2024 SAT Standardized Test Practice Paper-Writing and Language II

1. For painter Jacob Lawrence, being _______ was an important part of the artistic process. Because he paid close attention to all the details of his Harlem neighborhood, Lawrence’s artwork captured nuances in the beauty and vitality of the Black experience during the Harlem Renaissance and the Great Migration.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
A) skeptical
B) observant
C) critical
D) confident

Correct Answer: B

Answer Explanation:

Choice B is the best answer because it most logically completes the text’s discussion of Jacob Lawrence’s artistic process. In this context, “observant” means watchful and perceptive. The text emphasizes that the “close attention” Lawrence paid to “all the details” of his neighborhood allowed him to reflect subtle elements of “the beauty and vitality of the Black experience” in his artwork. This context indicates that being observant of his surroundings was an important part of Lawrence’s work as an artist.

2. Mônica Lopes-Ferreira and others at Brazil’s Butantan Institute are studying the freshwater stingray species Potamotrygon rex to determine whether biological characteristics such as the rays’ age and sex have _______ effect on the toxicity of their venom—that is, to see if differences in these traits are associated with considerable variations in venom potency.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
A) a disconcerting
B) an acceptable
C) an imperceptible
D) a substantial

Correct Answer: D

Answer Explanation:

Choice D is the best answer because it most logically completes the text’s discussion of the research that Lopes-Ferreira and her colleagues are conducting on the stingray species Potamotrygon rex. As used in this context, “a substantial” effect means an effect that is sizable or noteworthy. The text indicates that the researchers are seeking to determine whether there are “considerable variations” in the potency of stingray venom that are associated with variation in the stingrays’ age and sex. This context suggests that the researchers want to find out whether stingray age and sex have a substantial effect on venom toxicity.

3. Researchers have struggled to pinpoint specific causes for hiccups, which happen when a person’s diaphragm contracts _______ . However, neuroscientist Kimberley Whitehead has found that these uncontrollable contractions may play an important role in helping infants regulate their breathing.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
A) involuntarily
B) beneficially
C) strenuously
D) smoothly

Correct Answer: A

Answer Explanation:

Choice A is the best answer because it most logically completes the text’s discussion of diaphragm contractions and hiccups. In this context, “involuntarily” means done without any control, or by reflex. The text explains that when a person’s diaphragm repeatedly contracts and results in hiccups (which may be beneficial for infants), those muscle contractions are “uncontrollable.” This context indicates that the diaphragm contractions occur without the person’s control.

4. Critics have asserted that fine art and fashion rarely _______ in a world where artists create timeless works for exhibition and designers periodically produce new styles for the public to buy. Luiseño/
Shoshone-Bannock beadwork artist and designer Jamie Okuma challenges this view: her work can be seen in the Metropolitan Museum of Art and purchased through her online boutique.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
A) prevail
B) succumb
C) diverge
D) intersect

Correct Answer: D

Answer Explanation:

Choice D is the best answer because it most logically completes the text’s discussion about the relationship between fine art and fashion. As used in this context, “intersect” means to connect or overlap. The text indicates that Jamie Okuma challenges the position held by critics because her work can be seen at an art museum and can be bought by the public from her online boutique. The text also presents the critics’ view as being influenced by a perception that fine artists create works that are “timeless” and meant for exhibition, whereas fashion designers periodically produce new styles that are meant for purchase. This context suggests that the critics believe that fine art and fashion tend not to overlap—in other words, that they rarely intersect.

5. Scholarly discussions of gender in Shakespeare’s comedies often celebrate the rebellion of the playwright’s characters against the rigid expectations _______ by Elizabethan society. Most of the comedies end in marriage, with characters returning to their socially dictated gender roles after previously defying them, but there are some notable exceptions.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
A) interjected
B) committed
C) illustrated
D) prescribed

Correct Answer: D

Answer Explanation:

Choice D is the best answer because it most logically completes the text’s discussion of gender roles in Shakespeare’s comedies. As used in this context, “prescribed” would mean laid down as rules. The text indicates that the characters in the comedies often defy gender roles that are “socially dictated” (even if most characters do return to those roles eventually) and that scholars have been very interested in these acts of defiance. This context indicates that what the characters are rebelling against are standards of behavior prescribed by the society of the time.

6. In studying the use of external stimuli to reduce the itching sensation caused by an allergic histamine response, Louise Ward and colleagues found that while harmless applications of vibration or warming
can provide a temporary distraction, such _______ stimuli actually offer less relief than a stimulus that seems less benign, like a mild electric shock.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
A) deceptive
B) innocuous
C) novel
D) impractical

Correct Answer: B

Answer Explanation:

Choice B is the best answer because it most logically completes the text’s discussion of Ward and colleagues’ findings. As used in this context, “innocuous” means mild or unharmful. The text describes the vibration and warming that Ward and colleagues used to alleviate itching as “harmless applications” and goes on to contrast these applications with another stimulus that actually offers more relief even though it seems to be stronger and “less benign.” This context conveys the idea that vibration and warming were innocuous stimuli.

