Overview of the ACT English Section
The ACT English section gives you 75 multiple-choice questions to answer in 45 minutes, spread across 5 passages with different rhetorical situations. The ACT breaks these questions into 3 categories:
- Production of Writing (29–32%): These questions test your understanding of the purpose and focus of a piece of writing.
- Knowledge of Language (15–17%): These questions ask you to demonstrate effective language use through concise word choices and consistent tone.
- Conventions of Standard English (52–55%): These questions test your ability to apply standard English grammar, usage, and mechanics to revise text.
Conventions of Standard English questions make up over half of the English section, so they're worth serious attention. That's the focus of this guide.
Conventions of Standard English
This category breaks down into three question types: Sentence Structure and Formation, Usage, and Punctuation. For deeper dives into each, check out the corresponding study guides on Fiveable:
Sentence Structure and Formation
For these questions, you're acting as an editor. You'll read a short section of text and decide what edits, if any, are needed to make the passage clear and grammatically correct. The focus is on sentence structure, punctuation, and proper word use.
Here's a walkthrough of several example question types you might encounter.
Image Courtesy of ACT.org
In this question, you need to decide how to properly punctuate the underlined portion. The answer choices all revolve around comma placement.
Commas separate items in a list and add structure to complex sentences. They signal a pause. With that in mind, here's how to work through this:
- The comma after "students" interrupts the natural flow of the sentence, so rule out A and B (both keep that comma).
- The comma after "Silver" also breaks the sentence without adding clarity, so it's unnecessary.
- That leaves C as the best option, since it removes the unnecessary commas and lets the sentence read smoothly.
Image Courtesy of ACT.org
Read through the sentence a few times, plugging in each answer choice for the underlined portion.
The writer is trying to explain that tiny bar codes were used to track bees' activities. But as written, the sentence makes it sound like the bees themselves were doing the tracking. A change is probably needed.
- F (no change) keeps the confusing phrasing. Rule it out.
- G still puts the focus on the bees as the ones tracking, so rule it out too.
- H does convey that the bar codes are doing the tracking, but the sentence reads awkwardly.
- J makes the purpose of the bar codes clear and reads smoothly. J is the best answer.
When multiple choices fix the core problem, pick the one that flows most naturally.
Image Courtesy of ACT.org
This question is detail-focused. You need to determine what words, if any, should follow the comma after "basket." The question isn't asking whether the comma belongs there; it's asking you to decide if the sentence needs to change given that comma.
Look at the two phrases on either side of the comma: the winning piece was a basket and it was eighteen inches tall with a curved, vaselike silhouette. Both are independent clauses, meaning each could stand alone as a complete sentence. When two independent clauses are joined only by a comma, that's a comma splice, which is grammatically incorrect.
- G and H both still form a complete second clause, so the comma splice remains. Rule them out.
- J (deleting the underlined portion) makes the second clause dependent, which fixes the comma splice. J is correct.
Image Courtesy of ACT.org
Em-dash pairs work like parentheses: they insert an aside or extra idea into a sentence. To check whether they're used correctly, verify two things:
- The interjection is completely contained within the em-dashes.
- The surrounding sentence still makes sense if you remove the portion between the em-dashes.
In this case, both checks pass. The sentence reads fine with and without the interjected phrase.
Don't be afraid to choose "NO CHANGE." A solid number of questions on the ACT won't require any fix, and overthinking a correct sentence can cost you time. If you're unsure, read the sentence with each alternative plugged in. If none is clearly better, the original is probably fine.
English Section Tips and Tricks
- Read around the underline. Many questions refer to an underlined portion of text. Always read a sentence or two before and after it so you understand the context.
- Read ALL the answer options. Sometimes multiple answers are technically correct, but the ACT wants the best option. Don't stop at the first choice that looks right.
- Watch for subtle differences between answers. One answer may fix one error but introduce another. Check each choice for both correctness and readability within the passage.
- Think like an editor. You're revising an existing piece of writing to make it clearer and more precise. Ask yourself which option flows most smoothly and communicates the meaning most effectively.
- Answer everything. Even if you're not 100% sure, make your best informed guess. There's no penalty for wrong answers on the ACT.
With practice, these strategies become second nature. The more passages you edit, the faster you'll spot errors and move through the section with confidence.
Don't forget to check out the other ACT English study guides for a closer look at each question type:
Fiveable's ACT English Section Overview: What's On It?
ACT English: Conventions of Standard English: Sentence Structure and Formation