27 original Reading & Writing questions in the digital test's own format and domain order. Answer them all, then submit once to see every answer explained.
Optional. The clock never submits for you — it just tells you where you are against the real pacing.
Economists have long debated whether consumer confidence surveys are reliable predictors of spending. Critics argue that such surveys are ______, since people's stated intentions frequently diverge from their eventual purchasing behavior.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
A — unreliable. The sentence explains that stated intentions often diverge from actual behavior, which directly supports the surveys being untrustworthy as predictors. 'Unreliable' fits precisely; the other choices do not match the contrast set up by 'since.'
Because desert plants must survive long stretches without rain, many have evolved to ______ water in thick, fleshy stems and leaves.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
B — store. Surviving droughts by keeping water in thick stems and leaves means retaining or 'storing' it, not dispersing, repelling, or evaporating it.
Coral reefs are often called the rainforests of the sea because of their remarkable biodiversity; a single reef can ______ thousands of species within an area smaller than a city park.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
C — harbor. The sentence is about biodiversity contained within a reef. 'Harbor,' meaning to shelter or contain, fits the idea of thousands of species living within the reef.
The tour guide's knowledge of the cathedral's history was so ______ that she could answer even the most obscure questions visitors asked about its construction.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
A — encyclopedic. Being able to answer even obscure questions suggests extremely thorough, comprehensive knowledge. 'Encyclopedic' fits; 'superficial' means the opposite.
The report's introduction lists three competing explanations for declining bee populations before stating that the remainder of the document will evaluate the evidence for and against each one in turn.
Which choice best describes the function of the introduction?
D — It previews the organizational structure the rest of the report will follow.. The introduction explicitly tells the reader what the rest of the report will do (evaluate each explanation in turn), functioning as a structural preview rather than an answer, narrative, or criticism.
The article begins by acknowledging that automation has eliminated many manufacturing jobs, but it spends the bulk of its length arguing that automation has also created new categories of employment in fields like robotics maintenance and software design.
Which choice best describes the function of the first sentence in relation to the rest of the text?
B — It concedes a common concern before the text pivots to a counterargument.. The sentence grants a widely held concern (job loss) before the passage shifts to argue the opposite emphasis (job creation). This is a concession followed by a counterargument, not the main claim, a conclusion, or an analogy.
Text 1: Nutrition researcher Priya Nair found that participants who ate breakfast reported higher energy levels throughout the morning compared with those who skipped it. Text 2: Nutrition researcher Mark Ferrell found no significant difference in energy levels between breakfast eaters and skippers once he controlled for total daily calorie intake, suggesting the effect Nair observed may stem from overall diet rather than the timing of the first meal.
Which choice best describes the relationship between the two texts?
A — Text 2 offers an alternative explanation for the finding reported in Text 1.. Ferrell's controlled study suggests the energy effect Nair observed may be due to total calories, not meal timing—an alternative explanation for the same finding, not a confirmation or unrelated study.
Text 1: Historian Elena Cruz argues that the printing press was the single most important technological cause of the Reformation, since it allowed reformist ideas to spread faster than church authorities could suppress them. Text 2: Historian Thomas Reyes agrees that the printing press mattered but argues that widespread literacy programs, which predated the press by decades in some regions, were an equally necessary precondition, since a printed pamphlet is useless to someone who cannot read it.
Which choice best describes how Reyes's argument relates to Cruz's?
A — Reyes builds on Cruz's claim by identifying an additional necessary factor.. Reyes does not reject the printing press's importance ('agrees that the printing press mattered') but adds literacy as an additional necessary factor—building on, not rejecting or contradicting, Cruz's claim.
Bristlecone pines, found in the high-altitude mountains of the western United States, grow extremely slowly in harsh, nutrient-poor conditions; remarkably, this slow growth, combined with wood so dense it resists insects and fungal decay, allows some individual trees to survive for over 4,000 years.
According to the text, why are some bristlecone pines able to survive for over 4,000 years?
D — Their slow growth and dense, decay-resistant wood allow them to withstand harsh conditions for millennia.. The text directly attributes the trees' extreme longevity to 'this slow growth, combined with wood so dense it resists insects and fungal decay'—matching choice D; the other options contradict or are unsupported by the text.
