Do you read meaning from the passage or from memory? This test checks exactly that with 28 original ASVAB-style Paragraph Comprehension questions on multiple-meaning words, idioms, figurative phrases, qualifiers and pronoun or demonstrative references.
Before the fishing boat left the harbor each spring, Captain Ruiz had a surveyor inspect every plank and rivet. This year the report came back clean: the surveyor found no rot, no cracks and no loose fittings, and he declared the hull sound. Relieved, the crew loaded their nets and coolers that same afternoon and planned to head out at dawn.
As used in the passage, what does sound most nearly mean?
Show the answer
Answer: B
Correct answer: in good condition. The sentence before the word lists no rot, no cracks and no loose fittings. Putting in good condition in place of sound keeps the claim the same: the surveyor declared the hull in good condition.
A: This is the familiar sense of sound, but nothing in the passage is about noise from the hull.
B (correct): The report found no rot, cracks or loose fittings, so the hull was solid and undamaged.
C: The crew loaded gear afterward, but that is a result of the report, not the meaning of the word.
D: This confuses the word with a sound as a body of water, which does not fit a description of a hull.
Question 2 of 28 · easy
Repairing the old pier meant working below the waterline. To keep the river out, the contractor first built a cofferdam, a temporary watertight wall that surrounds a work area so the water inside can be pumped away. Once the space inside was dry, the masons could reach the crumbling stone footings and replace them one by one. The work took most of the summer.
According to the passage, what is a cofferdam?
Show the answer
Answer: D
Correct answer: a temporary barrier that keeps water out of a work area. The writer defines the term right after the comma: a temporary watertight wall that surrounds a work area. That renaming tells you a cofferdam is a temporary barrier that keeps water out.
A: The passage says the wall is temporary and only surrounds the work area; it does not control the river.
B: The footings are what the masons repaired after the area was dry, not the structure that kept water out.
C: Pumping happens inside the cofferdam, but the passage does not call the cofferdam a pump.
D (correct): The phrase set off by the comma directly renames cofferdam as a temporary watertight wall around a work site.
Question 3 of 28 · easy
The two mechanics on the night shift could not have worked more differently. Jalen rushed through each oil change and often had to redo a job when a cap was left loose. Unlike him, Priya was meticulous, checking every bolt twice and wiping each part clean before she closed the hood. Her jobs took longer, but customers rarely came back with problems.
Which word is closest in meaning to meticulous as used in the passage?
Show the answer
Answer: B
Correct answer: careful. Unlike sets Priya against Jalen, who rushed and made mistakes. Her actions, checking every bolt twice and wiping each part, confirm that meticulous means very careful.
A: The word looks related to the shop setting, but it does not describe the careful checking Priya does.
B (correct): Unlike signals a contrast with Jalen's rushed work, and Priya checks every bolt twice, which shows great care.
C: Nothing in the passage mentions speech; this trait has no support.
D: This describes Jalen, the person Priya is contrasted with, so it points the meaning the wrong way.
Question 4 of 28 · easy
The town council has received two offers from dealers for the new fire engine. One is cheaper, but the other comes with a longer warranty. Council member Ortiz told reporters she was still on the fence and wanted to read both contracts again before Tuesday's vote. Two other members said they had already made up their minds, one for each offer.
As used in the passage, what does the phrase on the fence mean about Ortiz?
Show the answer
Answer: C
Correct answer: had not yet decided. Ortiz faces two offers and wants to reread both contracts before voting. That context shows on the fence means undecided between two sides, not anything about a real fence.
A: The passage gives no sign she rejected either offer; she simply wanted more time.
B: This reads the words literally; no actual fence is involved.
C (correct): She wanted to reread both contracts before voting, which shows she had not chosen an offer.
D: Nothing says she preferred either one, so this adds a choice the text never makes.
Question 5 of 28 · easy
During the warehouse audit, Tomas counted the pallets in the north aisle while the new clerk entered the totals into a tablet. Halfway through, the clerk noticed that the tablet's battery was nearly empty. She plugged it into the charger by the loading dock and kept typing until the count was finished. The audit wrapped up shortly before the evening shift arrived.
In the third sentence, what does the word it refer to?
Show the answer
Answer: A
Correct answer: the tablet. The sentence before says the tablet's battery was nearly empty. Something with a low battery gets plugged in, so it means the tablet.
A (correct): The clerk noticed the tablet's battery was low, so the thing she plugged into the charger was the tablet.
B: The charger is what it was plugged into, so it cannot also be the thing being plugged in.
C: The loading dock is where the charger sat, not the object that needed power.
D: A count cannot be plugged into a charger; this skips the logic of the sentence.
Question 6 of 28 · easy
Before the winter storm, the shelter director checked the storage room. She counted the provisions on hand, such as canned soup, bottled water, crackers and powdered milk, and decided they would last about a week. She then asked volunteers to bring extra blankets, since the room had plenty to eat but little to keep people warm. By evening, two dozen blankets had arrived.
As used in the passage, what does provisions most nearly mean?
Show the answer
Answer: A
Correct answer: supplies of food and drink. The phrase such as introduces canned soup, bottled water, crackers and powdered milk. All are things to eat or drink, so provisions here means a stock of food and drink.
A (correct): The examples are all things to eat or drink, and the passage later says there was plenty to eat.
B: Blankets are what the shelter lacked, which the passage treats separately from the provisions.
C: This is a familiar sense of provisions, but the listed items are foods, not contract terms.
D: The shelves would hold the items, but the examples name the items themselves.
Question 7 of 28 · easy
Last spring the county road crew inspected the old wooden footbridge over Mill Creek. Several support beams had split, and the deck boards sagged under light weight. Because the inspectors judged the bridge dilapidated, the county fenced it off and posted a detour sign the next morning. Walkers now cross the creek on the road bridge a quarter mile downstream.
Based on the passage, what does dilapidated most nearly mean?
Show the answer
Answer: C
Correct answer: in poor, run-down condition. The passage lists split beams and sagging boards, and because links the word to the closure. The bridge was falling apart, so dilapidated means in poor, run-down condition.
A: The bridge happens to be wooden, but the word describes its condition, not its material.
B: The passage describes split beams and sagging boards, not repair, so this reverses the meaning.
C (correct): Split beams and sagging boards describe a structure falling apart, which explains why it was closed.
D: Closing the bridge is the result of the judgment, not what the word means.
Question 8 of 28 · medium
The base weather office issued a note to all units on Thursday. A line of thunderstorms is moving east across the valley, and forecasters said it could reach the training range by early afternoon. Officers were told to keep vehicles near shelter and to check for updates every hour, since the timing of the storms might still change. A second note will go out Friday morning.
Which statement is best supported by the passage?
Show the answer
Answer: D
Correct answer: Storms may reach the range in the afternoon, but the timing is uncertain. The forecasters said the storms could reach the range and that timing might change. Those modal verbs keep the claim a possibility, so the supported paraphrase must also stay uncertain.
A: The passage gives no exact time and uses could and might, so this turns a possibility into a certainty.
B: Officers were told to keep vehicles near shelter, not to cancel training; this adds an unsupported fact.
C: The forecast says the storms could arrive, so ruling them out contradicts the passage.
D (correct): Could and might signal possibility, and the note keeps the timing open to change.
Question 9 of 28 · medium
Last fall a small clinic surveyed 200 patients about its new online check-in system, which lets people confirm their visit from a phone. Most of the people who answered said it saved them time at the front desk. A few, mainly older patients, said they still preferred to sign in on paper. The clinic plans to keep both methods for now and will survey patients again next year.
Which statement accurately restates the survey results?
Show the answer
Answer: D
Correct answer: More than half of those who answered found the online system saved time. Most of the people who answered said the system saved time, while only a few preferred paper. A correct paraphrase keeps most as a majority, so more than half found it saved time.
A: This widens most to all and ignores the few, mainly older, patients who preferred paper.
B: This assigns the word few to the wrong group; few describes the paper users.
