28 Writing Practice Questions & Answers

1. 1. Personal essay excerpt: "Every Saturday morning, my grandmother taught me to knead dough at her kitchen table. She pressed the heel of her hand into the mound, folded it over, and gave it a quarter turn, again and again." The writer is considering adding this sentence after the second sentence: "Her kitchen table had been bought at a furniture store that later went out of business." Should the writer make this addition?

   • A.Yes, because it explains why the table mattered to her.
   • B.No, because it contradicts the earlier description of the table.
   • C.No, because it shifts focus away from the kneading lesson.✓ Answer
   • D.Yes, because it adds a vivid detail about the setting.

   The paragraph is about the grandmother teaching the narrator to knead dough. Where the table was bought has nothing to do with that lesson, so adding it would pull the reader off topic. It does not explain why the table mattered to her, and it does not contradict anything, because the passage never describes the table.

   Ref QB-EMT4G7Source: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Expression of Ideas, Development (Focus)Report a problem with this question

2. 2. Personal essay excerpt: "At first my loaves came out dense and flat. [I was super bummed about it,] but my grandmother only laughed and said that bread, like patience, rises on its own schedule." Which choice best revises the bracketed portion?

   • A.I felt discouraged,✓ Answer
   • B.it really bugged me,
   • C.NO CHANGE
   • D.I was kind of gutted,

   The essay is reflective and written in standard, fairly polished language. "I felt discouraged" names the feeling clearly in that same register. "Super bummed," "kind of gutted" and "really bugged me" are slang, and they break the essay's consistent tone.

   Ref QB-V4AMQ5Source: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Expression of Ideas, Effective Language Use (Style and tone)Report a problem with this question

3. 3. Personal essay excerpt: "She never measured the flour with a [cup, she judged] the dough by how it felt against her palm." Which choice best revises the bracketed portion?

   • A.cup, but judging
   • B.NO CHANGE
   • C.cup she judged
   • D.cup; she judged✓ Answer

   "She never measured the flour with a cup" and "she judged the dough..." are both independent clauses. Joining them with only a comma creates a comma splice, and joining them with no punctuation creates a fused sentence. A semicolon correctly joins two closely related independent clauses. "But judging" leaves the second half without a main verb.

   Ref QB-DMFSA6Source: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Standard English Conventions, Sentence Structure (Sentence boundaries)Report a problem with this question

4. 4. Personal essay excerpt: "(1) Years later, I bake in a small apartment kitchen of my own. (2) The oven runs hot, so I lower the temperature by twenty-five degrees. (3) Still, each time I fold the dough and give it a quarter turn, I can almost feel her hand guiding mine. (4) Those habits, I have learned, are what she was really teaching me." The writer wants to add this sentence: "I also wait, as she taught me, for the dough to double rather than watch the clock." Where should it be placed to make the paragraph most logical?

   • A.After sentence 2
   • B.After sentence 1
   • C.Before sentence 1
   • D.After sentence 3✓ Answer

   "Also" and "as she taught me" mean the new sentence must follow another habit learned from the grandmother, which is the folding described in sentence 3. Placing it there also gives the plural "Those habits" in sentence 4 two habits to refer to. After sentence 2, "also" would wrongly link waiting to the oven adjustment, which she never taught.

   Ref QB-U4X9J4Source: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Expression of Ideas, Organization (Logical sequence)Report a problem with this question

5. 5. Earlier in a personal essay, the grandmother says that "bread, like patience, rises on its own schedule." The writer wants a final sentence that ties the bread back to that lesson about patience. Which choice best accomplishes this goal?

   • A.Today I buy flour in bulk because I bake nearly every weekend.
   • B.Today my bread rises slowly, and I have finally learned to let it.✓ Answer
   • C.Today my oven is newer and heats far more evenly than hers.
   • D.Today many people bake bread at home as a relaxing hobby.

   An effective conclusion returns to the essay's central idea. Only the sentence about letting the bread rise slowly echoes the grandmother's comparison of bread to patience and shows that the narrator has absorbed the lesson. The other choices end on details about flour, hobbies or ovens that have nothing to do with patience.

   Ref QB-CM4F55Source: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Expression of Ideas, Organization (Introductions, conclusions, and transitions)Report a problem with this question

6. 6. Informational passage excerpt: "Rooftop beehives have become common in many cities. Supporters argue that urban bees are often healthier than bees kept near large single-crop farms." The writer wants to add a sentence that directly supports the claim in the second sentence. Which choice best accomplishes this goal?

   • A.City gardens offer bees a varied diet, while one-crop fields bloom briefly.✓ Answer
   • B.Honeybees were first brought to North America by European colonists.
   • C.Many city residents first learned about beekeeping from their neighbors.
   • D.Rooftop hives must be inspected regularly for signs of overheating.

   Supporting detail must give a reason or evidence for the specific claim, which is that city bees are healthier than bees near single-crop farms. The contrast between a varied city diet and a short single-crop bloom explains why. The other sentences may be true, but they cover how people learn beekeeping, hive maintenance or history, and none bears on bee health.

