ACT ACT English Practice Test 2025

The subject of the verb is "committee," which is a singular collective noun. Even though "of senior faculty members" follows it, the verb must agree with "committee." The correct singular form is "has reviewed."

Option (a) correctly uses the singular verb "has" to agree with the singular subject "committee."

The original sentence contains a comma splice — two independent clauses joined only by a comma. To fix this, a semicolon can replace the comma, because a semicolon correctly joins two closely related independent clauses.

Option (b) uses a semicolon, which properly separates the two independent clauses while showing they are related.

The second sentence does not give an example of what biologists already understood; instead, it introduces new information that contrasts with or goes beyond the established understanding. "However" signals this contrast effectively.

Option (c) correctly provides a contrasting transition, showing that the new data go beyond prior knowledge.

"Standing alone by itself" is redundant because "alone" and "by itself" express the same idea. The most concise and effective revision eliminates the redundancy while preserving the meaning.

Option (b), "standing alone," removes the unnecessary phrase "by itself" and keeps the sentence concise.

Because the sentence refers to research papers belonging to more than one student ("both"), the plural possessive "students’" is required. The singular possessive "student’s" would indicate only one student.

Option (c) correctly uses the plural possessive form.

The sentence contains a dangling modifier. The participial phrase "Running through the park at dawn" must modify a person who is running, but the subject that follows is "the morning mist," which cannot run. The sentence must be restructured so that the person running is the grammatical subject of the main clause.

Option (a) correctly makes "I" the subject, so the modifier attaches logically.

In this sentence, the word needed is a noun meaning "result" or "influence." "Effect" is the correct noun form; "affect" is typically used as a verb meaning "to influence."

Option (b) correctly uses the noun "effect."

Sentences 1, 2, and 4 all deal with the history and physical scope of the Great Wall. Sentence 3 introduces a separate idea about a common misconception. Logically, the historical narrative (Sentences 1, 2, 4) should flow uninterrupted, and the tangential fact in Sentence 3 works best at the end of the paragraph.

Option (d) places Sentence 3 after Sentence 4, allowing the chronological history to proceed smoothly before the additional fact.

To support the argument that libraries should extend weekend hours, the best evidence would show demand for library services during weekends. A statistic showing that a large percentage of patrons visit on weekends — and that many are turned away when the library closes — directly supports the claim that longer hours are needed.

Option (c) provides concrete evidence of weekend demand, making it the most effective supporting sentence.

A colon is used after an independent clause to introduce a list, an explanation, or an elaboration. Here, the clause before the punctuation mark ("The research team identified three key factors contributing to coral reef decline") is a complete sentence that introduces the list that follows. A colon is the correct choice.

A semicolon is used to join two independent clauses, not to introduce a list. Option (b) correctly uses a colon.