C: This reverses the groups; only a few patients, mainly older ones, preferred paper.
D (correct): Most means a majority, and this choice keeps that range without stretching it to everyone.
Question 10 of 28 · medium
For forty years the brick building on Elm Street housed the town's only post office. Residents once lined up there every morning to collect their mail. In 2019 the postal service moved into a larger space near the highway, and the old building now serves as a community art center that hosts classes and weekend shows. Its old brass mail slots still line one wall of the gallery.
Based on the passage, which statement is true about the brick building today?
Show the answer
Answer: C
Correct answer: It is used as an art center, not a post office. Once and for forty years put the post office in the past, and now serves places the art center in the present. So today the building is an art center rather than a post office.
A: The passage says the building now hosts classes and shows, so it is not empty.
B: This drops the word once and treats a past fact as a present one.
C (correct): Now serves as a community art center places this use in the present, while once marks the post office as the past.
D: The post office moved out in 2019, so the building does not serve both purposes.
Question 11 of 28 · medium
The volunteer fire company holds a ladder drill on the first Saturday of every month. According to the posted schedule, the drill takes place at the station lot unless wind gusts top 30 miles per hour. In that case, crews move indoors and review hose maintenance instead. Members are asked to arrive by 8 a.m. either way, and coffee is provided at the station.
According to the passage, when does the ladder drill take place outdoors?
Show the answer
Answer: D
Correct answer: Whenever wind gusts stay at or below 30 miles per hour. Unless wind gusts top 30 mph means high gusts are the only thing that cancels the outdoor drill. Without such gusts, at 30 mph or less, the drill happens in the station lot.
A: Arriving by 8 a.m. is required either way and does not decide where the drill is held.
B: This reverses the condition; strong gusts are what move the crews indoors.
C: This ignores the unless clause that sends the drill indoors when gusts top 30 miles per hour.
D (correct): Unless sets the only exception: strong gusts over 30 mph cancel the outdoor drill, so at lower winds it goes ahead.
Question 12 of 28 · medium
In March the factory's main conveyor motor overheated and shut down twice in one week, halting the whole packing line for hours each time. This convinced the plant manager to order a spare motor and to schedule monthly inspections. Since then, the line has not lost a full shift to a motor failure, and the spare has never been needed.
In the second sentence, what does the word this refer to?
Show the answer
Answer: D
Correct answer: the motor overheating and stopping the line twice in a week. This opens a sentence about what convinced the manager. The thing that would persuade him is the full event before it: the motor overheating and halting the line twice in one week.
A: The spare motor and inspections were the results of the decision, so they cannot be what caused it.
B: The line itself did not convince anyone; the repeated breakdowns did.
C: A month cannot convince a manager; this links this to a single nearby word instead of the event.
D (correct): This points back to the whole event in the first sentence, which is what persuaded the manager to act.
Question 13 of 28 · medium
New employees at the regional hospital quickly learn that Gloria, the night charge nurse, is the anchor of the unit. When alarms sound at once and staff start to rush, she speaks calmly, assigns each person a task, and keeps the team steady until the crisis passes. Even experienced doctors look to her when the floor gets chaotic, and the unit runs more smoothly on the nights she works.
What does the passage suggest by calling Gloria the anchor of the unit?
Show the answer
Answer: C
Correct answer: keeps the team stable during stressful moments. A metaphor should be read through the passage's evidence. Gloria speaks calmly, assigns tasks and keeps the team steady, so the anchor image means she holds the team stable when things get rough.
A: This picks a literal trait of an anchor that the passage never supports.
B: An anchor stops movement, but the passage praises her steadiness in crises, not resistance to change.
C (correct): The passage shows her keeping the team steady and calm during crises, which is what an anchor does for a ship.
D: The passage never mentions how long she has worked there.
Question 14 of 28 · medium
Last week the county's water engineer reviewed three summers of rainfall records and reservoir levels. In her report, she wrote that a water shortage next August is not unlikely, given that the main reservoir is already noticeably lower than usual for this time of year. She recommended that the town prepare a voluntary conservation plan in case the dry pattern continues.
As used in the report, what does the phrase not unlikely mean about a shortage?
Show the answer
Answer: A
Correct answer: fairly likely. The two negatives cancel: not unlikely means fairly likely. The low reservoir and the call for a conservation plan support that reading without making the shortage a certainty.
A (correct): Not cancels the un- in unlikely, so the engineer is saying a shortage has a real chance of happening.
B: She bases her view on records and low levels, so she does make a prediction.
C: Not unlikely is a cautious phrase; certain overstates how sure she is.
D: This reads only unlikely and skips the not that reverses it.
Question 15 of 28 · medium
For years the Harbor Street bridge was simply a quiet crossing that few visitors noticed. That changed in 1998, when inspectors discovered the builder had used cheap steel and faked the safety tests. The scandal made the company infamous across the state, and towns that had hired it rushed to inspect their own bridges. The company closed two years later.
As used in the passage, what does infamous most nearly mean?
Show the answer
Answer: B
Correct answer: well known for something bad. The prefix in- does not reverse famous here. The scandal spread across the state and other towns rushed to check their bridges, so infamous means widely known for wrongdoing.
A: Nothing in the passage refers to when the company was founded.
B (correct): The scandal over cheap steel and faked tests made the company widely known, and towns reacted with alarm.
C: This treats in- as simply meaning not, but the passage shows the company became known across the state.
D: Faked safety tests and cheap steel do not earn admiration; this ignores the negative tone.
Question 16 of 28 · medium
The rental company promised our crew a "luxury" van for the trip to the job site. When it arrived, one window would not close, the heater blew cold air, and the back seat was held in place with duct tape. We spent the four-hour drive in our jackets, wishing we had brought our own truck. Next time, we will check the vehicle before we sign anything.
Why does the writer put quotation marks around the word luxury?
Show the answer
Answer: D
Correct answer: To show that the van was far from luxurious. The marks set off the company's promise, and every detail that follows contradicts it. The writer uses the quotation marks to signal irony: the van was nothing like luxury.
A: The passage never mentions the price, so this adds an unsupported detail.
B: The crew rode in jackets and wished for their own truck, so the ride was not comfortable.
C: Luxury is an ordinary word here, and the details point to irony rather than jargon.
D (correct): The broken window, cold heater and taped seat show the word is being used ironically.
Question 17 of 28 · medium
The new budget software was supposed to save the office hours each week. Instead, staff complained that every report took three extra clicks, the screens froze during busy afternoons, and the help line rarely answered. By the end of the month, the finance manager described the rollout as a slog that nobody wanted to repeat. She asked the vendor for a refund on the training fee.
As used in the passage, what does the word slog most nearly mean?
Show the answer
Answer: B
Correct answer: a tiring, difficult process. The tone is negative throughout: extra clicks, frozen screens and an unanswered help line. Paired with nobody wanted to repeat, slog means a long, tiring, difficult effort.
A: This clashes with the negative tone set by the staff complaints.
B (correct): The complaints about extra clicks, frozen screens and no help, plus nobody wanting to repeat it, show a hard, wearing experience.
C: The problems dragged on for a month; the word stresses the long effort, not a sudden collapse.
D: This names the topic the word is linked to rather than what the word means.
Question 18 of 28 · medium
After a month of testing, the motor pool sergeant wrote a short review of the new tire pressure gauges. He noted that the digital readout was easier to see at night and that the gauges were modestly more accurate than the old dial models. He added that the batteries drained faster than expected in cold weather. He recommended buying the gauges but keeping spare batteries in each truck.
Which statement best matches the sergeant's view of the gauges' accuracy?
Show the answer
Answer: A
Correct answer: They were a little more accurate than the old gauges. Modestly more accurate means somewhat better, not much better. The best match keeps the same small strength and the same comparison to the old dial models.
A (correct): Modestly signals a small improvement, and this choice keeps that limited strength.
B: This overstates modestly and widens the comparison beyond the old dial models.
C: The sergeant did report an improvement, so this erases his claim.
