ACT Preparation / Unit 4 ACT 0308 worked example, 60 to 90 seconds
Spotting the Repeated Meaning
The idea
Redundancy questions are answered in three steps. First, read the underlined words against the rest of the sentence, not alone, because the repeated meaning often sits outside the underline. Second, for each choice, ask whether any word restates a meaning given elsewhere. Third, of the choices with no repetition, keep the one that preserves every fact; if deleting the underlined words loses nothing, deletion is the answer.
In practice
Worked example: "The festival, which takes place annually, returns every year in June," with "which takes place annually" underlined. Every year already says annually, so the clause repeats it. Deleted, the sentence reads "The festival returns every year in June," with no fact lost. Second: "The two partners cooperated together on the design." Cooperated already means worked together, so together goes.
Where people slip
Each redundant phrase sounds fine alone. The repetition shows only when both halves are read in the same breath, which is why the first step reads beyond the underline.
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