All SAT Critical Reading Resources
Example Questions
Example Question #11 :Conjunctions And Sentence Logic In One Blank Sentences
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Although one can live without a gallbladder, the heart is a__________organ for survival.
cardiac
choleric
original
internal
cardiac
choleric
internal
vital
original
vital
Yes indeed, the heart is "cardiac"—the only "cardiac" (associated with the heart) organ in the body. This is not very informative. The same goes for "internal." The sentence clearly wants to set up an opposition between the gallbladder and the heart. You can tell this by the use of the word "although." The gallbladder is notabsolutely necessary—you can live without it. The implication is that the heart is necessary. Something is "vital" when it has such necessity, particularly for living. (The word comes from Latin roots related to "life.")
Example Question #11 :Conjunctions And Sentence Logic In One Blank Sentences
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
To the untrained eye, the gadget appeared to be a single machine when, in fact, it was___________of a number of interrelated ones.
confounded
finalized
compounded
轰炸
contracted
compounded
Often, the best approach to a sentence is to try to "fill in the blank" yourself. For this question, consider the fact that the two halves are contrasted. The gadget appeared to be one, single machine. In fact, it actually was "made up" of a number of interrelated ones. The idea is that it was a group of machines, gathered together and interrelated. When you compound things, youmix together (and generally connect) various elements. To "confound" isto cause confusion—don't be confused by this expression of confusion! The other options are likewise quite inappropriate for the purposes of this sentence.
Example Question #13 :Conjunctions And Sentence Logic In One Blank Sentences
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Although she was excellent at writing metered verse, Flavia also had an excellent__________style.
essay
prose
rhetorical
writing
didactic
prose
The contrast here is between the types of style under discussion. In the introductory clause, we are discussing Flavia’s ability to write "verse"—poetry. The passage implies that she also had an excellent “non-poetic” style. Prose writing is non-metered writing, and this is the best contrast to “metered verse.” “Writing” is too general, “didactic” meansfor teaching purposes, and even “essay” does not contrast to “meter” as directly as the word “prose" does.
Example Question #11 :Context Clues In One Blank Sentences
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Gilbert never was comfortable with the__________lifestyle that his brother lived, for they had been brought up in much simpler and poorer conditions, being taught to be thrifty with their resources.
superficial
arrogant
posh
destitute
indigent
posh
The contrast in this sentence is between the “simpler and poorer” conditions of the brothers’ childhood and that of Gilbert’s brother today. Indigence and destitution are extreme poverty, so these options are not at all opposite. While stereotypes might tempt us to think of the rich as being "arrogant," we must not go beyond the direct meaning of the sentence. “Posh” describes aluxuriousmanner of living, and this well contrasts with the brothers’ upbringing.
Example Question #15 :Conjunctions And Sentence Logic In One Blank Sentences
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Although few people believe in many corporeal__________like our ancestors, still those believing in only one god often speak as though he were a physical being in the world.
deities
stories
characters
personalities
legends
deities
The contrast in this sentence is between one god and many gods. Our blank is not necessarily about ancient legends. Indeed, it makes little sense to speak of “corporeal” (bodily) stories. The word “deity” meansgod or god-like being. Words like “deify” (to make into a god) or “theology” (the study of god) are related to “deity.” Therefore, the sentence is speaking of our ancestors believing in many gods—or, many “deities."
Example Question #16 :Conjunctions And Sentence Logic In One Blank Sentences
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Few people speak of the “souls” of plants, but Aristotle believed that such beings must be__________in some manner, for they exhibit self-motion not found in lifeless beings like rocks.
betokened
exalted
spiritual
animated
differentiated
animated
The two key descriptors used in this sentence are “exhibit self-motion” and “not found in lifeless beings.” To be “life-filled” and to be “self-moving” is to be “animated.” The word “animated” actually comes from the Latin "anima," meaningsoul. We often use the word to describe moving cartoons or perhaps someone who is very active in expressing himself or herself—as in, “He discussed the topic in an animated manner, flailing his hands about in excitement.”
Example Question #17 :Conjunctions And Sentence Logic In One Blank Sentences
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
In comparison with the daring tastes and hobbies of his wife, John found enjoyment in much more__________pleasures.
rustic
rural
bucolic
suburban
pedestrian
pedestrian
通常,我们使用“行人”这个词的意思who is walking instead of driving in a city. The roots of the word would lead us to think this as well, for “pedestrian” is derived from the Latin for “foot,” found in other words like “pedal” and “pedicure;” however, as an adjective, the word can mean “unexciting” or “uninteresting.” Since John is being contrasted with his wife, who has “daring tastes and hobbies,” he must be somewhat unexciting and dull—rather pedestrian.
Example Question #18 :Conjunctions And Sentence Logic In One Blank Sentences
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
In comparison with his rather svelte siblings, Tilghman’s__________form struck a significant visual contrast.
corpulent
grandiose
sizeable
extruded
gangly
corpulent
The contrast in this sentence is between Tilghman’s “svelt” siblings and himself. If someone is “svelt,” he or she is slender; therefore, if he is not svelt, Tilghman must be fat or “corpulent,” which means the same.
The word is derived from an almost identical Latin root that means the same and is more distantly derived from the Latin for “body” found in words like “corpse,” “incorporation,” and “corporeal.”
Example Question #19 :Conjunctions And Sentence Logic In One Blank Sentences
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Frowin’s two brothers were quite extreme in their temperaments, one being quite dolorous, while the other was exceedingly cheerful; for his part, Frowin was something of a__________between these two, seeming to avoid either extreme by a judicious balance.
hing
mean
tranquility
pivot
fulcrum
mean
The sense here is that Frowin occupies a “middle position” between these two, balancing their characteristics. The “mean” of a series of numbers is the average. The term is often used to describe any type of average between two or more things.
Example Question #20 :Conjunctions And Sentence Logic In One Blank Sentences
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Randall had long kept the many dogs together in one location in the animal shelter; however, recent events had led him to decide to__________the large dogs from the small ones.
position
segregate
differentiate
revoke
remove
segregate
The sense of the sentence is that Randall wishes to separate the large dogs from the small ones. The word “segregate” best implies separation of this sort. It literally means “to gather apart (or into parts).”
The prefix “se-” here implies the parts or “apart,” while the “-gregate” is derived from the Latin for “flock,” a root found in “congregation” and “gregarious.”
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