Digital SAT Skills:

Reading and Writing

Modifiers
Subject-modifier agreement/placement
Modifier: a word or phrase used to describe a noun
Subject: the noun being described
Subject-modifier placement refers to a convention of
Standard English that requires a modifier and its
subject to describe the same thing.
Subject-modifier agreement/placement
Modifiers can be:
- Adjective/ Adjective phrases:
=> Our generally aloof cat surprised us by accepting the
new kitten.
=> A building taller than others is prone to power outages.
Subject + verb + object, participle phrase.
The answer was blurted out by Jack, brimming with confidence.
=> The answer was blurted out by jack, who was brimming with
confidence.

=> The answer was blurted out by jack, which surprised everyone.
=> The answer was blurted out by jack, surprising everyone.

That Jack knows the answer was amazing.

Subject-modifier agreement/placement
Modifiers can be:
- Relative clauses (SVO):
=> Kiara, (who is) a student who had recently transferred,
asked about the school’s testing schedule.
A student who had recently transferred, the teacher gave
Kiara the school’s testing schedule. => WRONG
=> The service that catered our parties just increased their
prices.
Subject-modifier agreement/placement
Modifiers can be:
- Prepositional phrases:
=> The woman with blue hair bought four romanescos.
=> All the fish in the lake play a role in the ecosystem.
Subject-modifier agreement/placement
Typically, modifiers are placed right beside the noun they’re
modifying. Usually, this means right before or after the noun:
- My calico cat is always by my side.
- The girls ordered a pizza without sauce.
Subject-modifier agreement/placement
One type of misplaced modifier is known as a dangling
modifier. A dangling modifier is a modifier that doesn’t
modify any specific word in the sentence. Here are a few
examples:
- After reading the book, the movie was great.
=> After reading the book, I thought the movie was great.
What is a relative clause?

● A relative clause is one kind of dependent clause. It has a subject and

verb, but can’t stand alone as a sentence. It is sometimes called an
“adjective clause” because it functions like an adjective—it gives more
information about a noun.

● A relative clause always begins with a “relative pronoun,” which

substitutes for a noun, a noun phrase, or a pronoun when sentences are
combined.
 What is a relative clause?
Pronoun Stands For Uses

who people subject nouns/pronouns (he, she, we, they)

whom people object nouns/pronouns (him, her, us, them)

whose people or things possessive nouns/pronouns (his, hers, ours, theirs)

that people or things can be used for either subject or object

which things can be used for either subject or object

What is a relative clause?
Relative pronoun as subject:

● I like the person. The person was nice to me.

=> I like the person who/that was nice to me.

● I hate the dog. The dog bit me.

=> I hate the dog which/that bit me.

● I am moving to Louisville, KY. It is home to the Muhammad Ali Museum.

=> I am moving to Louisville, KY, which is home to the Muhammad Ali Museum.
What is a relative clause?

Relative pronoun as object:

● I like the bike. My father gave me the bike.

=> I like the bike which/that my father gave me.

● I spent hours talking with a person last night. I hope to hear from her.
=> I hope to hear from the person with whom I spent hours talking last
night.
=> I hope to hear from the person whom I spent hours talking with last
night.
 What is a relative clause?

Whose: to talk about possession => you can use "of which", “of whom”
'Whose' is always the subject of the relative clause and can't be left
out. It replaces a possessive. It can be used for people and things.
● The dog is over there. The dog's owner lives next door.
→ The dog whose owner lives next door is over there.
→ The dog the owner of which lives next door is over there.
● The little girl is sad. The little girl's doll was lost.
→ The little girl whose doll was lost is sad.
→ The little girl the doll of whom was lost is sad.
 What is a relative clause?

Where: to talk about a place.

We can also use preposition + which for similar meaning.
● Ho Chi Minh city is the biggest city in Vietnam. I grew up in Ho Chi
Minh city. (I grew up where?)
=> Ho Chi Minh city, where I grew up, is the biggest city in VN.
=> Ho Chi Minh city, in which I grew up, is the biggest city in VN.
● Ho Chi Minh city is the biggest city in VN. HCMC is very crowded.
(What is very crowded?)
=> HCMC, which is very crowded, is the biggest city in VN.
 What is a relative clause?

When: talk about time

Can also use preposition + which.
● I will start working at 8pm tomorrow. My husband returns home at 8pm
tomorrow. (My husband returns home when?)
=> I will start working at 8pm tomorrow, when my husband returns home.
=> I will start working at 8pm tomorrow, at which my husband returns home.
If you want to write a complex sentence with a subordinating clause, the
meaning would be a bit different:
● I will start working at 8pm tomorrow when my husband returns home.
 Essential vs Non-Essential Relative Clause

A defining or essential relative clause tells which noun we are talking

about:
• I like the woman who lives next door.
(If I don't say 'who lives next door', then we don't know which woman I
mean).