D: Cold weather affected the batteries, not the accuracy; this attaches the drawback to the wrong feature.
Question 19 of 28 · medium
At first, the lab's new method for testing soil samples looked promising. But after six weeks, the lead chemist called it impractical for daily use. Each test needed rare chemicals, two technicians and nearly a full day of work. In plain terms, the method worked in theory but could not be run every day with the staff and supplies the lab had.
As used in the passage, what does impractical most nearly mean?
Show the answer
Answer: D
Correct answer: not workable for regular use. The last sentence begins In plain terms and restates the claim: the method could not be run every day with the available staff and supplies. That paraphrase shows impractical means not workable for regular use.
A: The burden comes from each daily test, not a single purchase price.
B: The passage says the method worked in theory; it never questions its accuracy.
C: Newness is not the problem described; the cost in chemicals, staff and time is.
D (correct): The final sentence restates the idea: the method could not be run every day with the lab's staff and supplies.
Question 20 of 28 · medium
The small shipping office downtown had fallen badly behind after the holiday rush. To catch up, the supervisor asked two clerks to stay late and log every package that came in after noon. By Friday, each box had a tracking number, and the office was finally caught up. The supervisor thanked both clerks and let them leave early the following Monday.
As used in the passage, what does log most nearly mean?
Show the answer
Answer: A
Correct answer: record in a list. In to stay late and log every package, log is an action, so noun meanings drop out. Each box ending up with a tracking number shows the action was writing down, or recording, the packages.
A (correct): Log is used as a verb here, and the result, each box having a tracking number, shows the packages were written down.
B: This is also a noun meaning; the sentence needs an action the clerks perform.
C: This is a verb, but nothing in the passage suggests moving the packages, only tracking them.
D: This is a noun meaning and cannot fill the verb slot in the sentence.
Question 21 of 28 · hard
Six weeks after the flood, the town's recovery coordinator met with reporters. She said she was guardedly hopeful that most businesses on Main Street would reopen by summer. Insurance payments were arriving faster than expected, she noted, but some owners were still waiting on structural inspections, and a second storm could set the work back. She asked residents to shop locally as stores reopen.
Which choice best describes the coordinator's outlook?
Show the answer
Answer: C
Correct answer: Optimistic, but careful not to promise too much. Guardedly hopeful combines two parts: hope and caution. The best answer keeps both, which is why hopeful but careful beats a choice that keeps only the hope or one that turns hope into certainty.
A: This overstates her view and widens most to every business.
B: This keeps the hope but drops the caution that guardedly adds, so it says too little.
C (correct): Guardedly limits hopeful, and her mention of delayed inspections and a possible storm shows the caution.
D: Faster insurance payments and her hope for summer show she has not given up.
Question 22 of 28 · hard
The new pedestrian bridge opened on Monday after passing a full load test, with engineers placing sandbags weighing twice the expected crowd across its span. On opening day, a nervous shopper paused at the entrance, looked at the thin cables, and told a reporter, "This thing is a house of cards." Then she crossed anyway, gripping the rail the whole way.
What does the phrase a house of cards mainly show in the passage?
Show the answer
Answer: A
Correct answer: the shopper feared the bridge was fragile. The narrator states that the bridge passed a strict load test. The house of cards image comes from a nervous shopper, so it shows her fear that the bridge was flimsy, not proof that it was.
A (correct): The phrase comes from a nervous speaker, so it reveals her worry, not a fact about the structure.
B: The passage says she crossed anyway, so this contradicts the last sentence.
C: Nothing in the passage describes the materials as cheap; the phrase is about her feeling, not construction.
D: The narrator reports that the bridge passed a load test at twice the expected crowd, so this treats a speaker's fear as fact.
Question 23 of 28 · hard
When the city proposed moving the farmers market from the park to a parking garage, the plan proved divisive. Within a week, the council received more than two hundred letters, roughly half praising the covered space and half calling the move a betrayal of tradition. At the next public meeting, supporters and opponents shouted over each other until the chair called a recess.
As used in the passage, what does divisive most nearly mean?
Show the answer
Answer: C
Correct answer: causing strong disagreement. The target sentence alone gives little help, but the next two sentences supply the evidence: letters split roughly half and half and both sides shouted at the meeting. Divisive therefore means causing strong disagreement.
A: This decodes the root divide literally; the market itself was not broken up.
B: The meeting was a result of the dispute, not the meaning of the word.
C (correct): The later sentences show letters split about half and half and a meeting where both sides shouted, which confirms sharp disagreement.
D: The letters were roughly evenly split, so the plan was not mostly disliked.
Question 24 of 28 · hard
In response to complaints about long waits, the Eastside branch of the county library extended its weekday hours this fall. It now stays open until 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, two hours later than before. The library board said it will review attendance in the spring before deciding whether other branches should follow. Weekend hours at Eastside have not changed.
Which statement accurately restates the change described in the passage?
Show the answer
Answer: B
Correct answer: One branch now stays open later on four weekdays. The passage names one branch, Eastside, and four days, Monday through Thursday. The correct restatement keeps that same who and how much without spreading the change to other branches, other days or a later time.
A: This widens the scope; the board has not decided whether other branches will follow.
B (correct): Only the Eastside branch changed, and the new hours cover Monday through Thursday.
C: This widens the days; the later hours apply only Monday through Thursday.
D: The change already happened this fall; spring is only when attendance will be reviewed.
Question 25 of 28 · hard
During the inspection, the safety officer questioned the forklift operator about a dent in the loading bay door. The operator admitted he had backed into it the day before. The officer thanked him because he had reported the damage before anyone else noticed, and she noted that his honesty would be mentioned in her report. The door was repaired that afternoon at no cost to the operator.
In the third sentence, to whom does the pronoun he refer?
Show the answer
Answer: B
Correct answer: the man who drove the forklift. The officer is she and does the thanking, so he must be the person thanked. The operator is the one who admitted the accident, so he refers to the forklift operator.
A: The officer is referred to as she, and people do not thank themselves for reporting.
B (correct): The operator is the one who admitted backing into the door, so he is the person whose report earned thanks.
C: The sentence says he reported it before anyone else noticed, so no other person fits.
D: A door cannot report damage, so it cannot be the one being thanked.
Question 26 of 28 · hard
After his first month of basic training, the new recruit expected the drill sergeant's written evaluation to be harsh. Instead, the sergeant's comments were short but generous. In two sentences, he praised the recruit's steady pace on the obstacle course and his habit of helping slower teammates over the wall. The recruit read the note twice before tucking it into his footlocker, where he kept it until graduation.
As used in the passage, what does generous most nearly mean?
Show the answer
Answer: C
Correct answer: full of praise. But sets generous apart from short, so the word is not about length. The comments praised the recruit's pace and teamwork, and instead contrasts them with the harshness he expected, so generous means full of praise.
A: This is a familiar sense of generous, but no money is involved in a written evaluation.
B: The recruit expected harshness, but instead signals the comments were the opposite.
C (correct): But contrasts generous with short, and the two sentences of praise confirm the comments were kind and approving.
D: The comments were only two sentences, and but signals that generous adds something other than length.
Question 27 of 28 · hard
The county's new online permit system has its supporters. Admittedly, contractors can now file applications at midnight instead of waiting in line at the courthouse. Even so, the system often loses uploaded drawings, and several builders have had to resubmit the same plans three times. Until that problem is fixed, the county cannot call the system a success, no matter how convenient late-night filing may be.
How does the writer view the online permit system overall?
Show the answer
Answer: A
Correct answer: It offers some convenience but is not yet a success. Admittedly grants one advantage, midnight filing, and even so turns to the bigger problem of lost drawings. The last sentence states the conclusion: the system offers convenience but cannot yet be called a success.
A (correct): Admittedly concedes a benefit, then even so and the final sentence keep the overall judgment negative.
B: The system loses uploaded drawings in general; the passage does not tie the losses to filing time.
C: The writer wants the problem fixed, not the system removed; this goes further than the passage.
D: This treats the concession as the main claim and ignores the final sentence.
