how many words should the sat essay be

What Is the SAT Essay?

College Board

• February 28, 2024

The SAT Essay section is a lot like a typical writing assignment in which you’re asked to read and analyze a passage and then produce an essay in response to a single prompt about that passage. It gives you the opportunity to demonstrate your reading, analysis, and writing skills—which are critical to readiness for success in college and career—and the scores you’ll get back will give you insight into your strengths in these areas as well as indications of any areas that you may still need to work on.

The Essay section is only available in certain states where it’s required as part of SAT School Day administrations. If you’re going to be taking the SAT during school , ask your counselor if it will include the Essay section. If it’s included, the Essay section will come after the Reading and Writing and Math sections and will add an additional 50 minutes .

What You’ll Do

• Read a passage between 650 and 750 words in length.
• Explain how the author builds an argument to persuade an audience.
• Support your explanation with evidence from the passage.

You won’t be asked to agree or disagree with a position on a topic or to write about your personal experience.

The Essay section shows how well you understand the passage and are able to use it as the basis for a well-written, thought-out discussion. Your score will be based on three categories.

Reading: A successful essay shows that you understood the passage, including the interplay of central ideas and important details. It also shows an effective use of textual evidence.

Analysis: A successful essay shows your understanding of how the author builds an argument by:

• Examining the author’s use of evidence, reasoning, and other stylistic and persuasive techniques
• Supporting and developing claims with well-chosen evidence from the passage

Writing: A successful essay is focused, organized, and precise, with an appropriate style and tone that varies sentence structure and follows the conventions of standard written English.

Learn more about how the SAT Essay is scored.

Want to practice? Log in to the Bluebook™ testing application , go to the Practice and Prepare section, and choose full-length practice test . There are 3 practice Essay   tests. Once you submit your response, go to MyPractice.Collegeboard.org , where you’ll see your essay, a scoring guide and rubric so that you can score yourself, and student samples for various scores to compare your self-score with a student at the same level.

After the Test

You’ll get your Essay score the same way you’ll get your scores for the Reading and Writing and Math sections. If you choose to send your SAT scores to colleges, your Essay score will be reported along with your other section scores from that test day. Even though Score Choice™   allows you to choose which day’s scores you send to colleges, you can never send only some scores from a certain test day. For instance, you can’t choose to send Math scores but not SAT Essay scores.

Until 2021, the SAT Essay was also an optional section when taking the SAT on a weekend. That section was discontinued in 2021.

If you don’t have the opportunity to take the SAT Essay section as part of the SAT, don’t worry. There are other ways to show your writing skills as part of the work you’re already doing on your path to college. The SAT can help you stand out on college applications , as it continues to measure the writing and analytical skills that are essential to college and career readiness. And, if you want to demonstrate your writing skills even more, you can also consider taking an AP English course .

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The SAT Essay

Written by tutor ellen s..

The SAT has undergone a significant number of changes over the years, generally involving adjustments in the scoring rubric, and often in response to steadily-declining or increasingly-perfect test scores. When the SAT was changed in 2005, however, they made some significant changes to the test that students see. One of these changes was the addition of the writing section, based on the original SAT II subject test, which includes a timed essay. In including a timed essay on an otherwise multiple-choice test, the SAT throws a problem at students that they are generally unprepared to solve.

Because high school classes usually don’t discuss timed essays, students can have difficulty when faced with the SAT essay. You’ll need a different set of skills to tackle the SAT essay, and ideally a completely separate amount of time to practice those skills. In this lesson I’ll give you an overview of the differences between timed essays and at-home essays, and share my tips for successfully completing a well-organized, well-thought-out SAT essay.

First, the differences. In a timed essay, you’re given the prompt on the spot rather than having an idea of what the topic will be beforehand, as you would if you were writing an essay for an English class. On the SAT, you get one prompt and one prompt only, so you don’t even have the benefit of choosing one that works for you – you have to write about whatever they give you. In addition you’re writing everything out longhand, which eats up more time than you might think and makes it harder to make edits and corrections – particularly if you have bad handwriting and you’re worried about staying legible. And just forget about rearranging paragraphs and reorganizing whole sentences – you’ll never have time for that!

The Difference Between the SAT Essay and At-Home Essays

All of this means that you have to be much more organized right from the get-go than you would be in a natural writing process. You’ll need to read the question, think for a few moments, and then immediately form an opinion so you can start the actual writing as soon as possible. So for all timed essays, and the SAT essay in particular, I strongly emphasize the importance of prewriting. Prewriting can take many forms, from word clouds to concept nets, but for the SAT, I recommend the basic straightforward outline – with a few tweaks. Here’s my formula for SAT essay outlines.

How to Outline Your Essay

First, read the prompt through a couple of times. SAT essay prompts usually follow a set format involving the statement of an opinion, and then asking whether you agree or disagree with that opinion. Let’s take an example from the January 2014 test date, courtesy of the College Board website:

Some see printed books as dusty remnants from the preelectronic age. They point out that electronic books, or e-books, cost less to produce than printed books and that producing them has a much smaller impact on natural resources such as trees. Yet why should printed books be considered obsolete or outdated just because there is something cheaper and more modern? With books, as with many other things, just because a new version has its merits doesn’t mean that the older version should be eliminated.

Assignment: Should we hold on to the old when innovations are available, or should we simply move forward? Plan and write an essay in which you develop your point of view on this issue. Support your position with reasoning and examples taken from your reading, studies, experience, or observations. ( Source. )

he first thing I recommend when confronted with an SAT essay prompt is to ask yourself the question “Do I agree or disagree with the premise of the prompt?” That’ll usually be the last sentence of the first paragraph in the prompt. In this case, do you agree that “just because a new version has its merits doesn’t mean that the older version should be eliminated”? Now write the phrase “I agree” or “I disagree” at the top of your scratch paper accordingly. Put some asterisks around it so you remember to keep checking back in with it during the writing. This opinion is the most important part of your essay, so you want it to be clear in your mind. Next, ask yourself “Why do I agree?” or “Why do I disagree?” The first sentence you say to yourself in response to that question is your rough thesis statement. Jot that down under the first phrase. So, my response to our example would look like this:

* I agree * While the new version might have its merits, the original often has merits of its own.

Again, this is very rough at this stage, but on the SAT you’re trying to prewrite fast, so don’t worry too much about that. On to the body paragraphs!

On a 25-minute essay, you probably won’t have enough time for a full five-paragraph structure with three sub-examples for each point. Two body paragraphs and two examples of each will suffice. You never want to rely on just a single example, though, or you’ll likely lose points for not supporting your statements enough. Write out a template for the body of your essay that looks like this:

I. Main point 1 A. Example 1 B. Example 2 II. Main point 2 A. Example 1 B. Exampple 2

Remember, it’s an outline, so no full sentences. Write only as much as you need to remind yourself of your points. So for our example, my outline would look like this:

I. The “Tangible” aspects A. A book never runs out of battery B. Can read it in the sun, by the pool or in the bathtub – places you wouldn’t want to take a piece of electronics II. The “non-tangible” aspects A. The smell of a new book, tactile sense of turning pages, experience of closing it when you finish B. Ability to get lost in a book, to lose sense of place and become the story

At this point I can see a slight revision I’d make to my original thesis statement, which is the idea that an e-book can never mimic the tactile experience of reading (smelling the book, turning pages, etc.) I’ll quickly adjust my thesis to say:

While the new version might have its merits, the original offers a tactile experience that the new can’t hope to achieve – an experience that can’t be mimicked by technology.

Perfect. All told, your prewriting should have taken you 3 to 5 minutes, most of which was thinking. Now, on to the paper itself!

