Free HESI A2 practice test
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HESI A2 practice test
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Working While the World Sleeps
For many nurses, paramedics, and factory workers, the workday begins when everyone else is going to bed. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), defines shift work as any schedule outside the hours of 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Night and rotating shifts keep hospitals and emergency services running around the clock, but they require people to be awake at the very hours when the body expects to sleep.
The reason lies in the body's internal clock. According to the National Institutes of Health, circadian rhythms include physical, mental, and behavioral changes the body goes through over a 24-hour cycle. A group of nerve cells in the brain, called the suprachiasmatic nucleus, acts as a master clock. Light and darkness have the strongest influence on these rhythms. In the evening, as light fades, the brain makes more melatonin, a hormone that causes sleepiness. A worker who comes home at sunrise is trying to fall asleep just as the morning light is reaching the eyes.
The result is often too little sleep. The CDC recommends that adults aged 18 to 60 get 7 or more hours of sleep each night, yet NIOSH reports that night shift nurses report inadequate sleep 60 percent more often than day shift nurses. Over time, shift work and the fatigue it brings have been linked to higher risks of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and depression. NIOSH also warns that fatigue from too little sleep can impair thinking and memory and is linked to errors in patient care and to vehicle crashes.
None of this means that night work must be harmful. NIOSH notes that many of these risks can be reduced by correcting disruptions to sleep and circadian rhythms. Workers can protect their daytime sleep by going to bed at the same time each day, keeping the bedroom quiet and cool, turning off phones and other screens at least 30 minutes before bed, and avoiding caffeine in the hours before sleep. Employers play a part, too: NIOSH points out that long work hours leave workers less time to recover.
In my view, hospitals that schedule nurses for back-to-back night shifts without adequate rest are making a serious mistake. A tired caregiver is not a heroic caregiver. Protecting sleep should be treated as part of patient safety, not as a personal luxury.
Which statement best expresses the main idea of the passage?
Correct answer: A
The main idea is the one point that the whole passage supports, so check each choice against every paragraph, not just one. Details such as the melatonin fact or the 7-hour recommendation support the main idea but are too narrow to be it. Watch for choices that go further than the author does, such as calling for night shifts to be banned.
- A Correct: the passage explains why shift work conflicts with the circadian clock, what problems lost sleep causes, and how those risks can be lowered.
- B Extreme and contradicted: the passage says night work need not be harmful and that its risks can be reduced; it never calls for ending night shifts.
- C Too narrow: this is one supporting detail from the second paragraph, not the point of the whole passage.
- D Too narrow: this CDC recommendation is a single detail used to support the point about short sleep.
Learn this topic: How to summarize a passage that runs over several paragraphs 5-minute lesson
Source: CDC NIOSH, Shiftwork, Long Work Hours, Fatigue (Safety Culture in Healthcare training, Module 2) · CDC NIOSH Training for Nurses on Shift Work and Long Work Hours, Module 3: Risks Associated With Shift Work and Long Work Hours · NIH NIGMS, Circadian Rhythms fact sheet · CDC, About Sleep ·
Working While the World Sleeps
For many nurses, paramedics, and factory workers, the workday begins when everyone else is going to bed. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), defines shift work as any schedule outside the hours of 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Night and rotating shifts keep hospitals and emergency services running around the clock, but they require people to be awake at the very hours when the body expects to sleep.
The reason lies in the body's internal clock. According to the National Institutes of Health, circadian rhythms include physical, mental, and behavioral changes the body goes through over a 24-hour cycle. A group of nerve cells in the brain, called the suprachiasmatic nucleus, acts as a master clock. Light and darkness have the strongest influence on these rhythms. In the evening, as light fades, the brain makes more melatonin, a hormone that causes sleepiness. A worker who comes home at sunrise is trying to fall asleep just as the morning light is reaching the eyes.
The result is often too little sleep. The CDC recommends that adults aged 18 to 60 get 7 or more hours of sleep each night, yet NIOSH reports that night shift nurses report inadequate sleep 60 percent more often than day shift nurses. Over time, shift work and the fatigue it brings have been linked to higher risks of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and depression. NIOSH also warns that fatigue from too little sleep can impair thinking and memory and is linked to errors in patient care and to vehicle crashes.
None of this means that night work must be harmful. NIOSH notes that many of these risks can be reduced by correcting disruptions to sleep and circadian rhythms. Workers can protect their daytime sleep by going to bed at the same time each day, keeping the bedroom quiet and cool, turning off phones and other screens at least 30 minutes before bed, and avoiding caffeine in the hours before sleep. Employers play a part, too: NIOSH points out that long work hours leave workers less time to recover.
In my view, hospitals that schedule nurses for back-to-back night shifts without adequate rest are making a serious mistake. A tired caregiver is not a heroic caregiver. Protecting sleep should be treated as part of patient safety, not as a personal luxury.
In the third paragraph, the word "impair" most nearly means
Correct answer: B
To find a word's meaning in context, look at the words around it. Here "impair thinking and memory" sits next to "errors in patient care" and "vehicle crashes," so the word must describe harm. Replace the word with each choice and keep the one that fits the logic of the sentence.
- A "Delay" is about timing; the sentence describes thinking and memory getting worse, not happening later.
- B Correct: fatigue weakens thinking and memory, which is why it is linked to errors and crashes in the same sentence.
- C Nothing in the sentence is about testing or measuring; the context is about damage caused by fatigue.
- D This is the opposite meaning; the sentence lists harms, so fatigue cannot be improving thinking.
Learn this topic: How to figure out a word's meaning from context 5-minute lesson
Source: CDC NIOSH, Shiftwork, Long Work Hours, Fatigue (Safety Culture in Healthcare training, Module 2) · CDC NIOSH Training for Nurses on Shift Work and Long Work Hours, Module 3: Risks Associated With Shift Work and Long Work Hours · NIH NIGMS, Circadian Rhythms fact sheet · CDC, About Sleep ·
Working While the World Sleeps
For many nurses, paramedics, and factory workers, the workday begins when everyone else is going to bed. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), defines shift work as any schedule outside the hours of 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. Night and rotating shifts keep hospitals and emergency services running around the clock, but they require people to be awake at the very hours when the body expects to sleep.
The reason lies in the body's internal clock. According to the National Institutes of Health, circadian rhythms include physical, mental, and behavioral changes the body goes through over a 24-hour cycle. A group of nerve cells in the brain, called the suprachiasmatic nucleus, acts as a master clock. Light and darkness have the strongest influence on these rhythms. In the evening, as light fades, the brain makes more melatonin, a hormone that causes sleepiness. A worker who comes home at sunrise is trying to fall asleep just as the morning light is reaching the eyes.
The result is often too little sleep. The CDC recommends that adults aged 18 to 60 get 7 or more hours of sleep each night, yet NIOSH reports that night shift nurses report inadequate sleep 60 percent more often than day shift nurses. Over time, shift work and the fatigue it brings have been linked to higher risks of obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and depression. NIOSH also warns that fatigue from too little sleep can impair thinking and memory and is linked to errors in patient care and to vehicle crashes.
None of this means that night work must be harmful. NIOSH notes that many of these risks can be reduced by correcting disruptions to sleep and circadian rhythms. Workers can protect their daytime sleep by going to bed at the same time each day, keeping the bedroom quiet and cool, turning off phones and other screens at least 30 minutes before bed, and avoiding caffeine in the hours before sleep. Employers play a part, too: NIOSH points out that long work hours leave workers less time to recover.
In my view, hospitals that schedule nurses for back-to-back night shifts without adequate rest are making a serious mistake. A tired caregiver is not a heroic caregiver. Protecting sleep should be treated as part of patient safety, not as a personal luxury.
Which statement from the passage expresses an opinion rather than a fact?
Correct answer: A
A fact can be checked against evidence; an opinion is a belief or judgment that people can reasonably disagree with. Superlatives such as "strongest" do not automatically signal opinion when the claim is a measured research finding. Look instead for judgment words such as "mistake," "should," or "best," and for signals like "In my view."
- A Correct: "a serious mistake" is the author's judgment, introduced in the passage with "In my view," and it cannot be proved true or false.
- B This is a fact: it reports a link found in research, which can be verified in scientific sources.
- C This is a fact about what NIOSH says; the word "can" makes it cautious, not a personal judgment.
- D This sounds strong because of the word "strongest," but it is a research finding attributed to the National Institutes of Health and can be checked.
Learn this topic: How to tell fact from opinion and spot bias 5-minute lesson
Source: CDC NIOSH, Shiftwork, Long Work Hours, Fatigue (Safety Culture in Healthcare training, Module 2) · CDC NIOSH Training for Nurses on Shift Work and Long Work Hours, Module 3: Risks Associated With Shift Work and Long Work Hours · NIH NIGMS, Circadian Rhythms fact sheet · CDC, About Sleep ·
How a New Vaccine Earns Its Place
Before a vaccine is offered at a pharmacy or clinic, it travels a long road. The CDC describes vaccine development as a series of stages, and the first of them can take longer than many people expect: research and discovery in the laboratory often lasts 10 to 15 years. Scientists then use animal studies to check whether the candidate vaccine produces an immune response, a step called proof of concept.
Only after these early steps does the vaccine reach human volunteers, in clinical trials that grow larger at each phase. In Phase 1, a small group of 20 to 100 people receives the trial vaccine so that researchers can study its safety, its side effects, and the immune response it triggers. In Phase 2, the study expands to hundreds of people, often 100 to 300, whose characteristics, such as age and physical health, are similar to those of the people the vaccine is meant for. Phase 3 enlarges the trial to thousands of people, often 1,000 to 3,000. This phase confirms whether the vaccine works and watches for both common and less common side effects. A reaction that affects only one person in a thousand could easily be missed among 50 volunteers, but it has a far better chance of appearing when thousands take part.
When the trials are finished, the company that makes the vaccine submits a license application to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The application includes the clinical trial results, details about how the vaccine is made, and the prescribing information. The FDA reviews the trial data to judge whether the vaccine is safe and effective, and it inspects the facility where the vaccine will be produced. Only after the FDA approves a vaccine can the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), a group of medical and public health experts, consider recommending it. The CDC Director then decides whether to adopt the committee's recommendation.
Approval is not the end of the story. Some vaccines are studied further in Phase 4 trials, which follow safety and effectiveness over a longer period of time. The CDC and FDA also use the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS), an early warning system to which anyone can report a possible reaction, and the CDC works with several health organizations through the Vaccine Safety Datalink to keep watching vaccines, including newly recommended ones. In other words, the testing that begins in a laboratory keeps going long after a vaccine reaches the public.
According to the passage, about how many people usually take part in a Phase 2 trial?
Correct answer: A
Supporting-detail questions ask you to find a specific fact. When a passage lists several similar numbers, match the number to the exact label in the question (here, Phase 2). Scan for the key term, then read the whole sentence around it before choosing.
- A Correct: the passage says Phase 2 expands to hundreds of people, often 100 to 300.
- B This is the size of a Phase 3 trial, which enlarges the study to thousands.
- C This is the size of a Phase 1 trial, the first and smallest phase.
- D This number comes from the first paragraph, where it describes the years of laboratory research, not people.
Learn this topic: How to use evidence from a passage to support, predict and conclude 5-minute lesson
Source: CDC, How Vaccines are Developed and Approved for Use · CDC, About Vaccine Safety Monitoring ·
How a New Vaccine Earns Its Place
Before a vaccine is offered at a pharmacy or clinic, it travels a long road. The CDC describes vaccine development as a series of stages, and the first of them can take longer than many people expect: research and discovery in the laboratory often lasts 10 to 15 years. Scientists then use animal studies to check whether the candidate vaccine produces an immune response, a step called proof of concept.
Only after these early steps does the vaccine reach human volunteers, in clinical trials that grow larger at each phase. In Phase 1, a small group of 20 to 100 people receives the trial vaccine so that researchers can study its safety, its side effects, and the immune response it triggers. In Phase 2, the study expands to hundreds of people, often 100 to 300, whose characteristics, such as age and physical health, are similar to those of the people the vaccine is meant for. Phase 3 enlarges the trial to thousands of people, often 1,000 to 3,000. This phase confirms whether the vaccine works and watches for both common and less common side effects. A reaction that affects only one person in a thousand could easily be missed among 50 volunteers, but it has a far better chance of appearing when thousands take part.
When the trials are finished, the company that makes the vaccine submits a license application to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The application includes the clinical trial results, details about how the vaccine is made, and the prescribing information. The FDA reviews the trial data to judge whether the vaccine is safe and effective, and it inspects the facility where the vaccine will be produced. Only after the FDA approves a vaccine can the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), a group of medical and public health experts, consider recommending it. The CDC Director then decides whether to adopt the committee's recommendation.
Approval is not the end of the story. Some vaccines are studied further in Phase 4 trials, which follow safety and effectiveness over a longer period of time. The CDC and FDA also use the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS), an early warning system to which anyone can report a possible reaction, and the CDC works with several health organizations through the Vaccine Safety Datalink to keep watching vaccines, including newly recommended ones. In other words, the testing that begins in a laboratory keeps going long after a vaccine reaches the public.
Based on the passage, which statement about a vaccine that has finished Phase 3 trials but has not yet been approved by the FDA is most likely true?
Correct answer: B
An inference is a conclusion that must follow from what the passage says, even though the passage does not state it about this exact case. Here the passage gives a fixed order of steps, so you can work out where an unapproved vaccine stands. Reject choices that skip a step or contradict a later paragraph.
- A Contradicts the order of steps: the passage says ACIP can consider a vaccine only after the FDA approves it.
- B Correct: the passage says "Only after the FDA approves a vaccine" can ACIP consider recommending it, so an unapproved vaccine is not yet eligible.
- C Contradicted by the last paragraph, which describes Phase 4 trials, VAERS, and the Vaccine Safety Datalink after approval.
- D Not supported: the passage describes approval and a recommendation as steps that come before public use.
Learn this topic: How to make inferences and draw conclusions from a passage 5-minute lesson
Source: CDC, How Vaccines are Developed and Approved for Use · CDC, About Vaccine Safety Monitoring ·
How a New Vaccine Earns Its Place
Before a vaccine is offered at a pharmacy or clinic, it travels a long road. The CDC describes vaccine development as a series of stages, and the first of them can take longer than many people expect: research and discovery in the laboratory often lasts 10 to 15 years. Scientists then use animal studies to check whether the candidate vaccine produces an immune response, a step called proof of concept.
Only after these early steps does the vaccine reach human volunteers, in clinical trials that grow larger at each phase. In Phase 1, a small group of 20 to 100 people receives the trial vaccine so that researchers can study its safety, its side effects, and the immune response it triggers. In Phase 2, the study expands to hundreds of people, often 100 to 300, whose characteristics, such as age and physical health, are similar to those of the people the vaccine is meant for. Phase 3 enlarges the trial to thousands of people, often 1,000 to 3,000. This phase confirms whether the vaccine works and watches for both common and less common side effects. A reaction that affects only one person in a thousand could easily be missed among 50 volunteers, but it has a far better chance of appearing when thousands take part.
When the trials are finished, the company that makes the vaccine submits a license application to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The application includes the clinical trial results, details about how the vaccine is made, and the prescribing information. The FDA reviews the trial data to judge whether the vaccine is safe and effective, and it inspects the facility where the vaccine will be produced. Only after the FDA approves a vaccine can the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), a group of medical and public health experts, consider recommending it. The CDC Director then decides whether to adopt the committee's recommendation.
Approval is not the end of the story. Some vaccines are studied further in Phase 4 trials, which follow safety and effectiveness over a longer period of time. The CDC and FDA also use the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS), an early warning system to which anyone can report a possible reaction, and the CDC works with several health organizations through the Vaccine Safety Datalink to keep watching vaccines, including newly recommended ones. In other words, the testing that begins in a laboratory keeps going long after a vaccine reaches the public.
Which of the following is the best summary of the passage?
Correct answer: A
A good summary restates the main idea and the major steps of the whole passage in a few words, in the same order, without new claims. Choices that repeat one paragraph's details are too narrow. Choices that change who does what, or add a conclusion the author never drew, are distortions.
- A Correct: it covers every stage the passage describes, in order, from research to approval to ongoing monitoring, without adding claims.
- B Too narrow: these are accurate details from the second paragraph only and leave out approval and monitoring.
- C Adds an idea the passage never states; nothing suggests that vaccines become outdated.
- D Mixes up roles: in the passage the FDA reviews trial results rather than testing vaccines itself, VAERS is a system anyone can report to, and the CDC Director decides whether to adopt ACIP's recommendation.
Learn this topic: How to summarize a passage that runs over several paragraphs 5-minute lesson
Source: CDC, How Vaccines are Developed and Approved for Use · CDC, About Vaccine Safety Monitoring ·
The Doctor Who Asked Colleagues to Wash
Today, cleaning hands before and after touching a patient is one of the most basic rules in any hospital. It was not always so. In the 1840s, the idea that a doctor's own hands could carry disease from one patient to another was still new, and few physicians acted on it.
In 1846, Ignaz Semmelweis, a physician at the General Hospital of Vienna, noticed a troubling pattern. The hospital had two maternity clinics. In the First Clinic, babies were delivered by medical students and physicians; in the Second Clinic, they were delivered by midwives. Mothers in the First Clinic consistently died at a higher rate, many of them from puerperal fever, also called childbed fever. Semmelweis observed that physicians often came to the First Clinic straight from the autopsy room and that their hands still had an unpleasant odor even after washing with soap and water. He proposed that "cadaverous particles" carried on their hands were causing the fever.
Perhaps because chlorine compounds were known to remove odors, Semmelweis required students and physicians, beginning in May 1847, to clean their hands with a chlorine solution between patients. The maternal death rate in the First Clinic then dropped dramatically and stayed low for years. According to the CDC, his work was the first evidence that cleaning heavily contaminated hands with an antiseptic between patient contacts may prevent the spread of disease better than washing with plain soap and water.
Semmelweis was not alone. In 1843, the American physician Oliver Wendell Holmes had independently concluded that childbed fever was spread by the hands of health personnel, but his recommendations had little effect on how doctors practiced at the time. Only gradually did handwashing come to be accepted as one of the most important ways to prevent the spread of germs in health care. In the United States, the CDC published formal written guidelines on handwashing in hospitals in 1975 and again in 1985.
Even so, the lesson has not been fully learned. Although most hospitals have adopted hand hygiene guidelines, the CDC has reported that health care workers' adherence to recommended handwashing practices has remained low. The story that began in a Vienna maternity ward more than 170 years ago is still unfinished.
Which statement best expresses the main idea of the passage?
Correct answer: C
The main idea ties together the beginning, middle, and end of a passage. In a history passage, the author often uses past events to make a point about the present, so read the final paragraph closely. A single dated event is a supporting detail, not the main idea.
- A Too narrow: this is one important event in the story, but it does not cover the slow acceptance or the modern problem.
- B Contradicted: the last paragraph says adherence has remained low and the story is "still unfinished."
- C Correct: the passage traces handwashing from early discoveries, through slow acceptance, to today's low adherence.
- D Misreads a detail: the passage says Holmes reached the idea independently in 1843; it does not argue about who deserves credit, and that is not the focus.
Learn this topic: How to summarize a passage that runs over several paragraphs 5-minute lesson
Source: CDC MMWR, Guideline for Hand Hygiene in Health-Care Settings (2002), Historical Perspective · PubMed: De Costa CM, "The contagiousness of childbed fever": a short history of puerperal sepsis and its treatment, Med J Aust 2002 ·
The Doctor Who Asked Colleagues to Wash
Today, cleaning hands before and after touching a patient is one of the most basic rules in any hospital. It was not always so. In the 1840s, the idea that a doctor's own hands could carry disease from one patient to another was still new, and few physicians acted on it.
In 1846, Ignaz Semmelweis, a physician at the General Hospital of Vienna, noticed a troubling pattern. The hospital had two maternity clinics. In the First Clinic, babies were delivered by medical students and physicians; in the Second Clinic, they were delivered by midwives. Mothers in the First Clinic consistently died at a higher rate, many of them from puerperal fever, also called childbed fever. Semmelweis observed that physicians often came to the First Clinic straight from the autopsy room and that their hands still had an unpleasant odor even after washing with soap and water. He proposed that "cadaverous particles" carried on their hands were causing the fever.
Perhaps because chlorine compounds were known to remove odors, Semmelweis required students and physicians, beginning in May 1847, to clean their hands with a chlorine solution between patients. The maternal death rate in the First Clinic then dropped dramatically and stayed low for years. According to the CDC, his work was the first evidence that cleaning heavily contaminated hands with an antiseptic between patient contacts may prevent the spread of disease better than washing with plain soap and water.
Semmelweis was not alone. In 1843, the American physician Oliver Wendell Holmes had independently concluded that childbed fever was spread by the hands of health personnel, but his recommendations had little effect on how doctors practiced at the time. Only gradually did handwashing come to be accepted as one of the most important ways to prevent the spread of germs in health care. In the United States, the CDC published formal written guidelines on handwashing in hospitals in 1975 and again in 1985.
Even so, the lesson has not been fully learned. Although most hospitals have adopted hand hygiene guidelines, the CDC has reported that health care workers' adherence to recommended handwashing practices has remained low. The story that began in a Vienna maternity ward more than 170 years ago is still unfinished.
In the last paragraph, the word "adherence" most nearly means
Correct answer: A
Many words have more than one meaning, so the context decides. "Adhere" can mean to stick physically, but "adherence to recommended practices" describes how faithfully people follow a rule. Try each meaning in the sentence and keep the one that makes sense with the words around it.
- A Correct: adherence to recommended practices means sticking to, or following, those practices.
- B Knowing about a rule is different from doing it; the sentence is about practices actually carried out.
- C This is a real meaning of "adhere" (as glue adheres to paper), but it does not fit a sentence about following handwashing practices.
- D This is close to the opposite; the sentence is about how well workers follow the rules.
Learn this topic: How to figure out a word's meaning from context 5-minute lesson
Source: CDC MMWR, Guideline for Hand Hygiene in Health-Care Settings (2002), Historical Perspective · PubMed: De Costa CM, "The contagiousness of childbed fever": a short history of puerperal sepsis and its treatment, Med J Aust 2002 ·
The Doctor Who Asked Colleagues to Wash
Today, cleaning hands before and after touching a patient is one of the most basic rules in any hospital. It was not always so. In the 1840s, the idea that a doctor's own hands could carry disease from one patient to another was still new, and few physicians acted on it.
In 1846, Ignaz Semmelweis, a physician at the General Hospital of Vienna, noticed a troubling pattern. The hospital had two maternity clinics. In the First Clinic, babies were delivered by medical students and physicians; in the Second Clinic, they were delivered by midwives. Mothers in the First Clinic consistently died at a higher rate, many of them from puerperal fever, also called childbed fever. Semmelweis observed that physicians often came to the First Clinic straight from the autopsy room and that their hands still had an unpleasant odor even after washing with soap and water. He proposed that "cadaverous particles" carried on their hands were causing the fever.
Perhaps because chlorine compounds were known to remove odors, Semmelweis required students and physicians, beginning in May 1847, to clean their hands with a chlorine solution between patients. The maternal death rate in the First Clinic then dropped dramatically and stayed low for years. According to the CDC, his work was the first evidence that cleaning heavily contaminated hands with an antiseptic between patient contacts may prevent the spread of disease better than washing with plain soap and water.
Semmelweis was not alone. In 1843, the American physician Oliver Wendell Holmes had independently concluded that childbed fever was spread by the hands of health personnel, but his recommendations had little effect on how doctors practiced at the time. Only gradually did handwashing come to be accepted as one of the most important ways to prevent the spread of germs in health care. In the United States, the CDC published formal written guidelines on handwashing in hospitals in 1975 and again in 1985.
Even so, the lesson has not been fully learned. Although most hospitals have adopted hand hygiene guidelines, the CDC has reported that health care workers' adherence to recommended handwashing practices has remained low. The story that began in a Vienna maternity ward more than 170 years ago is still unfinished.