Question 28 of 28 · hard
When the restaurant's new head cook took over in May, she had years of experience with grills and sauces. The bakery side of the kitchen was another matter. On bread and pastry, she was still getting her feet wet, so she leaned on the night baker for recipes and timing. Within weeks, however, she was running the grill line entirely on her own.
Which statement best captures the meaning and scope of getting her feet wet?
Show the answer
Answer: B
Correct answer: She was just beginning to learn baking, though she already knew the grill. Getting her feet wet means just starting to gain experience. The phrase on bread and pastry limits it to baking, while the passage says she already knew grills and sauces, so the idiom does not apply to the whole kitchen.
A: The passage shows she was learning with the night baker's help, not failing or giving up.
B (correct): The idiom means starting out in something new, and the passage limits it to bread and pastry.
C: This decodes the words literally; no water is involved.
D: This widens the idiom's scope; she already had years of experience with grills and sauces.
The battalion's first winter field exercise begins next week. On Monday morning, the quartermaster will issue cold-weather gear to every soldier in the company, including insulated boots, a parka and two pairs of wool socks. Soldiers must sign for each item and return it in clean condition when the exercise ends. Anyone whose boots do not fit should report to the supply room by Wednesday for an exchange.
As used in the passage, what does issue most nearly mean?
Show the answer
Answer: A
Correct answer: hand out. Check the word class and the clues. Issue is a verb here, and the soldiers sign for each item and later return it, so the quartermaster is giving the gear out. Substitute: "the quartermaster will hand out cold-weather gear" keeps the meaning.
A (correct): The quartermaster gives gear to each soldier, who then signs for it and must return it, so issue means to distribute or hand out.
B: This is a familiar noun sense, but issue here is a verb with gear as its object; the replace-and-reread test makes the sentence nonsense.
C: This is another noun sense of issue and has nothing to do with gear being given to soldiers.
D: Soldiers sign for items and return them, which shows the gear is physically given out, not discussed.
Practice 2 of 38 · hard
After the first week of training, the instructor wrote a short note on each recruit's rope climb. For Private Hale, she wrote that the attempt was serviceable. He reached the top within the time limit, but he pulled mostly with his arms, wasted energy with loose footwork, and needed a long rest afterward. She added that a few sessions on foot locks would make his climbs faster and less tiring.
As used in the passage, what does serviceable most nearly mean?
Show the answer
Answer: A
Correct answer: good enough, but not impressive. Use both sides of the evidence. Hale succeeded (top of the rope within the limit), but the but-clause lists flaws to fix. A word that holds both ideas means good enough to pass without being impressive. Choices that are all praise or all failure miss half of the clues.
A (correct): Hale met the standard by reaching the top in time, yet the instructor lists several flaws, so the word means adequate but unremarkable.
B: This overstates the word; the instructor lists wasted energy, weak footwork and a long rest, which rule out top praise.
C: Service suggests repair work, but that is an associated idea, not the meaning here; the word judges the quality of a climb.
D: Hale reached the top within the time limit, so the climb met the standard; this reads the criticisms too strongly.
Practice 3 of 38 · hard
Before the training flight, crew chief Maria Delgado told Captain Lena Ortiz that the helicopter had passed its preflight inspection. Ortiz thanked her but asked for one more look at the tail rotor, because she had felt a faint vibration in the pedals during the last flight. Delgado and the maintenance supervisor, Sergeant Ruth Kim, spent twenty minutes on the check and found a loose mounting bolt.
In the second sentence, who does she refer to?
Show the answer
Answer: C
Correct answer: Captain Ortiz. Test each possible referent against the passage's logic. The person who felt vibration in the pedals during the last flight must have been flying, and the sentence's subject, Ortiz, is the pilot asking for another check. Delgado gave the inspection report, and Kim appears only later, so she means Captain Ortiz.
A: Delgado is the nearest earlier female name, but she reported the helicopter had passed inspection; the person who felt the pedals in flight is the pilot.
B: Kim is not introduced until the third sentence and is never described as flying the helicopter.
C (correct): She is the person who felt a vibration in the pedals during the last flight, which fits the pilot, Ortiz, who is also the subject of the sentence asking for the check.
D: No flight instructor appears in the passage; this invents a referent.
Practice 4 of 38 · medium
For two months, the electricians had planned how to rewire the old warehouse, choosing every cable route and panel location. On Thursday, the city inspector rejected the plan because the building's new sprinkler pipes ran through several of the same spaces. With their drawings now useless, the crew was back to square one and spent Friday measuring the building all over again.
What does the phrase back to square one mean in the passage?
Show the answer
Answer: D
Correct answer: forced to start over from the beginning. Interpret the idiom as a unit, using the clues around it. The plan was rejected, the drawings became useless, and the crew spent Friday measuring "all over again," so back to square one means they had to start the work over from the beginning.
A: This decodes the words literally; nothing in the passage mentions a first room or a square space.
B: The crew went right back to work on Friday, so no break is described.
C: The plan was just rejected, so the crew is farther from approval, not closer.
D (correct): The drawings became useless and the crew began measuring all over again, which shows they had to restart the planning.
Practice 5 of 38 · hard
The base supply section finished moving into its new warehouse last weekend, right on schedule. The move was not without problems. Two trucks were sent to the old loading dock by mistake, a pallet of printer paper was soaked in a rain shower, and the phone lines did not work until Tuesday. Still, every shelf was stocked by Monday morning, and no orders were filled late.
As used in the passage, what does the phrase not without problems mean?
Show the answer
Answer: B
Correct answer: The move had some problems but was still completed on time. Read the double negative slowly: not without problems means with some problems. The following sentence lists three of them, and the final sentence limits their effect (stocked by Monday, no late orders). The paraphrase must keep both parts: some problems, yet finished on time.
A: This drops the word not and reverses the phrase; the next sentence lists three specific problems.
B (correct): The double negative means problems did occur; the passage lists three, yet it also says the move finished on schedule with no late orders.
C: This overstates the problems; the passage says the move finished on schedule and no orders were late.
D: This shrinks the scope; misrouted trucks and soaked paper were problems too.
Practice 6 of 38 · medium
When the county opened its new urgent care clinic, the planners paid attention to the waiting room as well as the exam rooms. Patients now find amenities such as free wireless internet, a water cooler, phone charging stations and reading lamps beside each chair. Staff say people seem calmer during long waits than they did at the old building, and complaints about the waiting area have nearly stopped.
As used in the passage, what does amenities most nearly mean?
Show the answer
Answer: C
Correct answer: comforts and conveniences for visitors. Examples identify a category. Free internet, a water cooler, phone chargers and reading lamps are all things provided to make a wait more comfortable, so amenities means comforts or conveniences for the people using the building.
A: The items listed are in the waiting room and none are used to treat patients.
B: The examples are things, not people, so the category cannot be staff.
C (correct): The examples, internet, water, chargers and lamps, are all features that make waiting easier and more pleasant.
D: Nothing in the list is a rule; each item is something provided for patients to use.
Practice 7 of 38 · medium
At dawn, the fog over the harbor was so dense that the ferry captain could not see the bow of her own boat from the wheelhouse. The harbor master held all departures until about nine, when the sun finally burned through and the opposite shore came into view. By then, nearly two hundred commuters were waiting at the terminal, and the first boat left with every seat filled.
As used in the passage, what does dense most nearly mean?
Show the answer
Answer: C
Correct answer: thick and hard to see through. Use cause and effect as a clue, then ask what the word describes. Because the fog was dense, the captain could not see her own bow, so dense means thick and hard to see through. The held departures are a result of that thickness, not its definition.
A: Delayed departures are a result of the fog, not the meaning of dense; this mistakes a consequence for a definition.
B: Fog may be cold and damp, but the clues are all about not being able to see, which is what dense describes here.
C (correct): The captain could not see her own bow, and departures waited until the shore came into view, so the fog was thick enough to block sight.
D: The fog did last until nine, but the word describes how thick it was, shown by the hidden bow, not how long it stayed.