Writing Your Essay

Okay, here’s my biggest timed-essay secret: don’t start with the introduction. Start by skipping five or six lines down the page, leaving space for an introduction that will be inserted later. Start with your first body paragraph. Work from your outline, converting your points into full sentences and connecting them with transitions, and you should be at a good start. Once both body paragraphs are written, continue on and write your conclusion. Then, go back and write your introduction in the space you left at the beginning. That way, you’ll know what you’re introducing since it’s already written.

I generally recommend about 15 minutes of writing time for the body paragraphs, followed by 5 minutes for the intro and conclusion. Depending on how quickly you got your prewriting done, that leaves you with one or two minutes to look it over, fixing any spelling mistakes or sloppy handwriting. Don’t try to change too much, though – when you’re writing everything out longhand, changes require erasing. We do so much writing on computers these days that sometimes we forget how long it takes to erase a whole sentence and rewrite it. A better tactic is to think through each sentence in your head before you write it down, making sure you have it phrased the way you want it before you put pencil to paper. But don’t spend too long – try it a few times and you’ll find that writing four full paragraphs longhand actually takes about 25 minutes to do – on a good day. You should expect to be writing pretty much continuously for the entire 25 minutes.

Keeping Track of Time, Staying Comfortable, and More Advice

Speaking of which, when you practice your timed essays, pay attention to how your hand feels while you’re writing. The first few times you’ll likely be sore; your hand might even cramp up from writing so hard. It’s tiring to write for that long, so make sure you’re helping yourself. Write lightly on the paper – it’s easy to start pressing down super hard when you’re nervous and panicking. Writing lightly will not only help stave off the hand cramps, it’ll also make erasing much easier when you need to do it. Sit back in your chair while you write – you don’t need to be three inches from your paper to see the words you’re putting down, and hunching over will just make you press harder. Bring your attention to your breathing – are you holding your breath? Why? Try breathing deeply and slowly while you write – it’ll calm your brain and help you think.

Finally, a word about the writing itself – don’t forget you’re on a clock here. Often, you begin to notice as you write that your opinion about the topic is evolving, changing, developing nuances and side areas you want to explore. I know this sounds weird, but you’ve got to try to rein that in – those are all fine things to be thinking about ordinarily, and in an at-home essay I’d say go for it, but you don’t have time to change what you’re writing about in this situation. Sometimes, you’ll even get halfway through a timed essay and realize that you actually don’t agree like you thought you did. Save that thought for later. You’ve got the outline of an organized essay, and that’s what you should be writing. It doesn’t matter at this point if you actually still agree with what you’re saying, all that matters is that you state a clear opinion and communicate it well. After all, the test grader doesn’t even know you – how’s she to know that you don’t really think this anymore? Stay confident and get your original idea out on paper.

For example, the outline I gave above is a perfectly accurate depiction of my opinion on the topic – as it relates to books. However, if we were to start talking about, say, writing essays…I’d probably say that no, I don’t think we should hold on to writing essays out by hand when there are computers available. After all, I’m writing this article on a computer. I’ve copied and pasted multiple paragraphs of information back and forth around this lesson as I was looking for appropriate ways to introduce concepts, and that would have taken forever if I had been writing by hand. But if that thought had occurred to me midway through writing my timed essay about books, I would have acknowledged it for the briefest of moments and then disregarded it. My essay is about books. I’ll just stick to that so I can keep it clean and organized.

Don’t worry about the test graders thinking “But what about X?” – they know you only had 25 minutes and can’t possibly fit every aspect of the argument into that amount of time – or space, for that matter. The scoring rubric focuses on what is present, not what is omitted. As long as you have a clear point of view and are communicating it well, you’ll fulfill their criteria. Remember, this essay’s not in the critical reading section, it’s in the writing section. They’re not in the business of judging the merits of your opinion, just how clearly you’ve communicated it and how well you’ve supported it.

Your timed essays will probably turn out very different than the essays you write at home for class. They might seem stiff, straightforward or brusque; with a limited amount of time you can’t create the subtle, nuanced arguments that your English teachers are probably looking for. But what you can do is create a well-organized, concise presentation of a relatively straightforward point of view, supported by concrete examples that all point toward the same central concept. The SAT essay responds well to a formulaic approach, so while it may take some practice, you will eventually be able to handle a 25-minute essay prompt with confidence.

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Test Prep 101: Guide to the SAT Essay

By IvyWise Master Tutor

Understanding test content, formatting, and changes are important when preparing for the SAT – especially the essay portion. There have been a number of changes to the SAT since the launch of the new exam in 2016, and our guide to the SAT Essay will help students better understand how to master this section should they choose to take it.

SAT Essay Structure and Content

The SAT Essay went through a total transformation in the most recent redesign of the SAT. The new SAT Essay is a lengthy and uniquely challenging section, and it addresses many of the problems that were evident in the prior version of the SAT Essay section.

The new SAT Essay section presents an extended piece of nonfiction prose, often times an article excerpted from the likes of Time Magazine , Condé Nast , or the Los Angeles Times ranging between 650-800 words then asks the student to write a five-paragraph essay that identifies, explains, and evaluates the stylistic, rhetorical, and logical elements of the text that contribute to its meaning.

All the prompts stick to the following template: “Write an essay in which you explain how [the author’s name] builds an argument to persuade his/her audience…your essay should not explain whether or not you agree with [the author’s] claims, but rather explain how [the author] builds an argument to persuade his/her audience.

Now, this is a tough essay assignment under any circumstances, much less one that the student must complete in 50 minutes as the last section of the SAT. But the need for the new SAT Essay is evident once you look at old essay prompts pre-SAT redesign. The following one is from 2015:

Think carefully about the issue presented in the following excerpt and the assignment below.

“Is it necessary for people to combine their efforts with those of others in order to be most effective? Plan and write an essay in which you develop your point of view on this issue. Support your position with reasoning and examples taken from your reading, studies, experience, or observations.” -Stephen R. Covey, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People

Assignment: Can people have too much enthusiasm? Plan and write an essay in which you develop your point of view on this issue. Support your position with reasoning and examples taken from your reading, studies, experience, or observations.

The old essay prompts somehow seem both too specific and too general; the main question is too specific to understand—Can people have too much enthusiasm?—and the content the essay is supposed to cover is too broad—“reading, studies, experience, or observations.” Not only were students not required to read the quote given as part of the prompt, in this case an excerpt from Covey’s Seven Habits , it also didn’t represent the sort of reading students do in school.

College Board fixes these problems by looking in-house at the AP Language and Composition curriculum they already have, and adapting one essay assignment from that test to fit the SAT Essay. The ‘rhetorical analysis’ essay assignment from the AP Language and Composition test reads: “Students read a non-fiction text and analyze how the writer’s language choices contribute to his or her purpose and intended meaning for the text.” This could easily be lifted and used as the prompt for the SAT essay.

SAT Essay vs. ACT Essay

The new SAT Essay makes the case that its essay assignment is not only more representative of the reading and writing skills that students learn in school, but also more predictive of the sort of reading, analysis, and writing work that students will go on to do at the college level. Consider the following main differences between the ACT Essay and SAT Essay:

The SAT prompt does not ask for the student’s opinion on the passage, it tests for how well the student understands the passage’s argument and how the author makes the argument. For this reason, the student will receive three separate scores for the SAT Essay: a reading, analysis, and writing score.

The ACT Essay prompt is more compact than that of the SAT Essay; however, the SAT Essay is more closely geared to the sort of writing and reading work that students complete in school. The SAT Essay is also unique in that it tests for whether a student understands how an argument works, rather than asking the student to make an argument.

