ACT English Section

ACT English Test Outline

The ACT English test is a 35-minute section on which students answer 50 multiple-choice questions, all tied to reading passages that carry roughly the same number of questions apiece. Test-takers earn a section score from 1 to 36 plus three reporting category scores, the latter expressed as percentages of correct answers (nothing on the ACT penalizes a wrong guess). English is one of the exam's three required sections—English, Math, and Reading—and their scores are averaged to form the Composite. It is always administered first. Students who finish ahead of time must wait out the full 35 minutes before starting the next section, and there is no break immediately after English; the scheduled rest period falls between Math and Reading.

ACT English Reading Passages

The English test draws on several reading passages, each a few hundred words long. The writing spans many styles, from first-person narratives to descriptive essays, and the topics are chosen for a general audience—historical episodes, developments in the arts, scientific observations, personal experiences, biographies of notable figures, and other subjects that interest high school students. None of it presumes outside knowledge: every question can be answered from the passage itself, and all passages appear in standard American English.

ACT English Question Types

Every English question is multiple choice with four answer options, and the questions are spread across the passages. Within a passage, a question is flagged either by underlined text with the question number beneath it or by a boxed number. A handful of questions address the passage as a whole, and those are always labeled as such. When a question concerns underlined text, "NO CHANGE"—leaving the wording as it stands—is always the first choice. English questions fall into three reporting categories: Conventions of Standard English, which supplies the largest share of the section, followed by Production of Writing and then the smaller Knowledge of Language group.

ACT English Skills

ACT describes the purpose of the English test as measuring command of standard written English along with the conventions of the language. Conventions of Standard English questions deal with verb tense, punctuation, conjunctions, pronouns, and related points of grammar. Production of Writing questions turn on organization, topic development, and an author's purpose. Knowledge of Language questions ask you to sharpen someone else's prose by selecting the answer that improves it. Notably, the English test does not check spelling or vocabulary.

ACT English Scoring and Benchmark Data

On the 1-to-36 English scale, a typical score lands near the middle of the range, and high scores grow steadily rarer toward the top—only a small fraction of students reach the very highest marks. The College Readiness Benchmark for English is 18, meaning a score at that level signals roughly even odds of earning a B or better in a comparable first-year college course. Because 18 is the lowest of the ACT's section benchmarks, more students clear it than any other section's—though the exact averages, percentiles, and benchmark-attainment rates shift from year to year, so check ACT's current national data for the latest figures.

ACT English Scores, University Admission, Course or Test Waivers, and Scholarships

Though the practice is not widespread, some universities set a minimum ACT English score for admission, so applicants below the line cannot even apply. More commonly, colleges use English scores for placement: students at or above a set level may skip introductory English courses or testing requirements. Strong ACT results also open the door to a range of scholarships. Prospective undergraduates should research all of these possibilities carefully at the schools they are considering.