Question

standardized test practice
read each passage and choose the word or group of words that belongs in each space. mark the letter for your answer on your paper.

at any time, there may be 2,000 thunderstorms in activity on earth. scientists believe that lightning (1) an average of 100 times per second. some lightning flashes occur inside a cloud, but the (2) type of lightning flashes from a cloud down to the ground. this type (3) when the bottom of the cloud develops a negative charge. as the negatively charged cloud moves over the ground, a positive charge builds below (4). the positive and negative charges get stronger until they balance themselves in what we call lightning.

1 a was flashing
b had flashed
c flashes
d flashed

2 f frequent
g more frequently
h frequentest
j most frequent

3 a is caused
b has caused
c was causing
d have caused

4 f me
g you
h it
j they

when bicycles were first invented, (1) did not have pedals. pedals (2) in 1839 by the scottish blacksmith, kirkpatrick macmillan.
the first pedals (3) to the rear wheel of the bicycle. the wheel turned once with each rotation of the pedals. speed depended upon how big the front wheel was. the pennyfarthing bicycles of the time had front wheels that were five feet high. the back wheels were (4) than the wheels of modern bicycles.

1 a they
b our
c you
d their

2 f was inventing
g is invented
h had invented
j were invented

3 a has been attached
b were attached
c is attached
d are attached

4 f much smaller
g more smaller
h smallest
j small

Explanation:

First Passage (Lightning):

1. The sentence states a general scientific fact, so simple present tense is correct.
2. We need the superlative form of "frequent" to describe the most common type of lightning, and "most frequent" is the correct superlative for multi-syllable adjectives.
3. The sentence describes a general cause-effect of this lightning type, so simple present tense (active voice) is appropriate.
4. The pronoun refers to "the ground" (singular, neutral), so "it" is correct.

Second Passage (Bicycles):

1. The pronoun refers to "bicycles" (plural), so "they" is correct.
2. The sentence describes a past action where pedals were the receiver of the action (invented), so passive past tense "were invented" is correct.
3. The sentence describes a past action where pedals were attached to the wheel (passive, plural subject), so "were attached" is correct.
4. The sentence uses "than" to compare back wheels to modern bicycle wheels, so the comparative form "much smaller" is correct.

Answer:

First Passage:

1. C. flashes
2. J. most frequent
3. B. has caused
4. H. it

Second Passage:

1. A. they
2. J. were invented
3. B. were attached
4. F. much smaller