The new SAT Essay is not necessarily ‘harder’ than the old essay section, but it is designed to give universities a clearer picture of a student’s reading and writing abilities, which can be a really positive thing. For this reason, it is important for prospective SAT test takers to be aware of these changes, and familiarize themselves with the new look of the SAT essay!

Need additional help preparing for the SAT Essay?  Contact us today  for more information on our  SAT prep and other test prep services !

Also, be sure to read Peter’s other section breakdowns, including his  guide to the SAT Reading, Writing, and Math sections.

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• How long is an essay? Guidelines for different types of essay

How Long is an Essay? Guidelines for Different Types of Essay

Published on January 28, 2019 by Shona McCombes . Revised on July 23, 2023.

The length of an academic essay varies depending on your level and subject of study, departmental guidelines, and specific course requirements. In general, an essay is a shorter piece of writing than a research paper  or thesis .

In most cases, your assignment will include clear guidelines on the number of words or pages you are expected to write. Often this will be a range rather than an exact number (for example, 2500–3000 words, or 10–12 pages). If you’re not sure, always check with your instructor.

In this article you’ll find some general guidelines for the length of different types of essay. But keep in mind that quality is more important than quantity – focus on making a strong argument or analysis, not on hitting a specific word count.

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In an academic essay, the main body should always take up the most space. This is where you make your arguments, give your evidence, and develop your ideas.

The introduction should be proportional to the essay’s length. In an essay under 3000 words, the introduction is usually just one paragraph. In longer and more complex essays, you might need to lay out the background and introduce your argument over two or three paragraphs.

The conclusion of an essay is often a single paragraph, even in longer essays. It doesn’t have to summarize every step of your essay, but should tie together your main points in a concise, convincing way.

The suggested word count doesn’t only tell you how long your essay should be – it also helps you work out how much information and complexity you can fit into the given space. This should guide the development of your thesis statement , which identifies the main topic of your essay and sets the boundaries of your overall argument.

A short essay will need a focused, specific topic and a clear, straightforward line of argument. A longer essay should still be focused, but it might call for a broader approach to the topic or a more complex, ambitious argument.

As you make an outline of your essay , make sure you have a clear idea of how much evidence, detail and argumentation will be needed to support your thesis. If you find that you don’t have enough ideas to fill out the word count, or that you need more space to make a convincing case, then consider revising your thesis to be more general or more specific.

The length of the essay also influences how much time you will need to spend on editing and proofreading .

You should always aim to meet the minimum length given in your assignment. If you are struggling to reach the word count:

• Add more evidence and examples to each paragraph to clarify or strengthen your points.
• Make sure you have fully explained or analyzed each example, and try to develop your points in more detail.
• Address a different aspect of your topic in a new paragraph. This might involve revising your thesis statement to make a more ambitious argument.
• Don’t use filler. Adding unnecessary words or complicated sentences will make your essay weaker and your argument less clear.
• Don’t fixate on an exact number. Your marker probably won’t care about 50 or 100 words – it’s more important that your argument is convincing and adequately developed for an essay of the suggested length.

In some cases, you are allowed to exceed the upper word limit by 10% – so for an assignment of 2500–3000 words, you could write an absolute maximum of 3300 words. However, the rules depend on your course and institution, so always check with your instructor if you’re unsure.

Only exceed the word count if it’s really necessary to complete your argument. Longer essays take longer to grade, so avoid annoying your marker with extra work! If you are struggling to edit down:

• Check that every paragraph is relevant to your argument, and cut out irrelevant or out-of-place information.
• Make sure each paragraph focuses on one point and doesn’t meander.
• Cut out filler words and make sure each sentence is clear, concise, and related to the paragraph’s point.
• Don’t cut anything that is necessary to the logic of your argument. If you remove a paragraph, make sure to revise your transitions and fit all your points together.
• Don’t sacrifice the introduction or conclusion . These paragraphs are crucial to an effective essay –make sure you leave enough space to thoroughly introduce your topic and decisively wrap up your argument.

If you want to know more about AI tools , college essays , or fallacies make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples or go directly to our tools!

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SAT Essay Scores Explained

On january 19th, 2021, college board announced that they will no longer administer the sat subject tests in the u.s. and that the essay would be retired. read our blog post  to understand what this means in the near term and what the college board has in store for students down the road., our articles on subject tests and the sat essay will remain on our site for reference purposes as colleges and students transition to a revised testing landscape..

Why are there no percentiles for the essay on an SAT score report?

No percentiles or norms are provided in student reports. Even colleges do not receive any summary statistics. Given Compass’ concerns about the inaccuracy of essay scoring and the notable failures of the ACT on that front, the de-emphasis of norms would seem to be a good thing. The problem is that 10% of colleges are sticking with the SAT Essay as an admission requirement . While those colleges will not receive score distribution reports from the College Board, it is not difficult for them to construct their own statistics—officially or unofficially—based on thousands of applicants. Colleges can determine a “good score,” but students cannot. This asymmetry of information is harmful to students, as they are left to speculate how well they have performed and how their scores will be interpreted. Through our analysis, Compass hopes to provide students and parents more context for evaluating SAT Essay scores.

How has scoring changed? Is it still part of a student’s Total Score?

On the old SAT, the essay was a required component of the Writing section and made up approximately one-third of a student’s 200–800 score. The essay score itself was simply the sum (2–12) of two readers’ 1–6 scores. Readers were expected to grade holistically and not to focus on individual components of the writing. The SAT essay came under a great deal of criticism for being too loosely structured. Factual accuracy was not required; it was not that difficult to make pre-fabricated material fit the prompt; many colleges found the 2–12 essay scores of little use; and the conflation of the essay and “Writing” was, in some cases, blocking the use of the SAT Writing score—which included grammar and usage—entirely.

With the 2016 overhaul of the SAT came an attempt to make the essay more academically defensible while also making it optional (as the ACT essay had long been). The essay score is not a part of the 400–1600 score. Instead, a student opting to take the SAT Essay receives 2–8 scores in three dimensions: reading, analysis, and writing. No equating or fancy lookup table is involved. The scores are simply the sum of two readers’ 1–4 ratings in each dimension. There is no official totaling or averaging of scores, although colleges may choose to do so.

Readers avoid extremes

What is almost universally true about grading of standardized test essays is that readers gravitate to the middle of the scale. The default instinct is to nudge a score above or below a perceived cutoff or midpoint rather than to evenly distribute scores. When the only options are 1, 2, 3, or 4, the consequence is predictable—readers give out a lot of 2s and 3s and very few 1s and 4s. In fact, our analysis shows that 80% of all reader scores are 2s or 3s. This, in turn, means that most of the dimension scores (the sum of the two readers) range from 4 to 6. Analysis scores are outliers. A third of readers give essays a 1 in Analysis. Below is the distribution of reader scores across all dimensions.

What is a good SAT Essay score?

By combining multiple data sources—including extensive College Board scoring information—Compass has estimated the mean and mode (most common) essay scores for students at various score levels. We also found that the reading and writing dimensions were similar, while analysis scores lagged by a point across all sub-groups. These figures should not be viewed as cutoffs for “good” scores. The loose correlation of essay score to Total Score and the high standard deviation of essay scores means that students at all levels see wide variation of scores. The average essay-taking student scores a 1,080 on the SAT and receives just under a 5/4/5.

College Board recently released essay results for the class of 2017, so score distributions are now available. From these, percentiles can also be calculated. We provide these figures with mixed feelings. On the one hand, percentile scores on such an imperfect measure can be highly misleading. On the other hand, we feel that students should understand the full workings of essay scores.