Practice 8 of 38 · medium
The state highway department has closed one lane of the Route 30 bridge while crews replace worn expansion joints. In a statement on Monday, engineers said the repairs could be finished by mid-October. They added that steel parts are still on order from an out-of-state supplier and that late deliveries might push the work later in the fall. Drivers should expect delays during morning rush hour.
Which statement is best supported by the passage?
Show the answer
Answer: D
Correct answer: Mid-October is a possible finish date, but it is not guaranteed. Modal verbs preserve uncertainty. Could be finished by mid-October states a possibility, and might push the work later names a risk that has not happened. The only paraphrase that keeps both hedges is that mid-October is possible but not certain.
A: This turns could into will and ignores the warning that late deliveries might push the work later.
B: The engineers say mid-October is possible; this replaces their hedge with a firm prediction of failure.
C: The parts are still on order, and late delivery is only something that might happen; no delay has occurred yet.
D (correct): Could and might mark possibilities, so the engineers offer mid-October as a hope that late parts could change.
Practice 9 of 38 · medium
Pilots who fly into the Ridgeway airstrip learn to respect the narrow canyon just west of the runway. On windy afternoons, air spilling over the cliffs swirls in every direction, tossing small planes up, down and sideways in a matter of seconds. Local pilots call this stretch of sky "the washing machine" and warn newcomers to cross it early in the day, when the air is calm.
Why does the author put quotation marks around the washing machine?
Show the answer
Answer: B
Correct answer: to show that it is a nickname local pilots use for the rough air. Ask what the quotation marks signal: irony, jargon or a quoted term. Here they follow "Local pilots call this stretch of sky," so they mark a nickname. The image fits the description of air that swirls planes in every direction, so the name is figurative but sincere, not sarcastic.
A: The phrase is figurative; the canyon holds swirling air, not an appliance.
B (correct): The marks set off the phrase after "local pilots call this stretch of sky," signaling a borrowed name for air that tosses planes about like laundry.
C: Irony would mean the air is the opposite of rough, but the passage describes it as truly violent, so the name fits.
D: The words are credited to local pilots, and no manual or document is mentioned.
Practice 10 of 38 · medium
The safety meeting ran long on Wednesday, and the shop foreman still had three items left on the agenda. Because two of the welders needed to leave for a job across town, he decided to table the discussion of new ventilation fans until Friday's meeting, when everyone could attend. The remaining items, a new sign-in sheet and the holiday schedule, were settled in five minutes before the meeting ended.
As used in the passage, what does table most nearly mean?
Show the answer
Answer: D
Correct answer: put off until later. First check word class: "decided to table the discussion" uses table as a verb. Then use the time clue: until Friday's meeting, because some workers had to leave. Substitute: "decided to put off the discussion until Friday" keeps the sentence's meaning.
A: This is a noun meaning; table is used as a verb in the sentence, so it cannot fit the slot.
B: This is another noun meaning and has nothing to do with moving a discussion to another day.
C: The foreman did not record the discussion; he moved it to Friday's meeting.
D (correct): The foreman moved the fan discussion to Friday because people had to leave, so table here is a verb meaning to postpone.
Practice 11 of 38 · easy
Above the tree line on Gray Peak, the trail crosses bare rock where no path is worn into the ground. Hikers follow a line of cairns, piles of flat stones stacked waist high by park crews, from one rise to the next. The ranger reminded our group never to move or add to them, since a toppled pile can lead hikers off course in fog.
According to the passage, what is a cairn?
Show the answer
Answer: B
Correct answer: a pile of stones that marks a route. Look for a nearby definition. The words set off by commas after cairns, "piles of flat stones stacked waist high by park crews," rename the term, and the hikers follow them from rise to rise, so a cairn is a stone pile that marks the route.
A: The passage mentions flat stones only as the pieces stacked into a pile, not as a resting place.
B (correct): The words right after cairns rename them as piles of stacked stones, and hikers follow them across bare rock.
C: Cairns are made of stones, not wood, and the passage mentions no junctions.
D: The ranger is a separate person; cairns are piles that hikers follow.
Practice 12 of 38 · hard
The warehouse supervisor gave the night crew's proposal for a four-day schedule a lukewarm reception. She agreed to let one team try it for a month, but she would not change the budget to cover it, and she said she was not yet convinced it would help. The crew had hoped she would approve the plan for everyone, so several members left the meeting disappointed.
As used in the passage, what does lukewarm most nearly mean?
Show the answer
Answer: A
Correct answer: showing limited, half-hearted support. Predict from the clues, then match strength. The supervisor said yes to a small trial (some support) but refused budget changes and was not convinced (limits). A paraphrase that keeps both halves is limited, half-hearted support; enthusiastic is too strong and firmly opposed ignores the trial.
A (correct): She allowed only a one-month trial, refused budget changes and stayed unconvinced, which fits support that is real but weak.
B: The crew left disappointed, and she was not yet convinced, so her response was far from enthusiastic.
C: This is the literal sense of lukewarm; the word here describes a reaction to a proposal, not the temperature of water or air.
D: She did approve a trial run, so she did not reject the plan outright.
Practice 13 of 38 · medium
When Lieutenant Park took over the motor pool, she asked the shift leaders to change how they wrote their weekly reports. Their earlier reports had been verbose, often running ten pages and repeating the same points several times. The new ones are concise, rarely more than a single page, and she says she now finishes reading them in minutes and has more time to visit the shop floor.
As used in the passage, what does verbose most nearly mean?
Show the answer
Answer: B
Correct answer: using more words than needed. Contrast sets a boundary on meaning. The earlier reports ran ten pages and repeated points, while the new ones are concise, under a page. Since concise means brief, verbose must point the other way: using too many words.
A: This is the meaning of concise, the word the passage sets up as the opposite of verbose.
B (correct): Ten pages that repeat the same points, contrasted with concise one-page reports, show that verbose means wordy.
C: Verbose looks like verbal, but the reports were written documents; this is a look-alike guess, not the meaning.
D: The passage criticizes the length and repetition of the reports, not their accuracy.
Practice 14 of 38 · easy
During Saturday's pumper drill, the captain assigned each rookie firefighter a job. Ortega connected the supply hose to the hydrant, and Lewis opened the nozzle when the signal came. Mason was told to keep an eye on the pressure gauge and to call out right away if the needle dropped below 100 pounds per square inch. The drill ended after forty minutes, and the captain reviewed each rookie's work at the station afterward.
What does the phrase keep an eye on mean in the passage?
Show the answer
Answer: D
Correct answer: watch closely. Figure out the idiom from what the person must do. Mason has to call out right away if the needle drops, so he must watch the gauge continuously. Keep an eye on means to watch closely.
A: This decodes the words literally; nothing in the passage involves covering the gauge.
B: Mason is told to report a drop, not to fix anything.
C: A single glance would not let him catch the needle dropping at any moment; the job requires continuous watching.
D (correct): Mason must call out as soon as the needle drops, which requires steady, careful watching of the gauge.
Practice 15 of 38 · easy
The regional sales team was on fire last quarter. Its six members closed twice as many contracts as they had a year earlier and brought in three new corporate clients. The company rewarded them with a team dinner and a bonus, and the regional manager asked the group to share its methods with the other offices at next month's planning meeting in Denver.
What does the phrase on fire mean in the passage?
Show the answer
Answer: A
Correct answer: performing extremely well. Literal language would mean an actual fire, but the evidence points to success: twice as many contracts, three new clients and a bonus. On fire is figurative here and means performing extremely well.
A (correct): Doubled contracts, new clients and a reward show the team was doing outstanding work.
B: This is the literal meaning; nothing in the passage mentions flames or danger.
C: The team was rewarded for its results, and nothing suggests anger.
D: The passage reports success and a celebration, not burnout.
Practice 16 of 38 · easy
After the spring storm, about forty volunteers showed up to clear fallen trees from the county park. Few of them had ever used a chain saw, so two forestry workers ran the saws while the volunteers dragged branches to the chipper and stacked firewood along the road. By late afternoon, the main trail and both picnic areas were open again, and the firewood was offered free to anyone who wanted to haul it home.
