UPCAT Language Proficiency — Sentence Improvement & Correct UsageFlash Cards

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A period (.) marks the end of a declarative sentence or abbreviates words. Example: 'The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog.' or 'U.P.' An ellipsis (...) shows omission from a quoted passage or indicates a pause/wavering. Example: 'I don't know... that's really hard to do.'

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This is a run-on sentence. Two independent clauses are not properly separated. Correct versions: 'I was too lazy to cook dinner, so I ate whatever was available in the pantry.' or 'I was too lazy to cook dinner. I ate whatever was available in the pantry.'

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A sentence fragment is an incomplete sentence missing either the subject or predicate. Example: 'Got tired when she finished.' (missing subject). Fix by supplying the missing part: 'She got tired when she finished.' or combining with a complete sentence: 'Ella went for a very long walk and got tired when she finished.'

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Parallel structure means elements performing the same function must be in the same form. The error is 'drive' should be 'drove' to match the past tense of 'arranged' and 'packed'. Correct: 'My sister arranged her things, packed her bag, and drove back home.'

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AFFECT is a verb meaning 'to influence or produce change.' Example: 'The rain will affect our picnic plans.' EFFECT is a noun meaning 'result' or as a verb meaning 'to bring about change.' Example: 'The effect of rain was a cancelled picnic' or 'The new manager will effect changes in policy.'

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A semicolon (;) joins two closely related independent clauses that could stand alone as sentences. Example: 'I went to the mall today; I bought a lot of face masks.' A comma (,) marks pauses between parts of a sentence or separates list elements. Example: 'Let's eat, grandma!' or 'I like apples, oranges, and bananas.'

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The modifier 'who hit a homerun' is misplaced - it appears to modify 'coach' instead of 'batter.' Correct: 'The batter who hit a homerun was praised by the coach.' The modifier should be placed next to the word it describes.

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A dangling modifier has no clear word to modify in the sentence. Example: 'With their thesis defended, the trip was decided.' (Who defended the thesis?) Correct: 'With their thesis defended, they finally decided to plan their trip.' The modifier must have someone or something specific to modify.

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FEWER is used for countable items (things you can count). Example: 'There are fewer flowers in this bouquet.' LESS is used for uncountable amounts or quantities. Example: 'We need to start eating less sugar.' Use fewer for numbers, less for amounts.

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BRING indicates movement toward the speaker. TAKE indicates movement away from the speaker. Example: 'Bring me the mail, then take your shoes to your room.' If movement is toward you, use bring. If movement is away from you, use take.

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LIE means to recline (something you do by yourself). Example: 'Why don't you lie down and rest?' LAY means to put down something (you need an object). Example: 'She will lay the baby in the crib.' Remember: you lie down, but you lay something down.

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1. SIMPLE: One independent clause. Example: 'The mother went to the grocery.' 2. COMPOUND: Two or more independent clauses joined by coordinating conjunctions. Example: 'Sarah walked to class, but Kevin ran.' 3. COMPLEX: One independent clause plus one or more dependent clauses. Example: 'Though he was wealthy, he was still unhappy.'

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Subject-verb agreement means singular subjects take singular verbs, plural subjects take plural verbs. 'Joe like pizza' is wrong because 'Joe' (singular) should use 'likes' (singular verb). Correct: 'Joe likes pizza.' The verb must match the number of the subject.

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IMPLY means to suggest something without saying it directly (the speaker/writer implies). Example: 'I didn't mean to imply anything was wrong.' INFER means to draw a conclusion from what someone else suggests (the listener/reader infers). Example: 'It's difficult to infer anything from scanty evidence.' The speaker implies, the listener infers.

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A COLON (:) joins two independent clauses where the second explains or illustrates the first. Example: 'Remember this: wear a mask.' A SEMICOLON (;) joins two closely related independent clauses of equal importance. Example: 'I went to the mall today; I bought face masks.' Colons introduce explanations; semicolons connect related ideas.

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COMPLEMENT means to complete or make perfect together. Example: 'His personality complements hers.' COMPLIMENT means to praise or express approval. Example: 'She complimented his cooking.' Also: complementary (completing each other) vs. complimentary (praising or free of charge).

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A comma splice occurs when two complete sentences are joined only by a comma without a connecting word. Example: 'The project was a success, it was attended by renowned artists.' Fix with: period, semicolon, coordinating conjunction, or subordinating conjunction. Correct: 'The project was a success because it was attended by renowned artists.'

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THAT introduces essential clauses (no commas) - information needed to identify the subject. Example: 'The horse that is on the left belongs to Linda.' WHICH introduces non-essential clauses (with commas) - extra information. Example: 'The horse, which is on the left, belongs to Linda.' That = essential, which = non-essential.

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NAUSEOUS means causing nausea (making others feel sick). Example: 'The smell was nauseous.' NAUSEATED means experiencing nausea (feeling sick yourself). Example: 'I felt nauseated after the ride.' Remember: something nauseous makes you nauseated. You feel nauseated, not nauseous.

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1. Read the entire sentence first, don't just focus on the first underlined part. 2. Check each underlined portion for common errors (subject-verb agreement, verb tense, pronouns, modifiers, parallelism, diction). 3. Confirm why your choice is wrong according to grammar rules - don't just pick what 'sounds weird.' 4. Look for the 16 common error types: adjective/adverb errors, diction, double negatives, idioms, modifiers, parallel structure, pronouns, run-ons, fragments, subject/verb agreement, transitions, verb tense, wordiness, and spelling.