The role of luck

What is frustrating to many students on the SAT and ACT is that they can score 98th percentile in most areas and then get a “middling” score on the essay. This result is actually quite predictable. Whereas math and verbal scores are the result of dozens of objective questions, the essay is a single question graded subjectively. To replace statistical concepts with a colloquial one—far more “luck” is involved than on the multiple-choice sections. What text is used in the essay stimulus? How well will the student respond to the style and subject matter? Which of the hundreds of readers were assigned to grade the student’s essay? What other essays has the reader recently scored?

Even good writers run into the unpredictability involved and the fact that essay readers give so few high scores. A 5 means that the Readers A and B gave the essay a 2 and a 3, respectively. Which reader was “right?” If the essay had encountered two readers like Reader A, it would have received a 4. If the essay had been given two readers like Reader B, it would have received a 6. That swing makes a large difference if we judge scores exclusively by percentiles, but essay scores are simply too blurry to make such cut-and-dry distinctions. More than 80% of students receive one of three scores—4, 5, or 6 on the reading and writing dimensions and 3, 4, or 5 on analysis.

What do colleges expect?

It’s unlikely that many colleges will release a breakdown of essay scores for admitted students—especially since so few are requiring it. What we know from experience with the ACT , though, is that even at the most competitive schools in the country, the 25th–75th percentile scores of admitted students were 8–10 on the ACT’s old 2–12 score range. We expect that things will play out similarly for the SAT and that most students admitted to highly selective colleges will have domain scores in the 5–7 range (possibly closer to 4–6 for analysis). It’s even less likely for students to average a high score across all three areas than it is to obtain a single high mark. We estimate that only a fraction of a percent of students will average an 8—for example [8/8/8, 7/8/8, 8/7/8, or 8,8,7].

Update as of October 2017. The University of California system has published the 25th–75th percentile ranges for enrolled students. It has chosen to work with total scores. The highest ranges—including those at UCLA and Berkeley—are 17–20. Those scores are inline with our estimates above.

How will colleges use the domain scores?

Colleges have been given no guidance by College Board on how to use essay scores for admission. Will they sum the scores? Will they average them? Will they value certain areas over others? Chances are that if you are worrying too much about those questions, then you are likely losing sight of the bigger picture. We know of no cases where admission committees will make formulaic use of essay scores. The scores are a very small, very error-prone part of a student’s testing portfolio.

How low is too low?

Are 3s and 4s, then, low enough that an otherwise high-scoring student should retest? There is no one-size-fits-all answer to that question. In general, it is a mistake to retest solely to improve an essay score unless a student is confident that the SAT Total Score can be maintained or improved. A student with a 1340 PSAT and 1280 SAT may feel that it is worthwhile to bring up low essay scores because she has previously shown that she can do better on the Evidence-based Reading and Writing and Math, as well. A student with a 1400 PSAT and 1540 SAT should think long and hard before committing to a retest. Admission results from the class of 2017 may give us some added insight into the use of SAT Essay scores.

Will colleges continue to require the SAT Essay?

For the class of 2017, Compass has prepared a list of the SAT Essay and ACT Writing policies for 360 of the top colleges . Several of the largest and most prestigious public university systems—California, Michigan, and Texas, for example, still require the essay, and a number of highly competitive private colleges do the same—for example, Dartmouth, Harvard, Princeton, and Stanford.

The number of excellent colleges not requiring the SAT Essay, though, is long and getting longer. Compass expects even more colleges to drop the essay requirement for the classes of 2018 and 2019. Policies are typically finalized in late spring or during the summer.

Should I skip the essay entirely?

A common question regarding SAT scores is whether the whole mess can be avoided by skipping the essay. After all, if only about 10% of colleges are requiring the section, is it really that important? Despite serious misgivings about the test and the ways scores are interpreted, Compass still recommends that most students take the essay unless they are certain that they will not be applying to any of the colleges requiring or recommending it. Nationally, about 70% of students choose to take the essay on at least one SAT administration. When looking at higher scoring segments, that quickly rises to 85–90%. Almost all Compass students take the SAT Essay at least once to insure that they do not miss out on educational opportunities.

Should I prepare for the SAT Essay?

Most Compass students decide to do some preparation for the essay, because taking any part of a test “cold” can be an unpleasant experience, and students want to avoid feeling like a retake is necessary. In addition to practicing exercises and tests, most students can perform well enough on the SAT Essay after 1–2 hours of tutoring. Students taking a Compass practice SAT will also receive a scored essay. Students interested in essay writing tips for the SAT can refer to Compass blog posts on the difference between the ACT and SAT tasks  and the use of first person on the essays .

Will I be able to see my essay?

Yes. ACT makes it difficult to obtain a copy of your Writing essay, but College Board includes it as part of your online report.

Will colleges have access to my essay? Even if they don’t require it?

Yes, colleges are provided with student essays. We know of very few circumstances where SAT Essay reading is regularly conducted. Colleges that do not require the SAT Essay fall into the “consider” and “do not consider” camps. Schools do not always list this policy on their website or in their application materials, so it is hard to have a comprehensive list. We recommend contacting colleges for more information. In general, the essay will have little to no impact at colleges that do not require or recommend it.

Is the SAT Essay a reason to take the ACT instead?

Almost all colleges that require the SAT Essay require Writing for ACT-takers. The essays are very different on the two tests, but neither can be said to be universally “easier” or “harder.” Compass recommends that the primary sections of the tests determine your planning. Compass’ content experts have also written a piece on how to attack the ACT essay .

Key links in this post:

ACT and SAT essay requirements ACT Writing scores explained Comparing ACT and SAT essay tasks The use of first person in ACT and SAT essays Understanding the “audience and purpose” of the ACT essay Compass proctored practice testing for the ACT, SAT, and Subject Tests

About Art Sawyer

Art graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University, where he was the top-ranked liberal arts student in his class. Art pioneered the one-on-one approach to test prep in California in 1989 and co-founded Compass Education Group in 2004 in order to bring the best ideas and tutors into students' homes and computers. Although he has attained perfect scores on all flavors of the SAT and ACT, he is routinely beaten in backgammon.

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Hi! I’m a high school junior who took the October and November SATs. I got a 1500 on October and then retook it to get a 1590 in November. I’m very happy with my score, but my essays are troubling me. I got a 6-4-6 in October and thought I would improve in November, but I got a 6-3-6. I really cannot improve my actual SAT score, but I don’t understand the essay. I’ve always been a good writer and have consistently been praised for it in English class and outside of class. Is this essay score indicative of my writing skill? And will this essay hurt my chances at Ivy League and other top tier schools? None of the schools I plan on applying to require it, but, since I have to submit it, will it hurt my chances? Thank you so much.

Maya, The essay is becoming increasingly irrelevant. Honestly, a 6-4-6 is a fine score and will not hurt your chances for admission. It’s something of an odd writing task, so I wouldn’t worry that it doesn’t match your writing skills elsewhere.

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How Long Should Your College Essay Be? What Is the Ideal Length?

What’s covered: , personal statement length vs. supplemental essay length, are college essay word limits hard, what if a college essay word count isn’t given, what if you need to submit a graded paper, where to get your essays edited.

Students often spend hours agonizing over the best topics for their college essays. While it’s natural to wonder whether your personal statement is original or compelling enough, there’s one aspect of the process that shouldn’t cause you undue stress—how many words should a college essay be? Fortunately, with a little research, you can uncover the ideal college essay length for all your applications.

