PSAT Critical Reading : One-Blank Sentences

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for PSAT Critical Reading

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Example Questions

Example Question #296 : One Blank Sentences

Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.

Although Ernest had a penetrating mind for much of his life, in his last years he slipped into __________, losing much of his physical vigor and mental acuity.

Possible Answers:

Alzheimer’s

insantity

senility

dementia

psychosis

Correct answer:

senility

Explanation:

Although any of these options apply to certain kinds of mental failure, the best option is the general one—“senility.”  This likewise can apply to the general loss of strength in way that the others cannot.  The word “senility” first indicates the general signs of aging and weakening from that.  It does especially apply to loss of mental ability, though not solely that.  The word is derived from the Latin word for old man, “senex.”  It is related not only to the English “senile” but also “senior,” as well as “senator.”  The last title was chosen because such lawmakers are intended to be the “wise old men” of the country.

Example Question #201 : Parts Of Speech In One Blank Sentences

Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.

The foreign government pressed the president of the United States to force the __________ of the man that they claimed to be a criminal who had to be prosecuted within their judicial system.

Possible Answers:

ransacking

persecution

extradition

emigration

expatriation

Correct answer:

extradition

Explanation:

Since the foreign government wishes the United States to send the man to their country for trial, such an act would best be called an “extradition.”   To “extradite” someone is to send them to be tried in a country in which they committed a crime.  The word is a compound of the prefix “ex-,” meaning “out of” (found in many English words like “exit,” “exfoliate,” and “expropriate”) and the latter portion “-tradition.”  This latter half comes from the Latin for “to hand over” (itself a compound), as can be seen in the very form found here “tradition,” a word literally meaning “something handed over (e.g. from generation to generation).” 

Example Question #298 : One Blank Sentences

Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.

After much research, it became obvious that there was a clear ___________ between drinking too little water and a high occurrence of migraine headaches among elderly patients.  In every case of minimal water intake, the migraine symptoms would occur without fail.

Possible Answers:

justification

diagnosis

concomitance

causation

prescription

Correct answer:

concomitance

Explanation:

The sense of this sentence is that drinking too little water is connected with the occurrence of migraine headaches, although we cannot say if there is a direct causality.  When two things at least occur at the same time (even if you cannot claim causality) they are said to be “concomitant,” a word meaning “occurring at the same time as something else.”  Think of it as meaning “sharing the same company (-comitant) with (con-) something else.”

Example Question #299 : One Blank Sentences

Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.

Aaron was not known for __________, as he rarely could start speaking a sentence without ultimately expatiating on the topic for at least five minutes.

Possible Answers:

humility

breviloquence

silence

diffidence

reticence

Correct answer:

breviloquence

Explanation:

The key trait emphasized in this sentence is Aaron’s tendency to continue to speak.  Therefore, he is not known for brevity.  “Silence” is too strong of an option, and the other wrong answers bring to bear some other character trait.  The word “breviloquence” is a rare English word, but its parts can be discerned.  The “brevi-” portion is clearly related to the word “brevity” or “brief.”  The second half “-loquence” comes from the Latin for “to speak” and is found in other words like “eloquent,” “elocution,” and “colloquy.”  Therefore, “breviloquence” means “being brief in speech.”

Example Question #300 : One Blank Sentences

Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.

The elaborate __________ were constructed to provide the city with a regular water supply derived from the melting snow in the distant mountains.

Possible Answers:

channels

aquariums

sewers

pipelines

aquifers

Correct answer:

aquifers

Explanation:

Since the sentence does not indicate any specific means by which the water was being supplied, the best option will be the one that is most general, only implying the general function of “carrying water.”  The word “aquifer” is derived from Latin roots literally meaning “water carrying.”  The “aqui-” portion clearly indicates water as is evident in related words like “aquarium” and “aquatic.”  The “-fers” portion comes from the base for “to carry,” found in “differ” (lit. to carry away from something else) and “transfer” (lit. to carry across).

Example Question #301 : One Blank Sentences

Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.

In a surprising act of __________, Albert forgave Sebastian for having stolen and spent the whole of his retirement savings.

Possible Answers:

generosity

piety

spirituality

clemency

folly

Correct answer:

clemency

Explanation:

The specific sense that we are looking for in our word is that of forgiveness and mercy.  While Albert’s act is perhaps pious and generous, it most certainly is “clement,” a word meaning “lenient or merciful.”  When we say that there is “inclement weather,” we generally mean that it is particularly nasty, as though it were unforgiving.

Example Question #332 : Sentence Completion Questions

Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.

Prince Harold’s father, King Oswald, died when the prince was merely three years old, thus requiring that his mother rule as the __________ until the prince came of age.

Possible Answers:

usurper

princess

successor

regent

queen

Correct answer:

regent

Explanation:

Clearly, the mother in question is neither stealing nor succeeding to the throne.  However, insofar as she is ruling, she is doing so as a replacement for the king.  A person filling such a role is called the “regent.”  Such regency is undertaken in any case where the normal ruler is not fit to assume responsibilities (e.g. because of age, illness, or perhaps being off at war and out of communication).  The word is related to the Latin “regere,” meaning “to rule.”  Related words in English include “regal,” “reign,” and “interregnum.”

Example Question #1711 : Sat Critical Reading

Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.

After forty years of reading, writing, and researching topics concerning embryology, the scientist felt that his new textbook represented the __________ of his life-long devotion to his subject.

Possible Answers:

codification

culmination

representation

publication

declaration

Correct answer:

culmination

Explanation:

A number of the options presented as answers to this question are tempting, as they seem to apply to the case of the textbook being considered. Certainly, the new textbook would represent or declare the scientist’s work. These are all insufficient, when one notes the key expression, “after forty years.” The implication is that the textbook is the summary or “high point” of a long process of work. A “culmination” is the pinnacle or high point of some process, often implying that such a process took significant time to complete. It comes Latin roots meaning “summit.”

Example Question #1712 : Sat Critical Reading

Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.

During the tedious meetings at work, Theodore would often allow himself to partake in a wholly imaginative __________ in order to keep himself sane in spite of the tedium of his surroundings.

Possible Answers:

discourse

discussion

lunacy

dementia

reverie

Correct answer:

reverie

Explanation:

A “reverie” is a state of daydreaming.  When the term is used to describe a type of music, it implies that the music is meant to invoke the feeling of such a dreamy state.  The other options either exceed the implications of the sentence (“dementia” and “lunacy”) or do not capture this sense of dreaming (“discussion” and “discourse”). 

Example Question #221 : Parts Of Speech In One Blank Sentences

Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.

Gregory tied the shirt around his arm as an ad hoc __________ to stop the steady bleeding of the fresh wound.

Possible Answers:

cincture

sling

bandage

strap

tourniquet

Correct answer:

tourniquet

Explanation:

The key thing to note in reading this sentence is that the shirt is functioning to stop bleeding at its source. Although a bandage or strap might do this, a tourniquet is the best choice because this is explicitly a device used for stopping the flow of blood by constricting the vessel through which it is flowing.

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