SAT English Practice Question

The use of a semicolon in a sentence, often used to separate two closely related independent clauses, can be a stylistic choice that makes writing more concise and sophisticated. For example, in the sentence "The sky was clear, but the air was cold; we knew that a snowstorm was coming." the semicolon separates the two independent clauses, which each could stand alone as a sentence. The first clause describes the weather, while the second clause describes the implication of the weather. What is the main idea of the text?

1. A.The semicolon is a punctuation mark used to join two independent clauses together.
2. B.The semicolon should only be used to separate two closely related independent clauses in a sentence.
3. C.The semicolon is a punctuation mark used to separate two independent clauses that are closely related.
4. D.The semicolon is a punctuation mark used to make writing more sophisticated.