Which conclusion about the Second Clinic is best supported by the passage?
Correct answer: C
A sound inference connects two things the passage actually says. Here the passage contrasts the two clinics and explains the difference with the autopsy room, so the best-supported conclusion uses that same explanation. Choices that require facts the passage never gives, such as the midwives' habits or Semmelweis's private beliefs, go beyond the text.
- A Not supported: the passage gives no information about any change in the Second Clinic's death rate.
- B Not stated: the passage says nothing about how the midwives cleaned their hands.
- C Correct: the passage links the higher First Clinic deaths to physicians arriving from the autopsy room; nothing ties the midwives to autopsies, so the Second Clinic's lower rate fits his explanation.
- D Not stated: Semmelweis's explanation was about particles on hands, not about anyone's training or skill.
Learn this topic: How to make inferences and draw conclusions from a passage 5-minute lesson
Source: CDC MMWR, Guideline for Hand Hygiene in Health-Care Settings (2002), Historical Perspective · PubMed: De Costa CM, "The contagiousness of childbed fever": a short history of puerperal sepsis and its treatment, Med J Aust 2002 ·
Water: The Nutrient We Forget
Ask people to name an important nutrient, and most will say protein or vitamins. Few will mention water, even though the body depends on it every minute. According to the CDC, water helps keep body temperature normal, cushions and lubricates the joints, protects the spinal cord and other sensitive tissues, and helps the body get rid of waste through urination, sweating, and bowel movements.
The body loses water all day long, and some situations raise the losses. The CDC notes that people need more water in hot climates, when they are more physically active, when they have a fever, and when they have diarrhea or vomiting. When losses are greater than intake, dehydration can develop. MedlinePlus, the National Library of Medicine's health information site, lists the signs of mild to moderate dehydration: thirst, a dry or sticky mouth, urinating less than usual, darker yellow urine, dry and cool skin, headache, and muscle cramps. Severe dehydration can cause dizziness, a rapid heartbeat and breathing, confusion, sunken eyes, and even unconsciousness. Older adults and people with certain diseases, such as diabetes, are at higher risk.
Preventing dehydration is usually simple. MedlinePlus advises drinking plenty of fluids every day, even when you are well, and drinking more in hot weather or during exercise. A person who has a fever, vomiting, or diarrhea should drink plenty of fluids without waiting for signs of dehydration to appear. When someone in a family is sick, others should watch how much that person drinks, paying close attention to children and older adults.
The choice of drink matters, too. Water has no calories, so the CDC points out that replacing sugary drinks with plain water can help reduce the calories a person takes in. Regular sodas, fruit drinks, and sports drinks contain calories but offer little nutritional value. Small habits make water easier to choose: carrying a reusable bottle, ordering water when eating out, serving water at meals, or adding a wedge of lemon or lime for flavor.
Plain water is the most underrated health habit there is. It costs almost nothing, it is available nearly everywhere, and it does not need a marketing campaign. Anyone who wants to feel better this week should start by keeping a full water bottle within reach.
According to the passage, which of the following is a sign of MILD TO MODERATE dehydration?
Correct answer: B
When a passage gives two lists, such as signs of mild to moderate dehydration and signs of severe dehydration, the question usually depends on which list a detail belongs to. Find the key words in the stem (here, "mild to moderate") and match them to the right sentence. All four choices appear in the passage, so careful matching is the whole task.
- A The passage lists sunken eyes as a sign of severe dehydration, not mild to moderate dehydration.
- B Correct: darker yellow urine is in the MedlinePlus list of signs of mild to moderate dehydration.
- C Confusion is also listed among the severe signs.
- D A rapid heartbeat and breathing appear in the list of severe signs.
Learn this topic: How to use evidence from a passage to support, predict and conclude 5-minute lesson
Source: CDC, About Water and Healthier Drinks · MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, Dehydration ·
Water: The Nutrient We Forget
Ask people to name an important nutrient, and most will say protein or vitamins. Few will mention water, even though the body depends on it every minute. According to the CDC, water helps keep body temperature normal, cushions and lubricates the joints, protects the spinal cord and other sensitive tissues, and helps the body get rid of waste through urination, sweating, and bowel movements.
The body loses water all day long, and some situations raise the losses. The CDC notes that people need more water in hot climates, when they are more physically active, when they have a fever, and when they have diarrhea or vomiting. When losses are greater than intake, dehydration can develop. MedlinePlus, the National Library of Medicine's health information site, lists the signs of mild to moderate dehydration: thirst, a dry or sticky mouth, urinating less than usual, darker yellow urine, dry and cool skin, headache, and muscle cramps. Severe dehydration can cause dizziness, a rapid heartbeat and breathing, confusion, sunken eyes, and even unconsciousness. Older adults and people with certain diseases, such as diabetes, are at higher risk.
Preventing dehydration is usually simple. MedlinePlus advises drinking plenty of fluids every day, even when you are well, and drinking more in hot weather or during exercise. A person who has a fever, vomiting, or diarrhea should drink plenty of fluids without waiting for signs of dehydration to appear. When someone in a family is sick, others should watch how much that person drinks, paying close attention to children and older adults.
The choice of drink matters, too. Water has no calories, so the CDC points out that replacing sugary drinks with plain water can help reduce the calories a person takes in. Regular sodas, fruit drinks, and sports drinks contain calories but offer little nutritional value. Small habits make water easier to choose: carrying a reusable bottle, ordering water when eating out, serving water at meals, or adding a wedge of lemon or lime for flavor.
Plain water is the most underrated health habit there is. It costs almost nothing, it is available nearly everywhere, and it does not need a marketing campaign. Anyone who wants to feel better this week should start by keeping a full water bottle within reach.
Which statement from the passage expresses an opinion?
Correct answer: A
A fact can be verified; an opinion expresses what someone thinks or values. Judgment words such as "underrated," "best," or "worst" usually mark an opinion. Do not be fooled by statements that sound negative, like the one about sodas; if the claim can be checked, it is a fact.
- A Correct: "most underrated" is a personal judgment that people could reasonably disagree with; it cannot be proved.
- B This is a fact reported from MedlinePlus about who is more likely to become dehydrated.
- C This is a fact that can be checked on any nutrition label or reference.
- D This sounds critical of sugary drinks, but it is a checkable fact reported from the CDC.
Learn this topic: How to tell fact from opinion and spot bias 5-minute lesson
Source: CDC, About Water and Healthier Drinks · MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, Dehydration ·
Water: The Nutrient We Forget
Ask people to name an important nutrient, and most will say protein or vitamins. Few will mention water, even though the body depends on it every minute. According to the CDC, water helps keep body temperature normal, cushions and lubricates the joints, protects the spinal cord and other sensitive tissues, and helps the body get rid of waste through urination, sweating, and bowel movements.
The body loses water all day long, and some situations raise the losses. The CDC notes that people need more water in hot climates, when they are more physically active, when they have a fever, and when they have diarrhea or vomiting. When losses are greater than intake, dehydration can develop. MedlinePlus, the National Library of Medicine's health information site, lists the signs of mild to moderate dehydration: thirst, a dry or sticky mouth, urinating less than usual, darker yellow urine, dry and cool skin, headache, and muscle cramps. Severe dehydration can cause dizziness, a rapid heartbeat and breathing, confusion, sunken eyes, and even unconsciousness. Older adults and people with certain diseases, such as diabetes, are at higher risk.
Preventing dehydration is usually simple. MedlinePlus advises drinking plenty of fluids every day, even when you are well, and drinking more in hot weather or during exercise. A person who has a fever, vomiting, or diarrhea should drink plenty of fluids without waiting for signs of dehydration to appear. When someone in a family is sick, others should watch how much that person drinks, paying close attention to children and older adults.
The choice of drink matters, too. Water has no calories, so the CDC points out that replacing sugary drinks with plain water can help reduce the calories a person takes in. Regular sodas, fruit drinks, and sports drinks contain calories but offer little nutritional value. Small habits make water easier to choose: carrying a reusable bottle, ordering water when eating out, serving water at meals, or adding a wedge of lemon or lime for flavor.
Plain water is the most underrated health habit there is. It costs almost nothing, it is available nearly everywhere, and it does not need a marketing campaign. Anyone who wants to feel better this week should start by keeping a full water bottle within reach.
Which choice best describes the author's purpose in the passage as a whole?
Correct answer: A
To find the author's purpose, ask what most of the passage is doing: informing, persuading, or entertaining. A short opinion at the end does not change the purpose of a passage that is mostly explanation. Reject choices that exaggerate the author's message or build the purpose around one detail.
- A Correct: most of the passage explains water's roles, signs of dehydration, and prevention, which is an informative purpose, even though the last paragraph adds the author's opinion.
- B Distorts a detail: diabetes is named as one risk factor, not as the main cause, and the passage is written for all readers.
- C Protein and vitamins are mentioned only in the opening sentence as a hook; no amounts are compared.
- D Too extreme: the author suggests choosing water over sugary drinks but never tells readers to give up all other drinks.
Learn this topic: How to identify the author's purpose 5-minute lesson
Source: CDC, About Water and Healthier Drinks · MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, Dehydration ·
Volunteer With Us at Riverbend Community Hospital
Every week, volunteers at Riverbend Community Hospital greet visitors at the front desk, push wheelchairs to the parking lot, deliver flowers and mail to patient rooms, and keep families company in the surgical waiting area. Last year, 140 volunteers gave more than 9,000 hours of their time. We are looking for new volunteers to join them this spring.
Who can apply: Volunteers must be at least 16 years old. Students who are considering careers in health care are especially welcome, because volunteering is a chance to see how a hospital works from the inside. Each volunteer is asked to commit to one four-hour shift per week for at least six months.
Before your first shift: After you submit an application and complete a short interview, you will attend a three-hour orientation. CDC guidance counts volunteers as health care personnel, a group that includes all paid and unpaid people working in health care settings who could be exposed to patients or infectious materials. For that reason, every new volunteer must complete tuberculosis (TB) screening before starting. The CDC recommends that all U.S. health care personnel be screened for TB when they are hired; the screening includes a risk assessment, a check for symptoms, and a TB blood test or skin test. Volunteers who start during flu season must also show proof of a current flu vaccine, in line with the CDC's recommendation of yearly flu vaccination for health care personnel.
On the job: Volunteers do not provide medical care. They never lift or move patients, and they never give food or drinks to a patient without first checking with the patient's nurse, because some patients have orders not to eat or drink. Volunteers clean their hands right before entering and right after leaving a patient's room, and they keep anything they see or hear about patients private.
Every year, volunteers complete a short refresher course, which includes the yearly TB education that the CDC recommends for all health care personnel.
Ready to apply? Pick up an application at the front desk or call the Volunteer Office at extension 4410. Our volunteers are waiting to welcome you.
What is the main purpose of this passage?
Correct answer: D
The author's purpose is the reason the text was written. Clues such as a headline addressed to the reader ("Volunteer With Us"), a list of requirements, and a closing call to action ("Ready to apply?") show that this is a recruitment notice. Choices built on a single mention, such as TB or nurses, are too narrow.
- A Nurses are mentioned only once; the duties described belong to volunteers.
- B Too narrow: TB screening is one requirement for volunteers, and the passage does not explain how the disease is diagnosed in patients.
- C Students are "especially welcome," but the passage does not argue for any specific career.
- D Correct: the passage invites people to join ("We are looking for new volunteers") and lays out who can apply and what they must do.
Learn this topic: How to identify the author's purpose 5-minute lesson
Source: CDC, Baseline Tuberculosis Screening and Testing for Health Care Personnel · CDC, Frequency of Tuberculosis Screening and Testing for Health Care Personnel · CDC MMWR, Immunization of Health-Care Personnel: Recommendations of the ACIP (2011) · CDC, Clinical Safety: Hand Hygiene for Healthcare Workers ·
Volunteer With Us at Riverbend Community Hospital
Every week, volunteers at Riverbend Community Hospital greet visitors at the front desk, push wheelchairs to the parking lot, deliver flowers and mail to patient rooms, and keep families company in the surgical waiting area. Last year, 140 volunteers gave more than 9,000 hours of their time. We are looking for new volunteers to join them this spring.
Who can apply: Volunteers must be at least 16 years old. Students who are considering careers in health care are especially welcome, because volunteering is a chance to see how a hospital works from the inside. Each volunteer is asked to commit to one four-hour shift per week for at least six months.
Before your first shift: After you submit an application and complete a short interview, you will attend a three-hour orientation. CDC guidance counts volunteers as health care personnel, a group that includes all paid and unpaid people working in health care settings who could be exposed to patients or infectious materials. For that reason, every new volunteer must complete tuberculosis (TB) screening before starting. The CDC recommends that all U.S. health care personnel be screened for TB when they are hired; the screening includes a risk assessment, a check for symptoms, and a TB blood test or skin test. Volunteers who start during flu season must also show proof of a current flu vaccine, in line with the CDC's recommendation of yearly flu vaccination for health care personnel.
On the job: Volunteers do not provide medical care. They never lift or move patients, and they never give food or drinks to a patient without first checking with the patient's nurse, because some patients have orders not to eat or drink. Volunteers clean their hands right before entering and right after leaving a patient's room, and they keep anything they see or hear about patients private.
Every year, volunteers complete a short refresher course, which includes the yearly TB education that the CDC recommends for all health care personnel.
Ready to apply? Pick up an application at the front desk or call the Volunteer Office at extension 4410. Our volunteers are waiting to welcome you.
Priya, a Riverbend volunteer, is delivering mail when a patient asks her for a glass of juice. Based on the passage, what should Priya do?
Correct answer: A
Scenario questions ask you to apply a rule from the passage to a new situation. First find the rule that matches the situation (here, food and drinks), then pick the choice that follows it exactly. Choices that sound kind or reasonable but ignore the stated rule are traps.
- A Correct: the passage says volunteers never give food or drinks "without first checking with the patient's nurse."
- B Not stated: volunteers talk with visitors and families, and nothing forbids speaking with patients.
- C Contradicts the rule that volunteers never give food or drinks without first checking with the nurse.
- D The passage names the nurse, not family members, as the person to check with, because some patients have orders not to eat or drink.
Source: CDC, Baseline Tuberculosis Screening and Testing for Health Care Personnel · CDC, Frequency of Tuberculosis Screening and Testing for Health Care Personnel · CDC MMWR, Immunization of Health-Care Personnel: Recommendations of the ACIP (2011) · CDC, Clinical Safety: Hand Hygiene for Healthcare Workers ·
Volunteer With Us at Riverbend Community Hospital
Every week, volunteers at Riverbend Community Hospital greet visitors at the front desk, push wheelchairs to the parking lot, deliver flowers and mail to patient rooms, and keep families company in the surgical waiting area. Last year, 140 volunteers gave more than 9,000 hours of their time. We are looking for new volunteers to join them this spring.
Who can apply: Volunteers must be at least 16 years old. Students who are considering careers in health care are especially welcome, because volunteering is a chance to see how a hospital works from the inside. Each volunteer is asked to commit to one four-hour shift per week for at least six months.
Before your first shift: After you submit an application and complete a short interview, you will attend a three-hour orientation. CDC guidance counts volunteers as health care personnel, a group that includes all paid and unpaid people working in health care settings who could be exposed to patients or infectious materials. For that reason, every new volunteer must complete tuberculosis (TB) screening before starting. The CDC recommends that all U.S. health care personnel be screened for TB when they are hired; the screening includes a risk assessment, a check for symptoms, and a TB blood test or skin test. Volunteers who start during flu season must also show proof of a current flu vaccine, in line with the CDC's recommendation of yearly flu vaccination for health care personnel.
On the job: Volunteers do not provide medical care. They never lift or move patients, and they never give food or drinks to a patient without first checking with the patient's nurse, because some patients have orders not to eat or drink. Volunteers clean their hands right before entering and right after leaving a patient's room, and they keep anything they see or hear about patients private.
Every year, volunteers complete a short refresher course, which includes the yearly TB education that the CDC recommends for all health care personnel.
Ready to apply? Pick up an application at the front desk or call the Volunteer Office at extension 4410. Our volunteers are waiting to welcome you.
According to the passage, why must every new volunteer complete TB screening?
Correct answer: B
When a question asks "why," look for cause-and-effect signal words such as "because," "since," or "for that reason." Here "For that reason" connects the rule to the sentence just before it. Choices that bring in facts from outside the passage, or that contradict another part of it, are wrong even if they sound official.
- A Contradicted: the passage says volunteers never lift or move patients.
- B Correct: the passage says CDC guidance counts volunteers as health care personnel and recommends TB screening for all of them when hired; it begins the next sentence with "For that reason."
- C Not stated: the screening applies to every new volunteer, not only to students, and is done before the first shift.
- D Not stated: the passage mentions no state law, and it describes screening at hire plus yearly TB education, not yearly testing.
Learn this topic: How to use evidence from a passage to support, predict and conclude 5-minute lesson
Source: CDC, Baseline Tuberculosis Screening and Testing for Health Care Personnel · CDC, Frequency of Tuberculosis Screening and Testing for Health Care Personnel · CDC MMWR, Immunization of Health-Care Personnel: Recommendations of the ACIP (2011) · CDC, Clinical Safety: Hand Hygiene for Healthcare Workers ·
When Germs Fight Back
Antibiotics are among the most important tools in medicine, but they are losing some of their power. The CDC explains that antimicrobial resistance happens when germs such as bacteria and fungi develop the ability to defeat the drugs designed to kill them. Infections caused by resistant germs can be very hard, and sometimes impossible, to treat.
Resistance is a natural process, but the way people use these drugs speeds it up. Antibiotics kill some of the germs that cause an infection, yet they also kill helpful germs that protect the body from infection. Meanwhile, resistant germs survive and multiply, and they can share their resistance with other germs, even ones that were never exposed to the drug. Germs have several ways to resist: some keep a drug from getting inside them, some pump the drug back out, some produce enzymes that break the drug down, and some change the part of the cell that the drug normally attacks. Each new exposure gives the vulnerable germs another chance to die off and the resistant ones another chance to take their place.
The scale of the problem is large. According to the CDC's 2019 report on antibiotic resistance threats, more than 2.8 million antimicrobial-resistant infections occur in the United States each year, and more than 35,000 people die as a result. Worldwide, resistance killed at least 1.27 million people in 2019.
Because every use of an antibiotic gives resistant germs a chance to win, the most effective response is to use these drugs only when they are truly needed. Antibiotics do not work on viruses, such as the ones that cause colds and flu, so taking them for those illnesses brings risk without benefit. The CDC encourages people to talk with their health care provider about whether an antibiotic is needed and to prevent infections in the first place, for example by keeping hands clean and getting recommended vaccines. Patients should also tell their provider if they have recently traveled to, or received medical care in, another country, because modern trade and travel allow resistant germs to move easily across borders.
Resistance cannot be stopped completely, because it is part of how living things adapt. It can, however, be slowed, and every careful decision about antibiotics helps protect these drugs for the patients who will need them in the future.
Which statement best expresses the main idea of the passage?
Correct answer: A
A main-idea choice should cover the whole passage: the problem, its causes, and the response. Statistics and single examples are supporting details. Be wary of choices that turn "sometimes" or "can" into "every" or "will"; extreme wording usually signals a wrong answer.
- A Correct: the passage explains what resistance is, how large the problem is, and how careful use can slow it.
- B Too narrow: this is one supporting reason for using antibiotics only when needed.
- C Extreme: the passage says resistant infections can sometimes be impossible to treat, not that every infection soon will be.
- D Too narrow: this statistic supports the point that the problem is large but is not the main idea.
Learn this topic: How to summarize a passage that runs over several paragraphs 5-minute lesson
Source: CDC, About Antimicrobial Resistance · CDC, Preventing Antimicrobial Resistance ·
When Germs Fight Back
Antibiotics are among the most important tools in medicine, but they are losing some of their power. The CDC explains that antimicrobial resistance happens when germs such as bacteria and fungi develop the ability to defeat the drugs designed to kill them. Infections caused by resistant germs can be very hard, and sometimes impossible, to treat.
Resistance is a natural process, but the way people use these drugs speeds it up. Antibiotics kill some of the germs that cause an infection, yet they also kill helpful germs that protect the body from infection. Meanwhile, resistant germs survive and multiply, and they can share their resistance with other germs, even ones that were never exposed to the drug. Germs have several ways to resist: some keep a drug from getting inside them, some pump the drug back out, some produce enzymes that break the drug down, and some change the part of the cell that the drug normally attacks. Each new exposure gives the vulnerable germs another chance to die off and the resistant ones another chance to take their place.
The scale of the problem is large. According to the CDC's 2019 report on antibiotic resistance threats, more than 2.8 million antimicrobial-resistant infections occur in the United States each year, and more than 35,000 people die as a result. Worldwide, resistance killed at least 1.27 million people in 2019.
Because every use of an antibiotic gives resistant germs a chance to win, the most effective response is to use these drugs only when they are truly needed. Antibiotics do not work on viruses, such as the ones that cause colds and flu, so taking them for those illnesses brings risk without benefit. The CDC encourages people to talk with their health care provider about whether an antibiotic is needed and to prevent infections in the first place, for example by keeping hands clean and getting recommended vaccines. Patients should also tell their provider if they have recently traveled to, or received medical care in, another country, because modern trade and travel allow resistant germs to move easily across borders.
Resistance cannot be stopped completely, because it is part of how living things adapt. It can, however, be slowed, and every careful decision about antibiotics helps protect these drugs for the patients who will need them in the future.
In the second paragraph, the word "vulnerable" most nearly means
Correct answer: B
Contrast clues are powerful for vocabulary in context. In this sentence "vulnerable germs" die off while "resistant ones" take their place, so "vulnerable" must mean the opposite of resistant. Look for words like "while," "but," or paired phrases that set two ideas against each other.
- A This confuses the germs' effect on people with the drug's effect on the germs; the sentence is about germs that die.
- B Correct: the "vulnerable" germs are the ones that "die off" when exposed to a drug, in contrast with resistant germs.
- C Nothing in the sentence is about how common the germs are.
- D The sentence contrasts germs that die with germs that survive; it says nothing about germs that do not change.
Learn this topic: How to figure out a word's meaning from context 5-minute lesson
Source: CDC, About Antimicrobial Resistance · CDC, Preventing Antimicrobial Resistance ·
When Germs Fight Back
Antibiotics are among the most important tools in medicine, but they are losing some of their power. The CDC explains that antimicrobial resistance happens when germs such as bacteria and fungi develop the ability to defeat the drugs designed to kill them. Infections caused by resistant germs can be very hard, and sometimes impossible, to treat.
Resistance is a natural process, but the way people use these drugs speeds it up. Antibiotics kill some of the germs that cause an infection, yet they also kill helpful germs that protect the body from infection. Meanwhile, resistant germs survive and multiply, and they can share their resistance with other germs, even ones that were never exposed to the drug. Germs have several ways to resist: some keep a drug from getting inside them, some pump the drug back out, some produce enzymes that break the drug down, and some change the part of the cell that the drug normally attacks. Each new exposure gives the vulnerable germs another chance to die off and the resistant ones another chance to take their place.
The scale of the problem is large. According to the CDC's 2019 report on antibiotic resistance threats, more than 2.8 million antimicrobial-resistant infections occur in the United States each year, and more than 35,000 people die as a result. Worldwide, resistance killed at least 1.27 million people in 2019.
Because every use of an antibiotic gives resistant germs a chance to win, the most effective response is to use these drugs only when they are truly needed. Antibiotics do not work on viruses, such as the ones that cause colds and flu, so taking them for those illnesses brings risk without benefit. The CDC encourages people to talk with their health care provider about whether an antibiotic is needed and to prevent infections in the first place, for example by keeping hands clean and getting recommended vaccines. Patients should also tell their provider if they have recently traveled to, or received medical care in, another country, because modern trade and travel allow resistant germs to move easily across borders.
Resistance cannot be stopped completely, because it is part of how living things adapt. It can, however, be slowed, and every careful decision about antibiotics helps protect these drugs for the patients who will need them in the future.
Which of the following best summarizes the passage?
