SATs Reading Comprehension 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A passage about public health states: 'Access to nutritious food is unevenly distributed across income levels.' Which evidence best supports this claim?
- A study showing high-income neighborhoods have 3× more grocery stores per capita than low-income ones (Correct answer)
- A survey of people who prefer fast food
- Data on national average caloric intake
- Research on vitamin supplement sales
Correct answer: A study showing high-income neighborhoods have 3× more grocery stores per capita than low-income ones
The disparity in grocery store density directly supports the claim that nutritious food access varies by income level.
Question 2: The central argument of a passage can best be described as the:
- Most frequently mentioned topic
- Main claim the author is trying to establish throughout the text (Correct answer)
- First sentence of the first paragraph
- Summary of all counterarguments
Correct answer: Main claim the author is trying to establish throughout the text
The central argument is the overarching claim the author develops and supports across the entire passage.
Question 3: A passage uses the phrase 'rising tide of automation.' This phrase is an example of:
- A direct quotation from an expert
- A metaphor comparing automation to a natural force (Correct answer)
- A statistical claim about job losses
- A definition of industrial technology
Correct answer: A metaphor comparing automation to a natural force
Comparing automation to a rising tide is a metaphor that implies it is powerful, widespread, and difficult to stop.
Question 4: An author writing in 1920 states that 'women's entry into the workforce is a passing trend.' A modern reader encounters this in a historical passage. The statement is best understood as:
- An accurate prediction later confirmed by data
- A historically held assumption that events have proven incorrect (Correct answer)
- The current consensus among economists
- An unbiased factual report
Correct answer: A historically held assumption that events have proven incorrect
Women's sustained and growing workforce participation since 1920 demonstrates that the author's claim was a historical assumption, not fact.
Question 5: A paragraph begins with a topic sentence and ends with: 'These exceptions, however, do not invalidate the broader pattern.' The final sentence primarily functions to:
- Introduce a new argument
- Acknowledge counterexamples while defending the main claim (Correct answer)
- Contradict the topic sentence
- Provide statistical evidence
Correct answer: Acknowledge counterexamples while defending the main claim
The sentence concedes that exceptions exist but argues they don't undermine the overall conclusion, a common concession-and-rebuttal move.
Question 6: Which choice most effectively uses evidence from a passage to support the interpretation that the author views technology as a double-edged sword?
- Quoting the author's praise of smartphones
- Citing lines where the author acknowledges both technological benefits and harms (Correct answer)
- Referencing the passage's title alone
- Noting that the author mentions computers twice
Correct answer: Citing lines where the author acknowledges both technological benefits and harms
Evidence of a 'double-edged sword' interpretation must include both positive and negative perspectives from the author.
Question 7: In a literary passage, a character described as 'stoic' most likely:
- Expresses emotions openly and frequently
- Remains calm and shows little outward emotion (Correct answer)
- Argues forcefully for philosophical ideas
- Acts impulsively in difficult situations
Correct answer: Remains calm and shows little outward emotion
Stoic refers to suppressing or not outwardly displaying emotions, originating from the philosophical tradition valuing self-control.
SATs Reading Comprehension 3
A passage about public health states: 'Access to nutritious food is unevenly distributed across income levels.' Which evidence best supports this claim?