GED Language Arts (RLA) : Completing Sentences

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for GED Language Arts (RLA)

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Example Questions

Example Question #41 : Completing Sentences

1 Grasshoppers are intriguing insects that have both served as potent symbols in literature [Question 1]. 2 Also called locusts, [Question 2]. 3 Grasshoppers may be best known from the Aesop’s fable “The Ant and the Grasshopper,” in which ants and grasshoppers [Question 3].

4 Yet grasshoppers have also caused terrible famine [Question 4] Ancient Egypt, China, and the Rocky Mountains. 5 Farmers today attempt to control grasshoppers swarms [Question 5]. 6 On the other hand [Question 6] is sometimes used as a term of endearment. 7 What do you think about grasshoppers?

Which of the following phrases best completes Sentence 2?

Possible Answers:

grasshoppers have appeared in Dutch painting, English poetry, Latin American, and Asian cuisines

Dutch painting, English poetry, and Latin American and Asian cuisines, in which grasshoppers are all featured

grasshoppers have appeared in Dutch painting, English poetry, and Latin American and Asian cuisines

Dutch painting, English poetry, and Latin American and Asian cuisines all feature grasshoppers

grasshoppers appearing in Dutch painting, English poetry, Latin American, and Asian cuisines

Correct answer:

grasshoppers have appeared in Dutch painting, English poetry, and Latin American and Asian cuisines

Explanation:

“Also called locusts” is a phrase that must modify “grasshoppers,” so we can eliminate all those answer choices that don’t begin with that word. Those incorrect choices are known as misplaced modifiers. Moreover, since “Latin American and Asian cuisines” is one item in the list and not two, it should not have a comma in the middle of it.

Example Question #42 : Completing Sentences

1 Grasshoppers are intriguing insects that have both served as potent symbols in literature [Question 1]. 2 Also called locusts, [Question 2]. 3 Grasshoppers may be best known from the Aesop’s fable “The Ant and the Grasshopper,” in which ants and grasshoppers [Question 3].

4 Yet grasshoppers have also caused terrible famine [Question 4] Ancient Egypt, China, and the Rocky Mountains. 5 Farmers today attempt to control grasshoppers swarms [Question 5]. 6 On the other hand [Question 6] is sometimes used as a term of endearment. 7 What do you think about grasshoppers?

Which of the following phrases best completes Sentence 3?

Possible Answers:

exemplify the contrasting human traits of diligence and indolence

execute the contrasting human traits of diligence and insolence

exorcise the contrasting human traits of diligence and indolence

indemnify the contrasting human traits of diligence and insolence

execrate the contrasting human traits of diligence and inference

Correct answer:

exemplify the contrasting human traits of diligence and indolence

Explanation:

This question is dependent on your vocabulary recognition. In the Aesop’s fable that this sentence discusses, ants and grasshoppers provide examples of, or “exemplify,” human behaviors. The sentence also explains that the two human behaviors are contrasting, which leaves us with “diligence” (hard work) and “indolence” (laziness). None of the other pairs contrast.

Example Question #43 : Completing Sentences

1 Grasshoppers are intriguing insects that have both served as potent symbols in literature [Question 1]. 2 Also called locusts, [Question 2]. 3 Grasshoppers may be best known from the Aesop’s fable “The Ant and the Grasshopper,” in which ants and grasshoppers [Question 3].

4 Yet grasshoppers have also caused terrible famine [Question 4] Ancient Egypt, China, and the Rocky Mountains. 5 Farmers today attempt to control grasshoppers swarms [Question 5]. 6 On the other hand [Question 6] is sometimes used as a term of endearment. 7 What do you think about grasshoppers?

Which of the following phrases best completes Sentence 4?

Possible Answers:

; most notably, with

, most notably in

most notably with

None of these other choices

most notably in

Correct answer:

, most notably in

Explanation:

If we plug in any of these answer choices into the sentence, we can see that the result is an independent clause (“Yet grasshoppers have also caused terrible famine”) followed by a dependent clause (“most notably in Ancient Egypt, China, and the Rocky Mountains”). The correct punctuation to separate these two clauses is a single comma.

