The ACT English section is not a grammar test — it is an editing test. You are given 5 passages with underlined or highlighted portions. For each underlined portion, you choose the best version from 4 choices. Choice A (or F, for even-numbered questions) is always "NO CHANGE" — meaning the original is already correct.
A passage reads like a normal essay. Certain words, phrases, or sentences are underlined and numbered. The corresponding question gives you 4 options:
| Choice | What It Means |
|---|---|
| A / F — NO CHANGE | The underlined portion is already correct as written |
| B / G | A revision — may fix an error or may introduce one |
| C / H | Another revision |
| D / J | Another revision (sometimes "DELETE the underlined portion") |
Critical insight: You are never asked "What type of error is this?" or "Name the grammatical concept." You simply pick the version that sounds best in context. This is editing judgment, not metalinguistic knowledge.
About 25% of the time, the original text is already correct. Students who assume every question has an error will change correct sentences and lose points. Always read the original first and ask: "Is anything actually wrong here?"
For every underlined portion, ask these questions in order:
Never evaluate the underlined portion in isolation. The error often depends on context:
The team of researchers, who had been working for months, were finally ready to publish.
The underlined word "were" looks fine on its own. But the subject is "team" (singular), not "researchers." The correct verb is "was." You need the full sentence to catch this.