Unlike high school assignments, which typically have a strict page requirement, most colleges provide a word limit or word range for their application essays. This practice helps ensure that essays are the same length regardless of font or formatting. A good guideline is that students should strive to get as close as possible to the upper limit of the word range without exceeding it. Keep reading to learn more about best practices for college essay length.

How many words should a college essay be? Personal statements are generally 500-650 words. For example, the Common Application , which can be used to apply to more than 800 colleges, requires an essay ranging from 250-650 words . Similarly, the Coalition Application , which has 150 member schools, features an essay with a recommended length of 500-650 words.

650 words is the most common limit for your personal statement, but some schools may ask students to write more or less. For example, ApplyTexas , a platform used to apply to Texas public universities and other select colleges, requests essays with requirements that vary by school. For example, students applying to UT Austin will need to submit an essay of 500-700 words, along with three short-answer questions of 250-300 words each.

On the other hand, the University of California (UC) application includes a Personal Insight section with eight prompts . Students are asked to respond to any four of these prompts, with each response topping out at 350 words.

Additionally, some schools request a few supplemental essays, which are typically shorter than a personal statement. These questions are designed to gain more information about a student’s interests and abilities, and may include topics like your reasons for wanting to attend their school, your desired major, or your favorite activity.

Most schools require 1-3 supplemental essays, though some may require more or none at all (see our list of top colleges without supplemental essays ). These essays tend to be around 250 words, but some may be just as long as your main essay. For example, Cornell requires applicants to write a second supplemental essay (of 650 words max) that is specific to the program they’re applying to. The exception to this is the Cornell College of Engineering, for which applicants are required to compose two supplemental essays of 250 words max each.

For best results, keep your essays within the word range provided. While you don’t have to hit the count exactly, you should aim to stay within a 10% difference of the upper limit—without including fluff or filler. For example, if the school requests 500 words, try to ensure that your essay is between 450 and 500 words.

For the Common App, try to stay within 550-650 words, even though the given range is 250-650. Any submission shorter than 500 words will make it look as though you simply didn’t care enough to give your best effort. An essay shorter than 500 words won’t be long enough to truly share who you are and what matters to you.

Exceeding the word count isn’t an option—the application portal cuts off anything over the maximum number of allowed words. This is something you want to be particularly careful of if you’re drafting your essay in a Word or Google document and pasting it into the application.

Although most schools provide applicants with a specific word count, some offer more general guidelines. For example, a college may ask for a particular number of pages or paragraphs.

If you aren’t given a word count, try to adhere to the best practices and conventions of writing. Avoid writing especially short or overly long paragraphs—250 words per paragraph is generally a safe upper limit. If you’re asked to write a certain number of pages, single- or double-spaced, stick to a standard font and font size (like 12-point Times New Roman).

In the event that the college doesn’t offer any guidelines at all, aim for an essay length of around 500 words.

While essays are the most commonly requested writing sample, some colleges ask for additional pieces of content. For example, Princeton University requires students to submit a previously graded paper for evaluation .

Princeton offers guidelines that cover length, but if another school requests an old paper and doesn’t offer length requirements, a paper ranging from 3-5 pages should yield the best results. The goal is to select a paper long enough to showcase your writing skills and unique voice, but short enough that the admissions officer doesn’t get bored reading it.

Is your essay effective while staying within the required word count? It’s hard to evaluate your own writing, especially after rereading it numerous times. CollegeVine’s free Peer Essay Review provides an opportunity to have your essay reviewed by a fellow student, for free. Similarly, you can help other students by reviewing their essays—this is a great way to refine your own writing skills.

Expert advice is also available. CollegeVine’s advisors are prepared to help you perfect your personal statement and submit a successful application to your top schools. Find the right advisor for you to improve your chances of getting into your dream school!

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These are the hardest SAT vocabulary words for Wisconsinites, according to a new study

While students may perceive that summer is here to stay, schools have tentative start dates on the calendar, and the 2024-2025 academic year is imminent.

For many, one of the most dreaded but memorable parts of school is standardized testing. Standardized tests have become less universal since the COVID-19 pandemic, and numerous colleges continue to offer test-optional admissions . Still, studying for the ACT, SAT and AP exams remains a big part of teenagers' schedules, especially those eyeing the nation's top-ranked colleges.

As another class of Wisconsin high schoolers starts preparing for these exams, crossword experts at WordDB.com released a study seeking to measure the difficulty of every word listed as an answer option in the Reading and Writing section of the most recent SAT practice tests. To accomplish this, the researchers evaluated how frequently residents of each U.S. state searched on Google for the definition of 257 words featured in six SAT practice tests.

Here are some of their key findings:

• The most searched-for SAT words in Wisconsin include "nuanced," "manifest" and "antecedent." These are also the top three nationwide.
• On average, one out of every 86 Wisconsinites searches online for the definition of an SAT word each month.
• "Nuanced" was the most searched-for SAT word in America, with nearly 134,500 monthly searches.

What are the hardest SAT vocabulary words for Wisconsinites?

More: Test-optional admissions extended at UW-Madison, other UW campuses

More: Student test scores rise in Wisconsin but haven't recovered from pandemic

Trang chủ > Blog > Những từ chuyển tiếp hay nhất cho bài luận (Có ví dụ)

Những từ chuyển tiếp hay nhất cho bài luận (Có ví dụ)

• Nhóm biên tập Smodin
• Cập nhật: Tháng Tám 13, 2024
• Hướng dẫn chung về nội dung và cách viết

Hầu hết các bài luận đều yêu cầu bạn thảo luận nhiều hơn một ý tưởng. Tuy nhiên, việc chuyển sang một ý tưởng mới một cách đột ngột có thể đột ngột và gây khó chịu cho người đọc. Đây là lúc các từ chuyển tiếp xuất hiện. Ngay cả khi viết luận không phải là điểm mạnh của bạn , khá dễ dàng để học cách sử dụng các từ và cụm từ chuyển tiếp.

Vậy từ chuyển tiếp là gì? Chúng là những từ và cụm từ thể hiện sự liên kết giữa hai yếu tố. Chúng có thể cho thấy rằng bạn đang chuyển sang một chủ đề mới, đưa ra bằng chứng mới hoặc tóm tắt quan điểm của mình. Họ thậm chí có thể liên kết các đoạn văn lại với nhau một cách dễ dàng và cải thiện dòng chảy văn bản của bạn . Rắc những điều này trong suốt bài luận của bạn sẽ giúp người đọc hiểu lập luận của bạn rõ ràng hơn.

Về cơ bản, các từ chuyển tiếp cho bài luận rất quan trọng để cải thiện mạch văn của bạn. Nhưng bạn vẫn cần biết cách sử dụng chúng một cách hiệu quả nếu muốn đạt điểm cao nhất.

Cách sử dụng các từ chuyển tiếp trong bài luận

Một từ chuyển tiếp báo hiệu một sự thay đổi trong bài viết của bạn. Bạn sử dụng chúng như một phần của câu chuyển tiếp, chứa hai chủ đề đối lập hoặc kết nối các ý tưởng tương tự.

Bạn không cần những từ chuyển tiếp trong mỗi câu. Chỉ cần đọc lại phần giới thiệu của chúng tôi – không phải câu nào cũng có phần giới thiệu. Thậm chí không phải đoạn nào cũng có chúng! Nhưng việc đưa chúng vào xuyên suốt tác phẩm của bạn có thể thực sự giúp người đọc hiểu chúng ở đâu trong văn bản.

Xem xét ví dụ này:

• Thí nghiệm đã thành công. Chúng tôi quyết định tiến hành nghiên cứu sâu hơn.
• Thí nghiệm đã thành công. Vì vậy, chúng tôi quyết định tiến hành nghiên cứu sâu hơn.

