Matching Tone
Question
The committee found the proposal to be totally bonkers and rejected it unanimously.
Answer choices
- a joke
- unworkable
- NO CHANGE
- pretty out there
B Correct answer: B) unworkable
A committee formally rejecting a proposal is a formal context. "Unworkable" matches that register; the other options are casual or slang and clash with the surrounding sentence.
The other options either introduce a grammatical error or change the intended meaning. The ACT consistently rewards the most concise, grammatically correct option.
Read the sentence with each option substituted in. The version that preserves meaning while obeying the underlying rule is the correct answer; on the ACT, that is almost always the shortest option that still works.
The underlying rule
On the ACT, tone should match the surrounding prose. A formal context like a committee report calls for formal vocabulary; slang ("bonkers," "out there," "a joke") clashes with the register.
Why each wrong answer is wrong
- A) a joke: This option uses informal or slang vocabulary in a context that calls for formal, professional language.
- C) NO CHANGE: This option uses informal or slang vocabulary in a context that calls for formal, professional language.
- D) pretty out there: This option uses informal or slang vocabulary in a context that calls for formal, professional language.
Study tip
Read one sentence before and one after the underlined portion. The vocabulary should sound like it belongs to the same speaker. If a choice sounds like a different speaker stepped in, it is wrong.
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