[Video] Q34: No change or has been or are or was

Explanation for Question 34 From the Writing Section on the Official Sat Practice Test 4

Now looking at number 34, we can glance at the answer choices here and 2 see what's happening. We have really the same verb to be, 3 um, to be being the general form of the verb, 4 but we happen in different tenses and we have some answers, 5 singular, some answers, plural, right? So step one for this is always to decide 6 what verb tense do I want past present or future. 7 And so we need to look throughout this entire sentence to make that decision. 8 So it says there were, or maybe was, 9 or are a number of steps you can take to determine whether a video 10 game design design is the right field and to prepare yourself 11 for such a career. And so we see a couple other verbs come up 12 with this sentence can, is prepare. 13 And we'll notice that all of these are in the present tense, 14 which means that this verb here also needs to be in the present tense, 15 right. 16 But a is past B is passed and D is also passed. 17 So right away we can see, okay, our best answer must then be C 18 because R is the only verb in the present tense. 19 But we can verify this by looking at subject verb agreement basically 20 is the subject plural or singular. And as our verb corresponding to that, 21 right? So we're saying that they're blank, a number of steps, 22 steps, or we're saying there is a plural thing, 23 right? Steps is plural, which means we want the plural version of the verb. 24 And in this case, R is the plural version is 25 what have been the singular version. So since we have arts plural, 26 so it has subject verb agreement, it's in the right tense. 27 And that's why C is going to be our best answer.