some writing questions

Test Preparation SAT Preparation
1

<p>I have a question about verb tense. When a sentence has a couple different tenses, how do you decide which one is right? </p>

<li>Traffic was heavy, so by the time Brianne finally arrived at the theater, we waited for her for an hour, missing the entire first act of the play. </li>
</ol>

<p>Here should “waited” be changed to “had waited” or “were waiting”?</p>

<p>but here, no error btw, would it be wrong to say “who were responsible for them”</p>

<li><p>As children mature, they develop an independence that their parents, who have been responsible for them since they were born, often find difficult to accept. </p></li>
<li><p>(A)Slanting through the trees, yesterday’s late afternoon sun (B)cast<a href=“C”>/U</a>more deeper shadows (D) on the bedroom wall. </p></li>
</ol>

<p>Answer is C. But why is “cast” here in present tense because isn’t it “yesterday’s late afternoon sun”.</p>

<li>Annual visitors (A)to New York City’s Central Park (B)number<a href=“C”>/U</a>almost ten times (D) that of Mount Rushmore. </li>
</ol>

<p>I thought the answer was A but it turned out to be D. Should it be “times those of Mount Rushmore”?</p>

<li>To insist that a poem means whatever (A)one<a href=“B”>/U</a>wants it to mean is often (C)ignoring the intention and (D)even the words of the poet. </li>
</ol>

<p>I don’t get why C is wrong. What should it be changed to?</p>

<li>Mediators were standing by, prepared (A)to intervene in the labor dispute (B)even though both sides (C)had refused earlier offers (D)for assistance. </li>
</ol>

<p>should this be “offers of assistance”</p>

2

<ol>
<li><p>Keep the tenses the same in the second clause - had been waiting</p></li>
<li><p>As children mature, they develop an independence that their parents, who have been responsible for them since they were born, often find difficult to accept. NE - yes, it would be incorrect to say what you've stated. You need the present perfect to make logical sense of the sentence. </p></li>
<li><p>Slanting through the trees, yesterday's late afternoon sun cast more deeper shadows on the bedroom wall. </p></li>
</ol>

<p>C. More deeper=does not make sense just like most funnest does not. Can't have a modifier with a comparative just like you can't have a modifier and then a superlative. :] </p>

<ol>
<li>Annual visitors to New York City's Central Park number almost ten times that of Mount Rushmore. </li>
</ol>

<p>D. Reason: Illogical comparison. You're comparing annual visitors to Mount Rushmore that way. </p>

<ol>
<li>To insist that a poem means whatever one wants it to mean is often ignoring the intention and even the words of the poet. </li>
</ol>

<p>C. Reason: Awkward wording and illogical flow with the article "and". Do not connect the two clauses if the context isn't right. </p>

<ol>
<li>Mediators were standing by, prepared to intervene in the labor dispute even though both sides had refused earlier offers for assistance.</li>
</ol>

<p>D. Reason: Idiomatic phrasing. Yes, it should be "offers of assistance". </p>

<p>Hope I helped - correct if I'm wrong! :] x</p>