7. The province of Xoconochco was situated on the Pacific coast, hundreds of kilometers southeast of Tenochtitlan, the capital of the Aztec Empire. Because Xoconochco’s location within the empire was so _______ , cacao and other trade goods produced there could reach the capital only after a long overland journey.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
A) unobtrusive
B) concealed
C) approximate
D) peripheral

Correct Answer: D

Answer Explanation:

Choice D is the best answer because it most logically completes the text’s discussion of the location of the province of Xoconochco within the Aztec Empire. As used in this context, “peripheral” means situated toward the outer bounds rather than the center. The text indicates that Xoconochco was located on a coast, hundreds of kilometers away from the capital of the Aztec Empire. The text also states that trade between the province and the capital required “a long overland journey.” This context suggests that Xoconochco was situated toward an edge of the empire’s territory rather than near its center.

8. The following text is from Charlotte Brontë’s 1847 novel Jane Eyre. Jane works as a governess at Thornfield Hall. I went on with my day’s business tranquilly; but ever and anon vague suggestions kept wandering across my brain of reasons why I should quit Thornfield; and I kept involuntarily framing advertisements and pondering conjectures about new situations: these thoughts I did not think to check; they might germinate and bear fruit if they could.
Which choice best states the main purpose of the text?
A) To convey a contrast between Jane’s outward calmness and internal restlessness
B) To emphasize Jane’s loyalty to the people she works for at Thornfield Hall
C) To demonstrate that Jane finds her situation both challenging and deeply fulfilling
D) To describe Jane’s determination to secure employment outside of Thornfield Hall

Correct Answer: D

Answer Explanation:

Choice A is the best answer because it most accurately describes the main purpose of the text, which is to show that while Jane calmly goes about her daily tasks, she is experiencing internal agitation about possibly seeking a new job. At the start of the text, Jane says, “I went on with my day’s business tranquilly,” indicating that she is outwardly calm. This outward calmness is then contrasted with her intense internal restlessness, as Jane says that thoughts of leaving her job keep running through her mind, that she is “involuntarily framing advertisements” (meaning that she can’t stop herself from thinking up potential listings for jobs), and that she often wonders what new “situations” (or jobs) would be like.

9.
Text 1
Most animals can regenerate some parts of their bodies, such as skin. But when a three-banded panther worm is cut into three pieces, each piece grows into a new worm. Researchers are investigating this feat partly to learn more about humans’ comparatively limited abilities to regenerate, and they’re making exciting progress. An especially promising discovery is that both humans and panther worms have a gene for early growth response (EGR) linked to regeneration.
Text 2
When Mansi Srivastava and her team reported that panther worms, like humans, possess a gene for EGR, it caused excitement. However, as the team pointed out, the gene likely functions very differently in
humans than it does in panther worms. Srivastava has likened EGR to a switch that activates other genes involved in regeneration in panther worms, but how this switch operates in humans remains unclear.
Based on the texts, what would the author of Text 2 most likely say about Text 1’s characterization of the discovery involving EGR?
A) It is reasonable given that Srivastava and her team have identified how EGR functions in both humans and panther worms.
B) It is overly optimistic given additional observations from Srivastava and her team.
C) It is unexpected given that Srivastava and her team’s findings were generally met with enthusiasm.
D) It is unfairly dismissive given the progress that Srivastava and her team have reported.

Correct Answer: B

Answer Explanation:

Choice B is the best answer because it reflects how the author of Text 2 would most likely respond to Text 1 based on the information provided. Text 1 discusses the discovery of a regeneration-linked gene, EGR, in both threebanded panther worms (which are capable of full regeneration) and humans (who have relatively limited regeneration abilities). Text 1 characterizes this discovery as “especially promising” and a sign of “exciting progress” in understanding human regeneration. The author of Text 2, on the other hand, focuses on the fact that the team that reported the EGR finding pointed out that while EGR’s function in humans isn’t yet known, it’s likely very different from its function in panther worms. Therefore, the author of Text 2 would most likely say that Text 1’s enthusiasm about the EGR discovery is overly optimistic given Srivastava’s team’s observations about EGR in humans.

10. The following text is adapted from William Shakespeare’s 1609 poem “Sonnet 27.” The poem is addressed to a close friend as if he were physically present. Weary with toil, I [hurry] to my bed, The dear repose for limbs with travel tired; But then begins a journey in my head To work my mind, when body’s work’s expired: For then my thoughts—from far where I abide— [Begin] a zealous pilgrimage to thee, And keep my drooping eyelids open wide,
What is the main idea of the text?
A) The speaker is asleep and dreaming about traveling to see the friend.
B) The speaker is planning an upcoming trip to the friend’s house.
C) The speaker is too fatigued to continue a discussion with the friend.
D) The speaker is thinking about the friend instead of immediately falling asleep.

Correct Answer: D

Answer Explanation:

Choice D is the best answer because it most accurately states the main idea of the text. The speaker describes the experience of being “weary” and “tired” and going to bed to seek “dear repose” (that is, sleep), but instead of sleeping, the speaker is kept awake (“keep my drooping eyelids open wide”) by thoughts of a friend (“my thoughts… [Begin] a zealous pilgrimage to thee”).

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