Correct answer: D
A summary condenses the whole passage into its major points. Test each choice by asking whether it would still be true and complete if it were the only thing you knew about the passage. Choices that capture one paragraph are too narrow, and choices that change the author's advice are distortions.
- A Too narrow: this is one piece of advice from the fourth paragraph.
- B Distorts the message: the passage says to use antibiotics only when truly needed, not to stop using them.
- C Too narrow: this list of resistance methods is a supporting detail from the second paragraph.
- D Correct: it briefly covers the cause, the scale, and the response, which are the passage's major points in order.
Learn this topic: How to summarize a passage that runs over several paragraphs 5-minute lesson
Source: CDC, About Antimicrobial Resistance · CDC, Preventing Antimicrobial Resistance ·
First Day on the Unit
Ana Morales had practiced taking vital signs on her classmates a dozen times, but at 6:45 on the morning of her first clinical shift, her hands would not stop shaking. She checked her name badge, her watch with its second hand, and her pocket notebook for the third time before the elevator doors opened onto the medical floor.
Her assigned nurse, Mr. Delgado, met her at the station with a calm smile. "Everybody's nervous on day one," he said. "The trick is to slow down. Patients can tell when you're rushing."
Their first patient was Mrs. Chen, an 82-year-old woman recovering from pneumonia. Ana reached for the blood pressure cuff the moment she stepped into the room, and Mr. Delgado quietly tapped the hand sanitizer dispenser by the door. Ana's face grew warm. She had recited the rule a hundred times in the skills lab: clean your hands right before you touch a patient and again after. She rubbed the sanitizer over every surface of her hands until they were dry, about twenty seconds that felt like a full minute.
Then she introduced herself, explained what she was about to do, and placed two fingers on Mrs. Chen's wrist. She counted 84 beats in one minute, inside the normal adult resting range of 60 to 100. She counted 16 breaths in the next minute, also inside the normal range of 12 to 18 that she had memorized for her exam.
"You have gentle hands," Mrs. Chen said. "The last student was in such a hurry."
By noon, Ana had checked vital signs on four patients, and she had cleaned her hands before reaching for every one of them. At lunch, Mr. Delgado asked what she had learned. Ana thought about the textbook pages she had highlighted, the normal ranges, the steps she had practiced on mannequins. "That knowing the steps isn't the same as doing them," she said at last. "And that patients notice more than I expected."
Mr. Delgado nodded. "Then it was a good first day."
When the shift ended, Ana turned to a fresh page in her notebook and wrote one line across the top: Slow down. Then she underlined it twice.
Why does Mr. Delgado most likely tap the hand sanitizer dispenser when Ana reaches for the blood pressure cuff?
Correct answer: C
Inference questions about characters ask why someone acts as they do when the story does not say it directly. Look at what happens immediately before and after the action: Ana reaches for the cuff, Mr. Delgado taps the dispenser, and Ana recalls the hand-cleaning rule. The best inference is the one those surrounding details point to.
- A They do not leave; Ana goes on to take Mrs. Chen's vital signs.
- B Nothing suggests the dispenser was empty; Ana uses it right away.
- C Correct: right after the tap, Ana blushes, remembers the rule to clean her hands before touching a patient, and uses the sanitizer.
- D The tap is about the sanitizer, not the order of the vital signs, and the story never says Ana skipped blood pressure.
Learn this topic: How to make inferences and draw conclusions from a passage 5-minute lesson
Source: CDC, Clinical Safety: Hand Hygiene for Healthcare Workers · MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, Vital signs ·
First Day on the Unit
Ana Morales had practiced taking vital signs on her classmates a dozen times, but at 6:45 on the morning of her first clinical shift, her hands would not stop shaking. She checked her name badge, her watch with its second hand, and her pocket notebook for the third time before the elevator doors opened onto the medical floor.
Her assigned nurse, Mr. Delgado, met her at the station with a calm smile. "Everybody's nervous on day one," he said. "The trick is to slow down. Patients can tell when you're rushing."
Their first patient was Mrs. Chen, an 82-year-old woman recovering from pneumonia. Ana reached for the blood pressure cuff the moment she stepped into the room, and Mr. Delgado quietly tapped the hand sanitizer dispenser by the door. Ana's face grew warm. She had recited the rule a hundred times in the skills lab: clean your hands right before you touch a patient and again after. She rubbed the sanitizer over every surface of her hands until they were dry, about twenty seconds that felt like a full minute.
Then she introduced herself, explained what she was about to do, and placed two fingers on Mrs. Chen's wrist. She counted 84 beats in one minute, inside the normal adult resting range of 60 to 100. She counted 16 breaths in the next minute, also inside the normal range of 12 to 18 that she had memorized for her exam.
"You have gentle hands," Mrs. Chen said. "The last student was in such a hurry."
By noon, Ana had checked vital signs on four patients, and she had cleaned her hands before reaching for every one of them. At lunch, Mr. Delgado asked what she had learned. Ana thought about the textbook pages she had highlighted, the normal ranges, the steps she had practiced on mannequins. "That knowing the steps isn't the same as doing them," she said at last. "And that patients notice more than I expected."
Mr. Delgado nodded. "Then it was a good first day."
When the shift ended, Ana turned to a fresh page in her notebook and wrote one line across the top: Slow down. Then she underlined it twice.
Near the end of the story, Ana turns to a "fresh" page in her notebook. In this context, "fresh" most nearly means
Correct answer: A
"Fresh" has many meanings, and every choice here is a real one. Decide which meaning fits the thing being described, here a page that Ana is about to write on. Always plug the meaning back into the sentence to confirm it makes sense.
- A Correct: a fresh page is a clean, blank page on which nothing has been written yet.
- B This meaning fits air or a drink, not a page in a notebook.
- C This meaning fits food such as fruit or vegetables, not paper.
- D This is a real, informal meaning of "fresh" (as in a "fresh" remark), but it describes behavior, not a notebook page.
Learn this topic: How to figure out a word's meaning from context 5-minute lesson
Source: CDC, Clinical Safety: Hand Hygiene for Healthcare Workers · MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, Vital signs ·
First Day on the Unit
Ana Morales had practiced taking vital signs on her classmates a dozen times, but at 6:45 on the morning of her first clinical shift, her hands would not stop shaking. She checked her name badge, her watch with its second hand, and her pocket notebook for the third time before the elevator doors opened onto the medical floor.
Her assigned nurse, Mr. Delgado, met her at the station with a calm smile. "Everybody's nervous on day one," he said. "The trick is to slow down. Patients can tell when you're rushing."
Their first patient was Mrs. Chen, an 82-year-old woman recovering from pneumonia. Ana reached for the blood pressure cuff the moment she stepped into the room, and Mr. Delgado quietly tapped the hand sanitizer dispenser by the door. Ana's face grew warm. She had recited the rule a hundred times in the skills lab: clean your hands right before you touch a patient and again after. She rubbed the sanitizer over every surface of her hands until they were dry, about twenty seconds that felt like a full minute.
Then she introduced herself, explained what she was about to do, and placed two fingers on Mrs. Chen's wrist. She counted 84 beats in one minute, inside the normal adult resting range of 60 to 100. She counted 16 breaths in the next minute, also inside the normal range of 12 to 18 that she had memorized for her exam.
"You have gentle hands," Mrs. Chen said. "The last student was in such a hurry."
By noon, Ana had checked vital signs on four patients, and she had cleaned her hands before reaching for every one of them. At lunch, Mr. Delgado asked what she had learned. Ana thought about the textbook pages she had highlighted, the normal ranges, the steps she had practiced on mannequins. "That knowing the steps isn't the same as doing them," she said at last. "And that patients notice more than I expected."
Mr. Delgado nodded. "Then it was a good first day."
When the shift ended, Ana turned to a fresh page in her notebook and wrote one line across the top: Slow down. Then she underlined it twice.
How does Ana's attitude change from the beginning of the story to the end?
Correct answer: B
To track a character's change in mood or attitude, compare clues from the opening with clues from the ending. Here "her hands would not stop shaking" contrasts with the thoughtful lunch conversation and the calm final note. Be careful with choices that reverse the order of the feelings.
- A Nothing shows boredom; Ana thinks carefully about what she learned at the end of the shift.
- B Correct: she begins with shaking hands and ends by calmly reflecting on her lessons and writing "Slow down."
- C Reversed and incomplete: she starts out shaking with nerves, and her moment of embarrassment comes early, not at the end.
- D Reversed: her worry is strongest at the start, and the end of the story is calm.
Learn this topic: How to make inferences and draw conclusions from a passage 5-minute lesson
Source: CDC, Clinical Safety: Hand Hygiene for Healthcare Workers · MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, Vital signs ·
First Day on the Unit
Ana Morales had practiced taking vital signs on her classmates a dozen times, but at 6:45 on the morning of her first clinical shift, her hands would not stop shaking. She checked her name badge, her watch with its second hand, and her pocket notebook for the third time before the elevator doors opened onto the medical floor.
Her assigned nurse, Mr. Delgado, met her at the station with a calm smile. "Everybody's nervous on day one," he said. "The trick is to slow down. Patients can tell when you're rushing."
Their first patient was Mrs. Chen, an 82-year-old woman recovering from pneumonia. Ana reached for the blood pressure cuff the moment she stepped into the room, and Mr. Delgado quietly tapped the hand sanitizer dispenser by the door. Ana's face grew warm. She had recited the rule a hundred times in the skills lab: clean your hands right before you touch a patient and again after. She rubbed the sanitizer over every surface of her hands until they were dry, about twenty seconds that felt like a full minute.
Then she introduced herself, explained what she was about to do, and placed two fingers on Mrs. Chen's wrist. She counted 84 beats in one minute, inside the normal adult resting range of 60 to 100. She counted 16 breaths in the next minute, also inside the normal range of 12 to 18 that she had memorized for her exam.
"You have gentle hands," Mrs. Chen said. "The last student was in such a hurry."
By noon, Ana had checked vital signs on four patients, and she had cleaned her hands before reaching for every one of them. At lunch, Mr. Delgado asked what she had learned. Ana thought about the textbook pages she had highlighted, the normal ranges, the steps she had practiced on mannequins. "That knowing the steps isn't the same as doing them," she said at last. "And that patients notice more than I expected."
Mr. Delgado nodded. "Then it was a good first day."
When the shift ended, Ana turned to a fresh page in her notebook and wrote one line across the top: Slow down. Then she underlined it twice.
Which statement best expresses the central idea of the story?
Correct answer: C
In a narrative, the central idea is often the lesson the main character learns. Look for a moment where a character sums up the experience, such as Ana's answer at lunch. Details about setting or minor characters support the central idea but are not the idea itself.
- A Contradicted: Ana concludes that "knowing the steps isn't the same as doing them."
- B Not supported: Mrs. Chen praises Ana's gentleness, not students in general.
- C Correct: Ana's own words at lunch state this lesson, and the whole day leads up to it.
- D Too narrow: this is a detail about one character, not the point of the story.
Learn this topic: How to summarize a passage that runs over several paragraphs 5-minute lesson
Source: CDC, Clinical Safety: Hand Hygiene for Healthcare Workers · MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, Vital signs ·
Reading the Label Before You Eat
Two boxes of crackers can sit side by side on a grocery shelf, look almost the same, and still be very different foods. The Nutrition Facts label on the side or back of the box is the best way to tell them apart, but only if you know how to read it.
Start at the top, with the serving size. MedlinePlus advises checking the serving size first, because all of the other information on the label is based on it. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) explains that the serving size reflects the amount people typically eat or drink; it is not a recommendation of how much you should eat. Just below it is the number of servings per container. Many packages hold more than one serving, so a person who finishes a bag that contains three servings has eaten three times the calories and nutrients listed for one serving.
Next comes the calorie count, which tells you the number of calories in one serving. Below that are the nutrients, each followed by a percent Daily Value, or %DV. These percentages are based on 2,000 calories a day, a general guide for nutrition advice, although a person's own needs may be higher or lower. The FDA offers a quick rule for using them: 5% DV or less of a nutrient per serving is considered low, and 20% DV or more is considered high. The rule makes comparison simple. If one cracker lists 18% DV for sodium per serving and another lists 4%, the second is the low-sodium choice, which matters because MedlinePlus advises eating no more than 2,300 milligrams of sodium a day.
The label also shows added sugars. These include sugars put in during processing, such as sucrose or dextrose, as well as sugars from syrups, honey, and concentrated juices.
Learning to read a label takes a few minutes of practice, and it is worth every one of them. A shopper who understands serving sizes and the 5-and-20 rule can compare two products in seconds instead of trusting the pictures and slogans on the front of the box. In a store full of clever marketing, the plain black-and-white label may be the most honest thing on the package.
According to the passage, a nutrient that has 20% DV or more per serving is considered
Correct answer: C
Detail questions often place several numbers close together. Find the exact number in the stem (20% DV) in the passage and read the whole sentence it appears in. Then check that the choice matches that sentence, not a nearby number.
- A The passage says 5% DV or less is low; 20% or more is the opposite end.
- B Mixes two numbers: %DV is based on 2,000 calories, and 2,300 milligrams is the sodium limit.
- C Correct: the FDA rule in the passage says 20% DV or more per serving is considered high.
- D The passage says the serving size is not a recommendation, and %DV is a guide, not an amount to eat.
Learn this topic: How to use evidence from a passage to support, predict and conclude 5-minute lesson
Source: MedlinePlus, How to read food labels · FDA, How to Understand and Use the Nutrition Facts Label ·
Reading the Label Before You Eat
Two boxes of crackers can sit side by side on a grocery shelf, look almost the same, and still be very different foods. The Nutrition Facts label on the side or back of the box is the best way to tell them apart, but only if you know how to read it.
Start at the top, with the serving size. MedlinePlus advises checking the serving size first, because all of the other information on the label is based on it. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) explains that the serving size reflects the amount people typically eat or drink; it is not a recommendation of how much you should eat. Just below it is the number of servings per container. Many packages hold more than one serving, so a person who finishes a bag that contains three servings has eaten three times the calories and nutrients listed for one serving.
Next comes the calorie count, which tells you the number of calories in one serving. Below that are the nutrients, each followed by a percent Daily Value, or %DV. These percentages are based on 2,000 calories a day, a general guide for nutrition advice, although a person's own needs may be higher or lower. The FDA offers a quick rule for using them: 5% DV or less of a nutrient per serving is considered low, and 20% DV or more is considered high. The rule makes comparison simple. If one cracker lists 18% DV for sodium per serving and another lists 4%, the second is the low-sodium choice, which matters because MedlinePlus advises eating no more than 2,300 milligrams of sodium a day.
The label also shows added sugars. These include sugars put in during processing, such as sucrose or dextrose, as well as sugars from syrups, honey, and concentrated juices.
Learning to read a label takes a few minutes of practice, and it is worth every one of them. A shopper who understands serving sizes and the 5-and-20 rule can compare two products in seconds instead of trusting the pictures and slogans on the front of the box. In a store full of clever marketing, the plain black-and-white label may be the most honest thing on the package.
Which statement from the passage expresses an opinion?
Correct answer: A
Words such as "considered" or "should" do not automatically mark an opinion; ask who is making the claim and whether it can be checked. A rule published by an agency is a verifiable fact. An opinion is the author's own evaluation, often signaled by descriptive judgments like "clever" or "most honest."
- A Correct: calling marketing "clever" and the label "the most honest thing" are the author's judgments, which cannot be proved.
- B This is a fact reported from the FDA; the word "should" is part of the definition, not the author's judgment.
- C This sounds like a judgment because of "low" and "high," but it is a published FDA standard that can be checked.
- D This is a fact that anyone can confirm by reading package labels.
Learn this topic: How to tell fact from opinion and spot bias 5-minute lesson
Source: MedlinePlus, How to read food labels · FDA, How to Understand and Use the Nutrition Facts Label ·
Reading the Label Before You Eat
Two boxes of crackers can sit side by side on a grocery shelf, look almost the same, and still be very different foods. The Nutrition Facts label on the side or back of the box is the best way to tell them apart, but only if you know how to read it.
Start at the top, with the serving size. MedlinePlus advises checking the serving size first, because all of the other information on the label is based on it. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) explains that the serving size reflects the amount people typically eat or drink; it is not a recommendation of how much you should eat. Just below it is the number of servings per container. Many packages hold more than one serving, so a person who finishes a bag that contains three servings has eaten three times the calories and nutrients listed for one serving.
Next comes the calorie count, which tells you the number of calories in one serving. Below that are the nutrients, each followed by a percent Daily Value, or %DV. These percentages are based on 2,000 calories a day, a general guide for nutrition advice, although a person's own needs may be higher or lower. The FDA offers a quick rule for using them: 5% DV or less of a nutrient per serving is considered low, and 20% DV or more is considered high. The rule makes comparison simple. If one cracker lists 18% DV for sodium per serving and another lists 4%, the second is the low-sodium choice, which matters because MedlinePlus advises eating no more than 2,300 milligrams of sodium a day.
The label also shows added sugars. These include sugars put in during processing, such as sucrose or dextrose, as well as sugars from syrups, honey, and concentrated juices.
Learning to read a label takes a few minutes of practice, and it is worth every one of them. A shopper who understands serving sizes and the 5-and-20 rule can compare two products in seconds instead of trusting the pictures and slogans on the front of the box. In a store full of clever marketing, the plain black-and-white label may be the most honest thing on the package.
Which of the following best summarizes the passage?
Correct answer: C
A summary should cover the passage's major parts and its main point without adding or twisting claims. Check each choice for three problems: too narrow (one paragraph), distorted (a detail stated wrongly), or exaggerated (stronger than the author's words). The choice that avoids all three is the summary.
- A Overstates the author's point: the passage mentions marketing only at the end and never claims companies hide ingredients.
- B Too narrow: this combines two details from the third paragraph and leaves out serving size and the passage's overall purpose.
- C Correct: it follows the passage's order (serving size, calories, %DV, added sugars) and states its point that label reading allows quick comparison.
- D Contradicts the passage: the FDA says the serving size is not a recommendation of how much to eat.
Learn this topic: How to summarize a passage that runs over several paragraphs 5-minute lesson
Source: MedlinePlus, How to read food labels · FDA, How to Understand and Use the Nutrition Facts Label ·
Before the ultrasound, the technician asked Mr. Okafor to lie supine on the table. Which word or phrase is closest in meaning to supine?
Correct answer: D
Supine means lying on the back with the face upward. Its opposite partner is prone, which means lying face down with the chest and stomach downward. A quick memory hook: supine has "up" in it, so the face points up.
- A Face down on the stomach is the meaning of prone, the opposite of supine.
- B Lying on one side is a side-lying position; supine means flat on the back.
- C Sitting upright is not lying flat at all; supine describes lying on the back.
- D Correct: supine means lying on the back with the face upward.
Learn this topic: Health-care words for body position, location and direction 5-minute lesson
Source: Merriam-Webster, supine · Merriam-Webster, prone ·
The X-ray showed a small crack at the distal end of Priya's forearm bone. Which word or phrase is closest in meaning to distal?
Correct answer: A
Distal means situated away from the point of attachment or from the center of the body, so the distal end of a forearm bone is the end toward the wrist. Its opposite is proximal, meaning nearer the trunk or attachment point. Linking distal to "distance" helps you keep the pair straight.
- A Correct: distal means farther from the point of attachment or the center of the body.
- B Nearer to the surface is the meaning of superficial, which describes depth, not distance from the trunk.
- C Closer to the midline is the meaning of medial, which describes side-to-side position, not distance along a limb.
- D Closer to the trunk is the meaning of proximal, the opposite of distal.
Learn this topic: Health-care words for body position, location and direction 5-minute lesson
Source: Merriam-Webster, distal · Merriam-Webster, proximal ·
During the checkup, the nurse practitioner noted a palpable but painless lump under the skin of the arm. Which word or phrase is closest in meaning to palpable?
Correct answer: A
Palpable means capable of being touched or felt, so a palpable lump is one that can be felt with the fingers. The word says nothing about pain, size or depth. Words that sit near it in a sentence, such as "under the skin" or "painless", can tempt you toward superficial or tender, so match the word itself, not the details around it.
- A Correct: palpable means capable of being touched or felt.
- B Located near the surface is the meaning of superficial; the sentence says the lump is under the skin, but palpable itself means able to be felt.
- C Swollen and stretched out is the meaning of distended, not palpable.
- D Tender when pressed describes pain, and the sentence says the lump is painless; palpable only means it can be felt.
Learn this topic: Health-care words for body position, location and direction 5-minute lesson
Source: Merriam-Webster, palpable · Merriam-Webster, distend · Merriam-Webster, superficial ·
Resting in a quiet, dark room helped alleviate Dana's headache. Which word or phrase is closest in meaning to alleviate?
Correct answer: C
Alleviate means to relieve or lessen something such as pain or suffering, making it easier to bear. Its opposite is exacerbate, which means to make more severe. Alleviating a headache does not mean it never started or vanished completely; it means it became less bad.
- A Make more severe is the meaning of exacerbate, the opposite of alleviate.
- B Keep from starting is the meaning of prevent; the headache had already started.
- C Correct: alleviate means to relieve or lessen.
- D Cause to return describes a recurrence, not relief.
Learn this topic: Health-care words for symptoms, condition and care 5-minute lesson
Source: Merriam-Webster, alleviate · Merriam-Webster, exacerbate ·
Before the ultrasound, the nurse asked Mr. Reyes whether he had been able to void since breakfast. Which word or phrase is closest in meaning to void?
Correct answer: D
In a health-care sentence, void is a verb meaning to eliminate waste from the body; to void urine is to empty the bladder. In everyday English, void can also mean to cancel or make invalid, so let the setting decide which meaning fits. Walking is ambulate, a different care word.
- A Walking is the meaning of ambulate, another care word, not void.
- B Drinking water is taking fluid in; void means passing waste out.
- C Cancel or make invalid is an everyday meaning of void, but it makes no sense for a patient before an ultrasound.
- D Correct: in a care setting, void means to eliminate waste from the body, such as urine.
Learn this topic: Health-care words for symptoms, condition and care 5-minute lesson
Source: Merriam-Webster, void · Merriam-Webster, ambulate ·
The skin report described three discrete red patches on the patient's back. Which word or phrase is closest in meaning to discrete?
Correct answer: B
Discrete means separate and individually distinct, so three discrete patches are three patches that do not run together. It sounds exactly like discreet, which means careful about what one says or able to keep things private. Remember: in discrete, the t separates the two e's.
- A Kept quiet and private is the meaning of discreet, the sound-alike word spelled with ee.
- B Correct: discrete means separate and individually distinct.
- C Spread over a wide area is close to the opposite of discrete, which describes separate, distinct spots.
- D Painful when touched describes tenderness; discrete says nothing about pain.
Learn this topic: Health-care words for symptoms, condition and care 5-minute lesson
Source: Merriam-Webster, discrete · Merriam-Webster, discreet ·
Unlike his verbose first draft, Malik's final report was short and to the point. Which word or phrase is closest in meaning to verbose?
Correct answer: B
Verbose means containing more words than necessary, or wordy. The signal word unlike sets up a contrast clue: the final report was short, so the first draft must have been the opposite, too long and wordy. Its opposite is concise.
- A Clearly organized is close to coherent; the contrast with short points to length, not organization.
- B Correct: verbose means using more words than necessary.
- C Spelling errors have nothing to do with the contrast to short and to the point.
- D Speed of writing is not the opposite of short; the contrast clue points to length.
Learn this topic: How to work out an unfamiliar word from context clues 5-minute lesson
Source: Merriam-Webster, verbose · Lumen Learning, Writing Skills Lab: Context Clues ·
Without regular cleaning, the clinic's old wheelchairs began to deteriorate, and two of them soon had to be thrown away. Which word or phrase is closest in meaning to deteriorate?
Correct answer: D
Deteriorate means to become worse in quality, functioning or condition. The sentence gives a cause-and-effect clue: no cleaning caused the change, and the result was that some wheelchairs had to be thrown away, so the change must have been for the worse. Do not confuse it with deter, which means to discourage.
