ACT, College admissions

English

English is the first section: 50 questions in 35 minutes, which is roughly 42 seconds per question and the fastest pace on the test. Questions attach to passages with underlined portions that you either leave alone or replace, mixed with questions that ask which choice best accomplishes a stated purpose. ACT reports performance in three categories: Production of Writing, Knowledge of Language, and Conventions of Standard English.

Position: 1 of 5 sections
Questions: 50 questions
Time: 35 minutes
Topics covered: 3 topics in this guide

What is covered

Topics inside this section.

These topics describe the scope students most often review for this part of ACT. Treat them as a study checklist rather than an exhaustive list of what a single exam form can sample.

Production of Writing: Topic development and organization, unity, and cohesion: whether a sentence belongs at all, where it should go, and which opening, transition, or conclusion actually serves the passage's stated purpose.
Knowledge of Language: Precision and concision in word choice plus consistency of style and tone, including the redundancy questions where two grammatically correct options say the same thing at different lengths.
Conventions of Standard English: Sentence structure and formation, punctuation, and usage: run-ons and fragments, modifier placement, parallelism, verb tense and agreement, pronoun clarity, commas, apostrophes, semicolons, and dashes.

Study tips

How to practice English.

Section-specific guidance that follows from how this material is usually tested.

Budget roughly 42 seconds per question and practice at that pace; English moves faster than any other section, even though the enhanced format allows slightly more time per question than the legacy test did.
When two choices are both grammatically correct and convey the same information, the more concise one is usually the credited answer.
Read the question stem before the answer choices whenever one is present; those items test rhetorical purpose, not grammar, and the shortest option is often wrong.
Drill comma use and sentence boundaries above all other punctuation rules, and always read the full sentence, including the words after the underlined portion, before choosing.

Where this fits

English is 1 of 5 sections in the ACT guide. Use the full guide to balance it against everything else you have to review.

Back to the ACT guide Official exam information

Sample English questions

Practice questions, not yet expert-reviewed

Original practice questions written to the published framework for this section. No expert has reviewed them, and they are not taken from any official exam. Try each one before you open the answer.

Question 1Foundational
What punctuation mark does Standard English normally require before a coordinating conjunction such as 'but' or 'and' when it joins two independent clauses?
1. AA comma
2. BA semicolon
3. CA colon
4. DA dash
Show answer
Answer: A. A comma
Two independent clauses joined by a coordinating conjunction take a comma before the conjunction: The lab closed early, but the data had already been logged. A semicolon is what joins two independent clauses when no conjunction is present.
Key insight: Comma plus a coordinating conjunction joins two complete sentences; a semicolon joins them without one.
Question 2Foundational
On the ACT English section, when two answer choices are both grammatically correct and convey exactly the same information, which one is credited?
1. AThe most concise choice
2. BThe longest choice
3. CThe choice with the most formal vocabulary
4. DThe choice that adds a transition word
Show answer
Answer: A. The most concise choice
ACT English rewards concision, so when meaning and grammar are identical the shorter wording wins. Longer options usually repeat information the sentence already carries, which is exactly the redundancy the item is testing.
Key insight: If two options say the same thing, the shorter one is the answer.
Question 3Intermediate
In the sentence 'The two ___ decision surprised the board', which form of the noun 'manager' shows that the decision belongs to both managers?
1. Amanager's
2. Bmanagers
3. Cmanagers'
4. Dmanagers's
Show answer
Answer: C. managers'
A plural noun that already ends in s takes an apostrophe after the s, giving managers'. The singular possessive manager's contradicts 'the two', and managers with no apostrophe marks the plural only.
Key insight: Make the noun plural first, then add the apostrophe.
Question 4Intermediate
Which ACT English reporting category covers topic development, organization, unity, and cohesion?
1. AKnowledge of Language
2. BProduction of Writing
3. CConventions of Standard English
4. DIntegration of Knowledge and Ideas
Show answer
Answer: B. Production of Writing
Production of Writing covers whether a sentence belongs, where it should go, and whether it serves the passage's stated purpose. Knowledge of Language covers word choice and style, and Conventions of Standard English covers grammar, punctuation, and sentence formation.
Key insight: Purpose and placement questions are Production of Writing; rule questions are Conventions.
Question 5Advanced
What grammatical error appears in the sentence 'Walking through the museum, the paintings seemed to glow'?
1. AA comma splice
2. BA dangling modifier
3. CA subject-verb agreement error
4. DA pronoun-antecedent error
Show answer
Answer: B. A dangling modifier
The opening phrase has no logical subject in the sentence, so it attaches to the paintings, which cannot walk. A repair names the walker: Walking through the museum, I thought the paintings glowed. A comma splice would require two independent clauses joined by a comma, which this sentence does not contain.
Key insight: An introductory -ing phrase must describe whatever noun follows the comma.

Continue through ACT

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