All SAT Critical Reading Resources
Example Questions
Example Question #433 : One Blank Sentences
The doctors and policeman __________ to solve the case and serve justice to the kidnapper.
compromised
reconciled
submitted
collaborated
imputed
collaborated
Because two different professions are coming together to solve, the best choice is "collaborated," which means to work together.
Example Question #561 : Sentence Completion
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
The changes in routine __________ the old man, who could otherwise remain calm as long as his regimen remained unaltered.
enraged
submerged
inundated
perturbed
incensed
perturbed
The wrong answers to this sentence fall into two classes. On the one hand, “enraged” and “incensed” imply extreme anger, which are not justified by the sentence, which describes the old man as relatively calm in normal conditions. These options are distant contenders at best. On the other hand, “submerged” and “inundated” imply that he was overwhelmed. While that might be the case, the sentence clearly has to deal with his emotional / mental state since it speaks of him remaining calm in most situations; therefore the best option is “perturbed” which means “anxious” or “upset,” a good description for being “not calm.”
Example Question #22 : Verbs In One Blank Sentences
The moon was full about a week ago, but it has __________ since then, and looks like a thin crescent tonight.
groveled
waned
belittled
debilitated
coddled
waned
We know that the moon was full a week ago, but is now a smaller crescent, so it has gotten smaller in the past week. We need a verb that means to appear to get smaller. While "belittled" sounds like a good option, "belittle" has nothing to do with physical size and means to make (someone or something) seem unimportant. Because "wane" means to have a progressively smaller amount of an object's surface illuminated so that it appears to decrease in size, it is the best answer choice.
Example Question #562 : Sentence Completion
Kendra wrung out the sponge into the sink, __________ it to release all the water it held.
abdicating
nullifying
compressing
squandering
whittling
compressing
We can tell by the context of the sentence that we're looking for a verb that means something like "make smaller," and more specifically, "wring out." While "whittling" sounds like it could be a potential answer because things that are whittled usually get smaller in the process, "whittling" actually means "carving wood into an object by repeatedly cutting small slices from it," so it's not the correct word for the sentence's context. Since "compress" means "flatten by pressure; squeeze; press," it is the best answer.
Example Question #11 : Verbs In One Blank Sentences
Each sentence completion question is made up of a sentence with one or two blanks. One blank indicates that one word is missing. Two blanks indicate that two words are missing. Each sentence is followed by five choices. Select the one word or pair of words that will best complete the meaning of the sentence as a whole.
After Sarah edited her paper, Jessica brought her out to ice cream in order to _____ her for using her free time to edit.
please
indulge
compensate
belittle
encourage
compensate
In this situation, Jessica is indebted to Sarah for editing her paper even though it was not required for Sarah to edit it. Therefore, Jessica compensated her by bringing her out to ice cream as a thank you for doing her the favor of editing.
Example Question #32 : Verbs In One Blank Sentences
Each question below is made up of a sentence with one blank. The blank indicates that a word is missing. Each sentence is followed by five choices. Select the one word that will best complete the meaning of the sentence as a whole.
Tom's sister wished she could __________ the hurtful comments she directed towards Tom earlier in the day that were merely said due to her disagreeable mood.
fortify
rescind
recall
uphold
dismantle
rescind
Tom's sister wants to erase the comments of the morning or revoke them. In other words, she wants to rescind her comments.
Example Question #33 : Verbs In One Blank Sentences
After moving into the new town, it took Scott some time to become __________ to the aspects of daily life that differed greatly from that which he knew in his previous locale.
nativist
accepting
accustomed
reflective
understanding
accustomed
The sentence implies that Scott had to become aware and comfortable with new aspects of life in his town, for they differed from what he had known. Such a process of becoming comfortable with something new is called “becoming accustomed.” Notice that the word contains the word “custom,” and the “ac” is really the “ad” prefix meaning “to or toward.” Therefore, the process of “accustoming” is (in a sense) “structuring oneself ‘to the customs’ of a given area or process.”
Example Question #34 : Verbs In One Blank Sentences
Travis assured his friends that he __________ to goals that were far loftier than what his little town could offer to him.
espied
looked
imagined
aspired
studied
aspired
The implication here is that Travis “aims” at high goals. Therefore, one could say that he hopes to accomplish these tasks. Such hopes are often called “aspirations,” a word coming from the Latin for “to breathe toward.” There are English words like “despair,” that mean “without hope” but are based on a different (but very close) Latin word meaning hope. The word for “I breathe” is “spiro” and the word for “I hope” is “spero.” Latin students often learn the shortened quip, “Dum spiro, spero,” meaning, “While I breathe, I hope.”
Example Question #1852 : Sat Critical Reading
Robert __________ tightly onto the root sticking out of the cliff, hoping to hold himself there until a rescue crew could arrive.
oscillated
recoild
affix
attached
clutched
clutched
The key word in this sentence is “tightly,” which indicates that Robert was not merely holding on with a limp hand. The best option, therefore, is “clutched” which captures this sense of direly holding on in a tight-fisted manner.
Example Question #11 : Verbs In One Blank Sentences
Although Mark did not have many specific skills, he was excellent at ___________ affairs for others in order to make their work much easier.
facilitating
overcoming
discussing
evaluating
scheduling
facilitating
When someone is able to aid others in doing their work, particularly in making it easier, that person is said to “facilitate” the work. The word “facilitate” comes from the Latin root word for “easy,” found in related English words like “facile” and “facility.”