PERT grammar and sentence editing questions give you a sentence, or a short note about what the writer means, and ask which version is correct. They test standard written English: subject-verb agreement, pronouns, verb tense, clause boundaries and punctuation, modifier placement and parallel structure, plus capitalization and spelling. You solve them by finding the one thing the choices disagree about, working out the sentence’s structure at that spot and applying the rule. This guide covers each rule with right and wrong examples.
Updated November 5, 2026
PERT Grammar and Sentence Editing Questions at a glance
Detail
What to know
Subject
Writing, one of the three PERT subjects along with Mathematics and Reading
Questions in the subject
30: 25 scored and 5 field-test items. You won’t be told which 5 are unscored, so treat every question as if it counts
Timing
Untimed. There is no official time limit for Writing
How the test runs
Computer-adaptive: you must answer each question to move on, and you cannot go back to a submitted answer
Answer format
Multiple-choice revision and editing questions. There is no essay. The study-guide samples have four choices, A to D
Scoring
Reported on a 50–150 scale. The Florida college-ready Writing score is 103
In our free bank
60 practice questions of this type, written for this course. They are not real PERT items
PERT Writing has no essay; grammar is tested through multiple-choice questions. The study guide’s Writing samples include questions that ask you to choose the word that best completes a sentence or to pick the sentence that is written correctly, and its advice for Writing is to review word choice, punctuation, capitalization, apostrophes, commas and common sentence-structure errors.
In our practice bank, each editing item starts with a label such as Sentence editing: clauses and either a draft sentence or a short note about what the writer means, for example that two people share a task, that there is only one of something, or that one action came first. The stem then asks which sentence is correct, which revision fixes the punctuation or which version attaches a phrase to the right word. The four choices are complete sentences that differ in one or two places.
That context line matters. Several rules depend on meaning, such as whether a description identifies which thing is meant or only adds information, whether an action happened before another, or who performed an action. The same sentence can be right for one context and wrong for another, so read the note before the choices.
What they test
Editing questions check whether a sentence follows the conventions of standard written English and still says what the writer means. The rules our lessons and practice cover, following the study guide’s Writing outline, are:
Subject-verb agreement, including subjects separated from their verbs, each and one of, either/or, there is/are and who clauses
Pronouns: subject and object case, clear reference, consistent point of view, reflexives and possessives such as its and theirs
Verb tense and form: consistent time frames, had for the earlier of two past actions, have for actions continuing to now, and irregular forms
Clause boundaries and punctuation: comma splices, run-ons, fragments, semicolons, however, colons, paired commas and apostrophes
Modifiers: opening phrases that must name the actor, misplaced descriptions, the position of only, adjectives versus adverbs, and comparatives
Parallel structure in lists, paired conjunctions such as both/and and not only/but also, and comparisons
Capitalization of proper names and days, and standard spelling of common words
How to answer PERT Grammar and Sentence Editing questions
Find the true subject, then match the verb
A verb agrees with its subject, not with the noun closest to it. Mentally remove phrases that start with of, with, along with or as well as, and clauses that start with who or that. In The stack of permission slips (is/are) on the desk, remove of permission slips and you are left with The stack is. The same move settles The number of late buses has fallen this year: number, not buses, controls the verb.
Some subjects need a second look. Each, every, one of and neither are singular: Each of the volunteers wears a badge. Two subjects joined by and are plural: The coach and his assistant review the game film. With either/or and neither/nor, the verb follows the nearer subject: Either the manager or the clerks are on duty. In a sentence that starts with there, the subject comes after the verb: There are three broken chairs in the hall.
Sentences with two clauses can need two different verb forms. In Omar is one of the runners who train at dawn, Omar is is singular, but who refers to runners, so train is plural. Check each clause with its own subject.
Choose each pronoun by its job in the sentence
Subject pronouns (I, he, she, we, they, who) do the action; object pronouns (me, him, her, us, them, whom) receive it or follow a preposition. In a pair, cover the other name: The librarian thanked Dev and (I/me) becomes thanked me. After a preposition, every pronoun in the pair takes the object form: a secret between you and me. Myself is not a polite stand-in for me; use a -self pronoun only when it refers back to the subject (Sam repaired the bike himself) or emphasizes it.
Reference is a separate check. In When Rosa met Kim at the station, she waved, the reader cannot tell who waved. The fix names the person: Rosa waved when she met Kim at the station. Keep point of view steady, too: if a set of directions addresses you, it should not switch to one or they halfway through unless the actor really changes.
Possessive pronouns never take apostrophes. Its shows ownership and it’s means it is or it has: The puppy chased its tail.Yours and theirs work the same way; your’s and their’s are not words.
