NM-MSSA English Language Arts 2

Question 1

Which sentence uses a comma correctly?

Accepted Answer

She ran quickly, and she won the race.

Answer

A comma is placed before a coordinating conjunction (and, but, or) that joins two independent clauses.

Question 2

Read this sentence: 'The ancient, crumbling castle stood on the hilltop.' What does 'ancient' mean?

Accepted Answer

Very old

Answer

'Ancient' means belonging to the very distant past or having existed for a very long time.

Question 3

Which text structure is used when an author describes how one event causes another?

Accepted Answer

Cause and effect

Answer

Cause and effect structure shows how one event or action leads to another event or outcome.

Question 4

A student writes: 'I seen the movie last night.' How should this be corrected?

Accepted Answer

I saw the movie last night.

Answer

'Saw' is the simple past tense of 'see'; 'seen' requires a helping verb like 'have' or 'had.'

Question 5

What is the purpose of a topic sentence in a paragraph?

Accepted Answer

To introduce the main idea of the paragraph

Answer

A topic sentence states the main idea that the rest of the paragraph will support and develop.

(NM-MSSA) New Mexico Measures of Student Success and Achievement Practice Test