7. SAT® Craft & Structure Strategy

This lesson consolidates the strategies from Lessons 1-6 into a repeatable test-day process for every Craft & Structure question type.

Vocabulary question approach (Words in Context):

• Cover the answer choices.
• Re-read the sentence and one sentence on either side for context.
• Substitute your own word based on context and tone.
• Match your word to the choice that is closest in meaning and connotation.
• Plug the choice back into the sentence to confirm it sounds precise, not just acceptable.

Avoiding the 'sounds good' trap:

• Every wrong answer on a Craft & Structure question is designed to sound plausible.
• The most common wrong-answer traps are: (1) the most common meaning of the word rather than the contextual meaning, (2) the author's topic rather than the author's purpose, and (3) a cited source's view mistaken for the author's view.
• Always ask: what does the passage explicitly support?

Cross-text process (two-passage questions):

• Summarize Passage 1 in one sentence (author + main claim).
• Summarize Passage 2 in one sentence.
• Note whether they agree, disagree, or one extends the other.
• For 'Author A would most likely respond' questions, stay in Author A's lane.

Sample passage (strategy in action):
"The report underscored the urgent need for infrastructure investment, citing decades of deferred maintenance across the nation's bridges and tunnels."
Question: "As used in the passage, underscored most nearly means --"
Predict: something like emphasized or highlighted. Match to answer choices.

⚠️ Common mistake: skipping the prediction step and reading all four choices first. This makes you vulnerable to the attractive wrong answers.

💡 Tip: on test day, budget roughly 70-80 seconds per question. If a vocabulary question takes more than 90 seconds, mark it, move on, and return with fresh eyes.