TSIA2 Cheat Sheet 2026

The 30 highest-yield TSIA2 facts, distilled from real exam questions. Print it, save it as a PDF, or study it here — free, no sign-up.

1. A right triangle has legs of length 6 and 8. What is the length of the hypotenuse? → 10
2. Which sentence uses capitalization correctly? → We studied the Civil War in history class.
3. What does TSI stand for in the context of Texas higher education? → Texas Success Initiative
4. A passage's first paragraph describes a problem, the second proposes a solution, and the third evaluates the solution's limitations. What is the text structure? → Problem-solution with evaluation
5. Which of the following is a valid exemption from the TSIA2 for incoming Texas college students? → Scoring 1010 or higher on the SAT with a 530+ in the relevant section
6. Which sentence contains a misplaced modifier? → She almost drove her kids to school every day.
7. Which expression represents 'the square of the sum of x and 4'? → (x + 4)²
8. Which sentence is a run-on? → I went to the store I bought milk.
9. What is the value of x in the proportion 5/8 = x/40? → x = 25
10. What is the y-intercept of the line 4x - 2y = 8? → y = -4
11. What is a thesis statement? → The main argument or claim of an essay
12. Which organizational strategy is most effective for an essay comparing two approaches to solving homelessness? → Point-by-point comparison, addressing each criterion for both approaches together
13. What is the difference between 'their,' 'there,' and 'they're'? → 'Their' is possessive, 'there' is location, 'they're' is 'they are'
14. A student's essay body paragraph contains only the topic sentence and three examples with no analysis. What does the paragraph most need? → Explanation of how each example supports the topic sentence
15. If a line has a slope of −2/3 and passes through (0, 4), which point also lies on the line? → (3, 2)
16. What is the difference between 'their,' 'there,' and 'they're'? → 'Their' is possessive, 'there' is location, 'they're' is 'they are'
17. Which revision corrects the dangling modifier in this sentence: 'Walking through the park, the flowers smelled beautiful.' → Walking through the park, she noticed the flowers smelled beautiful.
18. When reading an argumentative essay, a student should primarily evaluate: → Whether the author's claims are supported by relevant evidence
19. Which sentence correctly uses a conjunctive adverb? → She was tired; however, she kept working.
20. Which sentence corrects the error in pronoun-antecedent agreement? → Both A and B are acceptable in formal writing.
21. What is the purpose of a topic sentence? → To introduce the main idea of a paragraph
22. Which property states that a(b + c) = ab + ac? → Distributive property
23. What is the main purpose of identifying an author's purpose? → To understand why the text was written and how to interpret it
24. What does 'unity' mean in the context of a well-written body paragraph? → Every sentence in the paragraph supports the same central idea
25. Which of the following is an example of an inference rather than a directly stated fact? → The declining response rate suggests participants lost interest
26. If an angle measures 42°, what is the measure of its complementary angle? → 48°
27. A student is exempt from taking the TSIA2 if they scored at least 570 on which SAT section? → SAT Math and SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing
28. What is the area of a triangle with base 10 and height 6? → 30 square units
29. What is the slope of the line passing through (2, 5) and (6, 13)? → 2
30. Which approach best avoids plagiarism when using a source in an essay? → Paraphrasing the idea in your own words and citing the source