SAT Prep Help Reading Comprehension Sample Questions Answer Explanations

1. The correct answer is (E), as the main topic of the passage is that "Shakespeare was not only a playwright, but a poet as well." It may seem, at first, that this passage is talking about Shakespeare's plays or the fact that he is a renowned playwright. Indeed, the first sentence, a typical introductory sentence, explains that Shakespeare is a legendary playwright while the second sentence identifies some of his most famous works. But Shakespeare's most famous works are not actually the main topics in this particular passage, because the rest of the passage describes Shakespeare's poetry rather than his plays. As a result, the main topic of the passage is identified in the third sentence by the phrase "...even though most people recognize Shakespeare as a legendary playwright, many people forget that he was also a talented poet as well."

2. The correct answer is (D), as the passage has a positive bias towards the topic. In other words, the author of the passage is attempting to convey his opinion that Shakespeare was a great playwright and a great poet rather than simply providing the facts related to Shakespeare's plays and poems. You can see this in the passage because of words such as "legendary" and "talented," as each of these words suggests that the author believes Shakespeare's level of skill is far beyond that of other individuals. If the passage did not contain these words and if it focused solely on the facts related to Shakespeare's writing, it would have a neutral tone. On the other hand, if the passage focused solely on Shakespeare's flaws and/or presented a negative opinion of Shakespeare, the passage would have a negative tone. However, since the passage seems to indicate a positive view of Shakespeare, the passage has a positive tone.

3. The correct answer is (A), as the passage states that Shakespeare wrote Hamlet, Macbeth, and Romeo and Juliet. (B), (D), and (E) are incorrect because they each describe characters or topics that Shakespeare wrote about in his poetry and do not offer the specific names of his actual plays. (C) is incorrect for two reasons. First, according to the passage, the Fair Youth and the Rival Poet are characters that Shakespeare described in his poems and are not the titles of any of his plays. Secondly, Doctor Faustus is truly a play, but it is not mentioned in the passage, and Christopher Marlowe wrote it, not William Shakespeare.

4. The correct answer is (D), as the three characters who are commonly described within Shakespeare's poetry are often referred to as the Dark Lady, the Fair Youth, and the Rival Poet. (A), (B), and (C) are incorrect because they each describe the titles and title characters of Shakespeare's plays. Those were not the characters that appeared repeatedly in his poems. (C) is also incorrect for this question because Doctor Faustus is never mentioned in the passage and is, in fact, the title and title character of a work by Christopher Marlowe rather than a character in one of Shakespeare's poems.

5. The correct answer is (A), since the passage discusses how the game of poker works. This is because the majority of the passage is related to the basic idea behind the game of poker. It may appear that (C) is also correct because the passage lists the various hands in the game of poker and relates how those hands compare with other hands. However, the passage is not discussing which hands are the most valuable, but rather the basics of how the game works. Therefore, (C) is incorrect for this passage. The remaining choices are also incorrect because while they each describe topics that are similar to or related to what is covered in the passage, they do not describe what the passage is actually about.

6. The correct answer is (B), as the passage has a serious or neutral tone. In other words, this passage is simply stating the facts related to a specific topic, which in this case is the game of poker. Rather than presenting a specific viewpoint, the passage merely provides an objective description of the game. Paragraphs or passages that present a series of facts will usually be neutral as long as the paragraph has an objective narrative and does not present a specific side or defend a particular view on the topic. As a result, this passage has a neutral tone because it is not biased towards a particular opinion or view. However, if this passage attempted to prove a particular claim about the game of poker instead of stating something that is an indisputable fact about the game, it is likely that the passage would have a negative or positive tone instead of a neutral tone.

7. The correct answer is (D), as the passage states that each hand is ranked based on the degree of probability associated with getting each hand. This fact is stated twice within the passage. It is stated in the first sentence of the passage and then stated again in the second sentence of the passage. (A), (B), (C), and (E) are all incorrect because the passage never mentions any of those ranking hierarchies. In fact, (A) and (E) have nothing to do with the game of poker, since each player will always have the same number of cards and since the color of the cards is not taken into consideration when determining hands or the value of a hand. (B) and (C) play a role in determining which hand a player has, but they do not necessarily play a role in determining the rank of each hand, so they are also incorrect for this question.

8. The correct answer is (E), as the passage states that a flush is better than a straight. According to the poker hand hierarchy in the passage, a flush is better than a high card, one pair, two pair, three of a kind, and a straight. As a result, (B) and (D) are incorrect. Again, the passage makes it clear that a flush is a specific composite type of poker hand and that a flush beats a straight. The passage also informs us that a full house, four of a kind, a straight flush, and a royal flush are all ranked higher than a flush. This rules out (A). (C) is incorrect as well, as a flush is not the best hand in poker; the passage explains that a royal flush is the best hand that a poker player can have.

9. The correct answer is (A), as the word myriad refers to a large indefinite number" of poker game types. If the test-taker does not recognize the word myriad, it may be possible to derive the meaning by eliminating the incorrect choices. You can eliminate (B) and (C) because the sentence states that there are a "myriad of different poker variations...as a result of the increasing popularity of the game." Since the popularity of the game has been increasing, it may be expected that the number of poker game variations might also increase. It will logically follow that there would be a number of different variations of the game rather than a smaller or diminishing number of variations of the game of poker. Likewise, you can eliminate (B) and (D) because they do not make sense within the context of the sentence. The sentence is definitely not discussing a swamp, and the word "swamp" is not part of the poker terminology used in the paragraph. Finally, there is no indication that the sentence is talking about a collection of five variations, so these latter two choices are incorrect.

10. The correct answer is (C), because the passage states that poker is a popular card game. In fact, according to the second sentence of the passage, "it is difficult to dispute the fact that poker has been a popular card game for hundreds of years and its popularity has only increased over time." The other choices are all incorrect because they describe the opposite of what the passage states about the game of poker. The passage never states that poker is boring or pointless, so (A) and (B) can be eliminated. The passage also makes it very clear that there is a continuing debate regarding the origins of the game, and that the game enjoys wide popularity throughout the world today; therefore, (D) and (E) can also be eliminated.

11. The correct answer is choice A, as the passage states that poker is still played in casinos and homes throughout the world. It may appear that (B), (C), and (D) could all be correct as well, since each of the statements represented by those choice options are relatively accurate. However, the passage never states that poker is still played in bars, alleys, pool halls, nor does it specifically mention poker being played in the western hemisphere. The structure of the question demands a response with a statement that completes the phrase "According to the passage, poker is...." This implies that the answer can be found in the passage itself. As a result, (A) is the correct answer because it is the only answer that provides information that is in the passage.

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