GED Language Arts (RLA) : Completing Sentences

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

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Example Questions

Example Question #51 : 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 complete Sentence 5?

Possible Answers:

, such as dolphins and loggerhead turtles,

such as dolphins and loggerhead turtles

, such as dolphins, and loggerhead turtles

, such as dolphins, and loggerhead turtles,

such as dolphins, and loggerhead turtles

Correct answer:

, such as dolphins and loggerhead turtles,

Explanation:

This question requires you to know your comma rules. Since “such as dolphins and loggerhead turtles” is a parenthetical (dependent) clause, it’s separated from the surrounding sentence by a comma at the beginning and at the end. No comma is necessary before the conjunction (“and”), though, since what’s being separated by the conjunction is not two independent clauses.

Example Question #52 : 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 complete Sentence 6?

Possible Answers:

scientists predict that the collapse of every oceanic ecosystem by the year 2050

it is predicted by scientists that every oceanic ecosystem will have collapsed by the year 2050

scientists, having predicted that every oceanic ecosystem will collapse, estimate that this disaster will occur by the year 2050

scientists predict that every oceanic ecosystem will have collapsed by the year 2050

scientists predicting the collapse of every oceanic ecosystem by the year 2050

Correct answer:

scientists predict that every oceanic ecosystem will have collapsed by the year 2050

Explanation:

Some of these choices are overly wordy: “it is predicted by scientists that every oceanic ecosystem will have collapsed by the year 2050” and “scientists, having predicted that every oceanic ecosystem will collapse, estimate that this disaster will occur by the year 2050.” Others are simply grammatically incorrect: “scientists predict that the collapse of every oceanic ecosystem by the year 2050” leads to a sentence fragment, as does “scientists predicting the collapse of every oceanic ecosystem by the year 2050.”

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