100% Free Test Prep PSAT Practice Test Questions

Question 1

The main purpose of this story is to appeal to the reader’s interest in a subject which has been the theme of some of the greatest writers, living and dead – but which has never been, and can never be, exhausted, because it is a subject eternally interesting to all mankind. Here is one more book that depicts the struggle of a human creature, under those opposing influences of Good and Evil, which we have all felt, which we have all known. It has been my aim to make the character of “Magdalen,” which personifies this struggle, a pathetic character even in its perversity and its error; and I have tried hard to attain this result by the least obtrusive and the least artificial of all means – by a resolute adherence throughout to the truth as it is in Nature. This design was no easy one to accomplish; and it has been a great encouragement to me (during the publication of my story in its periodical form) to know, on the authority of many readers, that the object which I had proposed to myself, I might, in some degree, consider as an object achieved. Round the central figure in the narrative other characters will be found grouped, in sharp contrast – contrast, for the most part, in which I have endeavored to make the element of humor mainly predominant. I have sought to impart this relief to the more serious passages in the book, not only because I believe myself to be justified in doing so by the laws of Art – but because experience has taught me (what the experience of my readers will doubtless confirm) that there is no such moral phenomenon as unmixed tragedy to be found in the world around us. Look where we may, the dark threads and the light cross each other perpetually in the texture of human life. What selection best identifies the device utilized as a whole in the opening first paragraph?

A : allegory

B : rhetorical question

C : allusion

D : epic

E : antagonist

Answer: C

Question 2

The lengths of the three sides of a right triangle form a set of consecutive even integers when arranged from least to greatest. If the second largest side has a length of x, then which of the following equations could be used to solve for x?

A : (x - 2)2 + x2 = (x + 2)2

B : (x – 2) + x = (x + 2)

C : (x + 2)2 + (x – 2)2 = x2

D : (x – 1)2 + x2 = (x + 1)2

E : x2 + (x + 2)2 = (x + 4)2

Answer: A

Question 3

Adapted from Volume Four of The Natural History of Animals: The Animal Life of the World in Its Various

Aspects and Relations by James Richard Ainsworth Davis (1903)

The examples of protective resemblance so far quoted are mostly permanent adaptations to one particular sort

of surrounding. There are, however, numerous animals which possess the power of adjusting their color more

or less rapidly so as to harmonize with a changing environment.

Some of the best known of these cases are found among those mammals and birds that inhabit countries more

or less covered with snow during a part of the year. A good instance is afforded by the Irish or variable hare,

which is chiefly found in Ireland and Scotland. In summer, this looks very much like an ordinary hare, though

rather grayer in tint and smaller in size, but in winter it becomes white with the exception of the black tips to the

ears. Investigations that have been made on the closely allied American hare seem to show that the

phenomenon is due to the growth of new hairs of white hue.

The common stoat is subject to similar color change in the northern parts of its range. In summer it is of a

bright reddish brown color with the exception of the under parts, which are yellowish white, and the end of the

tail, which is black. But in winter, the entire coat, save only the tip of the tail, becomes white, and in that

conditions the animal is known as an ermine. A similar example is afforded by the weasel. The seasonal

change in the vegetarian Irish hare is purely of protective character, but in such an actively carnivorous creature

as a stoat or weasel, it is aggressive as well, rendering the animal inconspicuous to its prey.

Why is the American hare mentioned in the passage?

A : It is a type of hare that does not change color.

B : It is better at hiding than the Scottish hare

C : It is another name for the Scottish hare.

D : Scientists have studied it to find out how a hare’s fur changes color.

E : It is a predator of the Scottish hare.

Answer: D

Question 4

The supervisor was absolutely ______ on the issue of wearing a tie and coat in the office; I mean, she was absolutely ______.

A : obdurate. . .implacable

B : persistent. . .moved

C : passionate. . .vehement

D : malleable. . .fixated

E : mawkish. . .impassioned

Answer: A

Question 5

What will it cost to carpet a room with indoor/outdoor carpet if the room is 10 feet wide and 12 feet long? The carpet costs 12.51 per square yard.

A : $166.80

B : $175.90

C : $184.30

D : $189.90

E : $192.20

Answer: A

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