Which statement is best supported by the passage?
Show the answer
Answer: C
Correct answer: Only a small number of the volunteers had used a chain saw before. Quantifiers set scope. Few means a small number, more than none but far less than most, and the so-clause (forestry workers ran the saws) confirms that most volunteers lacked the skill. The correct paraphrase keeps the same range.
A: Few is not the same as none; this narrows the claim beyond what the passage says.
B: This reverses few; if most could use a saw, the forestry workers would not have needed to run them all.
C (correct): Few means a small number, not none, which also explains why the forestry workers ran the saws.
D: The passage says the two forestry workers ran the saws while the volunteers dragged branches and stacked wood.
Practice 17 of 38 · hard
The town's planning board reviewed the developer's proposal for a new apartment block on Saturday. After two hours of discussion, the board gave the project a qualified endorsement. Members agreed that the town needs more housing and voted to let the work go forward, but only if the developer adds a second exit road and cuts the building from six stories to four. The developer said he would study the conditions before deciding whether to proceed.
As used in the passage, what does qualified endorsement most nearly mean?
Show the answer
Answer: A
Correct answer: approval given with conditions attached. Read the sentence after the target phrase: the board voted to let the project go forward, but only if two changes were made. That restatement shows qualified here means limited by conditions, not skilled, so the endorsement is approval with conditions attached. Test it: the board gave the project approval with conditions attached, which keeps the passage's meaning.
A (correct): The board voted yes but only if the road is added and the building is shortened, so its support came with limits.
B: This uses the familiar sense of qualified as skilled or certified, but the passage says nothing about the members' training; the conditions after but show the real sense.
C: This drops the limits the board set; the words only if show the support was not unconditional.
D: This reverses the claim; the board voted to let the work go forward, so it did approve the project.
Practice 18 of 38 · easy
Cargo ships that sail empty can ride dangerously high in the water. To keep them steady, crews take on ballast, heavy material such as seawater or gravel that is stored low in the hull. The extra weight lowers the ship's center of gravity and helps it resist rolling in rough seas. When the ship is loaded with cargo again, the crew pumps the seawater back out.
According to the passage, what is ballast?
Show the answer
Answer: B
Correct answer: heavy material carried low in a ship to keep it stable. The writer defines the term right beside it: after the comma, ballast is renamed as heavy material such as seawater or gravel stored low in the hull. The next sentence confirms its purpose, keeping the ship steady. So ballast is heavy material carried low in a ship to keep it stable.
A: The passage describes ballast as something taken on when a ship is empty of cargo, and it is removed when cargo is loaded, so it is not the cargo.
B (correct): The phrase right after the comma renames ballast as heavy material stored low in the hull to keep the ship steady.
C: Pumps are mentioned only as the way seawater ballast is removed; a pump is a related item, not what ballast means.
D: Rolling is what ballast helps the ship resist; the word names the weight, not the motion.
Practice 19 of 38 · medium
Many patients at the county clinic said they trusted Dr. Okafor more than any other physician on staff. Some doctors softened bad news with vague phrases or changed the subject when families asked hard questions. Dr. Okafor, by contrast, was candid. She told families exactly what the test results showed, explained the risks of each treatment in plain words, and admitted when she did not know an answer.
As used in the passage, what does candid most nearly mean?
Show the answer
Answer: A
Correct answer: frank and honest. The words by contrast set Dr. Okafor against doctors who used vague phrases and changed the subject. The examples that follow, telling families exactly what tests showed and admitting what she did not know, point to open, direct speech. So candid means frank and honest.
A (correct): Telling families exactly what the results showed and admitting what she did not know is open, honest behavior, the opposite of the vague doctors.
B: Softening bad news is what the other doctors did; by contrast signals that Dr. Okafor did something different, not something gentler.
C: Patients may have trusted her for many reasons, but the examples describe how she spoke, not her medical skill.
D: This describes the other doctors' vague phrases; the contrast clue says candid means the opposite.
Practice 20 of 38 · hard
Construction of the new fire station was supposed to take a full year. In October, the project manager wrote a letter to the county inspectors praising the masonry crew, because they had finished the brick walls six weeks ahead of schedule. She asked that the crew be considered for the county's next building job. The inspectors replied that they would keep the request on file.
In the second sentence, who does the pronoun they refer to?
Show the answer
Answer: C
Correct answer: the members of the masonry crew. Test each plural noun in place of they. A manager praises a crew because the crew did good work, and finishing brick walls is masonry work, so they must mean the masonry crew. The inspectors are named closer to the pronoun, but they only receive the letter. The last sentence uses they for the inspectors, but the question asks only about the second sentence.
A: Inspectors check work rather than lay brick, and the letter praises the crew, not the inspectors; the inspectors are simply the readers of the letter.
B: The project manager is referred to as she in the passage; she is the one doing the praising, not the one being praised.
C (correct): The letter praises the crew because of what they did, and finishing the brick walls is a mason's job, so they means the crew.
D: This widens the scope; the passage praises one crew, the masonry crew, for finishing the brick walls.
Practice 21 of 38 · medium
The new storage shed at the community garden looked fine when it was finished in June. By November, however, the roof leaked and the door hung crooked. A carpenter who inspected the shed said the builder had cut corners: he had used thin plywood instead of the boards listed in the plans, skipped the waterproof roofing paper, and fastened the frame with half the screws it needed.
What does the phrase cut corners mean in the passage?
Show the answer
Answer: C
Correct answer: did the job cheaply or carelessly to save time or money. An idiom must be read from how the passage uses it. After the colon, the carpenter lists thin plywood, skipped roofing paper and too few screws, and the shed then leaked and sagged. So cut corners means did the job cheaply or carelessly to save time or money.
A: This decodes the words literally; the passage gives no sign that any boards were trimmed, only that steps and materials were skipped.
B: This reads corners as street corners; the phrase is explained by the building shortcuts listed after the colon, not by travel.
C (correct): The examples after the colon, thinner wood, a skipped layer and missing screws, all show work done below standard to save effort or cost.
D: Saving money is part of the idea, but the leaking roof and crooked door show the shortcuts were harmful, so smart misreads the negative tone.
Practice 22 of 38 · easy
City buses on Route 9 now pull away from the curb with a flashing light on the back that reads "Yield." A new state law requires drivers behind a bus to yield when that light is on. That means they must slow down or stop and let the bus merge back into traffic before moving ahead. Police say the rule should make bus stops safer for riders.
As used in the passage, what does yield most nearly mean?
Show the answer
Answer: B
Correct answer: give way. The sentence after the target word restates it: drivers must slow down or stop and let the bus merge before moving ahead. Putting give way in place of yield keeps that meaning, so yield here means give way.
A: This is a familiar farming sense of yield, but nothing in a passage about buses and traffic involves crops.
B (correct): The next sentence explains that drivers must slow or stop and let the bus merge first, which is what giving way means.
C: The passage says drivers must slow down or stop, the opposite of speeding up.
D: This is the sense of yielding in a contest or argument; drivers here are simply letting a bus go first, not conceding anything.
Practice 23 of 38 · medium
Drivers heading from the coast to the army depot at Fort Hale have two choices. The highway along the shore is about twenty miles shorter, but it often closes when winter storms bring ice and blowing snow. The one that winds through the river valley takes longer, yet road crews keep it plowed all season. For that reason, convoy leaders usually pick the valley road from December to March.
In the third sentence, what does the one refer to?
Show the answer
Answer: B
Correct answer: the route to the depot that runs through the valley. The first sentence says drivers have two choices of route, and the second describes the shore highway. The one stands in for the other route, and the words that winds through the river valley and kept plowed identify it. So the one means the route to the depot that runs through the valley.
A: The shore highway, which often closes in storms, is the route being contrasted; the one that winds through the valley is the other choice.
B (correct): One replaces a noun phrase already used, a way to reach the depot; the words through the river valley tell which route is meant.
