PERT Writing Exam Flashcards

Q: What is the PERT Writing subtest?

The PERT Writing subtest is a 30-question computer-adaptive multiple-choice test that measures editing and revision skills, not essay writing. Florida public colleges use it to place students into college-level English Composition or developmental English courses.

Q: What score do I need to place into college-level English on the PERT Writing test?

A score of 103 or higher on the 50-150 scale places you into college-level English Composition (ENC 1101 or equivalent) without needing developmental coursework.

Q: Does the PERT Writing subtest require writing an essay?

No. The Writing subtest presents sentences and short passages and asks you to identify or correct errors in grammar, punctuation, sentence structure, word choice, and organization — it does not require composing an original essay.

Q: Is the PERT Writing test timed?

No, the PERT Writing subtest is untimed. It is computer-adaptive, so question difficulty adjusts based on your previous answers. Most students finish in about 45 to 60 minutes.

Q: What grammar topics appear most often on the PERT Writing test?

Subject-verb agreement, pronoun-antecedent agreement and case, sentence fragments and run-ons, comma usage, and commonly confused words (its/it's, affect/effect, than/then) are among the highest-frequency topics.

Q: Can I retake the PERT Writing test?

Yes. Most Florida colleges allow retakes, though policies on waiting periods and attempt limits vary by institution — check with your specific college's testing center.

Question 1

Subject-Verb Agreement: The Basic Rule

Accepted Answer

A verb must match its subject in number — singular subjects take singular verbs, plural subjects take plural verbs. Example: 'The student writes daily' vs. 'The students write daily.'

Question 2

Subject-Verb Agreement with Intervening Phrases

Accepted Answer

Ignore prepositional phrases that fall between the subject and verb — the verb agrees with the true subject, not the noun closest to it. Example: 'The box of supplies IS on the shelf' (subject is 'box,' not 'supplies').

Question 3

Collective Nouns (team, jury, committee, family)

Accepted Answer

Collective nouns take a singular verb and singular pronoun when the group acts as one unit. Example: 'The team practices its drills every morning.'

Question 4

Compound Subjects Joined by 'And'

Accepted Answer

Two subjects joined by 'and' form a plural subject and take a plural verb. Example: 'The coach and the players ARE arriving early.'

Question 5

Compound Subjects Joined by 'Or' / 'Nor'

Accepted Answer

When subjects are joined by 'or' or 'nor,' the verb agrees with the subject nearer to it. Example: 'Neither the manager nor the employees WERE informed.'

Question 6

Indefinite Pronouns That Are Always Singular

Accepted Answer

Each, either, neither, everyone, everybody, someone, anybody, and nobody are always singular and take a singular verb. Example: 'Everybody in the class HAS a copy of the syllabus.'

Question 7

Pronoun-Antecedent Agreement

Accepted Answer

A pronoun must agree in number with the noun it replaces (its antecedent). Example: 'The corporation released ITS annual report' — not 'their,' because 'corporation' is a singular noun.

Question 8

Pronoun Case: Subjective vs. Objective

Accepted Answer

Subjective pronouns (I, he, she, we, they, who) serve as sentence subjects; objective pronouns (me, him, her, us, them, whom) serve as objects. Example: 'The director thanked HER and ME' — not 'she and I.'

Question 9

Who vs. Whom

Accepted Answer

Use WHO when the pronoun is the subject of a clause; use WHOM when it is the object. Test by substituting he/who or him/whom. Example: 'WHOM should I contact?' (I should contact HIM.)

Question 10

Pronoun Case After 'Than' or 'As'

Accepted Answer

Mentally complete the omitted clause to pick the correct case. Example: 'My brother scored higher than SHE (did)' — not 'than her,' since 'she' is the subject of the implied verb 'did.'

Question 11

Verb Tense Consistency

Accepted Answer

Keep verb tense consistent across a sentence or passage unless the meaning truly requires a time shift. Incorrect: 'He opens the laptop and typed the report.' Correct: 'He opened the laptop and typed the report.'

Question 12

Irregular Past Participles

Accepted Answer

Irregular verbs form perfect tenses with a distinct past-participle form, not the simple past. Example: 'She has WRITTEN three drafts' (not 'has wrote'); 'They had GONE home' (not 'had went').

Question 13

Adjective vs. Adverb

Accepted Answer

Adjectives modify nouns; adverbs modify verbs, adjectives, or other adverbs and often end in -ly. Example: 'He answered the question CONFIDENTLY' (adverb modifying 'answered'), not 'confident.'