- A Get better is the opposite of deteriorate and does not fit the result that wheelchairs were thrown away.
- B Being put away is not a change in condition, and it does not explain why the wheelchairs had to be thrown away.
- C Discourage is the meaning of deter, a look-alike word, not deteriorate.
- D Correct: deteriorate means to become worse in quality or condition.
Learn this topic: How to work out an unfamiliar word from context clues 5-minute lesson
Source: Merriam-Webster, deteriorate · Merriam-Webster, deter ·
The schedule was so ambiguous that some students came on Monday and others on Tuesday. Which word or phrase is closest in meaning to ambiguous?
Correct answer: B
Ambiguous means capable of being understood in two or more possible ways. The cause-and-effect clue confirms it: because the schedule could be read two ways, students came on two different days. Do not confuse it with ambivalent, which means having mixed feelings.
- A Having mixed feelings is the meaning of ambivalent, a look-alike word; a schedule cannot have feelings.
- B Correct: ambiguous means open to two or more possible meanings.
- C Impossible to read is the meaning of illegible, which is about handwriting or print; an ambiguous text can be read easily but understood in more than one way.
- D Using far too many words is the meaning of verbose; a wordy schedule is long, not necessarily open to two readings.
Learn this topic: How to work out an unfamiliar word from context clues 5-minute lesson
Source: Merriam-Webster, ambiguous · Merriam-Webster, ambivalent · Merriam-Webster, illegible ·
By the end of her long shift on her feet, Mrs. Alvarez noticed edema in both ankles. Which word or phrase is closest in meaning to edema?
Correct answer: A
Edema is an abnormal collection of watery fluid in a body tissue or cavity, so the area looks puffy or swollen. The word comes from a Greek word meaning swelling. Picture puffy ankles at the end of a long day on your feet: that puffiness is edema.
- A Correct: edema is an abnormal buildup of watery fluid in body tissue, which shows up as swelling.
- B Bruising from blood leaking into tissue is a bruise (ecchymosis), not a buildup of watery fluid.
- C Abnormal redness of the skin is erythema; edema is swelling, not a color change.
- D Itching is pruritus; edema describes swelling, not an itchy feeling.
Learn this topic: Health-care words for body position, location and direction 5-minute lesson
Source: Merriam-Webster, edema · Merriam-Webster, ecchymosis · Merriam-Webster, erythema · Merriam-Webster, pruritus ·
When Jordan stood up too quickly, his friend noticed a sudden pallor in his face. Which word or phrase is closest in meaning to pallor?
Correct answer: B
Pallor means a deficiency of color, especially in the face, or simply paleness. It comes from a Latin word meaning paleness, and the everyday word pale comes from the same Latin base. Memory hook: pallor and pale both start with "pal."
- A A sudden reddening of the face is flushing; pallor is the opposite, a loss of color.
- B Correct: pallor means a lack of color, especially of the face; paleness.
- C A bluish or purplish discoloring is cyanosis, not pallor.
- D A yellowish tint of the skin is jaundice; pallor means pale, not yellow.
Learn this topic: Health-care words for body position, location and direction 5-minute lesson
Source: Merriam-Webster, pallor · Merriam-Webster, pale · Merriam-Webster, flushed · Merriam-Webster, cyanosis · Merriam-Webster, jaundice ·
After her inner-ear infection, Aisha had vertigo whenever she rolled over in bed. Which word or phrase is closest in meaning to vertigo?
Correct answer: A
Vertigo is a sensation of motion in which a person or the person's surroundings seem to whirl dizzily. It comes from the Latin vertere, "to turn," the same root as revert. People often mix it up with a fear of heights, but that is acrophobia.
- A Correct: vertigo is a sensation that you or your surroundings are whirling or spinning.
- B Fear of heights is acrophobia; vertigo is a feeling of motion, not a fear.
- C Ringing or roaring heard in the ears is tinnitus, a different ear-related symptom.
- D Pain in the ear is an earache; vertigo is about a false sense of motion, not pain.
Learn this topic: Health-care words for body position, location and direction 5-minute lesson
Source: Merriam-Webster, vertigo · Merriam-Webster, revert · Merriam-Webster, tinnitus · Merriam-Webster, acrophobia · Merriam-Webster, earache ·
The city planted more shade trees to mitigate the summer heat in crowded neighborhoods. Which word or phrase is closest in meaning to mitigate?
Correct answer: C
To mitigate is to make something less severe, harmful or intense. Merriam-Webster lists alleviate as a synonym. Do not confuse it with migrate (move) or litigate (go to court): to mitigate is to soften the blow.
- A Moving from one place or region to another is the meaning of migrate, a look-alike word.
- B Carrying on a legal contest in court is the meaning of litigate, another look-alike.
- C Correct: mitigate means to make something less severe, painful or intense.
- D Making something worse or more intense is the meaning of aggravate, nearly the opposite of mitigate.
Learn this topic: How to work out an unfamiliar word from context clues 5-minute lesson
Source: Merriam-Webster, mitigate · Merriam-Webster, migrate · Merriam-Webster, litigate · Merriam-Webster, aggravate ·
After the fall, the X-ray showed that Mr. Dlamini's hip bone was intact. Which word or phrase is closest in meaning to intact?
Correct answer: A
Intact means whole and undamaged, untouched by anything that harms or lessens it. It comes from the Latin intactus: in- ("not") plus tactus ("touched"). Something intact is literally "not touched" by harm.
- A Correct: intact means untouched by anything that harms or diminishes; whole and uninjured.
- B A bruise is an injury with broken blood vessels under the skin; intact means untouched by harm.
- C A bone moved out of its normal position is dislocated, the opposite of intact.
- D A broken bone is fractured; intact means the bone is not damaged.
Learn this topic: Health-care words for body position, location and direction 5-minute lesson
Source: Merriam-Webster, intact · Merriam-Webster, bruise · Merriam-Webster, dislocate · Merriam-Webster, fracture ·
The health department reported only sporadic cases of measles this year. Which word or phrase is closest in meaning to sporadic?
Correct answer: B
Sporadic means happening occasionally or in scattered, irregular instances. In health writing it contrasts with endemic (always present in an area) and epidemic (affecting many people at once). Memory hook: sporadic sounds like "spotty," a case here and a case there.
- A Persisting over time in a particular region describes something endemic, not sporadic.
- B Correct: sporadic means occurring occasionally, singly, or in scattered instances.
- C Recurring at regular intervals is periodic; sporadic events are irregular.
- D Affecting a large number of people at the same time describes an epidemic, not sporadic cases.
Learn this topic: How to work out an unfamiliar word from context clues 5-minute lesson
Source: Merriam-Webster, sporadic · Merriam-Webster, epidemic · Merriam-Webster, periodic · Merriam-Webster, endemic ·
The care plan for Mrs. Kowalski lists dysphagia as a current problem. Based on its word parts, what is the best definition of dysphagia?
Correct answer: A
Dysphagia is difficulty in swallowing. Break it apart: dys- means difficult, abnormal or impaired, and phag- means eating. Watch its near twin dysphasia, with an s, which is a problem using or understanding language.
- A Correct: dys- means difficult or impaired and phag- refers to eating, so dysphagia is difficulty in swallowing.
- B Difficult or painful urination is dysuria; the root -uria refers to urine, not swallowing.
- C Trouble using or understanding language is dysphasia, a look-alike that differs by one letter (s for g).
- D Difficult or labored breathing is dyspnea; dysphagia has nothing to do with breathing.
Learn this topic: How to decode a word from its roots, prefixes and suffixes 5-minute lesson
Source: Merriam-Webster, dysphagia · Merriam-Webster, dys- · Merriam-Webster, phag- · Merriam-Webster, dysphasia · Merriam-Webster, dysuria · Merriam-Webster, -uria · Merriam-Webster, dyspnea ·
Ms. Patel was taken to the emergency department after an episode of syncope at the gym. Which word or phrase is closest in meaning to syncope?
Correct answer: C
Syncope (SING-kuh-pee) is a loss of consciousness caused by insufficient blood flow to the brain; in plain English, fainting. It comes from a Greek word meaning "cutting short," as if consciousness were briefly cut off. If a chart mentions syncope, think "passed out."
- A A painful, involuntary tightening of a muscle is a cramp, not syncope.
- B An abnormally rapid or pounding heartbeat is palpitation, not a loss of consciousness.
- C Correct: syncope is a loss of consciousness caused by too little blood flow to the brain; a faint.
- D Violent, involuntary muscle contractions describe a convulsion, not syncope.
Learn this topic: Health-care words for body position, location and direction 5-minute lesson
Source: Merriam-Webster, syncope · Merriam-Webster, cramp · Merriam-Webster, palpitation · Merriam-Webster, convulsion ·
A blood clot can occlude a vein deep in the leg. Which word or phrase is closest in meaning to occlude?
Correct answer: C
To occlude is to close up or block off something, such as a vessel or passage. It comes from Latin ob- ("in the way") plus claudere ("to shut"), the same root as close and include. An occluded vessel is shut, so nothing gets through.
- A To widen or expand is to dilate, the opposite of occlude.
- B To keep away from others or isolate is to seclude, a look-alike word.
- C Correct: occlude means to close up or block off; to obstruct.
- D To wear away gradually is to erode; occlude means to block, not to wear down.
Learn this topic: Health-care words for body position, location and direction 5-minute lesson
Source: Merriam-Webster, occlude · Merriam-Webster, include · Merriam-Webster, dilate · Merriam-Webster, seclude · Merriam-Webster, erode ·
Before starting the long hike, it would be prudent to check the weather forecast. Which word or phrase is closest in meaning to prudent?
Correct answer: A
Prudent means having or showing good judgment and restraint, especially in practical matters. A prudent person thinks ahead, like checking the weather before a hike. Do not confuse it with prudish (overly concerned with propriety) or impudent (rude).
- A Correct: prudent means showing good judgment or restraint; careful and wise.
- B Rude, disrespectful behavior is impudent, a look-alike with a nearly opposite tone.
- C Being excessively attentive to propriety, like a prude, is the meaning of prudish, a look-alike.
- D Recklessly bold describes audacious behavior, the opposite of prudent caution.
Learn this topic: How to work out an unfamiliar word from context clues 5-minute lesson
Source: Merriam-Webster, prudent · Merriam-Webster, prudish · Merriam-Webster, prude · Merriam-Webster, impudent · Merriam-Webster, audacious ·
After an hour outside in the freezing wind, the hiker's lips and fingertips looked cyanotic. Which word or phrase is closest in meaning to cyanotic?
Correct answer: D
Cyanotic means showing cyanosis, a bluish or purplish discoloration of the skin and mucous membranes caused by poorly oxygenated blood. The word part cyan- means blue, as in the cyan ink in a printer. Blue lips or fingertips are the classic picture of cyanotic skin.
- A Yellowish skin describes someone who is jaundiced, not cyanotic.
- B Abnormal redness from inflammation is described as erythematous, not cyanotic.
- C Skin or lips that are cracked and roughened by wind or cold are chapped, not cyanotic.
- D Correct: cyanotic means marked by a bluish or purplish discoloration, as of the skin or lips.
Learn this topic: Health-care words for body position, location and direction 5-minute lesson
Source: Merriam-Webster, cyanotic · Merriam-Webster, cyan- · Merriam-Webster, jaundiced · Merriam-Webster, erythematous · Merriam-Webster, chapped ·
The label said the tablet was for sublingual use, so it should not be swallowed whole. Which word or phrase is closest in meaning to sublingual?
Correct answer: C
Sublingual means situated or administered under the tongue. Break it apart: sub- means under, and lingual means relating to the tongue (from Latin lingua, tongue). A sublingual tablet is placed under the tongue rather than swallowed.
- A Relating to the cheek is buccal; sublingual refers to the tongue, not the cheek.
- B Applied to a specific spot on the body, such as the skin, is topical.
- C Correct: sublingual means situated or given under the tongue.
- D Given by way of a vein is intravenous, not sublingual.
Learn this topic: Health-care words for body position, location and direction 5-minute lesson
Source: Merriam-Webster, sublingual · Merriam-Webster, sub- · Merriam-Webster, lingual · Merriam-Webster, buccal · Merriam-Webster, topical · Merriam-Webster, intravenous ·
The audiologist described Mr. Okafor's hearing loss as insidious. Which word or phrase is closest in meaning to insidious?
Correct answer: D
Insidious describes something that causes harm gradually or in a way that is not easily noticed, developing quietly before it shows. It comes from a Latin word for ambush, from insidere, "to sit in": an insidious problem lies in wait. Do not confuse it with invidious, which means likely to cause resentment.
- A A sudden, sharp onset is described as acute, the opposite of insidious.
- B Easily passed from person to person is contagious; insidious is about how quietly something develops.
- C Tending to cause resentment or envy is the meaning of invidious, a look-alike word.
- D Correct: insidious means developing so gradually that the problem is well established before it becomes apparent.
Learn this topic: Health-care words for body position, location and direction 5-minute lesson
Source: Merriam-Webster, insidious · Merriam-Webster, acute · Merriam-Webster, contagious · Merriam-Webster, invidious ·
The judges at the science fair tried to stay impartial while scoring each project. Which word or phrase is closest in meaning to impartial?
Correct answer: B
Impartial means not biased, treating everyone equally. The prefix im- means not, and partial can mean favoring one side, so impartial means not favoring any side. A good referee or judge is impartial.
- A Making many difficult demands is the meaning of exacting; impartial is about fairness.
- B Correct: impartial means not partial or biased; treating all equally.
- C Restless or short of temper describes someone impatient, a look-alike word.
- D Relating to only a part rather than the whole is one meaning of partial, not impartial.
Learn this topic: How to work out an unfamiliar word from context clues 5-minute lesson
Source: Merriam-Webster, impartial · Merriam-Webster, partial · Merriam-Webster, impatient · Merriam-Webster, exacting ·
The nurse recorded one episode of emesis shortly after the patient finished lunch. Which word or phrase is closest in meaning to emesis?
Correct answer: A
Emesis is the act of vomiting. Nausea is the queasy feeling that may come before it, so the two are related but not the same. Memory hook: an emetic is something that causes vomiting, and both words share the same Greek root.
- A Correct: emesis means an act or instance of vomiting.
- B Stomach distress with an urge to vomit is nausea; emesis is the act of vomiting itself.
- C A loss of appetite is anorexia; emesis is vomiting.
- D Abnormally frequent, watery bowel movements are diarrhea, not emesis.
Learn this topic: Health-care words for body position, location and direction 5-minute lesson
Source: Merriam-Webster, emesis · Merriam-Webster, diarrhea · Merriam-Webster, nausea · Merriam-Webster, anorexia · Merriam-Webster, emetic ·
Although her first three grant applications were rejected, the tenacious researcher kept revising and resubmitting. Which word or phrase is closest in meaning to tenacious?
Correct answer: D
Tenacious means persistent and determined, holding fast to a goal. It comes from the Latin tenere, "to hold"; a tenacious person holds on. Be careful with the look-alikes tenuous (weak, flimsy) and tenable (capable of being defended).
- A Capable of being held or defended, as of an argument, is the meaning of tenable.
- B Having little substance or strength is the meaning of tenuous, a look-alike that is nearly the opposite.
- C Feeling nervous tension is the meaning of tense, a word that only looks similar.
- D Correct: tenacious means persistent in holding onto or seeking something; not giving up.
Learn this topic: How to work out an unfamiliar word from context clues 5-minute lesson
Source: Merriam-Webster, tenacious · Merriam-Webster, tense · Merriam-Webster, tenuous · Merriam-Webster, tenable ·
In the sentence "The aide quietly closed the door," what part of speech is the word quietly?
Correct answer: A
An adverb describes a verb, an adjective or another adverb, and it often answers how, when, where or why. Here quietly tells how the aide closed the door, so it describes the verb closed. Many adverbs end in -ly, but always confirm by asking what the word describes.
- A Correct: quietly tells how the aide closed the door, so it is an adverb describing the verb closed.
- B A preposition comes before a noun or pronoun to link it to the sentence, and quietly has no noun after it.
- C The verb in this sentence is closed; quietly only describes how that action was done.
- D An adjective describes a noun, but quietly describes the action closed, not a person or thing.
Learn this topic: How to tell which job a word is doing in a sentence 5-minute lesson
Source: Purdue OWL, Parts of Speech Overview · City College of New York Writing Center, Introduction to the Parts of Speech (PDF) ·
In which sentence is the word chart used as a verb?
Correct answer: B
A word's part of speech depends on the job it does in its sentence, not on the word itself. A verb shows an action or a state of being; in choice D, chart is the action the nurses perform. In the other sentences, chart names a thing and follows a word such as the or each, so it is a noun.
- A Here chart names a thing (the chart on the wall) and is the subject, so it is a noun; the verb is lists.
- B Correct: chart is the action the nurses perform, so it works as a verb in this sentence.
- C Here chart names an object and follows each, so it is a noun; the verb is has.
- D Here chart is the thing she placed, a direct object, so it is a noun; the verb is placed.
Learn this topic: How to tell which job a word is doing in a sentence 5-minute lesson
Source: Mt. San Antonio College Writing Center, DLA: Word Forms (PDF) · Purdue OWL, Parts of Speech Overview ·
In which sentence is the word after used as a conjunction?
Correct answer: C
After can be a preposition or a conjunction, depending on what follows it. When only a noun or pronoun follows (after dinner, after them), after is a preposition. When a whole clause with its own subject and verb follows (after the alarm stopped), after is a conjunction that begins a dependent clause.
- A Only a noun phrase (the staff meeting) follows after, with no verb of its own, so after is a preposition here.
- B Only the noun dinner follows after, so after is a preposition here.
- C Correct: after begins the clause the alarm stopped, which has its own subject (alarm) and verb (stopped), so after works as a conjunction.
- D Only the pronoun them follows after, so after is a preposition here; a pronoun alone is not a clause.
Learn this topic: How to tell which job a word is doing in a sentence 5-minute lesson
Source: Purdue OWL, Identifying Independent and Dependent Clauses · City College of New York Writing Center, Introduction to the Parts of Speech (PDF) ·
Select the correct pronoun: The charge nurse sent Dana and ___ to restock the supply room.
Correct answer: B
Dana and the missing pronoun are objects of the verb sent, so the pronoun must be in the objective case. Drop the other person to test it: the charge nurse sent me, not sent I. Compound objects take me, him, her, us or them, and myself should not replace me just to sound formal.
- A I is a subject pronoun; you would not say the charge nurse sent I, so it is wrong after a verb.
- B Correct: the pronoun is an object of sent (sent me), so the objective case me is needed.
- C Myself is for sentences such as I did it myself; it is not a formal substitute for the object me.
- D We is a plural subject pronoun; the slot needs one person in the objective case (me).
Learn this topic: How to spot the grammar mistakes your ear misses 6-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Writing Guide with Handbook, Handbook (H8 Pronoun Case; Table H4, myself) · Purdue OWL, Pronoun Case ·
Which word best completes the sentence? The box of sterile gloves near the sinks ___ almost empty.
Correct answer: D
A verb agrees with its true subject, not with a noun inside a phrase that comes between them. Cross out of sterile gloves and near the sinks; the subject left is box, which is singular. Say the subject and verb together to check: the box is empty.
- A Are agrees with gloves or sinks, which sit inside phrases; the true subject, box, is singular.
- B Have been is plural; a singular subject would need has been, so this choice also matches the wrong noun.
- C Were is a plural past form chosen to match gloves or sinks, but the singular subject box needs a singular verb.
- D Correct: the subject is the singular noun box, so it takes the singular verb is.
Learn this topic: How to spot the grammar mistakes your ear misses 6-minute lesson
Source: Purdue OWL, Making Subjects and Verbs Agree · OpenStax Writing Guide with Handbook, Handbook (H7 Subject-Verb Agreement) ·
Which sentence uses the verb correctly?
Correct answer: A
Irregular verbs have a past form and a separate past participle, and the past participle is the one used after has, have or had. Swim, swam, swum; drink, drank, drunk; write, wrote, written; and ring, rang, rung all follow this pattern. So had swum is correct, while had drank, has wrote and had rang use the simple past where the participle belongs.
- A Correct: swum is the past participle of swim, so had swum is the right form after the helper had.
- B Drank is the simple past; after had, the past participle drunk is needed (had drunk).
- C Wrote is the simple past; after has, the past participle written is needed (has written).
- D Rang is the simple past; after had, the past participle rung is needed (had rung).
Learn this topic: How to spot the grammar mistakes your ear misses 6-minute lesson
Source: Purdue OWL, Irregular Verbs · OpenStax Writing Guide with Handbook, Handbook (H7 Irregular Verbs) ·
Which word best completes the sentence? The students left ___ backpacks in the hallway.
Correct answer: B
Their is the possessive form that goes in front of a noun to show the noun belongs to them. They're is a contraction of they are, and there points to a place or begins a there is sentence. Expanding they're is a quick check: the students left they are backpacks makes no sense.
- A There points to a place or begins a there is sentence; it cannot show that the backpacks belong to the students.
- B Correct: their shows ownership and comes before the noun backpacks.
- C Theirs is a possessive pronoun that stands alone (the backpacks are theirs); it cannot come right before a noun.
- D They're means they are, and the students left they are backpacks makes no sense.
Learn this topic: How to choose between words that sound alike 6-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Writing Guide with Handbook, Handbook (Table H4, their/there/they're) · Purdue OWL, Spelling: Common Words that Sound Alike ·
Which word best completes the sentence? The new break schedule had a positive ___ on staff morale.
Correct answer: B
Affect is usually a verb meaning to influence, and effect is usually a noun meaning a result. The words a positive call for a singular noun, so effect is correct. The RAVEN memory aid helps: Remember, Affect is a Verb, Effect is a Noun.
- A Affect is usually a verb meaning to influence; as a noun it is a psychology term for outward emotion, not a result, so it does not fit after a positive.
- B Correct: the slot after a positive needs a singular noun meaning result, which is effect.
- C Affects is a verb form (it affects morale), so it cannot follow a positive as a noun.
- D Effects is plural, but the article a requires a singular noun (a positive effect).
Learn this topic: How to choose between words that sound alike 6-minute lesson
Source: Purdue OWL, Spelling: Common Words that Sound Alike · OpenStax Writing Guide with Handbook, Handbook (Table H4, affect/effect) ·
Which sentence uses lie or lay correctly?
Correct answer: D
Lie means to recline and takes no object; its forms are lie, lay, lain. Lay means to put or place and always takes an object; its forms are lay, laid, laid. Because lay is also the past tense of lie, Ana lay down (she reclined, with no object) is correct.
- A Marcus reclined and put nothing down, so the past tense of lie is needed: Marcus lay on the couch.
- B The towels are an object being placed, so the verb must be lay: Please lay the clean towels on the shelf.
- C The keys are resting, not placing anything, so the past participle of lie is needed: have lain.
- D Correct: lay is the past tense of lie (to recline), and lying down takes no object.
Learn this topic: How to choose between words that sound alike 6-minute lesson
Source: Purdue OWL, Commonly Confused Verbs · Missouri Western State University Center for Academic Support, Commonly Confused Words (PDF) ·
Which word best completes the sentence? The thermometer and the blood pressure cuff ___ on the bedside table.
Correct answer: A
Two subjects joined by and form a compound subject, which takes a plural verb. Here thermometer and cuff are two separate items, so the verb must be plural: they are on the table. Only when the joined words name a single unit (such as macaroni and cheese) does the verb stay singular.
- A Correct: the compound subject thermometer and cuff is plural, so it takes the plural verb are.
- B Is is singular and would fit only one item; thermometer and cuff together are plural.
- C Sits is the singular form of the verb; two items joined by and would sit, not sits.
- D Was is singular; the compound subject thermometer and cuff needs a plural verb (are, or were in the past tense).
Learn this topic: How to spot the grammar mistakes your ear misses 6-minute lesson
Source: Purdue OWL, Making Subjects and Verbs Agree · OpenStax Writing Guide with Handbook, Handbook (H7 Subject-Verb Agreement) ·
Which word best completes the sentence? Each of the nursing students ___ a skills checklist before the lab begins.
