How to answer it
- Read the sentence before the blank and the sentence with the blank.
- Name the relationship: contrast, cause and effect, example, addition or sequence.
- Pick the only choice that signals that relationship.
Worked example
An original question in the SAT format, already answered.
Honeybees can learn to recognize individual human faces in lab tests. researchers caution that the bees likely use a general pattern-learning skill rather than one built for faces.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical transition?
- ASimilarly,
- BHowever,
- CFor example,
- DAs a result,
Answer: B. The second sentence limits the first claim, so the relationship is contrast. However signals contrast; the others signal similarity, an example or a cause.
The most common trap
Reading only the sentence with the blank. The relationship lives between the two sentences.
Practice it
Hourly Prep’s daily sets mix transitions with the rest of SAT Reading and Writing, and send more of it your way when it’s a weak spot. See how the SAT prep plan works, or browse the other SAT skill guides.