Sketch the timeline before choosing a verb
Tense questions are about time order. Decide what happened earlier, what the reference point is and what is happening now or later. Two finished actions in the same past moment both take the simple past: Jon locked the door and switched off the lights. When one past action comes before another, the earlier one takes had plus the participle: By the time the bus pulled up, Keisha had already left. An action that started in the past and continues now takes have or has: We have lived in Tampa since 2019.
An action in progress when something interrupted it takes was or were plus -ing: Dana was washing the dishes when the power went out. A future deadline takes will have plus the participle: By June, the crew will have painted every classroom. For a habit that still goes on, use the simple present and check agreement: The nurse takes each patient’s temperature every morning.
Irregular forms trip people up: threw, not throwed; had gone, not had went; has written, not has wrote. For something imagined, not real, formal writing uses were: If I were the coach, I would add a Saturday practice. Watch, too, for a choice that gets the tense right but drops a capital from a proper name or a day, such as saturday.
Count the complete clauses before you punctuate
Find each verb and ask whether its clause could stand alone. The pool closed early can; because a storm was coming cannot. Two complete clauses need a strong joint: a period, a semicolon, or a comma plus one of for, and, nor, but, or, yet or so. A comma alone between them is a comma splice; nothing at all is a run-on. A dependent clause on its own is a fragment.
Words like however, therefore and instead connect ideas, but they cannot join two clauses with only a comma. They take a semicolon before and a comma after: The bus was late; however, the teacher waited for us. A semicolon needs a complete clause on both sides, so Although the field was muddy; the game went on is wrong. A colon needs a complete clause before it: She packed three things: a towel, sunscreen and a book, not She packed: a towel…
Commas around a description depend on meaning. If the description only adds information about something already identified, enclose it in a pair of commas: The city aquarium, which opened in 1995, closes at five. If it tells you which one, use no commas: Students who park on campus need a permit. Never put a single comma between a subject and its verb. For apostrophes, build the owner first, then add the mark: one player’s helmet, the players’ lockers, the children’s toys.
Put each description next to what it describes
An opening phrase describes whoever comes right after the comma. Holding an umbrella, the bus was hard to board says the bus held the umbrella. The fix puts the real actor after the comma: Holding an umbrella, Luis had trouble boarding the bus. Switching the main clause to passive voice (the bus was boarded by Luis) does not fix it, because bus is still the first noun.
Descriptions later in the sentence need the same care. The clerk handed the customer a receipt with a coffee stain keeps the stain on the receipt. Put the phrase right after customer and it seems to describe the customer. The word only restricts whatever it sits in front of: Only students with a pass may use the gym is a different rule from Students with a pass may use only the gym.
Two form rules round this out. Adjectives describe nouns and adverbs describe actions: a clear answer, explained patiently. For comparisons, use one marker: taller than, not more taller than, and save -est for three or more.
Make items of equal rank match in form
Items joined by and or or, or paired with both/and, either/or, neither/nor or not only/but also, should share one grammatical form. The job involves answering phones, filing invoices and greeting guests uses three -ing forms; to greet guests would break the pattern. The plan is simple, cheap and safe lists three adjectives; can be done safely does not fit.
A quick test is to read the governing word with each item on its own: involves answering, involves filing, involves greeting. Each pair should be grammatical and name the same kind of thing. Comparisons need the same match: Maria prefers walking to school to riding the bus.
Some choices fix one problem and keep another. A version can be perfectly parallel and still misspell a word (recieve for receive), or use the right tense with a lowercase proper name. Once you have found the main error, read the whole choice for a second one.
Common mistakes
These six patterns are behind many wrong answers on editing questions. Each shows the error, the fix and the reason.
Mistake:The bag of oranges are on the table.
Better:The bag of oranges is on the table.
Why: The subject is bag. Oranges sits inside a phrase that starts with of, so it cannot control the verb.
Mistake:The teacher asked Ana and I to help.
Better:The teacher asked Ana and me to help.
Why: Cover Ana and: asked me. The pronoun receives the action, so it takes the object form.
Mistake:The printer jammed, the essay was late.
Better:The printer jammed; the essay was late. (A period, or a comma plus so, also works.)
Why: Two complete clauses joined by a comma alone make a comma splice.
Mistake:After finishing the homework, the TV was turned on.
Better:After finishing the homework, Kai turned on the TV.
Why: The opening phrase describes whoever comes after the comma. A TV cannot finish homework.
Mistake:When the game started, the fans already found their seats.
Better:When the game started, the fans had already found their seats.
Why: Finding seats happened first, so the earlier past action takes had plus the participle.
Mistake:She likes to swim, biking and to run.
Better:She likes to swim, to bike and to run.