Correct answer: C
Indefinite pronouns such as each, everyone, everybody and nobody are singular and take a singular verb. The phrase of the nursing students sits between the subject and the verb, but it does not change the subject, which is each. Cross out the of phrase and read each has a checklist.
- A Have matches students, but students is inside the phrase of the nursing students; the real subject, each, is singular.
- B Were is a plural verb chosen to match students; the singular subject each would need was given.
- C Correct: each is singular, so it takes the singular verb has.
- D Need is the plural form; with the singular subject each it would have to be needs.
Learn this topic: How to spot the grammar mistakes your ear misses 6-minute lesson
Source: Purdue OWL, Making Subjects and Verbs Agree · OpenStax Writing Guide with Handbook, Handbook (H7 Subject-Verb Agreement) ·
Select the correct pronoun: The patient asked to speak with the nurse ___ had admitted her that morning.
Correct answer: C
Use who when the pronoun is the subject of its clause and whom when it is an object. In the clause ___ had admitted her, the missing word is the one doing the admitting, so it is a subject. Test it with he or she: she had admitted her, so who is correct. Which refers to things, not people.
- A Whom is an object pronoun, but the blank is the subject of had admitted (she had admitted her), so who is needed.
- B Whose shows possession (whose badge), but nothing here belongs to anyone; the blank needs a subject.
- C Correct: the pronoun is the subject of had admitted, so the subject form who is right.
- D Which is used for things; the word refers to a person, the nurse.
Learn this topic: How to spot the grammar mistakes your ear misses 6-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Writing Guide with Handbook, Handbook (H8 Pronouns: Pronoun Case, Who or Whom) · Missouri Western State University Center for Academic Support, Commonly Confused Words (PDF) ·
Which word best completes the sentence? Either the two residents or the attending physician ___ going to present the case at rounds.
Correct answer: A
When two subjects are joined by or, either/or or neither/nor, the verb agrees with the subject closer to it. Here the closer subject is the attending physician, which is singular, so the verb is is. If the order were reversed (the attending physician or the two residents), the verb would be are.
- A Correct: the verb agrees with the nearer subject, physician, which is singular, so is is right.
- B Are agrees with residents, but with either/or the verb follows the nearer subject, physician.
- C Were is plural and past tense; the nearer subject, physician, is singular.
- D Have been is plural; a singular subject would need has been, and the sentence calls for is going.
Learn this topic: How to spot the grammar mistakes your ear misses 6-minute lesson
Source: Purdue OWL, Making Subjects and Verbs Agree · OpenStax Writing Guide with Handbook, Handbook (H7 Subject-Verb Agreement) ·
Which sentence is grammatically correct?
Correct answer: A
Adverbs describe action verbs and tell how something is done; adjectives describe nouns. After a sense or linking verb such as smell, look or feel, use an adjective because it describes the subject. Confidently tells how the student answered, so the adverb is correct.
- A Correct: confidently is an adverb that tells how the student answered, and answered is an action verb.
- B Smelled is a sense verb describing the soup, so it takes the adjective wonderful; wonderfully would mean the soup did the smelling.
- C Clear is an adjective, but the word tells how Dr. Patel explained, so the adverb clearly is needed.
- D Gentle is an adjective, but the word tells how the aide handled the child, so the adverb gently is needed.
Learn this topic: How to spot the grammar mistakes your ear misses 6-minute lesson
Source: Purdue OWL, Adjective or Adverb: Avoiding Common Errors · Northern Illinois University Writing Tutorial, Adjective or Adverb ·
Which sentence is grammatically correct?
Correct answer: B
Standard written English uses only one negative word to make a statement negative. Words such as no, not (n't), none, never and nobody each count as a negative. Fix a double negative by removing one negative or by changing it to a positive word such as any.
- A Didn't and no are two negatives; write didn't list any allergies or listed no allergies.
- B Correct: the sentence has only one negative word, no.
- C Didn't and none are two negatives in the same statement.
- D Hasn't and never are two negatives; write has never listed any allergies.
Learn this topic: How to spot the grammar mistakes your ear misses 6-minute lesson
Source: Northern Illinois University Writing Tutorial, Double Negatives · University of Minnesota Libraries Publishing, Supplemental Handbook Material for "Voices", 4.2 Negative Statements ·
Which word best completes the sentence? The afternoon clinic was busier ___ the morning clinic.
Correct answer: D
Than is used to compare things, often after a comparative word such as busier, more or less. Then refers to time or to what comes next (first we checked in, then we waited). Because this sentence compares two clinics, than is correct.
- A That does not complete a comparison; busier that the morning clinic is ungrammatical.
- B Then refers to time or sequence, not comparison; it is the classic sound-alike mistake for than.
- C As is used in equal comparisons (as busy as), not after a comparative form such as busier.
- D Correct: than introduces a comparison after the comparative word busier.
Learn this topic: How to choose between words that sound alike 6-minute lesson
Source: Purdue OWL, Spelling: Common Words that Sound Alike · Missouri Western State University Center for Academic Support, Commonly Confused Words (PDF) ·
Which word best completes the sentence? The new protocol calls for ___ blood draws per patient than the old one did.
Correct answer: C
Use fewer with things you can count and less with amounts you cannot count. Blood draws can be counted one by one (one draw, two draws), so fewer is correct. A quick check: if the noun is plural and countable, use fewer; if it is a mass such as blood or time, use less.
- A In standard written English, less is for amounts that cannot be counted (less blood), but draws are countable.
- B Lesser means smaller in importance or rank (a lesser concern) and does not fit before a countable plural noun.
- C Correct: draws are countable, so fewer is the right word.
- D Little describes a small amount of something uncountable and cannot pair with than here.
Learn this topic: How to choose between words that sound alike 6-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Writing Guide with Handbook, Handbook (Table H4, Words Commonly Confused) · Northern Illinois University Writing Tutorial, Commonly Confused Words ·
Which sentence is grammatically correct?
Correct answer: B
Its is the possessive form of it and never takes an apostrophe. It's is a contraction of it is or it has. Expand any it's to it is and reread; if the sentence makes no sense, the possessive its is needed.
- A It's means it is, and posted it is new hours makes no sense; the possessive its is needed.
- B Correct: the menu belongs to the cafeteria, so the possessive its, with no apostrophe, is right.
- C This sentence means it is important, so it needs the contraction it's.
- D The siren belongs to the ambulance, so the possessive its is needed, not the contraction it's.
Learn this topic: How to choose between words that sound alike 6-minute lesson
Source: Purdue OWL, Spelling: Common Words that Sound Alike · Purdue OWL, Apostrophe Introduction ·
Which word best completes the sentence? From the frown on the instructor's face, the students ___ that their presentation had gone poorly.
Correct answer: B
Imply means to suggest something without saying it directly; infer means to reach a conclusion from evidence. The speaker or writer implies, and the listener or reader infers. Here the students are drawing a conclusion from the instructor's frown, so they inferred it.
- A Implied would mean the students hinted at something, but they are the ones drawing a conclusion.
- B Correct: the students concluded something from the evidence of the frown, so they inferred it.
- C Imply has the wrong meaning (to suggest) and also shifts to the present tense in a past-tense sentence.
- D Inferring is not a complete verb, so the students inferring that... leaves the sentence without a main verb.
Learn this topic: How to choose between words that sound alike 6-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Writing Guide with Handbook, Handbook (Table H4, Words Commonly Confused) ·
What part of speech is the bold word? The anxious patient asked many questions before the procedure.
Correct answer: A
An adjective describes a noun or pronoun and often tells what kind. Anxious tells what kind of patient, so it is an adjective. Adverbs, by contrast, describe verbs, adjectives or other adverbs and often end in -ly.
- A Correct: anxious describes the noun patient, so it is an adjective.
- B A preposition comes before a noun or pronoun to show a relationship (before the procedure); anxious describes a noun instead.
- C A noun names a person, place, thing or idea; the noun here is patient, and anxious describes it.
- D An adverb describes a verb, adjective or adverb; anxious describes a noun, and the adverb form would be anxiously.
Learn this topic: How to tell which job a word is doing in a sentence 5-minute lesson
Source: Purdue OWL, Parts of Speech Overview · City College of New York Writing Center, Introduction to the Parts of Speech (PDF) ·
What part of speech is the bold word? Several of the volunteers stayed late to fold linens.
Correct answer: B
A pronoun takes the place of a noun. In this sentence, several stands alone as the subject and refers to some of the volunteers, so it works as an indefinite pronoun, like each, both, few and many. When several sits directly in front of a noun (several volunteers), it describes that noun instead.
- A Several would describe a noun only if it came right before one (several volunteers); here it stands alone as the subject.
- B Correct: several stands in for a noun and acts as the subject, so it is an indefinite pronoun.
- C Several does not name a person, place or thing; it stands in for the people meant (some of the volunteers).
- D An adverb describes a verb, adjective or adverb; several is the subject that stayed late.
Learn this topic: How to tell which job a word is doing in a sentence 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Writing Guide with Handbook, Handbook (H7 Subject-Verb Agreement) · Purdue OWL, Parts of Speech Overview ·
What part of speech is the bold word? The extremely long line at the pharmacy moved slowly.
Correct answer: C
Adverbs describe verbs, adjectives and other adverbs, often answering how or to what extent. Extremely tells how long the line was, so it describes the adjective long. It sits in front of a noun phrase, but it does not describe the noun line directly, which is why it is not an adjective.
- A Long is the adjective describing line; extremely describes long, and a word that describes an adjective is an adverb.
- B The verb in the sentence is moved; extremely shows no action or state of being.
- C Correct: extremely tells to what extent the line was long, so it modifies an adjective and is an adverb.
- D Extremely does not name a person, place, thing or idea; the noun in this phrase is line.
Learn this topic: How to tell which job a word is doing in a sentence 5-minute lesson
Source: Purdue OWL, Parts of Speech Overview · City College of New York Writing Center, Introduction to the Parts of Speech (PDF) ·
Which of the following is a sentence fragment?
Correct answer: A
A sentence fragment is a group of words punctuated as a sentence that is not a complete thought. A clause that begins with a subordinating word such as because, although or when is a dependent clause and cannot stand alone, even though it has a subject and a verb. Fix it by attaching it to a main clause: We went home because the lab closed early.
- A Correct: because turns the clause into a dependent clause that leaves the reader waiting for the rest of the thought.
- B This is a complete sentence with a subject (lab) and verb (closed) that expresses a full thought.
- C This joins two independent clauses with a comma and the coordinating conjunction so, which is correct.
- D The dependent clause when the lab closed is attached to the independent clause we went home, so the sentence is complete.
Learn this topic: How to build and fix a complete sentence 6-minute lesson
Source: Purdue OWL, Sentence Fragments · OpenStax Writing Guide with Handbook, Handbook (H4 Sentence Errors: Fragments, Comma Splices, Run-ons) ·
Which sentence uses capital letters correctly?
Correct answer: D
Capitalize proper nouns, the specific names of people, places and organizations, such as Mercy Hospital. Family words such as aunt and mother are lowercase after a possessive word like my, and job titles such as nurse are lowercase when they are not part of a name. A word is capitalized because it is a name, not because it seems important.
- A Aunt follows my and is not used as a name, so it should be lowercase.
- B Mercy Hospital is the name of a specific hospital, so both words must be capitalized.
- C Nurse is a common job title and should be lowercase, and hospital is part of the proper name, so it needs a capital.
- D Correct: aunt and nurse are common nouns, and Mercy Hospital is the full name of a specific place.
Learn this topic: How to punctuate by rule, not by pause 6-minute lesson
Source: Purdue OWL, A Little Help with Capitals · OpenStax Writing Guide with Handbook, Handbook (H9 Punctuation: Commas, Semicolons; H10 Capital Letters) ·
Which sentence is punctuated correctly?
Correct answer: D
Do not put a comma between a subject and its verb, even when the subject is long. The clause who miss the review session is essential because it tells which students may borrow the notes, so it is not set off with commas. The whole phrase nursing students who miss the review session is the subject, and may borrow is the verb.
- A This comma separates the long subject from its verb, may borrow, which standard punctuation does not allow.
- B A single comma after students splits the subject from the clause that identifies which students are meant; essential clauses take no commas.
- C A comma after may splits the verb phrase may borrow, which is never correct.
- D Correct: the essential clause takes no commas, and nothing separates the subject from the verb.
Learn this topic: How to punctuate by rule, not by pause 6-minute lesson
Source: Purdue OWL, Extended Rules for Using Commas · OpenStax Writing Guide with Handbook, Handbook (H9 Punctuation: Commas, Semicolons; H10 Capital Letters) ·
A soup recipe calls for 3 quarts of broth. How many cups of broth is this?
Correct answer: B
A quart is 2 pints and a pint is 2 cups, so 1 quart = 4 cups. Going from a bigger unit to a smaller one, multiply: 3 × 4 = 12 cups. A sense check helps: cups are smaller than quarts, so the number must get bigger.
- A This uses 2 cups per quart, mixing up a quart with a pint (1 pint = 2 cups, but 1 quart = 2 pints = 4 cups).
- B Correct: 1 quart = 2 pints = 4 cups, so 3 quarts = 3 × 4 = 12 cups.
- C This uses 8 cups per quart, confusing the 8 fluid ounces in a cup with the number of cups in a quart.
- D This divides by 4 instead of multiplying; converting to a smaller unit must give a bigger number.
Learn this topic: How to convert household measures: teaspoons to gallons, ounces to pounds, inches to yards 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Prealgebra 2e, 7.5 Systems of Measurement · NIST Handbook 44 (2026), Appendix C: General Tables of Units of Measurement ·
A newborn's weight is recorded as 118 ounces. What is this weight in pounds and ounces?
Correct answer: A
There are 16 ounces in a pound, so divide 118 by 16: 16 × 7 = 112, with 118 − 112 = 6 ounces left over. The weight is 7 lb 6 oz. The leftover is a remainder in ounces, not the decimal part of the division (118 ÷ 16 = 7.375 lb, and 0.375 lb is 6 oz).
- A Correct: 118 ÷ 16 = 7 remainder 6, so 7 lb 6 oz.
- B This divides by 12, the number of inches in a foot, instead of 16 ounces in a pound (118 ÷ 12 = 9 remainder 10).
- C This divides by 10, as if ounces were tenths of a pound (118 ÷ 10 = 11 remainder 8).
- D This takes the decimal part of 118 ÷ 16 = 7.375 and labels it ounces; 0.375 lb is actually 0.375 × 16 = 6 oz.
Learn this topic: How to convert household measures: teaspoons to gallons, ounces to pounds, inches to yards 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Prealgebra 2e, 7.5 Systems of Measurement · NIST Handbook 44 (2026), Appendix C: General Tables of Units of Measurement ·
A cook uses 2 tablespoons of olive oil each day. A full bottle holds 1 quart of oil. How many days will the bottle last?
Correct answer: A
First change the quart to tablespoons: 1 quart = 32 fl oz, and each fluid ounce is 2 tablespoons, so the bottle holds 32 × 2 = 64 tablespoons. At 2 tablespoons a day, 64 ÷ 2 = 32 days. Writing the units at every step (qt → fl oz → tbsp → days) keeps a multi-step chain on track.
- A Correct: 1 qt = 32 fl oz = 64 tbsp, and 64 ÷ 2 tbsp per day = 32 days.
- B This uses 1 quart = 2 cups = 16 fl oz, mixing up a quart with a pint, so it finds only half the oil.
- C This finds the 64 tablespoons in the bottle but forgets to divide by the 2 tablespoons used each day.
- D This uses 3 tablespoons per fluid ounce (mixing up teaspoons and tablespoons), giving 96 tbsp ÷ 2 = 48 days.
Learn this topic: How to convert household measures: teaspoons to gallons, ounces to pounds, inches to yards 5-minute lesson
Source: NIST Handbook 44 (2026), Appendix C: General Tables of Units of Measurement · OpenStax Prealgebra 2e, 7.5 Systems of Measurement ·
A clinic schedule lists an appointment at 2015. What is this time on a 12-hour clock?
Correct answer: D
In military time, hours 13 to 23 are afternoon and evening hours. Subtract 12 from the hour and write p.m.: 20 − 12 = 8, so 2015 is 8:15 p.m. The last two digits (15) are the minutes and do not change.
- A This subtracts 10 instead of 12 from the hour (20 − 10 = 10).
- B This reads only the first digit, 2, as the hour; the hour is the first two digits, 20.
- C This subtracts 12 correctly but labels the time a.m.; any hour from 13 to 23 is after noon, so it must be p.m.
- D Correct: 20 − 12 = 8, and hours 13 to 23 are p.m., so 2015 is 8:15 p.m.
Learn this topic: How to read, convert and count military (24-hour) time 5-minute lesson
Source: U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, The 24-Hour Clock, also known as "Military Time" · Open RN Nursing Skills, 5.3 Military Time (LibreTexts) ·
A night shift begins at 2145 and ends at 0630 the next morning. How long is the shift?
Correct answer: B
The shift crosses midnight, so split it into two parts. From 2145 to 2400 (midnight) is 2 hours 15 minutes, and from 0000 to 0630 is 6 hours 30 minutes. Adding them gives 8 hours 45 minutes.
- A This counts only 1 h 15 min from 2145 to midnight; 2145 to 2245 to 2345 is already 2 hours, plus 15 minutes.
- B Correct: 2 h 15 min before midnight plus 6 h 30 min after midnight = 8 h 45 min.
- C This subtracts 2400 − 2145 as ordinary numbers (255), reads it as 2 h 55 min, and adds 6 h 30 min, treating an hour as 100 minutes.
- D This subtracts the end time from the start time within one day (21:45 − 6:30), ignoring that the shift crosses midnight.
Learn this topic: How to read, convert and count military (24-hour) time 5-minute lesson
Source: NIST Time and Frequency Division, Times of Day FAQs · OpenStax Prealgebra 2e, 7.5 Systems of Measurement ·
A training session starts at 2250 and lasts 95 minutes. At what time does it end, written in military time?
Correct answer: C
First write 95 minutes as 1 hour 35 minutes. Add: 22 h 50 min + 1 h 35 min = 23 h 85 min, and 85 minutes is 1 hour 25 minutes, so the total is 24 h 25 min. A day ends at 2400, so the clock starts again at 0000 and the session ends at 0025 the next day.
- A This adds 95 to 2250 as an ordinary number, treating an hour as 100 minutes.
- B This gets 24 h 25 min but does not start the new day; after 2359 the clock rolls over to 0000.
- C Correct: 2250 + 1 h 35 min = 24 h 25 min, which is 0025 on the next day.
- D This finds 23 h 85 min and drops the extra 60 minutes instead of carrying them as 1 more hour.
Learn this topic: How to read, convert and count military (24-hour) time 5-minute lesson
Source: NIST Time and Frequency Division, Times of Day FAQs · North Carolina Office of State Fire Marshal, Military Time (PDF) · OpenStax Prealgebra 2e, 7.5 Systems of Measurement ·
What is the value of the Roman numeral XLVI?
Correct answer: D
X comes before the larger L, so XL is a subtractive pair: 50 − 10 = 40. The rest goes from larger to smaller, so add: V + I = 6. The total is 40 + 6 = 46.
- A This adds every symbol (10 + 50 + 5 + 1) instead of treating XL as 50 − 10 = 40.
- B This reads VI as IV (4); VI has the smaller symbol second, so it is 5 + 1 = 6.
- C This drops the X and adds L + V + I = 56, ignoring the subtractive pair XL.
- D Correct: XL = 40 and VI = 6, so XLVI = 46.
Learn this topic: How to read and write Roman numerals 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Contemporary Mathematics, 4.2 Early Numeration Systems ·
Which Roman numeral represents 1,490?
Correct answer: C
Split 1,490 by place value: 1,000 + 400 + 90. Write each part: 1,000 = M, 400 = CD and 90 = XC. Joined in order, that is MCDXC.
- A This uses D (500) for the hundreds instead of CD (400), so it equals 1,590.
- B This tries to write 490 as XD (500 − 10), but X can be subtracted only from L and C.
- C Correct: M (1,000) + CD (400) + XC (90) = 1,490.
- D This adds up to 1,490 but repeats C and X four times; the standard form uses the subtractive pairs CD and XC.
Learn this topic: How to read and write Roman numerals 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Contemporary Mathematics, 4.2 Early Numeration Systems · The Math Doctors, How Roman Numerals Work ·
Which of the following is the correctly written standard Roman numeral for 999?
Correct answer: C
Write 999 one place value at a time: 900 + 90 + 9. In standard form, 900 = CM, 90 = XC and 9 = IX, so 999 = CMXCIX. Shortcuts that subtract I from a much larger symbol (IM, IC) break the rule that I may come only before V or X.
- A This writes 99 as IC, but I can be subtracted only from V and X, so 99 must be XCIX.
- B This subtracts I from M (1,000 − 1); I can be subtracted only from V and X.
- C Correct: CM (900) + XC (90) + IX (9) = 999.
- D This has the right value but writes 900 as DCCCC, repeating C four times; the standard form for 900 is CM.
Learn this topic: How to read and write Roman numerals 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Contemporary Mathematics, 4.2 Early Numeration Systems · The Math Doctors, How Roman Numerals Work ·
Math practice: an order calls for 250 mg of Medication X. The liquid on hand contains 125 mg in 5 mL. How many milliliters contain 250 mg?
Correct answer: B
Use desired ÷ have × quantity: 250 mg ÷ 125 mg × 5 mL = 2 × 5 mL = 10 mL. As a check, 250 mg is twice 125 mg, so it takes twice 5 mL. The same answer comes from the proportion 125 mg / 5 mL = 250 mg / x mL.
- A This flips the fraction to have ÷ desired (125 ÷ 250 × 5 = 2.5); the ordered amount goes on top.
- B Correct: 250 ÷ 125 × 5 mL = 10 mL.
- C This divides the ordered 250 mg by the 5 mL (250 ÷ 5 = 50), skipping the strength on hand.
- D This stops at desired ÷ have (250 ÷ 125 = 2) and forgets to multiply by the 5 mL quantity.
Learn this topic: How to solve dosage calculation math problems 6-minute lesson
Source: Los Angeles County Public Health Nursing, Medication Calculation Examination Study Guide (PDF) · SUNY Canton, Drug Calculation Study Guide (PDF) ·
Math practice: an order reads 4 mg of Medication X per kilogram of body weight. The person weighs 121 lb. Using 1 kg = 2.2 lb, how many milligrams is the dose? Enter a whole number.
Correct answer: 220
Convert the weight first: 121 lb ÷ 2.2 = 55 kg. Then multiply by the amount per kilogram: 55 kg × 4 mg/kg = 220 mg. Dividing by 2.2 makes sense because a kilogram is heavier than a pound, so the number of kilograms is smaller.
Learn this topic: How to solve dosage calculation math problems 6-minute lesson
Source: Open RN Nursing Skills, 5.11 Weight-Based Calculations (LibreTexts) · Los Angeles County Public Health Nursing, Medication Calculation Examination Study Guide (PDF) ·
Math practice: an order reads 7.5 mg of Medication X per kilogram. The person weighs 50 lb. The liquid on hand contains 80 mg in 5 mL. Using 1 kg = 2.2 lb, how many milliliters is the dose? Round only the final answer to the nearest tenth.
Correct answer: A
Keep every digit until the end: 50 ÷ 2.2 = 22.7272... kg, and 22.7272... × 7.5 = 170.4545... mg. Then 170.4545... ÷ 80 × 5 mL = 10.653... mL, which rounds to 10.7 mL. Rounding the weight early to 22.7 kg gives 10.64 mL and a different final tenth, which is why the stem says to round only at the end.
- A Correct: 50 ÷ 2.2 × 7.5 ÷ 80 × 5 = 10.65... mL, which rounds to 10.7 mL.
- B This uses 50 lb as if it were 50 kg (50 × 7.5 = 375 mg, 375 ÷ 80 × 5 ≈ 23.4 mL), skipping the pound-to-kilogram step.