A recent survey of hotel guests found that the most commonly cited reason for choosing not to return to a particular hotel was not room cost, as many hotel managers assume, but inconsistent Wi-Fi connectivity throughout the property.
According to the text, what did the survey identify as the most common reason guests chose not to return?
B — Inconsistent Wi-Fi connectivity.. The text explicitly states the most common reason was 'inconsistent Wi-Fi connectivity throughout the property,' explicitly ruling out room cost as the assumed but incorrect answer.
A marine biologist hypothesizes that increased recreational boat traffic near a coral reef disrupts the feeding behavior of a species of reef fish that relies on quiet conditions to detect prey.
Which finding would most directly support the marine biologist's hypothesis?
A — Underwater observations show that the fish spend significantly less time engaged in feeding behaviors during hours of high boat traffic than during hours of low boat traffic.. The hypothesis is specifically about disrupted feeding behavior; a direct comparison of feeding time during high versus low traffic hours most directly supports the claim. Increased traffic alone, boater awareness, and population growth don't address feeding disruption.
A student hypothesizes that urban community gardens improve residents' diets by increasing their access to fresh vegetables. She is looking for evidence to support this claim.
Which finding, if true, would most directly support the student's hypothesis?
A — Residents who join community gardens report eating more vegetables than they did beforehand.. The hypothesis links gardens to better diets via more vegetable access. Evidence that gardeners eat more vegetables after joining directly supports that causal link. The other options are unrelated to dietary change.
A software company tracked user account cancellations before and after simplifying its billing interface:
| Week 1 (before change) | 180 cancellations |
|---|---|
| Week 2 (before change) | 172 cancellations |
| Week 3 (after change) | 95 cancellations |
| Week 4 (after change) | 88 cancellations |
A product manager claims the interface change caused a decrease in cancellations.
Does the data support the manager's claim?
D — Yes, because cancellations were notably lower in the two weeks after the change than in the two weeks before it.. Cancellations fell from roughly 172–180 to roughly 88–95 after the change, a clear and notable decrease consistent with the claim. The data covers four weeks, so choice A is factually wrong, and choice C misreads the direction of change.
A researcher recorded the number of active beekeepers and the total pounds of honey produced in a county over four years:
| Year 1 | 45 beekeepers, 2,100 lbs |
|---|---|
| Year 2 | 58 beekeepers, 2,900 lbs |
| Year 3 | 51 beekeepers, 3,400 lbs |
| Year 4 | 67 beekeepers, 3,000 lbs |
A county official claims that years with more beekeepers always resulted in more honey produced.
Does the data support the county official's claim?
B — No, because Year 3 had fewer beekeepers than Year 2 but more honey produced, contradicting a simple always-increasing relationship.. Year 3 had only 51 beekeepers (fewer than Year 2's 58) yet produced more honey (3,400 vs. 2,900), directly contradicting a claim that more beekeepers always means more honey. Choice D misstates Year 4's data—it did not have the most honey produced.
A survey of graduate students found that those who scheduled dedicated, recurring writing blocks on their calendar reported significantly less dissertation-related stress than those who wrote only when they felt motivated, even after accounting for total weekly writing hours and years in the program.
Which choice most logically completes the text?
C — the structure of scheduling writing time, not just total hours or program stage, may influence reported stress.. Since total writing hours and program stage were controlled for, but scheduling still mattered, this points to the structure itself—not just those other factors—as influencing stress, matching choice C.
The board, after weeks of negotiation finally approved the merger by a narrow margin.
Which choice fixes the punctuation error?
C — negotiation, finally. 'After weeks of negotiation' is a parenthetical phrase set off by a comma after 'board,' and needs a matching comma before 'finally' to close the interruption. Choice C correctly supplies this second comma.
The library's renovation added a new reading room, the space includes floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the courtyard.
Which choice fixes the sentence boundary error?
B — room. The space. The original is a comma splice joining two independent clauses. Choice B correctly separates them into two sentences with a period. Choice D adds an unnecessary comma after 'and,' and choice C misuses a semicolon by adding a stray comma.