Question 14

Comparative and Superlative Forms

Accepted Answer

Use -er/-est for most one- or two-syllable words (faster, fastest) and more/most for longer words (more effective, most effective) — never combine both. Incorrect: 'more faster.' Correct: 'faster' or 'more rapid.'

Question 15

Capitalization Rules

Accepted Answer

Capitalize proper nouns, titles used with a name, the first word of a sentence, and specific course or place names — but not seasons, general directions, or common nouns. Example: 'I am taking BIOLOGY 101 this fall,' not 'Fall.'

Question 16

Sentence Fragment

Accepted Answer

A fragment is an incomplete sentence missing a subject, a verb, or a complete thought — often a dependent clause standing alone. Fragment: 'Because the printer was broken.' Fix: 'Because the printer was broken, we mailed the report.'

Question 17

Run-On (Fused) Sentence

Accepted Answer

A run-on joins two independent clauses with no punctuation or connecting word between them. Example: 'The meeting ran long everyone left exhausted.' Fix: split into two sentences or add a conjunction or semicolon.

Question 18

Comma Splice

Accepted Answer

A comma splice incorrectly joins two independent clauses with only a comma. Example: 'The report was late, the manager was upset.' Fix: use a period, semicolon, or comma plus coordinating conjunction.

Question 19

Four Ways to Fix a Comma Splice or Run-On

Accepted Answer

(1) Split into two sentences with a period. (2) Join with a semicolon. (3) Add a comma + coordinating conjunction (FANBOYS). (4) Make one clause dependent with a subordinating conjunction (because, although, since).

Question 20

Independent vs. Dependent Clause

Accepted Answer

An independent clause expresses a complete thought and can stand alone as a sentence. A dependent clause has a subject and verb but cannot stand alone — it starts with a word like 'although,' 'because,' or 'which.'

Question 21

Coordinating Conjunctions (FANBOYS)

Accepted Answer

For, And, Nor, But, Or, Yet, So — join two independent clauses of equal importance, preceded by a comma. Example: 'The exam was difficult, but most students passed.'

Question 22

Subordinating Conjunctions for Sentence Combining

Accepted Answer

Words like although, because, since, while, if, and unless attach a dependent clause to an independent clause to show a logical relationship. Example: 'ALTHOUGH the essay was short, it made a strong argument.'

Question 23

Dangling Modifier

Accepted Answer

A dangling modifier describes a word that isn't actually in the sentence, leaving the modifier unattached to a logical subject. Dangling: 'Walking to class, the rain soaked my backpack.' Fix: 'Walking to class, I got my backpack soaked by the rain.'

Question 24

Misplaced Modifier

Accepted Answer

A misplaced modifier sits too far from the word it describes, creating confusion or an unintended meaning. Misplaced: 'She almost drove her kids to school every day.' Clear: 'She drove her kids to school almost every day.'

Question 25

Parallel Structure

Accepted Answer

Items in a series or joined by correlative conjunctions (either/or, not only/but also) must share the same grammatical form. Example: 'The course teaches students to write, to revise, and to edit' — not 'to write, revising, and editing.'

Question 26

Comma Before a Coordinating Conjunction (Compound Sentence)

Accepted Answer

Place a comma before a coordinating conjunction (FANBOYS) when it joins two independent clauses. Example: 'She proofread the essay, and then she submitted it.'

Question 27

Comma After an Introductory Element

Accepted Answer

Use a comma after an introductory word, phrase, or clause that precedes the main clause. Example: 'After reviewing her notes, she felt confident about the exam.'

Question 28

Commas with Nonessential vs. Essential Elements

Accepted Answer

Use a pair of commas to set off NONESSENTIAL information that can be removed without changing the meaning: 'My essay, which I revised twice, earned a strong score.' Do NOT use commas around ESSENTIAL information needed to identify the noun: 'Students who skip the review session often struggle.'

Question 29

Serial Comma (Oxford Comma) in a List

Accepted Answer

Place a comma before the final conjunction in a list of three or more items to prevent ambiguity. Example: 'The essay covers grammar, punctuation, and organization.'

Question 30

Semicolon Between Independent Clauses

Accepted Answer

A semicolon can join two closely related independent clauses without a coordinating conjunction. Example: 'The test is untimed; most students finish within an hour.'

Question 31

Semicolon Before a Conjunctive Adverb

Accepted Answer

Use a semicolon before words like however, therefore, moreover, and consequently when they join two independent clauses, followed by a comma. Example: 'The draft was strong; however, it needed a stronger conclusion.'

