Reading Comprehension 1: sample questions for one practice paragraph

This passage describes the myth that elephants are afraid of mice and presents evidence to show that this myth is not actually true.

1 It is often said that elephants are particularly 2 afraid of mice. But there is abundant evidence 3 that this is not the case. According to the 4 director of the National Zoological Park in 5 Washington, D.C., the elephants in the zoo pay 6 no attention whatever to the many mice that turn 7 up in the elephants' hay. Nor is there any 8 evidence that elephants in the wild exhibit any 9 particular fear of mice. Of course it is quite 10 possible that individual elephants may have 11 such a fear, but most zoologists who have 12 experience with wild elephants say that their 13 two greatest fears are dogs and human beings. 14 Yet the belief that elephants have a 15 particular fear of mice is very persistent. Many 16 years ago, a popular writer asserted that 17 elephants are afraid of mice because small 18 mouse-like animals found in their wild haunts 19 sometimes crawl up the trunks of the huge 20 beasts when they are feeding and dig their claws 21 into the elephants' trunks. The elephants 22 become frantic and blow violently but are 23 unable to dislodge the mice. This story, which 24 has captured the imaginations of many, is 25 almost certainly pure fiction.

1. The main purpose of this passage is to (A) show that most elephants are afraid of dogs. (B) argue that a myth about elephants is not true. (C) explain why the elephant's trunk is so sensitive. (D) imply that elephants are more fearful than people.

Sample Question 1: This item asks you to determine the main purpose of the passage. Choice (B) is the correct answer because the passage presents an argument against the myth that elephants are afraid of mice. Choice (A) is a supporting idea, choice (C) is information that is not provided in the passage, and choice (D) is an implication that cannot be made from the passage.

2. Which statement about elephants' fears is best supported by the passage? (A) Not all elephants fear the same things. (B) Elephants fear only what they have seen. (C) Elephants never fear anything larger than they are. (D) Elephants fear one thing in the wild, another in captivity.

Sample Question 2: This item asks you to determine which statement can be supported based on information that is given in the passage. There is no information in the passage about whether elephants fear things they have not seen, whether elephants in the wild fear different things from elephants in captivity, or whether elephants can fear things other than themselves. You can find the correct answer, (A), in lines 10 -11, which imply that elephants fear different things by saying that "individual elephants may have such a fear."

3. According to the passage, most elephants react to mice with (A) affection. (B) disgust. (C) indifference. (D) panic.

Sample Question 3: Your task here is to determine which best reflects the attitude of elephants toward mice. You can find the answer in lines 5 -7, which describe how the elephants at the National Zoo behave toward mice. They "pay no attention" to them, which tells you that their attitude is (C), indifference.

4. In line 16, the word "asserted" most nearly means (A) claimed. (B) discovered. (C) feared. (D) proved.

Sample Question 4: Your task here is to identify the meaning of the word "asserted." "Asserted" most nearly means argued or claimed, so the correct answer is (A). To assert something is not to actually discover or prove it, so (B) and (D) are incorrect.

5. Which phrase means most nearly the same as "found in their wild haunts" (line 18)? (A) pursued by wild elephants (B) hunting wildly for elephants to torment (C) living in the wild where the elephants live (D) came across the elephants when they were acting wild

Sample Question 5: This item asks you to understand the figurative meaning of the phrase "found in their wild haunts." "Haunts" here is used to mean a place where elephants are commonly found, not a place that is literally haunted. Therefore the correct answer is (C).

6. Which best describes the way the passage is organized? (A) A series of contradictory examples is presented. (B) A series of problems is stated with no solutions given. (C) A popular view is challenged by presenting evidence contradicting that view. (D) An opinion is stated in the second sentence and reversed in the last sentence.

Sample Question 6: This question asks you to determine how the passage is organized. The passage presents evidence against a popular view, so the correct answer is (C). It does not present contradictory evidence or a series of problems, and the author's opinion in the passage does not change, so (A), (B), and (D) are incorrect.