- C This rounds the weight to 22.7 kg in the middle of the problem, which gives 10.64 mL and rounds to 10.6 instead of 10.7.
- D This multiplies by 2.2 instead of dividing (110 kg × 7.5 = 825 mg, 825 ÷ 80 × 5 ≈ 51.6 mL).
Learn this topic: How to solve dosage calculation math problems 6-minute lesson
Source: Open RN Nursing Skills, 5.11 Weight-Based Calculations (LibreTexts) · Open RN Nursing Skills, 5.5 Rounding (LibreTexts) · Open RN Nursing Skills, 5.6 Using Dimensional Analysis (LibreTexts) ·
A clinic orders 14 boxes of exam gloves. Each box holds 150 gloves. How many gloves does the clinic order in all?
Correct answer: C
Equal groups mean multiplication: 14 boxes × 150 gloves per box. Multiply 14 × 15 = 210, then attach the one zero from 150 to get 2,100. A quick estimate (about 15 × 150 = 2,250) confirms the answer is in the low thousands.
- A This multiplies 14 × 15 and drops the zero from 150, so the answer is ten times too small.
- B This adds 14 + 150 instead of multiplying; equal groups (boxes of 150) call for multiplication.
- C Correct: 14 × 150 = 2,100 gloves.
- D This attaches one zero too many (14 × 1,500); 14 × 15 = 210, and the single zero in 150 gives 2,100.
Learn this topic: How to add, subtract, multiply and divide fractions, decimals and negatives 7-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Prealgebra 2e, 1.4 Multiply Whole Numbers ·
A nursing student walks 3.5 km on Monday, 0.75 km on Tuesday, and 12 km on Saturday. What is the total distance?
Correct answer: C
Line up the decimal points and fill empty places with zeros: 3.50 + 0.75 + 12.00. The tenths and hundredths give 0.50 + 0.75 = 1.25, so carry 1 into the ones place. The whole numbers give 3 + 0 + 12 + 1 = 16, for a total of 16.25 km.
- A This writes the 12 under the 75, as if it were 0.12, instead of placing it to the left of the decimal point (3.5 + 0.75 + 0.12 = 4.37); whole numbers go in the ones and tens places (12 = 12.00).
- B This adds the digits after the decimal points as if they were whole numbers (5 + 75 = 80), so 3.5 + 0.75 becomes 3.80 instead of 4.25; written as 0.50 + 0.75, the decimal parts make 1.25.
- C Correct: 3.50 + 0.75 + 12.00 = 16.25 km.
- D This forgets to carry: 0.50 + 0.75 = 1.25, so 1 must be carried into the ones place.
Learn this topic: How to add, subtract, multiply and divide fractions, decimals and negatives 7-minute lesson
A baker adds 2/3 cup of milk to a batter and then another 3/4 cup. How much milk is in the batter in all?
Correct answer: D
Use the least common denominator, 12: 2/3 = 8/12 and 3/4 = 9/12. Add the numerators to get 17/12. Since 12 twelfths make one whole, 17/12 = 1 5/12 cups.
- A This adds the numerators and the denominators (2 + 3 over 3 + 4); fractions need a common denominator before adding.
- B This gets 17/12 but splits 17 into a 1 and a 7; 17/12 means 12/12 + 5/12, which is 1 5/12.
- C This uses the common denominator 12 but keeps the old numerators (2/12 + 3/12); each numerator must be multiplied too (8/12 and 9/12).
- D Correct: 8/12 + 9/12 = 17/12 = 1 5/12 cups.
Learn this topic: How to add, subtract, multiply and divide fractions, decimals and negatives 7-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Prealgebra 2e, 4.5 Add and Subtract Fractions with Different Denominators ·
What is 3/8 written as a decimal?
Correct answer: C
A fraction bar means division, so 3/8 = 3 ÷ 8. Write 3 as 3.000 and divide: 8 goes into 30 three times (remainder 6), into 60 seven times (remainder 4), and into 40 five times, giving 0.375. Check: 3/8 is a little less than 4/8 = 0.5.
- A This puts an extra zero after the decimal point; 3/8 is a little less than 1/2, so it must be close to 0.4, not 0.04.
- B This divides 8 by 3; a fraction bar means numerator ÷ denominator, so divide 3 by 8.
- C Correct: 3 ÷ 8 = 0.375.
- D This just writes the numerator and denominator on either side of a decimal point; a fraction bar is not a decimal point.
Learn this topic: How to convert between fractions, decimals and percents 6-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Prealgebra 2e, 5.3 Decimals and Fractions ·
A cleaning solution is mixed in a ratio of 3 parts concentrate to 5 parts water. How many cups of concentrate are needed to make 24 cups of the mixed solution?
Correct answer: B
The ratio 3:5 compares part to part, so the whole mixture has 3 + 5 = 8 equal parts. Each part is 24 ÷ 8 = 3 cups. Concentrate is 3 parts, or 3 × 3 = 9 cups (water is 5 × 3 = 15 cups, and 9 + 15 = 24 checks).
- A This takes 3/5 of 24, treating 24 cups as the water; 24 cups is the whole mixture, which has 3 + 5 = 8 parts.
- B Correct: 24 ÷ 8 = 3 cups per part, and 3 parts × 3 cups = 9 cups.
- C This inverts the ratio and multiplies 24 by 5/3; the concentrate cannot be more than the whole 24-cup batch.
- D This is the amount of water (5 parts of 3 cups each), not the concentrate.
Learn this topic: How to work with ratios, unit rates and rate of change 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Prealgebra 2e, 5.6 Ratios and Rate · OpenStax Prealgebra 2e, 6.5 Solve Proportions and their Applications ·
A pair of scrubs is priced at $80. It is on sale for 15% off. What is the sale price?
Correct answer: A
Find the discount first: 15% of $80 = 0.15 × 80 = $12. Subtract it from the original price: $80 − $12 = $68. A shortcut is to multiply by the percent you still pay: 85% of $80 = 0.85 × 80 = $68.
- A Correct: $80 − $12 = $68.00.
- B This subtracts 15 dollars instead of 15 percent; 15% of $80 is $12.
- C This is the amount of the discount (0.15 × $80 = $12), not the price after the discount.
- D This adds the discount to the original price instead of subtracting it.
Learn this topic: How to solve percent problems 6-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Prealgebra 2e, 6.3 Solve Sales Tax, Commission, and Discount Applications ·
A recipe calls for 4 tablespoons of lemon juice. How many teaspoons is this?
Correct answer: B
One tablespoon equals 3 teaspoons. Going from a larger unit (tablespoon) to a smaller unit (teaspoon) makes the number bigger, so multiply: 4 × 3 = 12 teaspoons.
- A This divides 4 by 3; converting to a smaller unit gives more of them, so multiply.
- B Correct: 1 tablespoon = 3 teaspoons, so 4 × 3 = 12 teaspoons.
- C This uses 2 teaspoons per tablespoon; the equivalence is 3 teaspoons per tablespoon.
- D This uses 4 teaspoons per tablespoon (perhaps mixing it up with 4 quarts per gallon); 1 tablespoon = 3 teaspoons.
Learn this topic: How to convert household measures: teaspoons to gallons, ounces to pounds, inches to yards 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Prealgebra 2e, 7.5 Systems of Measurement · Open RN Nursing Skills, 5.4 Equivalencies (LibreTexts) ·
A meeting is scheduled for 11:40 p.m. How is this time written in military (24-hour) time?
Correct answer: C
For a p.m. time from 1:00 to 11:59, add 12 to the hour and drop the colon. Here 11 + 12 = 23, so 11:40 p.m. becomes 2340. The noon hour stays 12 (12:40 p.m. = 1240), and the midnight hour starts with 00 (12:40 a.m. = 0040).
- A This is 11:40 a.m.; p.m. hours from 1 to 11 need 12 added.
- B This is 12:40 a.m., which is one hour after 11:40 p.m.
- C Correct: drop the colon and add 12 to the p.m. hour: 11 + 12 = 23, so 2340.
- D This adds 11 instead of 12 to the hour; 11 + 12 = 23.
Learn this topic: How to read, convert and count military (24-hour) time 5-minute lesson
Source: Open RN Nursing Skills, 5.3 Military Time (LibreTexts) ·
Which standard Roman numeral represents 64?
Correct answer: D
Break 64 into tens and ones: 60 + 4. Sixty is L (50) followed by X (10), or LX, and 4 is IV (one before five). Together they make LXIV. A smaller symbol placed before a larger one is subtracted; placed after, it is added.
- A LXVI is 50 + 10 + 5 + 1 = 66; I after V adds 1, while 4 needs I before V (IV).
- B LXIIII adds up to 64 but is not standard form, because a symbol is not repeated more than three times in a row; 4 is written IV.
- C XLIV is 44; X before L means 50 − 10 = 40, while 60 is written LX.
- D Correct: 64 = 60 + 4 = LX + IV = LXIV.
Learn this topic: How to read and write Roman numerals 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Contemporary Mathematics, 4.2 Early Numeration Systems ·
Solve for x: 4x − 7 = 21
Correct answer: B
Undo the operations in reverse order. First add 7 to both sides: 4x = 28. Then divide both sides by 4: x = 7. Check by substituting: 4 × 7 − 7 = 28 − 7 = 21.
- A This reaches 4x = 28 but stops before dividing both sides by 4.
- B Correct: 4x = 28, so x = 7. Check: 4(7) − 7 = 21.
- C This subtracts 7 from 21 instead of adding (4x = 14); to undo − 7, add 7 to both sides.
- D This divides only 21 by 4 and then adds 7 (5.25 + 7); undo the subtraction first, then the multiplication.
Learn this topic: How to solve a one-variable equation 6-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Elementary Algebra 2e, 2.3 Solve Equations with Variables and Constants on Both Sides · OpenStax Elementary Algebra 2e, 2.2 Solve Equations using the Division and Multiplication Properties of Equality ·
Math practice: a liquid contains 40 mg of Medication X in every 5 mL. How many milliliters contain 60 mg? Enter the number of milliliters as a decimal (for example, 2.5).
Correct answer: 7.5
Set up a proportion: 40 mg / 5 mL = 60 mg / x mL. Cross-multiply: 40x = 300, so x = 7.5 mL. Check: 60 mg is 1.5 times 40 mg, so the volume is 1.5 × 5 mL = 7.5 mL.
Learn this topic: How to solve dosage calculation math problems 6-minute lesson
Source: Open RN Nursing Skills, 5.9 Liquid Concentrations (LibreTexts) · OpenStax Prealgebra 2e, 6.5 Solve Proportions and their Applications ·
A student's five quiz scores are 82, 90, 75, 90, and 88. What is the median score?
Correct answer: B
The median is the middle value after the data are sorted from smallest to largest: 75, 82, 88, 90, 90. With five values, the middle one is the third, 88. Do not confuse it with the mean (the sum 425 divided by 5 = 85) or the mode (90).
- A 85 is the mean (425 ÷ 5), not the median.
- B Correct: in order the scores are 75, 82, 88, 90, 90, and the middle (third) value is 88.
- C 90 is the mode, the score that appears most often.
- D 75 is the middle value of the list as written; the scores must be put in order before finding the middle.
Learn this topic: How to find the mean, median, mode and range 6-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Introductory Statistics 2e, 2.5 Measures of the Center of the Data ·
A clinic's monthly supply cost dropped from $1,250 to $1,000. What was the percent decrease?
Correct answer: D
Percent decrease = amount of decrease ÷ original amount. The decrease is $1,250 − $1,000 = $250, and 250 ÷ 1,250 = 0.2. Multiply by 100 to write it as a percent: 20%.
- A This divides the $250 decrease by the new amount ($1,000); percent change is based on the original amount.
- B This is the new cost as a percent of the old cost (1,000 ÷ 1,250 = 80%), not the decrease.
- C This stops at the decimal 0.2 and adds a percent sign; multiply by 100 to write 0.2 as 20%.
- D Correct: (1,250 − 1,000) ÷ 1,250 = 250 ÷ 1,250 = 0.2 = 20%.
Learn this topic: How to solve percent problems 6-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Prealgebra 2e, 6.2 Solve General Applications of Percent ·
Which level of biological organization is the smallest unit that can carry out all the functions of life?
Correct answer: C
The cell is the smallest unit of structure and function in living things, and cell theory states that the cell is the basic unit of life. Levels below it, such as organelles and molecules, are parts of a cell and cannot live on their own. Levels above it, such as tissues, are built from many cells.
- A An organelle is a part inside a cell; it cannot carry out all life functions on its own.
- B Molecules such as DNA are needed for life but are not alive by themselves; this confuses a building block with a living unit.
- C Correct: the cell is the smallest level that is alive on its own; everything below it is only a part of a cell.
- D A tissue is a group of similar cells, so it is a higher level built from cells, not the smallest unit.
Learn this topic: What counts as alive, and how biologists sort living things 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Biology 2e, 1.2 Themes and Concepts of Biology · OpenStax Biology 2e, 4.1 Studying Cells ·
A newly discovered single-celled organism has a plasma membrane, ribosomes, and DNA located in a region of the cytoplasm with no membrane around it. It has no membrane-bound organelles. Which conclusion is best supported?
Correct answer: C
Prokaryotes (bacteria and archaea) have no nucleus and no membrane-bound organelles; their DNA sits in a region called the nucleoid. Ribosomes, a plasma membrane, cytoplasm, and DNA are found in all cells, so they do not show that a cell is eukaryotic. Being single-celled does not make an organism a protist, because bacteria and archaea are single-celled too.
- A All cells, prokaryotic and eukaryotic, have ribosomes, so ribosomes cannot identify a eukaryote.
- B Lacking a nucleus does not make a cell nonliving; prokaryotes are living cells without a nucleus.
- C Correct: DNA in a nucleoid with no nucleus and no membrane-bound organelles is the defining pattern of a prokaryote.
- D Protists are eukaryotes with a nucleus; being single-celled alone does not make an organism a protist.
Learn this topic: What counts as alive, and how biologists sort living things 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Biology 2e, 4.2 Prokaryotic Cells · OpenStax Biology 2e, 1.2 Themes and Concepts of Biology ·
Two animal species are placed in the same order but in different families. Which other taxonomic rank must they also share?
Correct answer: A
Taxonomic ranks are nested from broadest to most specific: domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, species. Organisms in the same order must share every broader rank above it (class, phylum, kingdom, domain). Because they are in different families, they cannot share any narrower rank, such as genus or species.
- A Correct: class is broader than order, so two members of the same order always belong to the same class.
- B Genus is narrower than family; organisms in different families cannot be in the same genus.
- C Species is the most specific rank; different families rule out sharing a species.
- D The stem says they are in different families; this reverses the direction of the nested ranks.
Learn this topic: What counts as alive, and how biologists sort living things 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Biology 2e, 20.1 Organizing Life on Earth ·
A water strider insect can stand on the surface of a pond without sinking. Which property of water mainly explains this?
Correct answer: B
Cohesion, the attraction of water molecules to each other through hydrogen bonds, creates surface tension at the surface of water. Surface tension lets light objects such as a needle or a water strider rest on the surface. Adhesion is water sticking to other surfaces, and specific heat is about temperature change, not support.
- A Specific heat describes how much heat water absorbs before its temperature changes; it does not hold objects up.
- B Correct: cohesion between water molecules creates surface tension, which supports a water strider.
- C Adhesion is water attaching to other surfaces, such as climbing a glass tube; it confuses water-to-surface with water-to-water attraction.
- D The low density of ice explains why ice floats, not why an insect can stand on liquid water.
Learn this topic: Why water behaves the way it does 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Biology 2e, 2.2 Water ·
During exercise, a runner sweats and her skin cools. Which statement best explains the cooling?
Correct answer: B
Turning liquid water into vapor takes a large amount of energy, because hydrogen bonds between water molecules must be broken. As sweat evaporates, it takes that energy as heat from the skin, so the skin cools. This is called evaporative cooling.
- A Water has a high specific heat, not a low one; this reverses the property.
- B Correct: evaporation absorbs heat energy from the surface it leaves, which cools the skin.
- C Breaking hydrogen bonds during evaporation absorbs energy rather than releasing it, so this has the energy flow backward.
- D Water is a good solvent, but dissolving ions does not remove heat; this confuses the solvent property with cooling.
Learn this topic: Why water behaves the way it does 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Biology 2e, 2.2 Water ·
Suppose water molecules were nonpolar and could not form hydrogen bonds with each other. Which change would most likely result?
Correct answer: D
Water's high specific heat comes from its hydrogen bonds, which absorb and release heat before the molecules speed up or slow down. Without hydrogen bonds, water would change temperature much more easily. Water's polarity is also what lets it dissolve ions and stick to glass, so a nonpolar water would do those things worse, not better.
- A Oil separates from water because oil is nonpolar and water is polar; nonpolar water would be more like oil, not less.
- B Water dissolves salt because its charged ends surround Na+ and Cl- ions; nonpolar water would dissolve salt less easily.
- C Climbing a glass tube depends on adhesion and cohesion from polarity; nonpolar water would climb less, not more.
- D Correct: hydrogen bonds give water its high specific heat, so without them its temperature would change faster.
Learn this topic: Why water behaves the way it does 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Biology 2e, 2.2 Water · OpenStax Concepts of Biology, 2.2 Water ·
Which process is an example of a catabolic pathway?
Correct answer: C
Catabolic pathways break complex molecules into simpler ones and release energy, such as the breakdown of glucose. Anabolic pathways do the opposite: they use energy to build complex molecules from simpler ones. Building proteins, DNA, or sugar are all anabolic.
- A Building a protein from amino acids makes a larger molecule and uses energy, so it is anabolic.
- B Making sugar from carbon dioxide builds a complex molecule from simple ones, an anabolic example.
- C Correct: breaking glucose down into simpler molecules releases energy, which is the definition of catabolism.
- D Joining nucleotides into DNA builds a polymer and requires energy, so it is anabolic.
Learn this topic: How cells build, break down, and speed up reactions 5-minute lesson
A molecule binds to an enzyme's active site and blocks the substrate from binding there. Which change would most likely restore the reaction rate?
Correct answer: A
A molecule that blocks the active site is a competitive inhibitor, because it competes with the substrate for the same spot. Flooding the reaction with substrate makes it more likely that substrate, not inhibitor, occupies the active site, so competitive inhibition can be overcome. Extreme temperature or pH would denature the enzyme and lower activity further.
- A Correct: competitive inhibition can be overcome by a high concentration of substrate, which outcompetes the inhibitor.
- B Temperatures far above the optimum denature the enzyme and reduce activity, which makes the problem worse.
- C A noncompetitive inhibitor binds elsewhere and changes the enzyme shape, so it would slow the reaction even more.
- D A pH far from the optimum can denature the enzyme; this would lower activity, not restore it.
Learn this topic: How cells build, break down, and speed up reactions 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Biology 2e, 6.5 Enzymes ·
An enzyme that works best near pH 2 is placed in a solution at pH 8, at its usual temperature. What is the most likely result?
Correct answer: B
Each enzyme works best within a certain pH range, and conditions far from that range can change its shape, or denature it. When the active site changes shape, the substrate no longer fits well and the reaction slows. Enzymes are never used up by the reactions they speed up, and they lower activation energy without changing the reaction's overall energy change.
- A This enzyme is adapted to strongly acidic conditions; moving it far from its optimum pH lowers activity rather than raising it.
- B Correct: a pH far from the optimum can denature the enzyme, distorting the active site and reducing activity.
- C Enzymes are not consumed by the reactions they catalyze; they come out unchanged and can be reused.
- D Enzymes lower activation energy but never change the total energy a reaction releases or absorbs.
Learn this topic: How cells build, break down, and speed up reactions 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Biology 2e, 6.5 Enzymes ·
Where in a eukaryotic cell does glycolysis take place?
Correct answer: B
Glycolysis, the splitting of glucose into two pyruvate molecules, happens in the cytoplasm of both prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells. The later stages move into the mitochondrion: pyruvate oxidation and the citric acid cycle in the matrix, and the electron transport chain in the inner membrane.
- A The mitochondrial matrix is where pyruvate oxidation and the citric acid cycle happen, after glycolysis.
- B Correct: glycolysis takes place in the cytoplasm.
- C The nucleus stores DNA; no stage of cellular respiration takes place there.
- D The inner mitochondrial membrane holds the electron transport chain, the final stage, not glycolysis.
Learn this topic: How cells turn glucose into ATP 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Biology 2e, 7.2 Glycolysis ·
What is the role of oxygen in aerobic cellular respiration?
Correct answer: A
Oxygen is the final electron acceptor of the electron transport chain in the inner mitochondrial membrane. It picks up spent electrons and hydrogen ions and becomes water. The CO2 released during respiration comes from the carbon of glucose, removed during pyruvate oxidation and the citric acid cycle, and glycolysis does not use oxygen at all.
- A Correct: oxygen is the final electron acceptor in the electron transport chain and is reduced to water.
- B The CO2 comes from carbon atoms stripped from pyruvate and acetyl CoA; the citric acid cycle does not use oxygen directly.
- C Glycolysis splits glucose without using oxygen, so oxygen plays no role in that step.
- D ATP synthase attaches an inorganic phosphate to ADP; oxygen does not supply phosphate.
Learn this topic: How cells turn glucose into ATP 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Biology 2e, 7.4 Oxidative Phosphorylation · OpenStax Biology 2e, 7.3 Oxidation of Pyruvate and the Citric Acid Cycle ·
A human skeletal muscle cell is working hard and runs short of oxygen. Which change is most likely?
Correct answer: C
Without enough oxygen, the electron transport chain cannot accept electrons, so NADH builds up and NAD+ runs short. Lactic acid fermentation turns pyruvate into lactate and regenerates NAD+, which lets glycolysis keep producing its 2 ATP per glucose. Alcohol fermentation, which makes ethanol and CO2, happens in yeast, not in human muscle.
- A Glycolysis does not need oxygen; fermentation lets it keep running and making a small amount of ATP.
- B The Krebs cycle depends on the oxygen-using electron transport chain to recycle its carriers, so it slows rather than speeds up.
- C Correct: muscle cells short on oxygen reduce pyruvate to lactate, regenerating NAD+ so glycolysis can continue.
- D Ethanol and CO2 are products of alcohol fermentation in yeast, not of fermentation in human muscle.
Learn this topic: How cells turn glucose into ATP 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Biology 2e, 7.5 Metabolism without Oxygen · OpenStax Biology 2e, 7.2 Glycolysis ·
In which part of the chloroplast do the light-dependent reactions of photosynthesis take place?
Correct answer: A
The light-dependent reactions happen in the thylakoid membrane, where chlorophyll and the photosystems are embedded. The Calvin cycle happens in the stroma, the fluid around the thylakoids. The mitochondrial matrix is a site of cellular respiration, not photosynthesis.
- A Correct: the light-dependent reactions occur in the thylakoid membrane, which holds chlorophyll.
- B The outer membrane encloses the chloroplast but does not hold the photosystems.
- C The stroma is where the Calvin cycle (light-independent reactions) takes place; this mixes up the two stages.
- D The mitochondrial matrix is part of a mitochondrion and hosts the citric acid cycle, not photosynthesis.
Learn this topic: How plants turn light into sugar 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Biology 2e, 8.1 Overview of Photosynthesis ·
The oxygen gas released by a plant during photosynthesis comes from which molecule?
Correct answer: C
In the light-dependent reactions, photosystem II replaces its lost electrons by splitting water, and this releases oxygen gas. The carbon dioxide is used in the Calvin cycle, where its carbon is built into sugar. A simple rule: water gives the oxygen, carbon dioxide gives the carbon.
- A RuBP is the five-carbon molecule that accepts CO2 in the Calvin cycle; it does not release oxygen.
- B Carbon dioxide supplies carbon for sugar in the Calvin cycle; it is not split to release O2.
- C Correct: splitting water in the light-dependent reactions releases the oxygen gas.
- D Glucose is a product of photosynthesis, not the source of the oxygen released.