Question 32

Colon to Introduce a List or Explanation

Accepted Answer

A colon follows a complete independent clause and introduces a list, explanation, or emphatic point. Example: 'The subtest covers five areas: grammar, structure, punctuation, word choice, and rhetoric.'

Question 33

Apostrophe for Possession

Accepted Answer

Add 's to singular nouns ('the student's paper') and to plural nouns not ending in s ('the children's books'); add only an apostrophe after plural nouns ending in s ('the students' papers').

Question 34

Quotation Marks with Other Punctuation

Accepted Answer

In American English, commas and periods go INSIDE closing quotation marks; colons and semicolons go OUTSIDE. Example: The author called the essay "persuasive," but critics disagreed.

Question 35

Hyphen in a Compound Modifier

Accepted Answer

Hyphenate two or more words that work together as a single adjective before a noun. Example: 'a well-written essay' (hyphenated before the noun) vs. 'the essay was well written' (no hyphen after the noun).

Question 36

Topic Sentence

Accepted Answer

A topic sentence states the main idea of a paragraph, usually near the beginning, and every other sentence in the paragraph should support it.

Question 37

Paragraph Unity

Accepted Answer

A unified paragraph stays focused on one main idea — any sentence that drifts to an unrelated topic should be revised or removed. PERT questions that ask 'which sentence does not belong' test this skill.

Question 38

Logical Sentence Order

Accepted Answer

Sentences within a paragraph should follow a clear sequence — chronological, spatial, or order of importance — so ideas build logically instead of jumping randomly between points.

Question 39

Concluding Sentence

Accepted Answer

A concluding sentence wraps up a paragraph by restating the main idea or signaling a transition to the next point, without introducing new, unrelated information.

Question 40

Additive Transitions

Accepted Answer

Words like furthermore, in addition, moreover, and also signal that a new point supports or extends the previous idea.

Question 41

Contrast Transitions

Accepted Answer

Words like however, on the other hand, nevertheless, and in contrast signal that the new idea opposes or qualifies the previous point.

Question 42

Cause-Effect Transitions

Accepted Answer

Words like therefore, as a result, thus, and consequently show that one idea is the outcome or consequence of the idea before it.

Question 43

Audience and Purpose

Accepted Answer

Effective revisions match tone, vocabulary, and level of detail to the intended audience and the writer's purpose (to inform, persuade, or narrate) — formal essays avoid slang and contractions.

Question 44

Affect vs. Effect

Accepted Answer

AFFECT is usually a verb meaning 'to influence' ('Noise can AFFECT concentration'). EFFECT is usually a noun meaning 'a result' ('The noise had no EFFECT on her focus').

Question 45

Its vs. It's

Accepted Answer

ITS (no apostrophe) is a possessive pronoun ('The company reached ITS goal'). IT'S (with apostrophe) is a contraction of 'it is' or 'it has' ('IT'S been a long exam').

Question 46

Than vs. Then

Accepted Answer

THAN is used for comparisons ('The essay section is harder THAN the math section'). THEN refers to time or sequence ('Draft your thesis, THEN outline your evidence').

Question 47

Their / There / They're

Accepted Answer

THEIR shows possession ('their answers'), THERE indicates place or introduces a clause ('there are three parts'), and THEY'RE is a contraction of 'they are' ('they're finishing the test').

Question 48

Eliminating Redundancy and Wordiness

Accepted Answer

Concise writing avoids repeating the same idea in different words. Wordy: 'each and every individual student.' Concise: 'each student' or 'every student.'

Question 49

Active vs. Passive Voice

Accepted Answer

In active voice, the subject performs the action ('The committee reviewed the proposal'); in passive voice, the subject receives the action ('The proposal was reviewed by the committee'). Active voice is usually more direct and concise — preferred unless the actor is unknown or unimportant.

Question 50

Concise Phrasing (Cutting Wordy Constructions)

Accepted Answer

Rhetorically effective revisions replace wordy, indirect phrases with direct ones. Example: 'due to the fact that' becomes 'because'; 'in order to' becomes 'to'; 'at this point in time' becomes 'now.'

Free PERT Writing Exam Flashcards

Filter by Topic

Jump to Card

About These PERT Writing Flashcards

Topics Covered

Frequently Asked Questions

PERT Writing

Explore More College Placement Tests

ALEKS Math Placement

PERT Math

PERT

PERT Reading

Wonderlic Scholastic Level Exam

Wonderlic Basic Skills Test (WBST)

More From This Family