Example Question #44 : Completing Sentences

1 Grasshoppers are intriguing insects that have both served as potent symbols in literature [Question 1]. 2 Also called locusts, [Question 2]. 3 Grasshoppers may be best known from the Aesop’s fable “The Ant and the Grasshopper,” in which ants and grasshoppers [Question 3].

4 Yet grasshoppers have also caused terrible famine [Question 4] Ancient Egypt, China, and the Rocky Mountains. 5 Farmers today attempt to control grasshoppers swarms [Question 5]. 6 On the other hand [Question 6] is sometimes used as a term of endearment. 7 What do you think about grasshoppers?

Which of the following phrases best completes Sentence 5?

Possible Answers:

with a mixture of fire, pesticides, or natural fungi species

with a mixture of fire, pesticides, and natural fungi species

with a mixture of fire, pesticides, with natural fungi species

including a mixture of fire, pesticides, or natural fungi species

in a mixture of fire, pesticides, and natural fungi species

Correct answer:

with a mixture of fire, pesticides, and natural fungi species

Explanation:

Because we are listing the components of a mixture, we need to use the conjunction “and” and not “or” or “with.” Because the idea that precedes the bracketed part of the sentence is “control grasshopper swarms,” the word “with” fits better than “in” or “including.” These two rules eliminate all but one answer choice: “with a mixture of fire, pesticides, and natural fungi species.”

Example Question #45 : Completing Sentences

1 Grasshoppers are intriguing insects that have both served as potent symbols in literature [Question 1]. 2 Also called locusts, [Question 2]. 3 Grasshoppers may be best known from the Aesop’s fable “The Ant and the Grasshopper,” in which ants and grasshoppers [Question 3].

4 Yet grasshoppers have also caused terrible famine [Question 4] Ancient Egypt, China, and the Rocky Mountains. 5 Farmers today attempt to control grasshoppers swarms [Question 5]. 6 On the other hand [Question 6] is sometimes used as a term of endearment. 7 What do you think about grasshoppers?

Which of the following phrases best completes Sentence 6?

Possible Answers:

, “young grasshopper”

: young grasshopper,

, “young grasshopper,”

: “young” grasshopper

, young grasshopper

Correct answer:

, “young grasshopper”

Explanation:

“On the other hand” is an introductory clause that requires a comma to separate it from the main part of the sentence. Since the term “young grasshopper” is being discussed as a term, quotation marks are the best choice of punctuation. Lastly, since the words “young grasshopper” are integral to the meaning of the sentence’s main (independent) clause, we don’t use a comma between “grasshopper” and “is.”

Example Question #46 : Completing Sentences

1 Overfishing is a serious threat [Question 1]. 2 Essentially, it means that humans are depleting the ocean’s supply of fish, crustaceans, sea mammals, kelps, and other [Question 2]. 3 The problem [Question 3] when sailors killed vast numbers of whales for their valuable blubber. 4 Since then, industrial fishing fleets and increased consumer demand have led to [Question 4] everything from sharks to blue fin tuna. 5 Even species that are not typically eaten [Question 5] have become accidental “bycatch” and are thereby threatened with endangerment. 6 If the process is not reversed soon, [Question 6].

What is the correct way to rewrite Sentence 3?

Possible Answers:

, occurring since the 19th century, 

occurred first in the 19th century

has been occurring since the 19th century,

, which was occurring in the 19th century,

, occurred as early as the 19th century

Correct answer:

has been occurring since the 19th century,

Explanation:

Both “occurring since the 19th century” and “which was occurring in the 19th century” would lead to sentence fragments, so they are not good options. Both “occurred first in the 19th century” and “occurred as early as the 19th century” lack a crucial final comma to separate the independent clause from the dependent clause, so those choices are not good options, either.

Example Question #47 : Completing Sentences

1 Overfishing is a serious threat [Question 1]. 2 Essentially, it means that humans are depleting the ocean’s supply of fish, crustaceans, sea mammals, kelps, and other [Question 2]. 3 The problem [Question 3] when sailors killed vast numbers of whales for their valuable blubber. 4 Since then, industrial fishing fleets and increased consumer demand have led to [Question 4] everything from sharks to blue fin tuna. 5 Even species that are not typically eaten [Question 5] have become accidental “bycatch” and are thereby threatened with endangerment. 6 If the process is not reversed soon, [Question 6].