Câu thứ hai nêu bật mối liên hệ giữa hai ý tưởng này. Sự kết nối có thể là những ý tưởng tương phản, những ý tưởng tương tự hoặc một trình tự. Kết quả là người đọc hiểu được mạch logic hơn trong văn bản. Mặc dù câu đầu tiên vẫn đúng ngữ pháp nhưng nó hơi chói tai.

Và đây là điều quan trọng cần lưu ý về các từ chuyển tiếp. Đôi khi, sự kết nối là hiển nhiên. Các từ và cụm từ như “tuy nhiên” và “ví dụ” xuất hiện hoàn toàn hợp lý trong văn bản. Theo cách tương tự, các từ chuyển tiếp tuần tự như “đầu tiên”, “tiếp theo”, “cuối cùng”, v.v. là những lựa chọn hiển nhiên. Tuy nhiên, các từ chuyển tiếp khác ít rõ ràng hơn–mục tiêu chính của chúng chỉ là cải thiện dòng chảy. Họ giữ cho bài viết của bạn có tổ chức.

Hầu hết các từ và cụm từ chuyển tiếp xuất hiện ở đầu câu, đoạn văn hoặc mệnh đề. Mặc dù vậy, đôi khi chúng cũng có thể xuất hiện ở những nơi khác.

Cũng cần lưu ý rằng bạn cần chọn từ chuyển tiếp phù hợp. Hãy cùng khám phá một số ví dụ dưới đây.

Ví dụ về các từ chuyển tiếp cho bài tiểu luận

Tùy thuộc vào bài luận bạn đang viết, bạn có thể thấy rằng nó yêu cầu các từ chuyển tiếp khác nhau. Một số từ và cụm từ chuyển tiếp giới thiệu ý tưởng nội dung mới , trong khi những người khác nhấn mạnh rằng hai ý tưởng đều quan trọng như nhau.

Trên thực tế, bạn có thể cần một số loại này trong bất kỳ bài viết học thuật nào mà bạn thực hiện. Hãy cùng khám phá tám loại từ chuyển tiếp mà bạn có thể cần.

Từ chuyển tiếp cho mâu thuẫn

Trong nhiều bài luận, bạn sẽ cần cân nhắc một lập luận bằng một lập luận phản biện. Có những từ và cụm từ riêng lẻ có thể làm nổi bật sự tương phản này, chuyển từ ý tưởng này sang ý tưởng đối lập.

Những từ trái nghĩa bao gồm:

• Họ Nhận xét các mặt khác

Bạn có thể nói điều gì đó như:

• Ngược lại, một phương pháp thay thế tỏ ra hiệu quả.
• Tuy nhiên, cách tiếp cận này có những hạn chế của nó.

Điều này rất tốt cho các bài luận phân tích mà bạn đưa vào đó một sự so sánh.

Từ chuyển tiếp để bổ sung

Hầu hết các bài luận đều yêu cầu bạn chứng minh lý luận của mình. Do đó, bạn cần minh họa bằng chứng bạn có cho một quan điểm cụ thể. Bạn thậm chí có thể cần nhiều hơn một điểm.

Có một số từ chuyển tiếp cho mục đích này:

• Hơn thế nữa
• Bên cạnh đó

Bạn có thể nói:

• Ngoài ra, anh ấy còn mang đến một thái độ tích cực bên cạnh các kỹ năng của mình.
• Hơn nữa, nghiên cứu ủng hộ kết luận này

Cả hai câu này đều có thể giúp bạn bổ sung vào tuyên bố trước đó, củng cố ý tưởng của bạn. Thông thường, bạn có thể sử dụng những từ này để thể hiện rằng hai ý tưởng đều quan trọng như nhau. Nó cung cấp một bổ sung đơn giản, thay vì làm cho cái này có vẻ quan trọng hơn cái kia.

Từ chuyển tiếp để giới thiệu ví dụ

Theo cách tương tự, có những từ chuyển tiếp khác mà bạn có thể sử dụng cụ thể làm ví dụ. Đây là những cách tuyệt vời (và dễ dàng) để giới thiệu bằng chứng của bạn. Chúng bao gồm:

Câu của bạn có thể trông như thế này:

• Ví dụ, bằng chứng cho thấy rằng…
• Cụ thể, việc thêm các yếu tố như sự hài hước có thể thu hút người đọc.

Bạn nên viết ra một danh sách những điều này mà bạn có thể sử dụng trong suốt bài luận của mình. Bằng cách đó, bạn sẽ không sử dụng các từ chuyển tiếp giống nhau xuyên suốt.

Từ chuyển tiếp cho điều kiện và nguyên nhân và kết quả

Đôi khi, một từ chuyển tiếp có thể biểu thị mối quan hệ nhân quả giữa hai sự vật. Đây giống như ví dụ chúng ta đã thấy trước đây, sử dụng “do đó”. Những từ chuyển tiếp này không phải lúc nào cũng rõ ràng nhưng chúng có thể cải thiện đáng kể mạch văn của bạn.

Chúng bao gồm:

Nếu bạn đang viết một bài luận lịch sử hoặc cố gắng trình bày một hậu quả thì những từ chuyển tiếp này là những người bạn tốt nhất của bạn. Hãy nghĩ về những câu ví dụ sau:

• Vì vậy, điều quan trọng là phải tuân theo các hướng dẫn.
• Vì vậy, dự án bị trì hoãn.

Một lần nữa, hãy thử viết những điều này ra để đưa vào suốt bài luận của bạn.

Từ chuyển tiếp để làm rõ thêm

Từ chuyển tiếp phù hợp cũng có thể giúp bạn làm rõ quan điểm của mình hoặc nhấn mạnh thêm. Thông thường, chỉ cần một từ duy nhất để thay đổi ý nghĩa của câu và thêm điểm nhấn. Ví dụ:

• Trong thực tế
• Một cách tự nhiên

Thông thường, những từ và cụm từ này rất hữu ích để nhấn mạnh tầm quan trọng của quan điểm bạn vừa nêu. Ví dụ, bạn có thể nói:

• Quả thực, những phát hiện này rất có ý nghĩa.
• Rõ ràng, cách tiếp cận này hiệu quả hơn.

Tuy nhiên, hãy cẩn thận với cách bạn sử dụng những từ chuyển tiếp này. Tùy thuộc vào mức độ thuyết phục của lập luận của bạn, người đọc có thể rút ra một kết luận khác. Vì vậy, đừng sử dụng những từ như “chắc chắn” trừ khi bạn thực sự chắc chắn!

Từ chuyển tiếp để tóm tắt

Vào cuối bài luận, bạn cần cung cấp một bản tóm tắt tất cả các điểm của bạn. Việc bắt đầu ngay phần kết luận có thể đột ngột, đó là lý do tại sao bạn cần một từ chuyển tiếp để thông báo phần tóm tắt. Hãy thử những điều này:

• Trong kết luận
• Trong bản tóm tắt
• Tất cả mọi thứ đã được cân nhắc
• Để kết luận

Tất cả những từ này đều tuyệt vời để giới thiệu đoạn cuối cùng. Chúng cho người đọc thấy rằng bạn sắp tóm tắt lại những điểm chính của mình. Bạn sẽ thường thấy những câu như thế này:

• Tóm lại, nghiên cứu ủng hộ giả thuyết.
• Tóm lại, lợi ích lớn hơn chi phí.

Thêm những từ hoặc cụm từ này là một cách tuyệt vời để giới thiệu phân tích cuối cùng của bạn.

