PSAT Writing and Language Question 374: Answer and Explanation

Question: 374

• A. NO CHANGE
• B. gathering: on
• C. gathering on
• D. gathering, on

Correct Answer: C

Explanation:

C

Punctuation is changing in the answer choices, so this question is testing STOP, HALF-STOP, and GO punctuation. Use the Vertical Line Test and identify the ideas as complete or incomplete. Draw the vertical line between the words gathering and on. The first part of the sentence, The crowd was gathering, is a complete idea. The second part, on September 3, 1922, as Bessie Coleman looked up to see a clear sky, ideal conditions for her air show, is an incomplete idea. To connect a complete idea to an incomplete idea, HALF-STOP or GO punctuation is needed. All the answer choices are either HALF-STOP or GO punctuation, so look for another way to eliminate choices. Although a comma is GO punctuation, there is no reason to use a comma after gathering. Eliminate (A) and (D). A colon implies that the following information is either a list or an explanation of a prior idea. Since neither happens in this sentence, there is no reason to use a colon after gathering. Eliminate (B). The correct answer is (C).