SAT Reading & Writing: Hyphens in Compound Adjectives
12+ practice questions in Praczo
The concept, explained
- 1
A hyphen connects two or more words to create a single compound adjective modifying a noun.
- 2
Use a hyphen when the compound adjective comes BEFORE the noun: "a fast-paced thriller."
- 3
Do NOT use a hyphen if the words come AFTER the noun: "the thriller was fast paced."
- 4
Do NOT use a hyphen if the first word ends in -ly (adverb): "a highly trained athlete" (no hyphen).
- 5
The SAT tests hyphens sparingly, usually prioritizing commas, dashes, and semicolons, but differentiating between an adverb-adjective pair and a compound adjective is the key trap.
- ✗ Hyphenating adverbs ending in -ly (e.g., "rapidly-changing climate").
- ✗ Hyphenating compound modifiers after the noun.
SAT-style practice
The board requested a _____ analysis of the quarterly budget.
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