GMAS English Language Arts (ELA) Domains 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A student reads a passage and must determine the author's purpose. Which question best helps identify the author's purpose?
- What does the author want the reader to think, feel, or do? (Correct answer)
- How many paragraphs does the passage have?
- Who are the main characters in the passage?
- What is the setting of the passage?
Correct answer: What does the author want the reader to think, feel, or do?
Author's purpose focuses on what the author intends the reader to think, feel, or do as a result of reading.
Question 2: When comparing two informational texts on the same topic, a student should look for—
- similarities and differences in the authors' claims and supporting evidence (Correct answer)
- which text has more pages and illustrations
- which author uses longer sentences and more complex vocabulary
- how many facts are repeated in both texts
Correct answer: similarities and differences in the authors' claims and supporting evidence
Comparing informational texts requires analyzing how each author develops claims and what evidence they use to support those claims.
Question 3: Which type of figurative language is used in the sentence: 'The thunder grumbled like an unhappy giant'?
- Simile (Correct answer)
- Metaphor
- Personification
- Hyperbole
Correct answer: Simile
A simile makes a comparison using 'like' or 'as'; here thunder is compared to an unhappy giant using 'like'.
Question 4: In an argumentative essay, what is the primary role of a counterclaim?
- To acknowledge an opposing viewpoint before refuting it (Correct answer)
- To restate the writer's main claim in different words
- To provide additional evidence supporting the main claim
- To introduce a new topic unrelated to the argument
Correct answer: To acknowledge an opposing viewpoint before refuting it
A counterclaim acknowledges the opposing side's argument, which the writer then refutes to strengthen their own position.
Question 5: A student encounters the word 'benevolent' in a passage. Which context clue strategy is MOST reliable for determining its meaning?
- Looking for nearby words or phrases that describe the character's kind actions (Correct answer)
- Counting how many times the word appears in the text
- Replacing the word with a random synonym and rereading
- Skipping the word and continuing to read the passage
Correct answer: Looking for nearby words or phrases that describe the character's kind actions
Nearby descriptive phrases about a character's actions or traits are the most reliable context clues for determining word meaning.
Question 6: Which sentence uses a colon correctly?
- She packed three things for the trip: a map, a compass, and snacks. (Correct answer)
- She packed: three things for the trip a map a compass and snacks.
- She packed three things: for the trip a map, a compass, and snacks.
- She: packed three things for the trip a map, a compass, and snacks.
Correct answer: She packed three things for the trip: a map, a compass, and snacks.
A colon is correctly used after a complete independent clause to introduce a list.
Question 7: What does it mean when a text has a 'first-person' point of view?
- The narrator is a character in the story and uses 'I' and 'we' (Correct answer)
- The story is told by an all-knowing narrator outside the story
- The reader is addressed directly using 'you'
- The story switches between multiple characters' perspectives
Correct answer: The narrator is a character in the story and uses 'I' and 'we'
First-person point of view means the narrator participates in the story and uses pronouns like 'I,' 'me,' and 'we.'
GMAS English Language Arts (ELA) Domains 2
A student reads a passage and must determine the author's purpose.
Which question best helps identify the author's purpose?