Why: The three activities are equal in rank, so they share one form.
Working without a clock
No PERT subject has an official time limit, but the testing center still keeps hours. Colleges’ own estimates range from about two hours to more than three for all three subjects, and our PERT test dates and registration guide lists them by college. In 2015, FDOE reported that the Writing subtest took about 30 minutes on average; that is a historical figure, not a limit.
Editing items are short, so the time goes into comparing near-identical choices. Compare them side by side and find the one spot where they differ, instead of rereading each from the start. That spot tells you which rule applies.
The habit to avoid is changing a correct answer by ear. Once you have named the rule and checked the rest of the sentence for a second error, submit. You cannot return to the question, and a choice that sounds more formal is not more correct.
Two questions from our practice bank. The first is about joining two clauses; the second is about where an opening phrase attaches.
Example 1 · Medium · Writing clauses punctuation
Sentence editing: clauses
Draft: The map was outdated however we found the entrance.
Which revision correctly punctuates the contrast?
A.The map was outdated; however, we found the entrance.
B.The map was outdated, however, we found the entrance.
C.The map was outdated however; we found the entrance.
D.The map was outdated; however we, found the entrance.
Answer: A (The map was outdated; however, we found the entrance.)
How to solve it
Count the clauses. The map was outdated and we found the entrance each have a subject and a verb and could stand alone, so this is two complete clauses.
Classify however. It is not one of the seven joining words (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so), so a comma cannot join the clauses around it.
Apply the rule: semicolon before however, comma after it. That is choice A.
Check the others. B joins the clauses with commas only, a comma splice. C attaches however to the first clause and puts the semicolon in the wrong place. D puts a comma between the subject we and its verb found.
Why it works: However is a conjunctive adverb, not a coordinating conjunction. A semicolon separates the complete clauses and a comma follows however.
Example 2 · Medium · Writing modifiers
Sentence editing: modifiers
Draft: The researcher examined the shell using a microscope. The writer wants to make the researcher’s method unmistakable.
Which revision is clearest?
A.Using a microscope, the shell was examined by the researcher.
B.Using a microscope, the researcher examined the shell.
C.Using a microscope, the shell’s surface became visible to the researcher.
D.Using a microscope, examination of the shell was completed.
Answer: B (Using a microscope, the researcher examined the shell.)
How to solve it
Read the context first: the writer wants it to be unmistakable that the researcher used the microscope.
All four choices open with Using a microscope,. That phrase describes whoever comes right after the comma, so that word must be the researcher.
Check the first noun after the comma in each: A, the shell; C, the shell’s surface; D, examination; B, the researcher. Only B attaches the phrase to the person using the microscope.
Why A tempts: it is grammatical and names the researcher at the end, but passive voice leaves the shell as the subject, so the shell appears to be using the microscope.
Why it works: The context identifies the researcher as the person using the microscope. Placing researcher immediately after the introductory phrase attaches the method clearly. The alternatives leave an object or an abstract action as the phrase’s grammatical subject.
Practice grammar and sentence editing questions
Here are 20 more grammar and sentence editing questions from our practice bank. The set is untimed. Submit it when you are done to see the answer and a full explanation for every question. Unlike the real PERT, this practice set lets you move back and forth between questions. For mixed sets from every part of the test, use the question bank.
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Lessons on this question type
Each lesson teaches one idea with a worked example, then gives you a question to try.
Revision and organization: Revision improves a draft’s purpose, development and coherence. Read the paragraph or numbered passage before evaluating an addition, deletion, transition or reordered sentence. PERT Writing uses selected responses to examine writing decisions; it does not ask for a scored essay.
The study guide’s Writing outline includes grammar, usage and mechanics: verb tense and pronoun shifts, pronoun agreement and case, adjectives and adverbs, modifiers, coordination and subordination, parallel structure, commonly confused words, spelling, capitalization and punctuation. Our editing lessons cover agreement, pronouns, tense, clauses and punctuation, modifiers and parallelism.
You need to recognize the patterns, not define them. Our practice questions ask you to choose the correct sentence, never to name a part of speech. Knowing a few words such as subject, verb and clause makes the rules easier to learn and apply.
No. PERT Writing uses multiple-choice revision and editing questions only. Grammar is tested by choosing the correct version of a sentence.
Let your own misses decide. Take a mixed set of editing questions, sort each miss by rule (agreement, pronouns, tense, clauses and punctuation, modifiers or parallelism), and review the lesson for the rule you miss most before trying another set.
Only partly. Your ear catches many errors, but it is easily fooled by a plural noun next to a singular verb, by myself or I in a pair, and by an opening phrase attached to the wrong noun. For those, check the rule.