Free ELPT Reading Comprehension Questions and Answers — Questions and Answers

Question 1: In Sentence 5, to what does “frippery” refer?

Etiquette
Ornate clothing (Correct answer)
Trickery
Manual labor
Paganism

Correct answer: Ornate clothing

Explanation: While Sentences 3 and 4 digress somewhat from the main topic of Sentences 1 and 2 (Miss Brooke's style of clothing), Sentence 5 returns to the subject. Sentence 5 also notes that middle-class, respectable women such as the Brooke sisters regard this "frippery" as beneath their social position. Thus, it stands to reason that the "frippery" in question is foolishly ornate clothing.

Question 2: In Sentence 1, what does “thrown into relief” mean?

Diminished
Concealed
Accentuated (Correct answer)
Questioned
Contradicted

Correct answer: Accentuated

Explanation: Sentence 2 elaborates upon the idea introduced in Sentence 1. Miss Brooke's physical beauty is so great that plain, "bare," or "poor" clothes only serve to underscore or emphasis it. None of the other words make sense when substituted into the passage.

Question 3: In Sentence 4, what action is suggested by the phrase “if you inquired backward for a generation or two”?

Conversing with town elders
Discovering damning evidence
Consulting uneducated locals
Conducting genealogical research (Correct answer)
None of these

Correct answer: Conducting genealogical research

Explanation: "Inquiring backward a generation or two" is a quaint way of suggesting genealogical research. There is nothing in this passage to indicate that the townspeople or elders can provide information about the Brookes' heritage, nor is there anything to suggest that the evidence uncovered would be damning. The author simply means that, if someone were to consult a genealogical record that extended several generations into the past, they would discover more information about the Brookes' ancestors.

Question 4: To what does “mixed conditions” (Sentence 3) refer?

Uncertain parentage
Religious conviction
Lack of education
Extravagant wealth
Social status (Correct answer)

Correct answer: Social status

Explanation: The paragraph in which "mixed conditions" appears discusses the Brooke sisters' social status. It mentions their ancestors, their "respectable family estate" (Sentence 4), and their "birth," or family's social position. Thus, the "mixed conditions" denote the women's good family name but modest income.

Question 5: Based on the passage, it can be inferred that “Cromwell” was a ______________.

political figure who remains revered today
political figure who fell from power (Correct answer)
religious leader with controversial opinions
religious iconoclast with a devoted following
secular founder of a school of art

Correct answer: political figure who fell from power

Explanation: The reference to Cromwell appears in Sentence 4 and denotes a historical man, Oliver Cromwell, who was a 17th-century leader of England before being overthrown. Although it's tempting to choose the "religious leader" option because the Brookes' ancestor is described as "a Puritan gentleman," read more closely. This same ancestor, after serving under Cromwell and then "conforming" or reversing his opinions back to the political majority, "managed to come out of all political troubles," not religious troubles.

Question 6: What is the author indicating with the phrase “yard-measuring or parcel-tying forefathers” (Sentence 4)?

Colonial patriots
Working-class people (Correct answer)
Farmers
Wealthy misers
Immigrants

Correct answer: Working-class people

Explanation: Sentence 4 goes on to elaborate upon this curious phrase: "yard-measuring or parcel-tying forefathers — anything lower than an admiral or a clergyman." Thus we can see that "admiral and clergyman," both fairly respected positions, is in contrast to "yard-measuring or parcel-tying forefathers." The only choice that makes sense in this context is working-class men ("farmers" is too specific).

Question 7: Based on the passage, it can be inferred that __________________.

Hal made no attempt to stop the dogs from running off down the street
Mercedes tried to keep Hal from being injured
the dogs had intentionally gotten the sled stuck in the snow in order to avoid further work
the townspeople enjoyed seeing the dogs run the sled over Hal (Correct answer)

Correct answer: the townspeople enjoyed seeing the dogs run the sled over Hal

Explanation: The phrase "adding to the gayety of Skaguay" at the end of the passage implies that the onlookers felt that Hal was being punished for his earlier mistreatment of the dogs.

Question 8: Based on the passage, it can be inferred that ________________.

Buck is Hal's assistant
Mercedes feels responsible for the sled being stuck in the snow
Hal has mistreated the dogs in the past (Correct answer)
The townspeople of Skaguay encouraged Hal to beat his dogs

Correct answer: Hal has mistreated the dogs in the past

Explanation: The lines "taking it as part of the day's miserable work" and "they were angry because of the ill-treatment they had received" indicate that the dogs had been mistreated in the past.

Question 9: What is the role of Sentence 1 in relation to the rest of the passage?

It addresses an error at the end of the passage
It presents a claim that the rest of the passage supports (Correct answer)
It provides an argument for the rest of the passage to rebut
It poses an implicit rhetorical question to the reader
It offers an example of a broader phenomenon

Correct answer: It presents a claim that the rest of the passage supports

Explanation: Sentence 1 describes bluntly the type of person who Miss Dwarris is. The rest of the passage is devoted to fleshing out that description, adding details to support the author's assertions: she "had been a sore trial to her relations" all her life.

Question 10: In Sentence 2, what is the meaning of “a woman of means”?

Miss Dwarris is middle-aged
Miss Dwarris is cruel
Miss Dwarris is rich (Correct answer)
Miss Dwarris is of noble birth
Miss Dwarris is petty

Correct answer: Miss Dwarris is rich

Explanation: While elsewhere in the passage there is evidence of Miss Dwarris' cruelty, the phrase in question concerns her financial status. Even if you weren't familiar with the term "person of means" as a euphemism for "wealthy person," you could note the contrast in Sentence 2 between this euphemism and the "impecunious" or impoverished cousins.

Question 11: In Sentence 2, what rhetorical device does “scorpions of Rehoboam” represent?

Allusion (Correct answer)
Parallelism
Alliteration
Simile
Metonymy

Correct answer: Allusion

Explanation: An allusion is a reference to another literary (or sometimes historical, artistic, etc.) thing, place, or event (e.g. the title of the novel Brave New World alludes to the lines "O brave new world, / That has such people in 't!" in Shakespeare's The Tempest). Alliteration is the repetition of similar sounds at the beginning of multiple words (e.g. "two torn tulips"). A simile is a comparison using "like" or "as" (e.g. "the still pond is like a looking glass"). Metonymy is the substitution of one word for another word that's commonly associated with it (e.g. using "throne" to discuss a monarchy). Parallelism is the use of clauses with identical grammatical patterns, syntax, or meter (e.g. ""She expected nothing, hoped for everything, and received something"").

Free ELPT Reading Comprehension Questions and Answers

In Sentence 5, to what does “frippery” refer?

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