C: The valley is where the route runs, not what one replaces; road crews plow a road, not a valley.
D: The depot is the destination; it does not wind through a valley or need plowing.
Practice 24 of 38 · medium
The ferry between Port Linden and Cedar Island has carried passengers for more than fifty years. Because fewer commuters have been riding on weekdays, the operator recently cut the Monday through Friday trips. The ferry still runs on Saturdays and Sundays from May to October, and the operator says weekday service could return if ridership grows. Islanders who work on the mainland now drive the long way around by the causeway.
Which statement is best supported by the passage?
Show the answer
Answer: D
Correct answer: Weekend trips continue, while weekday trips were stopped not long ago. Time words carry the meaning here. Still in the third sentence means weekend trips continue now, and recently in the second sentence means the weekday cut happened a short time ago. Only the statement that keeps both time words, weekend trips continue while weekday trips were stopped not long ago, matches the passage.
A: The operator says weekday service could return if ridership grows, which is a possibility with a condition, not a promise for next year.
B: This drops the word still; the passage says the ferry continues to run on weekends.
C: Fifty years is how long the ferry has operated; the word recently places the cut in the near past.
D (correct): Still shows weekend service goes on today, and recently places the weekday cut in the near past.
Practice 25 of 38 · hard
A drug company announced last month that its new cold remedy shortened illness by two days. Independent scientists who looked at the study were less impressed. Only forty people took part, the company itself ran the trial, and the people who got the real medicine were younger on average than those who got a sugar pill. One researcher said the results were hardly conclusive and called for a larger study run by an outside lab.
As used in the passage, what does hardly conclusive mean?
Show the answer
Answer: C
Correct answer: far from proving the claim. Hardly acts like not, so hardly conclusive means the results did not settle the question. The surrounding evidence, a tiny group, a company-run trial, unequal ages and a call for a larger outside study, confirms the results are far from proving the claim. They do not prove the opposite either; they just leave it open.
A: This uses the sense of hard as difficult; in this phrase hardly means barely or not, so it removes the idea of proof.
B: This weakens the criticism too much; the researcher wants a whole new study, which shows the doubts are serious.
C (correct): Hardly works like a negative here, and the listed flaws, a small group, a company-run trial and an age difference, show the results settle very little.
D: This swings to the opposite claim; weak evidence for the remedy is not evidence against it.
Practice 26 of 38 · medium
By midmorning the gusts at the shipyard had reached 45 miles per hour, too strong for the crane crew to lift the new engine into the tugboat. The foreman told everyone to take a break and wait for the wind to abate. Shortly after lunch, the gusts died down to a light breeze, and the crew lowered the engine into place without a problem.
As used in the passage, what does abate most nearly mean?
Show the answer
Answer: A
Correct answer: become weaker. The crew had to wait because the wind was too strong. The following sentence says the gusts died down to a light breeze, and then the lift went ahead. That restatement shows abate means become weaker; putting it back in, wait for the wind to become weaker, fits the sentence.
A (correct): The next sentence restates what happened: the gusts died down to a light breeze, which is the wind becoming weaker.
B: Direction is never mentioned; the passage stresses that the wind went from strong gusts to a light breeze.
C: This is the opposite; stronger wind would have kept the crane idle, but the crew finished the lift after the wind changed.
D: The wind speed is given, but the crew was waiting for the wind to calm, not for someone to measure it.
Practice 27 of 38 · medium
The motor pool keeps two kinds of stock. Large items such as engines and transmissions are ordered only when a vehicle needs one. Consumables, on the other hand, are kept on the shelves at all times: wiper blades, oil filters, brake pads, headlight bulbs and spark plugs. Because these parts wear out or get used up during normal service, the clerk reorders them every month.
As used in the passage, what does consumables most nearly mean?
Show the answer
Answer: A
Correct answer: parts that are used up and must be replaced often. The list of examples, wiper blades, filters, brake pads, bulbs and spark plugs, shows the category: small parts that wear out. The last sentence confirms they get used up during normal service, and on the other hand separates them from big parts ordered as needed. So consumables are parts that are used up and must be replaced often.
A (correct): The examples are all items that wear out in normal use, and the last sentence says they get used up and are reordered monthly.
B: This is a familiar sense of things that are consumed, but every example is a vehicle part, not food.
C: This describes engines and transmissions, which on the other hand sets apart from consumables.
D: Wiper blades and bulbs are installed in vehicles, not used as tools; this names a related idea, not the meaning.
Practice 28 of 38 · hard
When Harper took over the help desk at the regional office, the tracking system showed only twelve open repair requests. Within a week she realized those twelve were just the tip of the iceberg. Each request she opened led to others that had never been entered: a broken printer turned out to be a failing network switch, which had also knocked out phones on two floors. By Friday, her list had grown to more than sixty items.
What does the phrase just the tip of the iceberg suggest in the passage?
Show the answer
Answer: C
Correct answer: the visible requests were a small part of a much larger hidden problem. Use the evidence that follows the phrase. Each logged request led to others that had never been entered, and the list grew from twelve to more than sixty. The feature of an iceberg the passage supports is that most of it is hidden below the surface, so the twelve requests were a small visible part of a much larger problem.
A: This borrows the danger of icebergs to ships, but the passage stresses hidden size, not disaster.
B: Nothing suggests the problems disappeared; the list grew larger, not smaller.
C (correct): The twelve logged requests led to many that had never been entered, and the list grew past sixty, so most of the problem had been out of sight.
D: Tip here means the top part that shows, not the top priority; the passage says nothing about which requests were most urgent.
Practice 29 of 38 · hard
The shipping company announced a bonus plan for its warehouse teams this year. A team will earn the year-end bonus only if it meets two goals: shipping every order within two days and keeping damaged-item returns below one percent. Teams that miss either goal will not receive the bonus, though the company will still hold its holiday dinner for all employees. Managers will post each team's numbers every Friday.
Which statement is best supported by the passage?
Show the answer
Answer: B
Correct answer: A team that ships every order on time but has too many damaged returns will not earn the bonus. Only if sets a required condition: no bonus unless the condition is met, and here the condition has two parts. The next sentence confirms that missing either goal means no bonus. So a team with on-time shipping but too many damaged returns misses the second goal and does not earn the bonus.
A: This treats one goal as enough; only if ties the bonus to both goals, so a team whose damaged returns reach one percent or more does not earn it.
B (correct): Only if makes both goals required, and the passage adds that missing either goal means no bonus.
C: The passage says the dinner is held for all employees, so missing a goal affects only the bonus.
D: This ignores the second condition; the passage says teams that miss either goal will not receive the bonus.
Practice 30 of 38 · medium
The county fair opens next Friday, and the volunteer fire company has a booth near the main gate where children can sit in an old engine and try on helmets. The fire chief has asked six firefighters to staff the booth each evening from five to nine. They will hand out safety coloring books, answer questions about smoke alarms, and help parents sign up for free home safety checks.
As used in the passage, what does staff most nearly mean?
Show the answer
Answer: D
Correct answer: work at and run. Check the word class first: in to staff the booth, staff is a verb, so noun meanings such as a group of workers or a stick cannot fit. The next sentence lists what the firefighters will do there, hand out books and answer questions, so staff means work at and run the booth.
A: This is the noun sense of staff; in the sentence staff follows to and takes the booth as its object, so it must be an action.
B: This is another noun sense of staff and has nothing to do with a fair booth.
C: The booth already exists near the main gate; the firefighters' listed tasks are talking with visitors, not construction.
D (correct): Staff is used as a verb here: the firefighters will be at the booth handing out books and answering questions, which is running it.
Practice 31 of 38 · easy
Corporal Diaz woke up on Tuesday with a sore throat, a runny nose and a slight fever. Since she felt under the weather, she reported to sick call instead of going on the morning run with her platoon. The medic gave her cold medicine and told her to rest in the barracks for a day. By Thursday she was back on duty.
What does the phrase under the weather mean in the passage?
