like | Rule being tested |
|---|---|
| Four versions of a main clause after an introductory phrase and a comma | Subject–modifier placement |
| One noun in four forms (artist, artists, artist’s, artists’), or two words (artists’ studios, artist’s studio’s) | Plural and possessive nouns |
| its / it’s, their / they’re, whose / who’s | Possessive pronouns vs. contractions |
Core ideas
1. The noun after the modifier must be the one it describes
An introductory modifier describes the first noun after its comma. Common openers:
- participial phrases: Having studied…, Trained as…, Built in 1890,…
- appositives: A chemist by training,…
- comparisons: Like…, Unlike…
- infinitives: To test the idea,…
- adjective phrases: Largely unknown during her lifetime,…
The test: ask who or what the modifier describes. The answer must come immediately after the comma.
| Modifier | Dangling ✗ | Correct ✓ |
|---|---|---|
| Trained as an engineer, |