The council, after extensive debate finally approved funding for the new bike lanes.
Which choice fixes the punctuation error?
C — debate, finally. 'After extensive debate' is a parenthetical phrase set off by a comma after 'council,' and needs a matching comma before 'finally' to close the interruption. Choice C correctly supplies this second comma.
The park's renovation added a new amphitheater, the venue hosts free concerts every summer weekend.
Which choice fixes the sentence boundary error?
B — amphitheater. The venue. The original is a comma splice joining two independent clauses. Choice B correctly separates them into two sentences with a period. Choice C adds an unnecessary comma after 'and,' and choice A misuses a semicolon by adding a stray comma.
Each of the interns assigned to the research lab ______ expected to submit a weekly progress log.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
C — is. The subject is 'Each,' a singular indefinite pronoun, which takes a singular verb regardless of the plural noun 'interns' in the prepositional phrase. 'Is' is the correct singular form.
Each of the students in the advanced seminar ______ required to submit a research proposal by the end of the first week.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
B — is. The subject is 'Each,' a singular indefinite pronoun, which takes a singular verb regardless of the plural noun 'students' in the prepositional phrase. 'Is' is the correct singular form.
Each of the volunteers assigned to the food bank ______ required to attend a brief safety orientation.
Which choice completes the text so that it conforms to the conventions of Standard English?
C — is. The subject is 'Each,' a singular indefinite pronoun, which takes a singular verb regardless of the plural noun 'volunteers' in the prepositional phrase. 'Is' is the correct singular form.
The small brewery had no distribution deal with any major retailer. ______, its flagship beer became one of the most requested craft beers in the region within two years.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical transition?
A — Yet,. Success despite a lack of distribution is a contrast to what one might expect. 'Yet' signals this contrast; 'consequently' would incorrectly suggest the lack of distribution caused the success.
The album received little attention upon its original release in 1971. ______, it is now considered one of the most influential recordings in its genre.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical transition?
B — Today,. The sentence shifts from the album's reception 'upon its original release' to its status 'now'—a time-based contrast best signaled by 'Today,' which explicitly marks this shift to the present.
The lecture covered the physics of black holes in exhaustive mathematical detail. ______, it devoted almost no time to the observational evidence astronomers have gathered for their existence.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical transition?
B — However,. Detailed coverage of theory but little coverage of observational evidence is a contrast in emphasis. 'However' correctly signals this shift.
A student has gathered the following notes about a historical event:
The student wants to state how long the Wall stood and why it fell. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
A — The Berlin Wall stood for 28 years, falling in November 1989 after East German authorities announced relaxed travel restrictions.. The goal is specifically to state the duration and the reason it fell; choice A states both the 28-year duration and the relaxed travel restrictions as the reason for its fall. The other choices omit one or both required pieces of information.
A student has gathered the following notes about a historical event:
The student wants to state how mosquito-control measures affected the canal's construction. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
A — Once mosquito-control measures were implemented, worker mortality dropped dramatically, allowing construction to proceed more quickly.. The goal is specifically the effect of mosquito-control measures on construction; choice A directly states this effect (reduced mortality, faster progress). The other choices describe the canal's opening, its shipping benefit, or the disease problem itself, not the effect of the control measures.
Score:
Every question above is now marked up: the correct answer is highlighted, any wrong option you picked is flagged, and each explanation is open.
No. Every question is original, written to the College Board's published Digital SAT Reading & Writing test specification. No retired or copyrighted College Board material appears anywhere on this site.
27 questions in 32 minutes — about 71 seconds per question. The full Reading & Writing section is two such modules, 54 questions in 64 minutes.
Craft and Structure 8, Information and Ideas 7, Standard English Conventions 7, Expression of Ideas 5 — 27 questions in total, matching the College Board's published domain weighting for one module and grouped in the order the digital test presents them.
No. On the real test your performance on the first Reading & Writing module decides whether the second module is the easier or harder version, and that choice affects your score. A static practice module cannot reproduce that, so treat this as one fixed module of mixed difficulty rather than a scored simulation.
No. The SAT has no penalty for a wrong answer — a blank and a wrong guess both score zero — so answer every question, including the ones you have to guess.