Từ chuyển tiếp cho mối quan hệ thời gian

Bất cứ khi nào bạn đọc một công thức nấu ăn, bạn sẽ tìm thấy những chuyển tiếp thể hiện mối quan hệ về thời gian. Điều này là do các công thức nấu ăn được thực hiện theo từng bước, trong đó mỗi điểm nối tiếp ngay sau điểm trước đó. Tuy nhiên, cũng có nhiều cách khác để sử dụng những từ chuyển tiếp này. Trước tiên, hãy xem xét một số tùy chọn:

Dưới đây là hai ví dụ về những từ này được sử dụng, một ví dụ từ từng bước và một ví dụ khác từ một bài luận:

• Đầu tiên, thu thập tất cả các tài liệu cần thiết.
• Sau đó, các nhà nghiên cứu đã phân tích dữ liệu.

Như bạn có thể thấy trong ví dụ thứ hai, bạn cũng có thể sử dụng các chuyển đổi này trong phân tích.

Từ chuyển tiếp cho chuỗi và chuỗi

Các từ chuyển tiếp tuần tự rất giống với những gì chúng ta đã thảo luận trước đây. Trên thực tế, có một số sự chồng chéo. Tuy nhiên, những từ này xuất hiện theo một trình tự chính xác:

• Ngay từ đầu
• Ở vị trí thứ hai

Và vân vân. Bạn có thể sử dụng từng cái để minh họa bạn đang ở đâu trong một quy trình cụ thể. Ví dụ:

• Đầu tiên chúng ta cần giải quyết vấn đề chính.
• Trước hết, chính sách cần được sửa đổi.

Một lần nữa, bạn có thể sử dụng những thông tin này cho các sự kiện tuần tự như công thức nấu ăn, nhưng cũng có thể dẫn dắt người đọc thông qua lập luận của bạn. Hãy nhớ rằng, mỗi bài luận nên có phần mở đầu, phần giữa và phần cuối. Vì vậy, bạn có thể sử dụng những từ chuyển tiếp như thế này để đánh dấu vị trí của bạn trong lập luận của mình.

Trình viết AI của Smodin có thể trợ giúp việc chuyển từ như thế nào

Bạn vẫn đang gặp khó khăn với các từ và cụm từ chuyển tiếp? Có một công cụ cho việc đó! Nhà văn AI của Smodin có thể giúp bạn tạo nội dung phù hợp với ý tưởng của bạn. Đó là một công cụ viết luận nâng cao giúp viết các bài báo học thuật đạt tiêu chuẩn cao. Và nó tích hợp liền mạch các từ chuyển tiếp! Bằng cách sử dụng nhiều từ và cụm từ đơn lẻ, Smodin tạo ra văn bản hấp dẫn với mạch truyện tuyệt vời.

Dưới đây là một ví dụ:

• Không có Người viết AI của Smodin: “Biến đổi khí hậu là một vấn đề cấp bách. Nhiều nước đang thực hiện chính sách xanh.”
• Với AI Writer của Smodin: “Biến đổi khí hậu là một vấn đề cấp bách; do đó, nhiều nước đang thực hiện chính sách xanh.”

Và, nhà văn AI của Smodin đáp ứng được những tiêu chuẩn học thuật khắt khe. So với các công cụ AI tổng hợp khác, Smodin tốt hơn nhiều cho công việc học tập. Nó có một cơ sở dữ liệu cụ thể hơn nhiều về công việc học tập chất lượng cao, cho phép nó viết các văn bản có chất lượng tương tự.

Điều này đảm bảo rằng các từ và cụm từ chuyển tiếp được sử dụng là phù hợp cho văn bản trang trọng. Công cụ này hiểu được các sắc thái của ngôn ngữ học thuật, đề xuất những chuyển tiếp giúp nâng cao chất lượng bài luận của bạn.

Các tính năng chính của AI Writer của Smodin

Smodin có một số tính năng chính có thể giúp bạn tạo các bài luận đạt tiêu chuẩn cao, chẳng hạn như:

• Tính mạch lạc và mạch lạc được nâng cao: AI gợi ý các từ chuyển tiếp giúp nâng cao khả năng đọc và tính logic của bài luận của bạn.
• Gợi ý theo ngữ cảnh: Dựa trên ngữ cảnh bài viết của bạn, AI sẽ cung cấp các từ và cụm từ chuyển tiếp phù hợp.
• Phù hợp với các tiêu chuẩn học thuật: AI của Smodin đảm bảo rằng các chuyển tiếp được sử dụng phù hợp với văn bản học thuật, tuân thủ các tiêu chuẩn chính thức.

Vậy bạn còn chờ gì nữa? Xem cách người viết AI của Smodin có thể dễ dàng nâng cao bài luận của bạn thông qua cả cấu trúc và dòng chảy. Với Smodin, bạn có thể đạt điểm cao hơn và hiểu rõ hơn về công việc của mình.

Sử dụng các từ chuyển tiếp tốt nhất cho bài luận

Sử dụng các từ chuyển tiếp trong bài luận là rất quan trọng để tạo ra một luồng ý tưởng trôi chảy và mạch lạc. Những từ và cụm từ này là cầu nối hướng dẫn người đọc thông qua các lập luận của bạn. Không có chúng, sẽ khó hiểu được mối liên hệ giữa các điểm khác nhau. Vì vậy, việc sử dụng hiệu quả các từ chuyển tiếp không chỉ giúp bài luận dễ đọc hơn mà còn củng cố lập luận tổng thể của bạn.

AI Writer của Smodin là một công cụ vô giá để kết hợp các từ chuyển tiếp một cách liền mạch vào bài luận của bạn. Công cụ nâng cao này gợi ý các chuyển tiếp phù hợp theo ngữ cảnh, đảm bảo bài luận của bạn trôi chảy một cách hợp lý và đáp ứng các tiêu chuẩn học thuật cao.

Đừng để thử thách tìm từ chuyển tiếp phù hợp cản trở bài viết của bạn. Khám phá AI Writer của Smodin để nâng cao kỹ năng viết bài luận của bạn và tạo ra các bài báo học thuật chất lượng hàng đầu. Có lẽ bạn là một sinh viên đang hướng tới mục tiêu đạt điểm cao hơn hoặc một nhà văn đang tìm cách cải thiện dòng chảy tác phẩm của mình. AI Writer của Smodin luôn sẵn sàng trợ giúp. Hãy thử Smodin ngay hôm nay và trải nghiệm sự khác biệt trong bài viết của bạn!

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262 SAT Vocab Words You Must Know

SAT Writing , SAT Reading

A lot of students immediately think of vocabulary when they hear the word SAT. But are SAT vocab words really that important for doing well on the test? Kind of. If you’re aiming for a high score, you’ll definitely want to spend some time learning key SAT words.

In this guide, we give you a comprehensive list of 262 of the most common SAT vocabulary words. We also explain how vocab is tested on the SAT, what types of questions you’ll see, and how to get the most out of your vocab prep.

How Is Vocabulary Tested on the SAT?

The SAT has undergone a number of overhauls over the years that have made vocabulary  a far less important part of the test. There are fewer vocabulary questions on the current SAT than there were on older versions of the exam, which include question types like analogies that focused solely on testing vocab knowledge. 

That said, it'll still benefit you to study vocab, especially if you're aiming for a high or perfect score .

All SAT words are about medium difficulty  and are  tested in the context of reading passages, so you’ll get not just a sentence but an entire paragraph or passage to work with.

Context clues make memorizing SAT vocab words less important on the current SAT than it was on the old SAT, back when you had to memorize dozens of obscure words and answer questions that dealt with isolated sentences ( these were called Sentence Completion problems ).  This made vocab questions particularly hard since you were given minimal context with which to solve them.

