PSAT Writing — however, therefore and lists within lists

Two families of Boundaries questions on the PSAT/NMSQT cause more errors than their simplicity suggests. The first is the conjunctive adverb: words such as however, therefore and consequently look like conjunctions but are adverbs, so they cannot join two sentences with a comma. The second is the complex list: items that already contain commas, lists introduced by a colon or a dash, and lists that interrupt a sentence.

This material covers both in twelve original sentences, each with options that describe the punctuation in words. On the adverb side you meet a comma splice with however, a however that sits in the middle of one clause and takes a pair of commas, a comma splice with therefore repaired with a period, and a correctly punctuated consequently that needs no change. On the list side you punctuate cities and states and names with descriptions using semicolons, introduce a list with a colon after a complete clause, introduce a final explanation with a dash, remove a colon after "such as," remove a semicolon placed before a dependent clause, close an interrupting list with a second dash, and replace a semicolon that wrongly introduces two phrases. Each item offers exactly one correct repair; where more than one fix would be acceptable in real writing, only one of them appears among the options, and the explanations say why the others fail.

The flashcards separate conjunctive adverbs from coordinating conjunctions, list the rules for semicolons, colons and dashes in lists, and show where the comma goes after a conjunctive adverb. The written sheet asks you to correct comma splices two ways, punctuate lists within lists, and explain the rule behind each mark. The spoken session gives one sentence at a time and asks how it should be punctuated and why.

It offers four formats: a twelve-question quiz with explanations, a set of twelve flashcards, a printable written sheet of eight open questions that is checked after you photograph your answers, and a spoken practice session with an examiner who asks one question at a time and gives short feedback at the end. It is practice material written by Zestly and is not affiliated with or endorsed by the College Board.

• Punctuate however, therefore and consequently between independent clauses and inside a single clause
• Distinguish conjunctive adverbs from coordinating conjunctions
• Use semicolons to separate list items that contain commas
• Introduce lists and explanations with a colon or dash only after a complete clause, and close interruptions with a matching dash

Practice material written by Zestly, based on the College Board's published description of the PSAT/NMSQT Reading and Writing section (digital format, 54 questions in 64 minutes), Standard English Conventions domain, Boundaries skill, as described on satsuite.collegeboard.org (checked September 2026). All sentences, notes and texts are original.