Sample Items - No Passage

The sentence below has a spelling error.

In the laboratory, we set up the apparatus efficiently in aproximately 10 minutes.

Which word is NOT spelled correctly?

• A. laboratory

• B. apparatus

• C. efficiently

• D. aproximately

Answer explanation

The correct answer is choice (D) aproximately. The word should be spelled “approximately.” Choices (A), (B), and (C) are all spelled correctly.

Based on the word parts, what is the meaning of universal in the sentence?

They want to know why some stories receive universal acceptance, and others do not.

• A. possible

• B. regular

• C. common

• D. serious

Answer explanation

The correct answer is choice (C) common. It comes from the Latin root word “uni,” meaning “one” or “whole.” The word “universe” refers to all that exists, so by extension “universal” means common to all. Choices (A), (B), and (D) are not the correct meanings of the word

Which sentence uses commas correctly?

• A. She was happy with the quick, satisfying results.

• B. The group decided to stage the old, original, play.

• C. They painted the old barn with a bright, red paint.

• D. We went to the beach and built a sturdy, sand tower.

Answer explanation

The correct answer is choice (A) She was happy with the quick, satisfying results. A comma is used to separate coordinate adjectives. Choice (B) is incorrect. The comma between “old” and “original” is correct, but there should not be a comma between “original” and “play.” Choice (C) is incorrect because a comma is not required between the adjectives “bright” and “red.” Choice (D) is incorrect because a comma does not belong between “sturdy” and “sand.”

Which sentence contains an error between the relationship of ideas?

• A. Coming home late, they went straight to bed.

• B. Walking in the door, the lights were turned on.

• C. Without being warned, we heard them yell, “Surprise!”

• D. “Hello!” he shouted, waving to us from across the street.

Answer explanation

The correct answer is choice (B) Walking in the door, the lights were turned on. This is written incorrectly because the modifier is misplaced. The “lights” are not the subject of the sentence—they are not walking in the door. Choice (A) is written correctly. The clauses in this sentence are written correctly. Choice (C) is written correctly without a misplaced modifier. Choice (D) is written correctly. The clauses in this sentence are written correctly.

Read the paragraph.

1 More than a hundred years ago, Europeans who wanted to drink coffee typically tied up coffee grounds in a little piece of cloth and boiled it in a pot of water. 2 Some grounds usually got through the cloth and mixed with the drink. 3 The coffee also tasted very bitter. 4 Melitta Bentz invented a much better system for brewing coffee that involved using a heavy paper filter and a pot with holes punched in it. 5 When she poured the boiling water through this contraption, the paper held the coffee grounds, water drained through, and the resulting beverage was a ton better.

Which edit should be made to maintain the formal style of the paragraph?

• A. Change “a pot of water” to “some water” in sentence 1.

• B. Change “mixed” to “stirred” in sentence 2.

• C. Change “punched” to “placed” in sentence 4.

• D. Change “a ton better” to “much improved” in sentence 5.

Answer explanation

The correct answer is choice (D) Change “a ton better” to “much improved” in sentence 5. The formal style requires a more formal turn of phrase, which “much improved” is. Choices (A), (B), and (C) do not have words/phrases that are informal and need to be replaced.

A student is writing a research paper focusing on how the United Nations began. Which resource would be BEST for locating reliable information about the origin of the United Nations?

• A. an online essay written by a person who visited the United Nations Office at New York City

• B. a book of essays written by historians about the reasons the United Nations was founded

• C. a collection of interviews with people from different countries explaining what they think of the United Nations

• D. a travel guide for New York City, with a chapter about what to see and do at the United Nations Office

Answer explanation

The correct answer is choice (B) a book of essays written by historians about the reasons the United Nations was founded. This book would relate most to the topic of how the United Nations began. Choices (A), (C), and (D) are less related to the topic of origins of the U.N.

Read the draft of a paragraph from a student report on the difference between dogs and wolves.

1 Even though dogs descended from wolves, the two species have some important differences. 2 One difference is that wolves are much more involved in a pack. 3 They have close pack structures and depend on the pack to hunt and raise their litters of pups. 4 Unlike wolves, animals that eat a plant-based diet are called “herbivores.” 5 Dogs, on the other hand, do not have to depend on each other to catch food or raise their young.

Which sentence should be removed because it is NOT appropriate for the purpose of this paragraph?

• A. sentence 2

• B. sentence 3

• C. sentence 4

• D. sentence 5

Answer explanation

The correct answer is choice (C) sentence 4. Sentence 4 contains information that is related to the topic of wolves but is irrelevant to the rest of the paragraph. Choices (A), (B), and (D) are all logical sentences containing relevant information.

Which revision of the sentence BEST expresses the ideas clearly and concisely?

The first thing that we need to take care of when we meet during club time for the Spanish Club is figuring out when we will have elections and also finding out who can be available to be working at the booth for the club fair at school.

• A. Finding a date for elections and then also finding someone who can work at the Spanish Club booth at the club fair are both things that we need to take care of when we meet during club time.

• B. During the time we meet for Spanish club, our most urgent first thing that we should try to take care of is a date for elections and club fair stuff.

• C. A thing we may want to take care of in Spanish Club is elections and who can be on hand for the Spanish Club booth at the club fair at school when it happens.

• D. During our Spanish Club meeting, we most urgently need to decide on a date for elections and who can work at the Spanish Club booth at the school’s club fair.

Answer explanation

The correct answer is choice (D) During our Spanish Club meeting, we most urgently need to decide on a date for elections and who can work at the Spanish Club booth at the school’s club fair. This sentence is both the clearest in meaning and the most concise of the options given. Choices (A), (B), and (C) are either less clear, less concise, or both