Common Wrong Answers

The SAT wouldn't be a very useful test if everyone got all the questions right, so the test makers carefully craft many of their wrong answers to make them seem tempting. But there are commons themes to the tricks and traps they use to make answers wrong, which we'll explore here. If you know what to look for, you can avoid these traps and improve your chances of getting questions right.

The common types of wrong answers we'll explore here can apply to numerous types of questions in the Reading and Writing section, but not all. And there may be certain nuances to how they use them on different types of questions, which we'll be sure to cover when we dive deeper into those question types. In particular, Standard English questions are their own beast, and the wrong answers we'll explore here don't really apply to them.

These answers will often start off with a statement that seems to line up will with the passage, but then goes on to say something that's not supported by the text. For example, if the answer choice said "Dave disliked nature because he had a bad experience camping as a child." It might be clear from the passage that Dave disliked nature, making the answer choice seem good initially. But if there is nothing in the passage to back up why he disliked nature, then the answer choice would be incorrect. An answer choice is either fully right or it's wrong. You shouldn't have to make any logical leaps or assumptions that aren't directly supported by the text.

There are often answer choices that, based on the text plus things you know about the world, seem like they could very plausibly be true. But keep in mind that you shouldn't have to make any assumptions that aren't supported by the text, even if they seem like plausible assumptions. For example, if the text tells us that Ellen had a tendency to make offensive comments, and one of the answer choices says that Ellen does not have many friends. This seems very plausible - making offensive remarks can be off-putting to people, which might make them less likely to want to be friends with her. But if there is nothing in the text to more directly suggest that Ellen does not have many friends, then the answer choice would be making an assumption that isn't supported by the text.

Sometimes they will take some words or phrases verbatim from the text and put them in the answer choice. This can make the answer choice seem appealing, because it sounds very similar to what the text says. But if you see them recycling words directly from the text, especially words that they could easily have paraphrased instead, this should be a red flag that they might be trying to lure you toward a wrong answer. Generally, the correct answer is going to paraphrase the text rather than use the exact same language. Of course, you shouldn't rule out answers just because they have a word that you see in the text - if the text is about James then they'll probably mention James in the answer choice. But beware of it seeming like they're unnecessarily using the same words from the text instead of paraphrasing it.

Sometimes you'll see answers where the general sentiment is in line with the text, but might make a claim that is too strong to be supported by the text. For example, if the text talks about Jane's love for reading, and an answer choice says "reading was her favorite activity", this would seem in line with the text. But just because she loves reading doesn't necessarily mean it's her favorite activity, so this choice would be wrong unless the text actually gives additional context that lets you directly infer that she likes reading above all other activities. Also look out for claims that make direct comparison claims like "Jane likes reading more than playing outside." If the text doesn't talk about how much she likes playing outside, then we can't support that claim. Other types of language to look for in overstatements are words like "always", "never", "most", "least". Just because Mary is careful to keep her house secure doesn't mean she "always" locks the door when leaving the house.

Some answers might be 100% true based on the passage but still be wrong because they don't answer the question that was asked. For example, on main purpose questions, you might have an answer that accurately descibes a minor detail of the passage, but does not adequately represent the main purpose of the passage. Or another type of question where you'll often see this is "Quantitative command of evidence" questions (the questions with tables/charts). There will be an associated passage, normally where some kind of hypothesis or claim is made, and the question might ask which answer choice uses data from the graphic to support that hypothesis/claim. There are often answer choices that accurately describe data from the graphic, but don't answer the question because that particular observation about the data doesn't do anything to support the hypothesis/claim.

I know, this doesn't sound like it would be a trap - if it's the opposite of the correct answer, then wouldn't it be obviously wrong? Well, it's not always that simple. Because these passages can be dense and a little tricky to read, just a slight misinterpretation, like missing a transition word, can often lead students to think the passage is saying the opposite of what it actually says. So these wrong answers at least seem closely relevant to what the passage is saying, unlike some other choices which might be obviously irrelevant. Unfortunately, these wrong answers are not easy to spot, because if they seem good to you it's because you misinterpreted the text in the first place. So avoiding these wrong answers is more a matter of reading the text very carefully, being aware of any transitions or changes in direction, and fully digesting each sentence and uderstanding how each sentence relates to the others.

The texts will sometimes use somewhat poetic language, using similes, metaphors, and other figurative language. Some answer choices may take this figurative language and apply a more literal interpretation. For example, there is one passage that talks about trees seeming to "extend their branches like welcoming arms", and that "They greeted her as an old friend". One answer choice talks about "longterm friendships". Of course, the text isn't talking about any actual literal friendships, just uses the phrase "an old friend" as a simile, making this answer choice wrong.

Often, the right answer might not look appealing off the bat. The right answer will frequently be a paraphrase of what the text says, and is often more vaguely worded. Because of this, it might seem at first glance like it's not relevant because you don't see it directly saying things that correspond to the language in the text. You should treat answer choices as "innocent until proven guilty". Assume that each answer is correct at first - if it uses more general or vague language, see if this language might make sense as a paraphrase of the text. The right answer is often the safest one - the one you can't prove wrong. All the wrong answer choices should have some reason that disqualifies them from being correct.