The most-tested ACT English rules — ranked.
ACT English is half grammar and half rhetoric, and it rewards a handful of rules that show up again and again. Here they are, grouped by the ACT's own scoring categories and ordered so you study the highest-yield rules first — then practice each one free.
No credit card. Weights reflect the ACT's published English reporting categories.
- 1~52% of the test
Conventions of Standard English
Grammar, punctuation, and sentence structure — the largest and most rule-based category, so the fastest points to lock in.
- Sentence structure: run-ons, fragments & comma splices — first ask, is each side a complete sentence?
- Commas: series, introductory phrases, nonessential info, and before a FANBOYS conjunction
- Semicolons (= a period), colons (after a complete sentence), and dashes
- Subject–verb agreement: is/are, was/were — match the REAL subject, ignore the phrase between it and the verb
- Pronoun agreement & clear reference (one noun it can point to, matching number)
- Verb tense consistency across the sentence
- Dangling & misplaced modifiers
- Apostrophes: its vs. it's, plurals vs. possessives
- 2~30% of the test
Production of Writing
Rhetoric: organization, transitions, and whether a sentence does the job the writer intends. Read for the passage's logic, not just grammar.
- Relevance: does the sentence support the paragraph's point? Off-topic detail gets cut
- Add / keep / delete: answer the writer's STATED purpose, then match the reason
- Transitions: name the logical relationship (contrast / cause / addition / example) first
- Organization & sentence placement: keep the paragraph's logic and pronoun references clear
- 3~18% of the test
Knowledge of Language
Word choice, concision, and tone. The ACT rewards the shortest choice that is correct and keeps the meaning.
- Concision: the shortest grammatically-correct choice usually wins — 'DELETE' is right more often than students expect
- Tone & formality: match the passage; cut anything too casual or too flowery
- Precise word choice: than/then, affect/effect, fewer/less
- Idioms & verb + preposition: 'responsible for', 'refrain from', 'stumbled upon'
Why buy a $30 prep book to learn this?
A book teaches all of these topics in a fixed order — you grind everything, even what you already know. PrepLion's free starter check shows you exactly which of these you're weak on, then adapts as you improve. Same topic mastery, targeted to you, updated for the enhanced ACT — $0.
Take the free starter check — see which topics you needHow to actually raise your English score
- Start with sentence structure. Run-ons and fragments underlie most punctuation questions — once you can tell a complete clause from an incomplete one, half the section gets easier.
- Make the core grammar automatic. Commas, subject-verb agreement (is/are, was/were), and pronoun agreement are fast, rule-based points — get them to reflex so your time goes to the questions that need thought.
- For rhetoric, read one sentence past the underlined part. Transition and relevance traps hide in the next line.
- When every choice is grammatical, pick the shortest one that keeps the meaning. 'NO CHANGE' and 'DELETE' are correct more often than students expect — change the text only when you can name the error.
ACT® is a registered trademark of ACT, Inc., which is not affiliated with and does not endorse this product. Category weights are based on the ACT's published English reporting categories and are approximate.