Show the answer
Answer: B
Correct answer: mildly ill. The idiom is explained by the symptoms in the first sentence and the visit to sick call in the second. A sore throat and slight fever that clear up in a couple of days point to feeling slightly sick, so under the weather means mildly ill.
A: This reads the words literally; no storm is mentioned, and her symptoms explain the phrase.
B (correct): Her sore throat, runny nose and slight fever, plus the trip to sick call, show she was a little sick.
C: This overstates the problem; she had cold symptoms, rested one day and was back on duty soon after.
D: Nothing in the passage describes her feelings; the clues are physical symptoms and a visit to the medic.
Practice 32 of 38 · easy
For three years the dispatch team worked out of a cramped trailer behind the station. The desks were pushed together so tightly that dispatchers bumped elbows, and anyone who needed the filing cabinet had to ask two people to stand up first. Last month the team finally moved into a large room on the station's second floor, where each desk has plenty of space around it.
As used in the passage, what does cramped most nearly mean?
Show the answer
Answer: D
Correct answer: too small for the people in it. The second sentence gives the clues: desks so close that elbows bumped, and people had to stand up to let someone reach a cabinet. The contrast with the new room that has plenty of space confirms it. Cramped means too small for the people in it.
A: A dispatch office may be noisy, but the clues are about lack of space, not sound or activity.
B: This is the sense of a muscle cramp; here cramped describes a trailer, not a body.
C: The age and condition of the trailer are never described; the details all concern crowding.
D (correct): Desks pushed together, bumped elbows and people standing up to let others pass all show there was not enough room.
Practice 33 of 38 · medium
Staff Sergeant Ames is known in his unit as the most frugal person on base. He packs his own lunch instead of buying meals, repairs his boots rather than replacing them, and buys used textbooks for his night classes. Every month he puts most of his paycheck into savings. Yet he is the first to chip in when a fellow soldier needs help with an emergency bill.
As used in the passage, what does frugal most nearly mean?
Show the answer
Answer: C
Correct answer: careful about spending money. The examples show the category: he packs lunch, fixes instead of replaces, buys used, and saves most of his pay, so frugal means careful about spending money. The word Yet in the last sentence rules out the harsher idea of stinginess, since he gladly helps others.
A: This is too negative; the last sentence says he is the first to chip in when someone needs help, so he is not stingy.
B: Saving money is linked to wealth, but the passage never says how much he has; this names an associated idea, not the meaning.
C (correct): Packing lunch, repairing boots, buying used books and saving most of his pay all show someone who avoids needless spending.
D: Fixing boots is one example of saving money, but the other examples have nothing to do with repair skill.
Practice 34 of 38 · medium
Most of the high school students expected the guest speaker, a retired submarine officer, to be dull. Instead, they found his talk riveting. He described a fire that broke out hundreds of feet below the surface and how the crew fought it in the dark. Nobody checked a phone for the whole hour, and when the bell rang, a crowd of students stayed behind to ask more questions.
As used in the passage, what does riveting most nearly mean?
Show the answer
Answer: C
Correct answer: holding attention completely. Instead sets riveting against dull, so it must be a strong positive. The evidence that no one checked a phone for an hour and students stayed after the bell confirms the meaning: holding attention completely.
A: This is the shop meaning of riveting, which fits steel plates on a submarine, not a talk.
B: The fire story is dramatic, but the students' eager questions show interest, not distress.
C (correct): Students never checked their phones and stayed after the bell, which shows the talk held their full attention.
D: This is what the students expected; Instead signals that the talk turned out the opposite of dull.
Practice 35 of 38 · easy
The note taped to the break room fridge said, "Clean out your food on Friday." The instructions were ambiguous. Some workers thought they had to take their own food home that day, while others thought they were supposed to empty the whole fridge. By Monday the fridge was bare, and two people were upset that their lunches had been thrown away.
As used in the passage, what does ambiguous most nearly mean?
Show the answer
Answer: D
Correct answer: open to more than one meaning. The sentence right after the target word restates it: some workers read the note one way and others read it another way. Instructions that can be understood in two ways are open to more than one meaning, so that is what ambiguous means here.
A: Nothing about the tone of the note is criticized; the trouble was that people understood it differently.
B: The note is one short sentence, so length was not the problem.
C: The passage describes confusion over what the note meant, not how firmly it was enforced.
D (correct): The next sentence shows workers read the note in two different ways, which is what ambiguous means.
Practice 36 of 38 · hard
After two floods in five years, the city is building an earthen levee along the east bank of the river. Engineers say the levee will mitigate flooding in the low neighborhoods near the rail yard. They also caution that it was designed for typical spring high water; during a rare major storm, the river could still rise high enough to put water in some streets. The project should be finished by next fall.
As used in the passage, what does mitigate most nearly mean?
Show the answer
Answer: D
Correct answer: make less severe. The levee is built because of past floods, so it must help against flooding, which removes predict and make more frequent. The next sentence then says a major storm could still put water in some streets, so the levee cannot prevent floods completely. The meaning that fits both clues is make less severe.
A: This overstates the claim; the warning that water could still reach some streets shows flooding is not ruled out.
B: Nothing about forecasting appears; the levee is a physical barrier that acts on the water.
C: This reverses the purpose; the city is building the levee because of past floods, to reduce them.
D (correct): The engineers expect less flooding but warn that a major storm could still flood some streets, so the levee reduces the problem without removing it.
Practice 37 of 38 · easy
When the head cook at the soup kitchen broke her wrist two days before Thanksgiving, the whole neighborhood pitched in. A retired baker made forty pies, two high school students peeled potatoes all afternoon, and the hardware store owner drove the turkeys over from the market. The kitchen served more than three hundred meals that day, its biggest crowd ever.
What does the phrase pitched in mean in the passage?
Show the answer
Answer: A
Correct answer: helped with the work. The sentence after the idiom lists what neighbors did: baked pies, peeled potatoes and delivered turkeys. Those examples show people joining in to share the work, so pitched in means helped with the work.
A (correct): The baker, the students and the store owner each took on a task so the meals could be served.
B: This decodes the words literally; the examples describe people doing jobs, not tossing objects.
C: Pitching a tent is a different use of pitch; no tents appear in the passage.
D: The passage shows people volunteering willingly and the kitchen having its biggest day, with no sign of complaints.
Practice 38 of 38 · medium
The field kitchen was supposed to receive fresh vegetables and eggs on Monday, but the supply truck broke down on the mountain road and did not arrive until Thursday. In the meantime, the cooks made do with what was already in the storage tent: canned beans, rice, powdered eggs and a few sacks of onions. The soldiers grumbled about the menu, but nobody went hungry.
What does the phrase made do with mean in the passage?
Show the answer
Answer: B
Correct answer: managed by using what was available. Read the phrase as a unit, not one word at a time. The truck was late, so the cooks used the canned beans, rice and powdered eggs already in the tent, and nobody went hungry. Made do with means managed by using what was available.
A: This focuses on made as in made food, ignoring the whole phrase; the fresh supplies were exactly what had not arrived.
B (correct): With the truck delayed, the cooks used the canned and dry food already on hand, and nobody went hungry.
C: The passage says the meals came from the storage tent, so the cooks used that food rather than refusing it.
D: Nobody went hungry, which means the cooks kept serving meals before Thursday instead of waiting.
About this test
Every question comes with an explanation that quotes the context clue and shows how the replacement reads in the sentence. If you chose a common dictionary sense, return to the section on context overriding usual meaning. If a referent caught you, review the pronoun and demonstrative sections. Answers that dropped a qualifier or replaced only part of a phrase point to the matching trap sections in the Words and Phrases in Context lesson.
Thirty-eight extra practice questions for this lesson are available when you want another round on this skill. Your percentage is a practice measure for this skill, not an ASVAB or AFQT score.
The same 124 lessons, 6,516 questions and 82 timed practice tests on your phone, plus flashcards with spaced review and progress tracking. Free to download, and it works offline.
ASVAB Camp
English ▾