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The Directions
The Directions
You know the drill. Learn the directions now so you don’t have to waste time reading them when you take the actual SAT.
Directions: The following sentences test correctness and effectiveness of expression. In choosing answers, follow the requirements of standard written English; that is, pay attention to grammar, choice of words, sentence construction, and punctuation.
      In each of the following sentences, part of the sentence or the entire sentence is underlined. Beneath each sentence you will find five ways of phrasing the underlined part. Choice A repeats the original; the other four are different.
      Choose the answer that best expresses the meaning of the original sentence. If you think the original is better than any of the alternatives, choose it; otherwise choose one of the others. Your choice should produce the most effective sentence—clear and precise, without awkwardness or ambiguity.
Notice that once again, the SAT wants you to follow the rules of standard written English when you’re answering these questions. The rules of standard spoken English aren’t accepted here, so a lot of English that’s passable in speech will be considered incorrect on Improving Sentences questions.
Also notice that because answer choice A is always the same as the original sentence, you never need to waste time reading answer choice A. So, unless you think the sentence contains no error, skip directly to B.
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