Learn this topic: How plants turn light into sugar 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Biology 2e, 8.1 Overview of Photosynthesis · OpenStax Biology 2e, 8.2 The Light-Dependent Reactions of Photosynthesis ·
The Calvin cycle is called light-independent, yet it still depends on light indirectly. Which statement best explains this dependence?
Correct answer: D
The Calvin cycle does not use light as a reactant, but it runs on the ATP and NADPH made by the light-dependent reactions, so it needs the light reactions to keep supplying them. That is why it depends on light indirectly. The old name "dark reactions" is misleading, because it suggests the cycle happens only at night or has nothing to do with light.
- A Light is not a reactant in the Calvin cycle; RuBisCO attaches CO2 to RuBP without absorbing light.
- B Chlorophyll sits in the thylakoid membrane, not the stroma, and the Calvin cycle does not absorb light.
- C Oxygen is a byproduct of the light reactions; the Calvin cycle does not use it to make G3P.
- D Correct: the Calvin cycle spends ATP and NADPH, and only the light-dependent reactions make them.
Learn this topic: How plants turn light into sugar 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Biology 2e, 8.3 Using Light Energy to Make Organic Molecules · OpenStax Biology 2e, 8.1 Overview of Photosynthesis ·
During which phase of mitosis do sister chromatids separate and move to opposite ends of the cell?
Correct answer: B
In anaphase, the sister chromatids pull apart and move to opposite poles, so each end of the cell gets a full set of chromosomes. Before that, chromosomes condense in prophase and line up at the metaphase plate in metaphase. In telophase, new nuclear envelopes form around the two sets.
- A In prophase, chromosomes condense and the spindle forms; the chromatids are still joined.
- B Correct: sister chromatids separate and move to opposite poles in anaphase.
- C In metaphase, chromosomes line up at the metaphase plate but have not yet separated.
- D In telophase, the chromatids have already reached the poles and new nuclear envelopes form.
Learn this topic: How one cell becomes two, or four 6-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Biology 2e, 10.2 The Cell Cycle ·
Which event happens in meiosis but not in mitosis, and helps make each gamete genetically different?
Correct answer: A
In prophase I of meiosis, homologous chromosomes pair up and nonsister chromatids exchange segments, which is called crossing over. This mixes genetic material and, along with the random alignment of pairs in metaphase I, makes each gamete different. DNA copying, chromosomes lining up, and sister chromatids separating all happen in mitosis too.
- A Correct: crossing over between homologous chromosomes in prophase I occurs only in meiosis and creates genetic variety.
- B DNA is copied in the S phase before both mitosis and meiosis, so it does not distinguish them.
- C Sister chromatids separate in anaphase of mitosis and in anaphase II of meiosis, so this is not unique to meiosis.
- D Chromosomes line up at the metaphase plate in both mitosis and meiosis.
Learn this topic: How one cell becomes two, or four 6-minute lesson
A diploid cell with 8 chromosomes (2n = 8) undergoes meiosis. At the end of meiosis I, how many chromosomes does each new cell have, and what is true of the sister chromatids?
Correct answer: C
Meiosis I is the reduction division: homologous chromosomes separate in anaphase I, so each new cell gets one chromosome from each pair and becomes haploid (n = 4). The sister chromatids of each chromosome stay joined at the centromere until anaphase II. No DNA is copied between meiosis I and meiosis II.
- A Halving 8 gives 4, not 2; and the sister chromatids have not yet separated at this point.
- B The number is right, but sister chromatids separate in anaphase II, not in meiosis I.
- C Correct: separating homologous pairs halves the number to 4, and sister chromatids stay joined until meiosis II.
- D Keeping all 8 chromosomes describes mitosis; meiosis I separates homologs and halves the number.
Learn this topic: How one cell becomes two, or four 6-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Biology 2e, 11.1 The Process of Meiosis · OpenStax Biology 2e, 10.1 Cell Division ·
A molecule is made of one glycerol molecule bonded to three fatty acid chains. What type of molecule is it?
Correct answer: D
Fats are lipids built from one glycerol and three fatty acids, which is why they are also called triglycerides. Phospholipids have only two fatty acids; a phosphate group takes the third spot, and they form cell membranes. Steroids, such as cholesterol, look very different: four carbon rings linked together.
- A A phospholipid has only two fatty acid chains on its glycerol backbone; a phosphate group takes the third spot.
- B A steroid is built from four linked carbon rings, not from glycerol and fatty acids.
- C A polysaccharide is a long chain of sugar units such as glucose; it has no fatty acids.
- D Correct: glycerol plus three fatty acids is a fat, also called a triglyceride ("tri" for the three fatty acids).
Learn this topic: The four macromolecules of life and how cells build them 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Biology 2e, 3.3 Lipids ·
Cells in the adrenal cortex make large amounts of steroid hormones, which are lipids. Which organelle would you expect to be especially well developed in these cells?
Correct answer: B
The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) comes in two forms. Rough ER is covered with ribosomes and makes proteins; smooth ER has no ribosomes and makes lipids, including phospholipids and steroid hormones. Match the cell's main product to the organelle that makes it.
- A Rough ER is studded with ribosomes and mainly makes proteins, such as secreted enzymes, not lipid hormones.
- B Correct: smooth ER is the main site of lipid synthesis, including phospholipids and steroid hormones.
- C Lysosomes hold enzymes that break down worn-out cell parts; they digest molecules rather than build hormones.
- D The nucleolus is the region of the nucleus where ribosomes are made; it does not make lipids.
Learn this topic: How a cell is built, fed, and copied 6-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Anatomy and Physiology 2e, 3.2 The Cytoplasm and Cellular Organelles · OpenStax Anatomy and Physiology 2e, 17.6 The Adrenal Glands · OpenStax Biology 2e, 4.3 Eukaryotic Cells ·
A bacterial cell and a human liver cell are compared. Which structure do both cells have?
Correct answer: D
All cells share four parts: a plasma membrane, cytoplasm, DNA, and ribosomes. Bacteria are prokaryotes, so they lack a nucleus and every other membrane-bound organelle; mitochondria and the ER are found only in eukaryotic cells. When a question asks what all cells share, look for one of those four parts.
- A Bacteria are prokaryotes, so their DNA sits in the cytoplasm with no nucleus around it.
- B Mitochondria are membrane-bound organelles, which prokaryotes such as bacteria lack.
- C The endoplasmic reticulum is a membrane-bound organelle found only in eukaryotic cells.
- D Correct: every cell needs ribosomes to make proteins, so prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells both have them.
Learn this topic: How a cell is built, fed, and copied 6-minute lesson
In pea plants, round seeds (R) are dominant to wrinkled seeds (r), and yellow seeds (Y) are dominant to green seeds (y). The two genes sort independently. Two plants that are both RrYy are crossed. What fraction of the offspring are expected to have round, yellow seeds?
Correct answer: A
When two genes sort independently, solve each gene as its own one-gene cross, then multiply. Rr × Rr gives 3/4 round, and Yy × Yy gives 3/4 yellow, so 3/4 × 3/4 = 9/16 are both round and yellow. This is where the classic 9:3:3:1 ratio of a dihybrid cross comes from.
- A Correct: each trait alone gives 3/4 dominant, and for independent genes you multiply: 3/4 × 3/4 = 9/16.
- B 3/16 is the fraction with one dominant and one recessive trait, such as round and green (3/4 × 1/4).
- C 1/16 is the fraction with both recessive traits, wrinkled and green (1/4 × 1/4).
- D 3/4 is the chance of one dominant trait; for both traits at once you must multiply the two chances.
Learn this topic: How traits pass from parents to children 6-minute lesson
The coding part of an mRNA molecule is 300 nucleotides long, not counting the stop codon. How many amino acids does this sequence code for?
Correct answer: D
The genetic code is read in groups of three nucleotides called codons, and each codon in the coding part stands for one amino acid. Divide the number of coding nucleotides by 3 to get the number of amino acids. A stop codon ends translation and adds no amino acid, which is why it is left out of the count.
- A This assumes each nucleotide codes for one amino acid, but each amino acid takes three nucleotides.
- B This treats a codon as two nucleotides; codons are three nucleotides long.
- C This multiplies by 3 instead of dividing; each amino acid uses three nucleotides, so there are fewer amino acids than nucleotides.
- D Correct: each three-nucleotide codon codes for one amino acid, so 300 ÷ 3 = 100.
Learn this topic: How a gene in DNA becomes a protein 6-minute lesson
How does electronegativity generally change as you move from left to right across a period of the periodic table?
Correct answer: C
Electronegativity, an atom's pull on bonding electrons, increases from left to right across a period and decreases down a group. That is why fluorine, near the top right, is the most electronegative element and the group 1 metals on the far left are the least. Noble gases are usually left out of the trend.
- A There is a clear trend across a period; the group 1 metals on the left have the lowest values and the halogens on the right have very high ones.
- B Electronegativity decreases going down a group, not across a period; this choice mixes up the two directions.
- C Correct: atoms farther right in a period pull more strongly on shared electrons, so electronegativity increases.
- D The trend does not reverse partway across a period; it rises steadily toward the halogens.
Learn this topic: How atoms bond, and how to tell which bond you are looking at 5-minute lesson
The electronegativity difference between oxygen and hydrogen in an O–H bond is 1.4. Using the common guideline (below 0.4, 0.4 to 1.8, above 1.8), how is this bond classified?
Correct answer: B
A difference between 0.4 and 1.8 indicates a polar covalent bond: the electrons are shared, but unequally. Oxygen is more electronegative, so it carries a partial negative charge and hydrogen a partial positive charge. Differences below 0.4 are treated as nonpolar covalent and those above 1.8 as ionic.
- A Ionic bonds are expected only when the difference is greater than about 1.8; 1.4 is below that cutoff.
- B Correct: 1.4 falls in the 0.4 to 1.8 range, so the electrons are shared unequally in a polar covalent bond.
- C Nonpolar covalent bonds have a difference below 0.4, such as the bond between two identical atoms.
- D Metallic bonding occurs among metal atoms in a sea of shared electrons; oxygen and hydrogen are both nonmetals.
Learn this topic: How atoms bond, and how to tell which bond you are looking at 5-minute lesson
Water boils at about 100 °C, far higher than chemists would predict from similar small molecules. Which statement best explains this?
Correct answer: A
When water boils, molecules separate from one another; the molecules themselves stay intact. Because hydrogen is bonded to highly electronegative oxygen, each water molecule forms hydrogen bonds with its neighbors, and extra energy is needed to pull them apart. Without hydrogen bonding, water would be expected to boil near −80 °C.
- A Correct: hydrogen bonds are attractions between molecules, and overcoming them takes extra energy, which raises the boiling point.
- B Water is polar, not nonpolar; its oxygen end is partially negative and its hydrogen ends are partially positive.
- C Boiling is a physical change; the O–H covalent bonds stay intact, and the steam is still made of H₂O molecules.
- D The O–H bond is polar covalent (difference about 1.4), not ionic; water is a molecular substance, not an ionic crystal.
Learn this topic: How atoms bond, and how to tell which bond you are looking at 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Chemistry 2e, 10.1 Intermolecular Forces · OpenStax Chemistry 2e, 7.2 Covalent Bonding ·
How many oxygen atoms are represented by 3H₂SO₄?
Correct answer: A
To count atoms, multiply the coefficient by the subscript. Each H₂SO₄ unit has 4 oxygen atoms, and the coefficient 3 means three units, so 3 × 4 = 12 oxygen atoms. The same 3H₂SO₄ also contains 6 hydrogen atoms and 3 sulfur atoms.
- A Correct: 3 units × 4 oxygen atoms per unit = 12 oxygen atoms.
- B Seven comes from adding the coefficient and the subscript (3 + 4) instead of multiplying them.
- C Twenty-four also multiplies by the hydrogen subscript (3 × 2 × 4); each subscript applies only to the atom written just before it.
- D Four is the number of oxygen atoms in one H₂SO₄ unit; it ignores the coefficient 3.
Learn this topic: How to balance a chemical equation without guessing 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Chemistry 2e, 4.1 Writing and Balancing Chemical Equations ·
What coefficient in front of O₂ balances this equation?
C₃H₈ + __O₂ → 3CO₂ + 4H₂O
Correct answer: C
Count oxygen atoms on the product side: 3CO₂ has 3 × 2 = 6 and 4H₂O has 4 × 1 = 4, for 10 oxygen atoms. Oxygen gas comes in O₂ molecules with 2 atoms each, so 10 ÷ 2 = 5 O₂. Carbon (3) and hydrogen (8) are already balanced, so C₃H₈ + 5O₂ → 3CO₂ + 4H₂O.
- A Seven adds the product coefficients (3 + 4); coefficients count molecules, but balancing must match atoms.
- B Three copies the coefficient of CO₂ and gives only 6 oxygen atoms on the left, not 10.
- C Correct: the products contain 10 oxygen atoms, and 5 O₂ molecules supply exactly 10.
- D Ten is the number of oxygen atoms needed, but each O₂ molecule supplies 2 atoms, so only 5 molecules are needed.
Learn this topic: How to balance a chemical equation without guessing 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Chemistry 2e, 4.1 Writing and Balancing Chemical Equations · OpenStax Chemistry 2e, 4.3 Reaction Stoichiometry ·
A student burns a small sample of wood in an open dish. Afterward, the ash left in the dish has much less mass than the original wood. Which statement best explains this result?
Correct answer: D
The law of conservation of mass says matter is neither created nor destroyed in a chemical reaction, so the products always have the same total mass as the reactants. Burning produces gases such as carbon dioxide and water vapor, which leave an open dish. If the same reaction were run in a sealed container, the total mass would not change.
- A Breaking and forming bonds rearranges atoms; it does not destroy matter, so the mass cannot simply disappear.
- B The heat and light are energy released by the reaction; the large mass loss here is explained by atoms leaving as gases.
- C All chemical reactions, including combustion, obey conservation of mass; that is why equations must be balanced.
- D Correct: gaseous products such as carbon dioxide and water vapor escaped, so the missing mass left the dish rather than being destroyed.
Learn this topic: How to balance a chemical equation without guessing 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Chemistry 2e, 1.2 Phases and Classification of Matter · OpenStax Chemistry 2e, 4.2 Classifying Chemical Reactions ·
What is the molar mass of carbon dioxide, CO₂? (Use C = 12 g/mol and O = 16 g/mol.)
Correct answer: C
Molar mass is the sum of the atomic masses of every atom in the formula. CO₂ has one carbon and two oxygens: 12 + (2 × 16) = 44 g/mol. Always multiply each atomic mass by its subscript before adding.
- A One hundred ninety-two multiplies the atomic masses together (12 × 16) instead of adding them.
- B Thirty-two counts the two oxygens but leaves out the carbon atom.
- C Correct: 12 + 2(16) = 44 g/mol.
- D Twenty-eight counts only one oxygen atom (12 + 16), which is the molar mass of CO, not CO₂.
Learn this topic: How to count atoms by weighing them: moles and stoichiometry 6-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Chemistry 2e, 3.1 Formula Mass and the Mole Concept ·
Hydrogen and oxygen react according to 2H₂ + O₂ → 2H₂O. How many grams of water form when 8 g of H₂ reacts completely? (Use H = 1 g/mol and O = 16 g/mol.)
Correct answer: C
Go through moles: 8 g H₂ ÷ 2 g/mol = 4 mol H₂. The equation shows 2 mol H₂ make 2 mol H₂O, a 1:1 ratio, so 4 mol H₂O form. Then 4 mol × 18 g/mol = 72 g of water.
- A Thirty-six grams results from using a 2:1 ratio of hydrogen to water, giving 2 mol of water instead of 4.
- B One hundred forty-four grams results from using 1 g/mol for H₂; a hydrogen molecule has two atoms, so its molar mass is 2 g/mol.
- C Correct: 8 g ÷ 2 g/mol = 4 mol H₂ → 4 mol H₂O → 4 × 18 = 72 g.
- D Eighteen grams is the mass of just one mole of water; it ignores the amount of hydrogen actually given.
Learn this topic: How to count atoms by weighing them: moles and stoichiometry 6-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Chemistry 2e, 4.3 Reaction Stoichiometry · OpenStax Chemistry 2e, 3.1 Formula Mass and the Mole Concept ·
For the reaction N₂ + 3H₂ → 2NH₃, a container holds 2 mol of N₂ and 3 mol of H₂. If the reaction goes to completion, which statement is correct?
Correct answer: D
Compare what you have with what the ratio requires. Using all 2 mol of N₂ would need 6 mol of H₂, but only 3 mol is present, so H₂ runs out first and is limiting. The 3 mol of H₂ react with 1 mol of N₂ and make 2 mol of NH₃, leaving 1 mol of N₂ in excess.
- A Having fewer moles does not make a reactant limiting; 2 mol of N₂ would need 6 mol of H₂, which is not available.
- B The amounts are not in the 1:3 ratio, so one reactant must run out first; adding the moles of reactants does not give the product amount.
- C Four moles of NH₃ is what the N₂ could make; the product amount must be based on the limiting reactant, H₂.
- D Correct: 3 mol H₂ × (2 mol NH₃ / 3 mol H₂) = 2 mol NH₃, and 1 mol of N₂ is left over.
Learn this topic: How to count atoms by weighing them: moles and stoichiometry 6-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Chemistry 2e, 4.4 Reaction Yields · OpenStax Chemistry 2e, 4.3 Reaction Stoichiometry ·
In an oxidation-reduction reaction, what happens to the substance that is oxidized?
Correct answer: D
Oxidation is the loss of electrons, and reduction is the gain of electrons (OIL RIG: Oxidation Is Loss, Reduction Is Gain). Losing negative electrons raises the oxidation number. Because electrons are transferred, every oxidation is paired with a reduction.
- A Gaining electrons is reduction, the opposite process.
- B Redox reactions change electrons, not the nucleus; changes in neutrons belong to nuclear reactions.
- C Gaining a proton (H⁺) is part of an acid-base reaction, where H⁺ is transferred; oxidation and reduction are about electrons.
- D Correct: oxidation is loss of electrons, which raises the oxidation number.
Learn this topic: Oxidation and reduction: who loses electrons and who gains them 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Chemistry 2e, 4.2 Classifying Chemical Reactions ·
What is the oxidation number of sulfur in the sulfate ion, SO₄²⁻?
Correct answer: C
Oxygen is usually −2, so four oxygens contribute 4 × (−2) = −8. In a polyatomic ion, the oxidation numbers must add up to the ion's charge, here −2. Solving S + (−8) = −2 gives S = +6.
- A Positive 8 balances the oxygens to zero, ignoring the ion's 2− charge.
- B Negative 2 is sulfur's value as a simple sulfide ion; in sulfate, sulfur is bonded to four oxygens and has a positive oxidation number.
- C Correct: S + 4(−2) = −2, so S = +6.
- D Negative 10 comes from a sign error, subtracting 8 from −2 instead of adding 8.
Learn this topic: Oxidation and reduction: who loses electrons and who gains them 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Chemistry 2e, 4.2 Classifying Chemical Reactions ·
When a copper wire is placed in a silver nitrate solution, this reaction occurs:
Cu(s) + 2Ag⁺(aq) → Cu²⁺(aq) + 2Ag(s)
Which statement is correct?
Correct answer: B
Copper goes from 0 to +2, so it loses electrons and is oxidized; silver goes from +1 to 0, so it gains electrons and is reduced. The species that is oxidized gives its electrons away and is called the reducing agent. Silver ion, which is reduced, is the oxidizing agent.
- A Copper's oxidation number rises from 0 to +2, which is oxidation, not reduction.
- B Correct: copper loses electrons (0 → +2), so it is oxidized and acts as the reducing agent.
- C Silver ion is reduced, but the species that is reduced is the oxidizing agent, not the reducing agent.
- D Silver's oxidation number falls from +1 to 0, so silver ion is reduced, not oxidized.
Learn this topic: Oxidation and reduction: who loses electrons and who gains them 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Chemistry 2e, 4.2 Classifying Chemical Reactions ·
What is an alpha particle made of?
Correct answer: A
An alpha particle is a helium nucleus: two protons and two neutrons. When a nucleus emits one, its mass number drops by 4 and its atomic number drops by 2. Alpha particles are the least penetrating type of radiation and are stopped by paper.
- A Correct: an alpha particle is a helium nucleus with two protons and two neutrons.
- B A high-energy electron from the nucleus is a beta particle.
- C High-energy electromagnetic radiation describes gamma rays, which have no charge and do not change the mass number.
- D One proton and one electron make up an ordinary hydrogen atom, not an alpha particle.
Learn this topic: Radioactive decay, half-life, fission and fusion made simple 6-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Chemistry 2e, 21.3 Radioactive Decay · OpenStax Chemistry 2e, 21.6 Biological Effects of Radiation ·
A radioactive isotope has a half-life of 6 hours. A laboratory sample starts with 200 mg of the isotope. How much of the isotope remains after 24 hours?
Correct answer: A
First find the number of half-lives: 24 hours ÷ 6 hours = 4 half-lives. Then halve the amount four times: 200 → 100 → 50 → 25 → 12.5 mg. After n half-lives, the fraction left is (1/2)ⁿ, here 1/16.
- A Correct: 4 half-lives leave 200 × 1/16 = 12.5 mg.
- B Twenty-five milligrams is the amount after only 3 half-lives (18 hours).
- C Fifty milligrams comes from dividing 200 by the number of half-lives (4) instead of halving four times.
- D Six and a quarter milligrams is the amount after 5 half-lives (30 hours); it halves one time too many.
Learn this topic: Radioactive decay, half-life, fission and fusion made simple 6-minute lesson
After 30 days, only one-eighth of a radioactive sample remains. What is the half-life of this isotope?
Correct answer: B
One-eighth equals ½ × ½ × ½, so three half-lives have passed. Dividing the total time by the number of half-lives gives 30 days ÷ 3 = 10 days. Check: 1 → ½ after 10 days → ¼ after 20 days → ⅛ after 30 days.
- A Dividing 30 days by 8 treats the fraction's denominator as the number of half-lives; one-eighth means three halvings, not eight.
- B Correct: one-eighth remaining means 3 half-lives, and 30 ÷ 3 = 10 days.
- C Dividing 30 days by 4 assumes four half-lives, which would leave one-sixteenth, not one-eighth.
- D Dividing 30 days by 2 assumes two half-lives, which would leave one-quarter.
Learn this topic: Radioactive decay, half-life, fission and fusion made simple 6-minute lesson
A bottle holds 2.5 L of saline solution. How many milliliters is this? (1 L = 1,000 mL)
Correct answer: A
The prefix milli- means one-thousandth, so 1 mL is 1/1,000 of a liter and 1 L = 1,000 mL. To change liters to milliliters, multiply by 1,000, which moves the decimal point three places to the right. Changing to a smaller unit always gives a bigger number.
- A Correct: 2.5 × 1,000 = 2,500 mL.
- B This multiplies by 100 instead of 1,000, moving the decimal point only two places.
- C This multiplies by 10,000, moving the decimal point one place too far.
- D This divides by 1,000; going from a larger unit to a smaller one, the number must get bigger, not smaller.
Learn this topic: How to measure like a scientist: units, prefixes, tools and readings 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Chemistry 2e, 1.4 Measurements ·
On a cold morning, frost forms on a car window as water vapor in the air turns directly into ice without becoming a liquid first. What is this phase change called?
Correct answer: B
Most phase changes pass through the liquid state, but two skip it. Sublimation goes from solid straight to gas, and deposition goes from gas straight to solid. Frost forming on a window is deposition; a block of dry ice shrinking without melting is sublimation.
- A Sublimation is the reverse change: a solid turning directly into a gas, as when dry ice shrinks without melting.
- B Correct: deposition is a gas changing directly into a solid, and frost forming is a common example.
- C Condensation is a gas turning into a liquid, such as dew forming; here no liquid forms.
- D Freezing is a liquid turning into a solid; the water here starts as a gas, not a liquid.
Learn this topic: How matter changes state, and what stays the same 5-minute lesson
Sodium and potassium are in the same group (column) of the periodic table, and both react strongly with water. What is the main reason elements in the same group have similar chemical properties?