What is the correct way to rewrite Sentence 4?

Possible Answers:

the decimation of

the delineation of

the demarcation of

the deliberation of

the deliquescence of

Correct answer:

the decimation of

Explanation:

This is a vocabulary question. The entire passage is discussing the killing of ocean species, so we should choose the word that best fits that topic. “Decimation,” or the killing/destruction of a large percentage of something, is the only word here that fits the context.

Example Question #48 : Completing Sentences

1 Writer’s block is a challenge that faces many creative people [Question 1]. 2 Inventors and theoreticians alike have long speculated about the possible [Question 2]. 3 Some people believe that it comes from lack of preparation [Question 3]. Recently, neurological and psychological studies have identified potential underlying causes of creative block [Question 4]. 5 Still others assert that a lack of resources (including time, money, and community) [Question 5].

6 People faced with writer’s block [Question 6] may take comfort in the fact that many of the world’s greatest artists have struggled similarly. 7 Take Ludwig van Beethoven, Vincent van Gogh, and Frida Kahlo as just a few examples of individuals who [Question 7] prevailed in creating lasting masterpieces. 8 [Question 8] then an artist can always try consulting with peers, taking a break, or turning their attention to a new art form altogether. 9 After all, through [Question 9] a person can overcome almost any artistic impediment.

Which of the following phrases best completes Sentence 7?

Possible Answers:

, despite immense bouts of writer’s block,

: despite immense bouts of writer’s block,

— despite immense bouts of writer’s block;

despite immense, bouts of writer’s block

— despite immense, bouts of writer’s block —

Correct answer:

, despite immense bouts of writer’s block,

Explanation:

As with the previous question, we can see that the non-bracketed parts of this sentence are a standalone independent clause. We thus know that what’s inside the brackets must be offset by a pair of commas, parentheses, or em dashes. Since “immense” is an adjective immediately preceding “bouts,” a noun, no comma is necessary between those two words.

Example Question #49 : Completing Sentences

1 Overfishing is a serious threat [Question 1]. 2 Essentially, it means that humans are depleting the ocean’s supply of fish, crustaceans, sea mammals, kelps, and other [Question 2]. 3 The problem [Question 3] when sailors killed vast numbers of whales for their valuable blubber. 4 Since then, industrial fishing fleets and increased consumer demand have led to [Question 4] everything from sharks to blue fin tuna. 5 Even species that are not typically eaten [Question 5] have become accidental “bycatch” and are thereby threatened with endangerment. 6 If the process is not reversed soon, [Question 6].

What is the correct way to conclude Sentence 1?

Possible Answers:

being faced by our planet’s fisheries

facing our planet’s fisheries

None of these

, faced by our planet’s fisheries

, in the face of our planet’s fisheries

Correct answer:

facing our planet’s fisheries

Explanation:

This question requires you to choose not only the grammatically correct option but also the most efficient option. No comma should be used in this sentence, as it’s one uninterrupted independent clause. Both “facing our planet’s fisheries” and “being faced by our planet’s fisheries” are grammatically fine, but the former is more concise.

Example Question #50 : Completing Sentences

1 Overfishing is a serious threat [Question 1]. 2 Essentially, it means that humans are depleting the ocean’s supply of fish, crustaceans, sea mammals, kelps, and other [Question 2]. 3 The problem [Question 3] when sailors killed vast numbers of whales for their valuable blubber. 4 Since then, industrial fishing fleets and increased consumer demand have led to [Question 4] everything from sharks to blue fin tuna. 5 Even species that are not typically eaten [Question 5] have become accidental “bycatch” and are thereby threatened with endangerment. 6 If the process is not reversed soon, [Question 6].

What is the correct way to conclude Sentence 2?

Possible Answers:

species, fast as ecosystems replenished

species, as fast as the ecosystem replenished them

species faster than the ecosystem can replenish them

species as fast as the ecosystem replenishing them

species, faster than the ecosystem can replenish them

Correct answer:

species faster than the ecosystem can replenish them

Explanation:

No comma is necessary after “species,” as what follows it is integral to the meaning of the entire independent clause it’s part of. Both “species as fast as the ecosystem replenishing them” and “species, fast as ecosystems replenished” lead to mixed constructions and are not grammatical.

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