Use “that” or “which” for non-human nouns; use “that” or “who” for
human nouns. Do not use commas.
 Essential vs Non-Essential Relative Clause

A non-defining or non-essential relative clause gives us extra

information about something. We don't need this information to
understand the sentence.
• I live in London, which has some fantastic parks.
• London, which is the capital of England, is very cold.
(Everybody knows where London is, so 'which has some fantastic parks'
is extra information).
“That” cannot be used as a relative pronoun in a non-restrictive relative
clause. Commas are always used at the beginning and end of this type
of relative clause.
Essential vs Non-Essential Relative Clause
 Essential vs Non-Essential Relative Clause

The architect is working on his design.

=> The architect John Smith is working on his design.

=> The best architect in the city, John Smith, …

 Prepositions and relative clauses

If the verb in the relative clause needs a preposition, we put it at the end of
the clause (less formal) or in front of which or whom (more formal):
• listen to: The music is good. Julie listens to the music.
→ The music (which / that) Julie listens to is good.
→ The music to which Julie listen is good.
• work with: My brother met a woman. I used to work with the woman.
→ My brother met a woman (whom / that) I used to work with.
→ My brother met a woman with whom I used to work.
 Reducing relative clause
You can remove the relative pronoun in some cases.
Restrictive relative clauses can be reduced in two ways.
● Subject pronouns can be deleted if –ing (active voice) or -ed (passive
voice) is added to the verb.
• I like the paintings that hang in the SASB North lobby.
• => I like the paintings hanging in the SASB North lobby.
• I like the gift that was given to me.
• => I like the gift given to me.
● Object pronouns can be deleted.
• I like the bike that my father gave me.
• => I like the bike my father gave me.
 Reducing relative clause
You can remove the relative pronoun in some cases.
Non-restrictive relative clauses can be reduced in one way.
Subject pronouns with “be” verbs can be deleted in non-restrictive clauses.
● I am moving to Louisville, KY, which is home to the Muhammad Ali
Museum.
● => I am moving to Louisville, KY, home to the Muhammad Ali Museum.
● My mother, who is an excellent cook, is thinking of opening a restaurant.
● => My mother, an excellent cook, is thinking of opening a restaurant.
● My friend, who is having a party, is very happy.
● => My friend, having a party, is very happy.
 Reducing relative clause
● My friend who is having a party is very happy.
● My friend, having a party, is very happy.
● The painting which was hung on the wall was very beautiful.
● The painting hung on the wall was very beautiful.
● The man who hung the painting on the wall is my dad.
● The man hanging the paining on the wall is my dad.
 Subject-verb agreement in relative clauses

The relative pronoun is substituting for a noun, which could be singular or

plural before the substitution. The verb in the relative clause must agree
with the original noun.
● People are lucky. People win the lottery.
● => People who win the lottery are lucky. (plural verb)
● A person is lucky. She wins the lottery every year.
● => A person who wins the lottery every year is lucky. (singular verb)
 Subject-verb agreement in relative clauses

Agreement can be tricky in “one of the…” constructions. The key is to find

which noun the relative pronoun is referring to.
● Homelessness is a problem. The problem needs to be addressed.
● => Homelessness is a problem that needs to be addressed. (singular
problem)
● Many problems need to be addressed. Homelessness is one of the
problems.
● => Homelessness is one of the problems that need to be addressed.
(plural problems)
Modifier Questions in the SAT
Subject-modifier agreement

You may want to look for subject-modifier placement

errors if
● the blank is longer than a few words
● the choices rearrange words or phrases into different
orders
Modifier Questions in the SAT
Subject-modifier agreement
The human body uses carbohydrates, which is consumed in the
form of sugar and starches, as it primary source of energy.
Incorrect: Consumed in the form of sugars and starches, the
human body uses carbohydrates as its primary source of energy.
Correct: Consumed in the form of sugars and starches,
carbohydrates serve as the primary source of energy for the
human body.
Modifier Questions in the SAT
Subject-modifier agreement
TIPs: Beware possessive nouns
When a noun phrase starts with a possessive noun, it can make modifier placement
extra confusing. Remember that possessive nouns really function as adjectives: the
noun that follows the possessive is the actual focus of the noun phrase. That's the
noun the modifier needs to describe.

Incorrect: Exhausted from running home in the rain, Erin's jacket was soaking wet.

Correct: Exhausted from running home in the rain, Erin pulled off her soaking wet
jacket.
Practice!
Quiz: https://forms.gle/ef9A2qeMgNzqG7EL8