Correct answer: D
Chemical reactions involve an atom's outermost electrons, called valence electrons. Every element in a group has the same number of valence electrons, so group members react in similar ways; sodium and potassium each have one and lose it easily. Elements in the same period (row), not the same group, share the number of occupied electron shells.
- A Neutrons change an atom's mass, not how it reacts, and sodium and potassium have different numbers of them.
- B Atomic mass increases down a group; sodium (about 23 amu) and potassium (about 39 amu) differ a lot.
- C Elements in the same period (row) share the number of occupied shells; potassium has one more shell than sodium.
- D Correct: elements in a group have the same number of valence (outer) electrons, and these electrons control bonding and reactions.
Learn this topic: What atoms are made of and how they form ions and bonds 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Chemistry 2e, 6.4 Electronic Structure of Atoms (Electron Configurations) ·
The reaction 2SO₂(g) + O₂(g) ⇌ 2SO₃(g) releases heat (it is exothermic). The reaction is at equilibrium in a closed container. If the temperature is raised, which statement is correct?
Correct answer: B
In an exothermic reaction, treat heat as a product: reactants ⇌ products + heat. Raising the temperature is like adding product, so the equilibrium shifts left, toward SO₂ and O₂. Unlike a change in concentration or pressure, a change in temperature gives a new value of K; here less product at equilibrium means a smaller K.
- A This treats heat as a reactant, which is true only for endothermic reactions; here heat is a product.
- B Correct: heat acts like a product, so adding heat pushes the reaction toward the reactants, and the new equilibrium has a smaller K.
- C The direction is right, but temperature is the one change that alters K itself; concentration and pressure changes leave K the same.
- D Raising the temperature speeds up both reactions, but adding heat is a stress on the system, so the equilibrium shifts toward the reactants.
Learn this topic: What makes a chemical reaction faster or slower? 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Chemistry 2e, 13.3 Shifting Equilibria: Le Châtelier's Principle ·
A student stirs sugar into a glass of water at room temperature. After a while, extra sugar stays on the bottom no matter how long she stirs. How is the liquid above the undissolved sugar best described?
Correct answer: D
Solubility is the most solute that can dissolve in a given amount of solvent at a given temperature. A solution below that limit is unsaturated, a solution at the limit is saturated, and a solution holding more than the limit is supersaturated and unstable. Extra solid that will not dissolve is a clear sign the liquid is saturated.
- A An unsaturated solution can still dissolve more solute, so the extra sugar would keep dissolving.
- B A supersaturated solution holds more than its solubility limit and is unstable; leftover solid on the bottom means the liquid is holding exactly its limit.
- C Dilute means only a small amount of solute is dissolved; this liquid holds as much sugar as it can at this temperature.
- D Correct: no more solute will dissolve and extra solid remains, so the solution is at its solubility limit, which is saturated.
Learn this topic: How solutions work: what dissolves, how much, and why cells swell or shrink 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Chemistry 2e, 11.3 Solubility ·
Which equation shows a synthesis reaction?
Correct answer: A
Count what goes in and what comes out. In a synthesis reaction, two or more substances join to form one product (A + B → AB). Decomposition is the reverse (AB → A + B), and in exchange (replacement) reactions, parts of the reactants trade partners.
- A Correct: two reactants join to form a single product, the pattern A + B → AB.
- B One reactant breaks into simpler products (AB → A + B), so this is decomposition.
- C Zinc takes the place of hydrogen in its compound, so this is a single-replacement (exchange) reaction.
- D The two compounds swap partners and a solid forms, so this is a double-replacement (exchange) reaction.
Learn this topic: How to read, balance, and classify a chemical reaction 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Anatomy and Physiology 2e, 2.3 Chemical Reactions · OpenStax Chemistry 2e, 4.2 Classifying Chemical Reactions ·
Carbonic acid, H₂CO₃, gives up one hydrogen ion (H⁺) in water. What is its conjugate base?
Correct answer: B
In the Brønsted-Lowry model, an acid donates H⁺, and what remains is its conjugate base. The two differ by exactly one H⁺, so remove one H from the formula and lower the charge by one: H₂CO₃ becomes HCO₃⁻ (bicarbonate). Carbonic acid and bicarbonate together form an important buffer in human blood.
- A CO₃²⁻ is what remains after two H⁺ ions are removed; a conjugate base differs from its acid by exactly one H⁺.
- B Correct: removing one H⁺ from H₂CO₃ leaves HCO₃⁻, the bicarbonate ion.
- C Adding an H⁺ makes a conjugate acid, not a conjugate base.
- D OH⁻ is the conjugate base of water, not of carbonic acid.
Learn this topic: How acids, bases, pH and buffers work 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Chemistry 2e, 14.1 Brønsted-Lowry Acids and Bases · OpenStax Chemistry 2e, 14.6 Buffers ·
Starch and cellulose are both polymers made only of glucose. Humans can digest starch but not cellulose. What best explains the difference?
Correct answer: D
Starch and cellulose are built from the same glucose units; the difference is how those units are linked. Starch uses alpha (α) glycosidic bonds, which human enzymes such as amylase break, while cellulose uses beta (β) 1-4 bonds that human enzymes cannot break. Cows and other grazing animals digest cellulose only with help from microbes in their gut that make the enzyme cellulase.
- A Cellulose is made only of glucose, so it contains carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen but no nitrogen.
- B Chain length is not the problem; the type of bond between the glucose units is what blocks human enzymes.
- C Starch is broken down by amylase enzymes from the salivary glands and pancreas, not by stomach acid.
- D Correct: cellulose's glucose units are joined by β 1-4 glycosidic bonds, and humans make no enzyme that breaks them.
Learn this topic: The four macromolecules of life and how cells build them 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Biology 2e, 3.2 Carbohydrates · OpenStax Anatomy and Physiology 2e, 23.7 Chemical Digestion and Absorption: A Closer Look ·
Which tissue type covers body surfaces, lines body cavities and passageways, and forms glands?
Correct answer: B
Epithelial tissue covers surfaces (such as the epidermis), lines cavities and passageways (such as the gut and airways), and forms both exocrine and endocrine glands. Its cells are tightly packed on a basement membrane and it has no blood vessels of its own. Connective tissue, in contrast, supports and binds other tissues.
- A Connective tissue binds, supports and protects other tissues; it does not form the body's covering and lining layers.
- B Correct: epithelial tissue covers surfaces, lines cavities and passageways, and forms glands.
- C Nervous tissue carries electrochemical signals; it does not line surfaces or form glands.
- D Muscle tissue contracts to produce movement; it is not a covering or glandular tissue.
Learn this topic: The four tissue types, what they do, and where to find them 6-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Anatomy & Physiology 2e, 4.1 Types of Tissues ·
The walls of the lung alveoli must let oxygen and carbon dioxide diffuse across very quickly. Which type of epithelium best fits this job?
Correct answer: B
Simple squamous epithelium is a single layer of flat cells, which gives the shortest possible path for diffusion and filtration. That is why it lines the lung alveoli and capillary walls. Many layers or tall cells would slow the exchange of gases.
- A Stratified squamous has many layers and resists wear, as in the epidermis and esophagus; its thickness would slow diffusion.
- B Correct: one thin layer of flat cells allows fast diffusion, which is why simple squamous lines the alveoli.
- C Transitional epithelium stretches as an organ fills, as in the urinary bladder; it is not built for gas exchange.
- D Simple columnar cells are tall and specialized for absorption and secretion in the digestive tract, not rapid gas exchange.
Learn this topic: The four tissue types, what they do, and where to find them 6-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Anatomy & Physiology 2e, 4.2 Epithelial Tissue ·
The menisci of the knee are made of fibrocartilage. Compared with bone, why does damaged cartilage heal so slowly?
Correct answer: D
Cartilage is a supportive connective tissue, and it is avascular: it has no blood vessels, so nutrients reach its cells only by slow diffusion through the matrix. Bone, by contrast, has a rich blood supply. Limited blood supply is also why tendons heal slowly.
- A Cartilage has an abundant extracellular matrix; like other connective tissues, it is made of cells scattered in matrix.
- B Cartilage is connective tissue, not epithelial tissue, and many epithelia actually regenerate quickly.
- C Cartilage healing is not slowed by nerve signals; its slow repair comes from its lack of blood vessels.
- D Correct: cartilage is avascular, so its cells get nutrients only by slow diffusion through the matrix, which slows repair.
Learn this topic: The four tissue types, what they do, and where to find them 6-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Anatomy & Physiology 2e, 4.3 Connective Tissue Supports and Protects ·
A radiologist wants an image that splits the body into a front (anterior) portion and a back (posterior) portion. Which plane should be used?
Correct answer: A
The frontal plane, also called the coronal plane, is a vertical plane that separates anterior (front) from posterior (back). A sagittal plane separates right from left, and a transverse plane separates upper from lower. Match the plane to the two parts it produces.
- A Correct: the frontal plane, also called the coronal plane, divides the body into anterior and posterior portions.
- B A transverse plane is horizontal and produces upper (superior) and lower (inferior) parts, called cross sections.
- C A midsagittal plane is vertical but runs down the midline, producing equal right and left halves, not front and back.
- D A parasagittal plane is vertical but off center, producing unequal right and left parts.
Learn this topic: How to describe any location on the human body 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Anatomy & Physiology 2e, 1.6 Anatomical Terminology ·
The lining of the trachea is pseudostratified ciliated columnar epithelium. Why is it called "pseudo" (false) stratified?
Correct answer: A
Pseudostratified epithelium is only one cell layer thick: every cell touches the basement membrane, although not every cell reaches the free surface. Because the nuclei sit at different levels, the tissue looks layered under a microscope. In the trachea and bronchi, many of these cells carry cilia that move mucus.
- A Correct: it is one layer, but staggered nuclei at different heights make it look stratified.
- B Changing shape as an organ stretches describes transitional epithelium of the urinary bladder, not the trachea lining.
- C All epithelia rest on a basement membrane, and in pseudostratified epithelium every cell contacts it.
- D A tissue with several true cell layers would be stratified; pseudostratified epithelium only looks layered.
Learn this topic: The four tissue types, what they do, and where to find them 6-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Anatomy & Physiology 2e, 4.2 Epithelial Tissue · OpenStax Anatomy & Physiology 2e, 22.1 Organs and Structures of the Respiratory System ·
A diploid germ cell in the testis completes both divisions of meiosis. What does it produce?
Correct answer: B
Meiosis has two rounds of division, so one diploid cell yields four haploid cells, each with a single set of chromosomes (23 in humans). These become gametes. Mitosis, by contrast, is one division that makes two identical diploid cells.
- A Two identical diploid daughter cells are the result of mitosis, not meiosis.
- B Correct: two rounds of division turn one diploid cell into four haploid cells with one chromosome set each.
- C Meiosis halves the chromosome number, so its products are haploid, not diploid.
- D Two haploid cells exist only after the first meiotic division; the second division makes four.
Learn this topic: How one cell becomes two, or four 6-minute lesson
Source: NHGRI (NIH) Talking Glossary of Genomic and Genetic Terms: Meiosis · OpenStax Anatomy & Physiology 2e, 3.5 Cell Growth and Division ·
Which skin structures release sebum, an oily mixture of lipids that keeps skin and hair soft and waterproof?
Correct answer: A
Sebaceous glands are oil glands, most of them connected to hair follicles, and they release sebum onto the skin. Sebum keeps skin and hair supple and waterproof. Sweat glands, by contrast, release watery or thicker sweat, not oil.
- A Correct: sebaceous (oil) glands produce and release sebum.
- B Melanocytes are pigment cells that make melanin; they do not secrete oil.
- C Apocrine sweat glands release a thicker sweat in hairy areas such as the armpits; it is not sebum.
- D Eccrine sweat glands release a watery sweat used to cool the body, not oily sebum.
Learn this topic: How your skin is layered and what each layer does 6-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Anatomy & Physiology 2e, 5.2 Accessory Structures of the Skin · OpenStax Anatomy & Physiology 2e, 5.1 Layers of the Skin ·
At the pubic symphysis, the two hip bones are joined by a pad of fibrocartilage that allows only limited movement. How is this joint classified by function?
Correct answer: B
Joints are classified by function according to how much they move: a synarthrosis is immobile, an amphiarthrosis has limited mobility, and a diarthrosis moves freely. The pubic symphysis and the intervertebral discs are classic amphiarthroses. All synovial joints are diarthroses.
- A A synarthrosis is immobile or nearly so, such as a skull suture; the pubic symphysis allows some movement.
- B Correct: a joint with limited mobility, like the pubic symphysis, is an amphiarthrosis.
- C A diarthrosis is freely movable, which describes synovial joints, not a fibrocartilage pad.
- D A suture is an immobile fibrous joint between skull bones, not a fibrocartilage joint.
Learn this topic: How bones are built, remodeled, and joined 7-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Anatomy & Physiology 2e, 9.1 Classification of Joints ·
During a hard sprint, a leg muscle fiber cannot get enough oxygen, yet glycolysis keeps running. Into what is pyruvic acid converted so that glycolysis can continue?
Correct answer: C
When oxygen is short, muscle fibers rely on anaerobic glycolysis, which makes only a small amount of ATP. Pyruvic acid is converted to lactic acid, a step that regenerates NAD+ so glycolysis can keep going. With enough oxygen, pyruvic acid instead enters aerobic respiration in the mitochondria.
- A Glycogen is the muscle's stored form of glucose, a source for glycolysis rather than its product.
- B Carbon dioxide and water are end products of aerobic respiration, which requires oxygen.
- C Correct: without enough oxygen, pyruvic acid is converted to lactic acid so glycolysis can continue.
- D Creatine phosphate is a stored phosphate donor that regenerates ATP from ADP; it is not made from pyruvic acid.
Learn this topic: How muscles contract, from nerve signal to sliding filaments 6-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Anatomy & Physiology 2e, 10.3 Muscle Fiber Contraction and Relaxation ·
Which brain region acts as a main control center for homeostasis, helping regulate body temperature and appetite and directing the pituitary gland?
Correct answer: A
The hypothalamus is a small region below the thalamus that regulates homeostasis. It helps control body temperature, appetite, and salt and water balance, and it directs the pituitary gland, linking the nervous and endocrine systems. The similar-sounding thalamus is mainly a sensory relay.
- A Correct: the hypothalamus regulates homeostasis, including temperature and appetite, and controls the pituitary.
- B The thalamus relays information between the cerebral cortex and the rest of the nervous system; it does not run the pituitary.
- C The cerebellum compares intended movements with sensory feedback to coordinate movement.
- D The medulla oblongata helps regulate heart and breathing rates, not temperature or the pituitary.
Learn this topic: How the nervous system sends and sorts signals 6-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Anatomy & Physiology 2e, 13.2 The Central Nervous System · MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia: Hypothalamic dysfunction ·
Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) cushions the brain and spinal cord. Between which two layers does CSF circulate around the outside of the brain?
Correct answer: C
From superficial to deep, the meninges are the dura mater, the arachnoid mater, and the pia mater, which clings to the surface of the brain and spinal cord. CSF fills the subarachnoid space, between the arachnoid and the pia. CSF is produced by the choroid plexuses inside the ventricles.
- A The dura mater is the outermost meninx, lying against the skull; CSF does not circulate there.
- B The space just beneath the dura is not where CSF flows; CSF lies deep to the arachnoid.
- C Correct: CSF fills the subarachnoid space, between the arachnoid mater and the pia mater.
- D The pia mater sits directly on the brain surface, so there is no CSF-filled space beneath it.
Learn this topic: How the nervous system sends and sorts signals 6-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Anatomy & Physiology 2e, 13.3 Circulation and the Central Nervous System ·
When blood calcium rises above its normal range, which hormone is released that helps lower it, and which cells make that hormone?
Correct answer: B
Calcitonin is made by the parafollicular (C) cells of the thyroid and helps decrease blood calcium. Parathyroid hormone has the opposite effect: it is released when blood calcium is low and raises it. Remember the pair: calcitonin "tones down" calcium, PTH "pulls" calcium into the blood.
- A PTH is released when blood calcium is low, and its effects raise blood calcium.
- B Correct: calcitonin, from the thyroid's parafollicular (C) cells, helps decrease blood calcium.
- C Aldosterone increases sodium retention, raising blood volume and pressure; it does not lower calcium.
- D Thyroid follicle cells make T3 and T4, which regulate metabolism, not blood calcium.
Learn this topic: How hormones and negative feedback keep blood glucose steady 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Anatomy & Physiology 2e, 17.4 The Thyroid Gland · OpenStax Anatomy & Physiology 2e, 17.5 The Parathyroid Glands · OpenStax Anatomy & Physiology 2e, 17.6 The Adrenal Glands ·
Antidiuretic hormone (ADH) and oxytocin are released into the blood from the posterior pituitary. Where are these two hormones actually made?
Correct answer: D
ADH and oxytocin are made by neurons in the hypothalamus (ADH in the supraoptic nuclei, oxytocin in the paraventricular nuclei). They travel down axons to the posterior pituitary, which stores them and releases them into the blood. The posterior pituitary releases these hormones but does not make them.
- A The adrenal cortex makes steroid hormones such as aldosterone and cortisol.
- B The posterior pituitary only stores and releases these hormones; it does not synthesize them.
- C The anterior pituitary makes its own hormones, such as GH, TSH and ACTH, not ADH or oxytocin.
- D Correct: hypothalamic neurons make ADH and oxytocin and send them down their axons to the posterior pituitary.
Learn this topic: How hormones and negative feedback keep blood glucose steady 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Anatomy & Physiology 2e, 17.3 The Pituitary Gland and Hypothalamus ·
A person has type AB blood. Which naturally formed ABO antibodies are found in this person's plasma?
Correct answer: D
A person's plasma lacks antibodies against the ABO antigens on their own red blood cells. Type AB red cells carry both A and B antigens, so the plasma has neither anti-A nor anti-B. Type O is the reverse: no A or B antigens, and both antibodies in the plasma.
- A Anti-B only describes type A blood, whose red cells carry the A antigen.
- B Having both anti-A and anti-B describes type O blood, whose red cells carry neither antigen.
- C Anti-A only describes type B blood, whose red cells carry the B antigen.
- D Correct: type AB red cells carry both antigens, so the plasma has no anti-A or anti-B antibodies.
Learn this topic: How blood flows through the heart 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Anatomy & Physiology 2e, 18.6 Blood Typing ·
After passing through the capillaries of the heart wall, most oxygen-poor blood collects in the coronary sinus. Where does the coronary sinus empty?
Correct answer: C
The heart muscle has its own circulation. Coronary arteries supply the myocardium, and cardiac veins such as the great cardiac vein drain into the coronary sinus on the posterior surface of the heart. The coronary sinus empties directly into the right atrium, joining the oxygen-poor blood from the venae cavae.
- A The left atrium receives oxygen-rich blood from the pulmonary veins, not venous blood from the heart wall.
- B The coronary arteries arise from the first part of the aorta; that is where blood enters the heart wall, not where it leaves.
- C Correct: the coronary sinus empties directly into the right atrium.
- D The coronary sinus opens straight into a heart chamber, not into the superior vena cava.
Learn this topic: How blood flows through the heart 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Anatomy & Physiology 2e, 19.1 Heart Anatomy ·
Which formed elements of the blood are cell fragments that play a key role in stopping blood loss from a damaged vessel?
Correct answer: D
Platelets (thrombocytes) are fragments of large cells called megakaryocytes. They are critical to hemostasis, the process that stops bleeding after a vessel is damaged. Erythrocytes carry oxygen, and leukocytes such as neutrophils and lymphocytes defend the body.
- A Erythrocytes (red blood cells) carry oxygen; they are not the main players in stopping bleeding.
- B Lymphocytes are whole white blood cells of the immune system, not cell fragments.
- C Neutrophils are whole white blood cells that fight infection, especially bacteria.
- D Correct: platelets are cell fragments from megakaryocytes and are critical to hemostasis.
Learn this topic: How blood flows through the heart 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Anatomy & Physiology 2e, 18.4 Leukocytes and Platelets ·
Which statement correctly compares the lobes of the two lungs?
Correct answer: A
The right lung has three lobes (superior, middle and inferior), while the left lung has two (superior and inferior). The left lung is smaller and has an indentation, the cardiac notch, that makes room for the heart.
- A Correct: the right lung has superior, middle and inferior lobes; the left lung has superior and inferior lobes.
- B Only the right lung has three lobes; the left lung has two and occupies less volume.
- C This reverses the sides: the right lung, not the left, has three lobes.
- D Only the left lung has two lobes; the right lung has three.
Learn this topic: How air reaches the alveoli and how oxygen and CO2 trade places 5-minute lesson
The wall of the small intestine has four main layers. Starting at the lumen and moving outward, which layer lies directly beneath the mucosa?
Correct answer: A
From the lumen outward, the four layers of the alimentary canal wall are the mucosa, submucosa, muscularis and serosa. The submucosa is loose connective tissue with blood and lymphatic vessels, glands and a nerve plexus, and it binds the mucosa to the muscularis. The lamina propria is a connective tissue layer inside the mucosa itself.
- A Correct: the submucosa lies just beneath the mucosa and connects it to the muscularis.
- B The muscularis is the third layer, outside the submucosa; its smooth muscle mixes and propels food.
- C The serosa is the outermost layer, made of visceral peritoneum.
- D The lamina propria is part of the mucosa, not a separate layer beneath it.
Learn this topic: How food is broken down and absorbed, from mouth to colon 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Anatomy & Physiology 2e, 23.1 Overview of the Digestive System ·
Which structure carries urine from a kidney to the urinary bladder?
Correct answer: C
Each kidney drains into a ureter, a tube that carries urine to the urinary bladder; waves of peristalsis in its wall push the urine along. The bladder stores urine, and the single urethra carries it out of the body. A quick way to remember: the ureter comes first, the urethra exits.
- A The urethra carries urine from the bladder to the outside of the body, not from the kidney to the bladder.
- B Collecting ducts lie inside the kidney and deliver urine toward the renal pelvis, not to the bladder.
- C Correct: each ureter carries urine from a kidney to the bladder, propelled by peristalsis.
- D The renal artery brings blood to the kidney; it does not carry urine.
Learn this topic: How the kidneys filter blood and make urine 5-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Anatomy & Physiology 2e, 25.2 Gross Anatomy of Urine Transport ·
Which accessory glands supply about 60 percent of semen volume, in a fluid rich in fructose that sperm use to make ATP?
Correct answer: D
The paired seminal vesicles contribute roughly 60 percent of semen volume, and their fluid contains large amounts of fructose that fuels sperm movement. The prostate adds a milky fluid that first coagulates and then decoagulates semen, and the bulbourethral glands release a lubricating fluid before ejaculation.
- A The bulbourethral glands release a small amount of thick, lubricating fluid before ejaculation.
- B The prostate adds a milky, alkaline fluid that helps coagulate and then decoagulate semen; it is not the main fructose source.
- C The epididymis is a coiled tube where sperm mature and are stored; it is not an accessory gland.
- D Correct: the seminal vesicles provide about 60 percent of semen, in fructose-rich fluid.
Learn this topic: How the male and female reproductive systems make gametes and new life 6-minute lesson
Source: OpenStax Anatomy & Physiology 2e, 27.1 Anatomy and Physiology of the Testicular Reproductive System ·
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| Section | Questions (scored) | Suggested time |
|---|---|---|
| Reading | 55 (50) | 60 min |
| Vocabulary | 55 (50) | 50 min |
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| Math | 55 (50) | 50 min |
| Biology | 30 (25) | 25 min |
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| Anatomy & Physiology | 30 (25) | 25 min |
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Sources (checked October 15, 2026)
- Elsevier, HESI NG A2 faculty guide (schools choose modules, calculator and time)
- South Texas College, HESI exam information (50 scored + 5 pilot items)
- Tarrant County College, HESI A2 exam information
- Baylor University, HESI A2 information
- Lone Star College, HESI A2 test
- University of Arizona, HESI admission assessment
- CNM, HESI A2 exam