All PSAT Critical Reading Resources
Example Questions
Example Question #134 : Verbs In One Blank Sentences
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
In addition to its many requirements, the position of president __________ to its holder a number of prerogatives in the community, such as the honor to leading parades as well as full access to a number of public buildings.
rewarded
returned
conferred
commended
compensated
conferred
There is no sense of compensation or reward in the claim of “prerogatives,” merely being given or granted something. This is the meaning of “conferred,” which merely means to grant something to another. The “con-” prefix means “with” and the “-fer” means “to bear or carry” and is found in many words like “transfer,” “suffer,” and “infer.” Something “conferred” thus “comes with” the act of conferring.
Example Question #471 : Parts Of Speech In One Blank Sentences
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Although Rathbert did little to help his alma mater during his lifetime, his estate generously __________ the college with a lectureship to bring in the world’s most renowned to the small institution annually.
exalted
improved
recognized
endowed
enhanced
endowed
To “endow” can mean to establish some institution with funds to continue to fund it. This is clearly the case here, where the college is thus enabled by the donation to have a lectureship happen annually.
Example Question #561 : One Blank Sentences
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
In the alleyways of Paris, Siger would __________ Master Thomas, hoping to discredit him and gain his students in response.
assail
assault
berate
mock
traduce
traduce
The key thing to be noted here is that Siger desired to discredit Master Thomas. To “traduce” someone is either to speak ill of them or to tell lies regarding them in order to ruin their reputation. The “-duce” portion of the word comes from “to lead” in Latin and has related English words like “duke,” “conduct,” and “seduce.” The “tra-” is a shortened form of “trans,” meaning across. To “traduce” literally means (by its parts, at least) to lead (details / lies) about someone in front / across the vision of others.
Example Question #562 : One Blank Sentences
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Although he did not at all understand the lecturer’s words, Zack was still able to pay attention to the talk, as he was utterly __________ by the rhetorical force of the man’s arguments.
bewildered
perplexed
surprised
flummoxed
captivated
captivated
Since Zack was able to pay attention to the talk, we could say that his attention had been “captured.” Something that is “captivating” does just that, taking one in and holding his or her interest. The words are clearly related and have a great number of other related “-cap-” and “-cep-” words such as “captor,” “caption,” “reception,” “accept,” and so forth.
Example Question #601 : Sentence Completion Questions
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Rumors have a tendency to __________ rapidly after being heard by two or three people. After the passage of several days, the initial remark, told in such quiet circumstances, can easily come to be known by an entire community.
transform
evolve
dissipate
propagate
alter
propagate
Although we might think that rumors transform (and grow) in the telling, all that our sentence implies is that they travel quickly and broadly. To “propagate,” while often meaning to breed a species of animal, it likewise can mean to spread something abroad.
Example Question #141 : Verbs In One Blank Sentences
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
The jail officers would often __________ Joseph’s body by using a whip with many tendrils covered in jagged glass pieces.
excoriate
bruise
lacerate
punish
overwhelm
lacerate
Since it is remarked that the whip has jagged glass on its tendrils, such a weapon could do considerable damage to the flesh of the one being whipped. When flesh is “lacerated,” it has been deeply torn or cut.
Example Question #1511 : Psat Critical Reading
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Ryan could not abide even the existence of any opposing viewpoints and therefore insisted on __________ them quickly and decisively.
criticizing
condemning
annihilating
berating
disparaging
annihilating
Since Ryan could not stand even for the existence of opposing viewpoints, it would seem that he would like to completely destroy them if at all possible. The word “annihilate” comes from the Latin “nihil,” meaning “nothing.” Therefore, to annihilate something means to destroy it utterly. In English, if one his a “nihilist,” he or she is generally described as believing that there is no (nihil) meaning to life.
Example Question #1513 : Psat Critical Reading
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Every night at the mess hall, Phillip carefully discussed matters with his fellow soldiers, hoping to __________ his sense of hope and courage into his demoralized peers.
invoke
escalate
instill
engender
awaken
instill
Since Philip is looking to transfer his sense of hope to the other soldiers, he is trying to “instill” it. This is particularly the case given that Phillip is doing this “carefully” and nightly, implying that he is doing so “little by little.” This gradual action is implied by the word “instill.” It is derived from the Latin for “a drop,” so the word could be translated in a literal fashion “to place (an idea) into someone ‘drop by drop.’”
Example Question #1511 : Psat Critical Reading
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
When the army entered the small town, the general demanded that the citizens __________ his troops, as he had no tents or any other means by which to shelter them.
fortify
sustain
maintain
quarter
support
quarter
The key thing to note is that the general is looking for shelter for his troops. The word “quarter” can function as a verb meaning “to give shelter to someone.” This verbal form is related to the noun usage found in “His private quarters were a filthy mess.” In this case, “quarters” indicates the room (usually applying to a member of the military).
Example Question #1512 : Psat Critical Reading
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Only after many millennia did human beings __________ wild animals, making them fit for a number of agricultural functions.
subdue
domesticate
contrain
restrict
punish
domesticate
Although it might be the case that humans had to punish or constrain animals in order to make them usable, the only thing that we can assert in this sentence is that something was done in order to make them usable for farming ends. The process of “domestication” literally means “making something able to be in the house.” It has this meaning because the word is derived from the Latin word “domus” for “house,” a root found likewise in the word “domicile.” In English, the word particularly indicates the process of taming something in order to make it able to be a pet or suitable for farming. The latter is directly stated in the sentence.