PSAT Writing and Language Question 318: Answer and Explanation

Question: 318

• A. NO CHANGE
• B. knocked, on your door,
• C. knocked on your door,
• D. knocked, on your door

Correct Answer: C

Explanation:

Commas are changing in the answer choices, so this question is testing the four ways to use a comma. Check to see whether any of the four ways can be cited as a reason to use commas: comma + FANBOYS, GO punctuation, list, or unnecessary information. There is no list in the question, and all of the information in the sentence is necessary (eliminating any information would change the meaning of the sentence), so check the other two reasons. There is no comma + FANBOYS, but there may be a reason to use GO punctuation. Consider the ideas before and after each comma to see how they are related and whether a comma is needed to show a shift in ideas. Commas change after knocked, but the phrase knocked on your door is a continuous thought, so there is no need to interrupt it with a comma. Eliminate (B) and (D). Commas also change after door. The idea before the comma gives a hypothetical situation, someone knocked on your door, and the idea after the comma explains what might happen if someone knocked on your door. These two ideas are two separate thoughts, not one continuous thought, so a comma should be used to separate them. Eliminate (A). The correct answer is (C).