What Do SAT Vocabulary Questions Look Like?

The new digital SAT has one Reading and Writing section broken into four domains: Craft and Structure, Information and Ideas, Standard English Conventions, and Expression of Ideas. Only one domain, Craft and Structure, includes vocabulary as a tested skill. 

According to College Board's description of this domain, "Students will use comprehension, vocabulary, analysis, synthesis, and reasoning skills and knowledge to understand and use high-utility words and phrases in context, evaluate texts rhetorically, and make connections between topically related texts." 

There are approximately 13-15 questions total in this domain, which makes up about 28 percent of the Reading and Writing section of the SAT. But as you can see from the description, vocabulary is not tested in isolation, but in context . That means you won't see a vocabulary word and then be asked to choose the correct definition. Instead, you'll be tested on whether you can use context clues to interpret certain vocabulary words and understand the meaning of a phrase or passage.

It will help to know alternative meanings of relatively common words, such as “directly” and “hold.” While you might  come across slightly more difficult SAT words, you generally shouldn’t see any as hard as those on the old SAT.

Here's an example of a Reading vocabulary question (with the relevant part of the passage shown):

Source: Official SAT Practice Test #1

In addition to Words in Context questions, you’ll get  questions that require you to pick a single word or phrase in order to paraphrase or clarify part of a passage.  With these questions, you must understand what all  the SAT vocab words mean so that you can choose the right answer.

Here are some examples of these questions:  

A sample SAT question with single vocab words as answer choices. (Source: Official SAT Practice Test #1 )  

A sample SAT question with phrases as answer choices. (Source: Official SAT Practice Test #2 )  

In these examples, you'll need to know the definitions of a variety of SAT vocabulary words, such as “substantiated,” “freewheeling,” and “scandalous,” so that you can select the right answer choice.

262 SAT Vocab Words You’re Bound to See on Test Day

Now that you know how vocabulary plays a role on the SAT, let's go over the 262 words and definitions we suggest knowing if you want to get a high score on SAT Reading and Writing.

To compile this list, we dug through all official SAT practice tests , looking at both the Reading and Writing sections (and not just the questions but the answer choices and passages, too).  We also looked at SAT words from other online vocab lists.

Though you don’t need to memorize all the words below, familiarizing yourself with most of them should help you better identify the tones of passages and make you more efficient at interpreting and answering questions correctly on SAT Reading and Writing.

Below, we give you each word, its part of speech, its definition, and an example sentence (or more if the word has multiple definitions/parts of speech). All words are listed in alphabetical order.

How to Study SAT Words Effectively: 3 Essential Tips

Now that you've got a huge list of SAT vocabulary words you can work with, what’s the best way to study them? Here are three key tips to help you get the most out of your SAT vocab studies.

#1: Make Flashcards and Use the Waterfall Method

One of the absolute best ways to study SAT vocab words is to make flashcards.  This lets you control which SAT words you study and even randomizes them so that you don't accidentally memorize words in a predetermined order.

We recommend using the waterfall method  to study your flashcards.   With this method, you'll get to see all the words in your deck, going over the most challenging words more often than the ones you already know or sort of know.

Here's how to use the waterfall method:

Once you’ve made your flashcards, split them up into decks (you can put whatever words you want in these decks) of about 30-50 cards each. Choose one deck to be your Starting Stack. 

Go through your Starting Stack, looking at each and every card. For the words you know, put them in a Know It pile. For the words you don’t know, put them in a separate Struggled pile as so:

Now, pick up your Struggled pile and go through each card in it (leave your Know It pile where it is). Put the cards you know in a second Know It pile and the ones you don’t know in a Struggled pile.

You should now have two Know It piles and one Struggled pile:

Repeat this process of picking up your Struggled pile and going through each card until you’re left with about one to five cards in your Struggled pile:

By now you should know most, if not all, cards in your deck.  But it isn’t enough to just go through them once— you also have to work back up your “waterfall” of cards.  

To do this, combine your Struggled pile with your last Know It pile (the pile closest to the Struggled pile). T his will be your Working pile. Go through all the cards in this pile. If there are any words you forgot, go through the entire pile again and again until you've learned all the definitions in it.

Continue this pattern by combining your current Working pile with the next Know It pile. Go through all these cards until you know each one.

At the end, you should have made your way all the back to your original Starting Stack. You now know all the SAT words and their meanings in your deck!  Repeat this waterfall method with the other decks you make so that you can learn even more critical SAT vocab words.

#2: Focus On Words You Don’t Know

If you don’t have time to study the entire list above or only want to learn some SAT words, use our list to make a new vocab list containing only the words you don’t know. So i f you know a word or are fairly sure you’ll be able to recognize it on test day, skip it and instead focus on  the words you’ll have the most trouble remembering.  Once you have your list, use the waterfall method to study it.

If you’re not a fan of paper flashcards, you can opt for digital flashcards. Anki is a free software you can download and use to make your own flashcards. The program uses spaced-repetition software (SRS) to show you difficult cards more often than those you know (basically, a digital version of the waterfall method).

#3: Take Official SAT Practice Tests

Since the majority of the words in our list above come from  official SAT practice tests , once you’ve studied these SAT words, you can put your knowledge to the test by taking a practice test.  This lets  you see whether you truly know the meanings of the words and  whether you’ll be able to get the right answers in the context of a full-length, timed test—just like the real SAT.

If you miss any questions because you forgot the meaning of a word, go back over our SAT vocab words list using your flashcards and the waterfall method.

The Best SAT Vocab Flashcards

If you plan to make your own SAT vocab flashcards from our list, you'll need at least 300 blank index cards and a system to keep them organized. These basic cards are an affordable option that are also available in fun colors . You can keep them organized with plastic baggies or rubber bands, or you can get an organizer . Alternatively, try these easy-flip flashcards that include binder clips.

Though we strongly recommend making your own flashcards, you can also buy pre-made ones. There aren't a lot of options for the new SAT. We'd recommend going with Barron's 1100 Words You Need to Know , a series of exercises to master key words and idioms, or Manhattan's GRE flashcards if you're looking for a challenge.

Conclusion: The Importance of Studying SAT Vocabulary

Overall, vocabulary words don't play a huge part on the SAT. That said, you’ll definitely have some questions on both the Reading and Writing section that test your knowledge of SAT words, so it’s important to study those most likely to appear on test day.

The best way to study SAT vocabulary is to make flashcards and use the waterfall method. This ensures you know all the words in your deck and aren’t glossing over any difficult ones.

If you don’t want to make flashcards or don’t have time to study the whole list, however, it’s a good idea to pick out the words you don’t know and study just those. With these, you can either make a smaller deck of paper flashcards or opt for digital flashcards.

No matter how you choose to study SAT vocab words, be sure to  test out what you’ve learned in the context of full-length practice tests. Nearly all the words in our list above come from official SAT practice tests, so you’re guaranteed to come across them in some form!

What’s Next?

Want more tips on how to study SAT vocabulary words? Check out our expert tips for memorizing SAT words fast and learn why the waterfall method works so well .

Aiming for a high SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing score? Take a peek at our in-depth guides to getting a perfect Reading score and learning how to read SAT passages .

Taking the ACT instead? Then you'll need to know vocab for that test, too. Learn what words to expect on the ACT and how to study them .

These recommendations are based solely on our knowledge and experience. If you purchase an item through one of our links, PrepScholar may receive a commission.

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Hannah received her MA in Japanese Studies from the University of Michigan and holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Southern California. From 2013 to 2015, she taught English in Japan via the JET Program. She is passionate about education, writing, and travel.

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