   Ref QB-T4KXC3Source: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Expression of Ideas, Development (Support)Report a problem with this question

7. 7. Informational passage excerpt: "The flowers in a typical city park, along with the weeds that grow in vacant lots, [provides] bees with nectar from early spring until late fall." Which choice best revises the bracketed portion?

   • A.has provided
   • B.is providing
   • C.NO CHANGE
   • D.provide✓ Answer

   The subject is the plural noun "flowers." The prepositional phrase "in a typical city park" and the parenthetical "along with the weeds..." do not change the number of the subject, so the verb must be plural: "provide." The present tense also fits the general statement. "Provides," "has provided" and "is providing" are all singular and agree with "park" or "lots" instead of "flowers."

   Ref QB-BMR4Y3Source: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Standard English Conventions, Conventions of Usage (Subject-verb agreement)Report a problem with this question

8. 8. Informational passage excerpt: "Urban hives also face real risks. Pesticides sprayed on lawns can drift onto blossoms, and crowded rooftops may hold more colonies than nearby flowers can feed. [Therefore,] some cities now require beekeepers to register their hives so officials can track how many colonies share an area." Which choice best revises the bracketed portion?

   • A.However,
   • B.Similarly,
   • C.NO CHANGE✓ Answer
   • D.For example,

   The registration rule is a response to the risk of overcrowding just described, so the relationship is cause and effect, and "Therefore" signals it correctly. "However" would signal a contrast, but nothing is being contrasted. Registration is not an example of a risk, so "For example" fails, and it is not a parallel risk, so "Similarly" fails.

   Ref QB-S48M72Source: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Expression of Ideas, Organization (Transitions)Report a problem with this question

9. 9. Informational passage excerpt: "Each rooftop hive is inspected [every two weeks on a biweekly schedule] during the warm months." Which choice best revises the bracketed portion?

   • A.two weeks at a time
   • B.every two weeks✓ Answer
   • C.biweekly each week
   • D.NO CHANGE

   "Every two weeks" and "on a biweekly schedule" mean the same thing, so the original is redundant. "Every two weeks" states the frequency once and clearly. "Biweekly each week" contradicts itself, and "two weeks at a time" wrongly suggests that each inspection lasts two weeks.

   Ref QB-AMDSS2Source: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Expression of Ideas, Effective Language Use (Concision)Report a problem with this question

10. 10. Informational passage excerpt: "A honeybee colony depends on [its] queen, whose eggs replace the thousands of workers that die each summer." Which choice best revises the bracketed portion?

    • A.they're
    • B.their
    • C.it's
    • D.NO CHANGE✓ Answer

    "Colony" is a singular collective noun, so the possessive pronoun that refers to it must be singular: "its." "Their" is plural and does not agree with "colony." "It's" is the contraction of "it is," and "they're" means "they are"; neither one shows possession.

    Ref QB-YVV2MWSource: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Standard English Conventions, Conventions of Usage (Pronoun-antecedent agreement; possessive determiners)Report a problem with this question

11. 11. Informational passage excerpt: "[Topic sentence] Keepers climbed the tower stairs several times each night to trim wicks, refill oil, and polish the lens so that its beam stayed bright. During storms, they often stayed awake until dawn." Which choice is the best topic sentence for this paragraph?

    • A.Before automation, tending a lighthouse was demanding, sleepless work.✓ Answer
    • B.Lighthouses come in many shapes, from squat towers to tall cones.
    • C.Many coastal towns once competed to build the tallest lighthouse.
    • D.Some old lighthouses are now museums that welcome summer visitors.

    A topic sentence states the main idea that the rest of the paragraph develops. The supporting sentences describe nightly climbs, constant maintenance and sleepless storms, all evidence that the work was demanding and kept keepers awake. The other choices introduce tower shapes, museums or town rivalries, which the paragraph never discusses.

    Ref QB-FDQVZVSource: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Expression of Ideas, Development (Proposition)Report a problem with this question

12. 12. Informational passage excerpt: "Hannah Merrill, the teenage daughter of a [keeper—kept] the lamps burning through a storm that lasted nearly a month." Which choice best revises the bracketed portion?

    • A.keeper kept
    • B.NO CHANGE
    • C.keeper, kept✓ Answer
    • D.keeper; kept

    "The teenage daughter of a keeper" is a nonrestrictive appositive that renames Hannah Merrill. It must be set off by a matching pair of punctuation marks. Because it opens with a comma, it must also close with a comma. A dash cannot close a comma-opened element, leaving out the closing mark runs the appositive into the verb, and a semicolon cannot separate a subject from its verb.

    Ref QB-ZV8DSXSource: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Standard English Conventions, Conventions of Punctuation (Nonrestrictive and parenthetical elements)Report a problem with this question

13. 13. Informational passage excerpt: "Keepers recorded every ship that passed, every change in the weather, and every gallon of oil they used. [These logbooks now help historians reconstruct storms that struck the coast more than a century ago.]" The writer is considering deleting the bracketed sentence. Should the writer keep it or delete it?

    • A.Deleted, because it shifts the focus from keepers to historians.
    • B.Kept, because it explains how keepers predicted coming storms.
    • C.Kept, because it shows why the keepers' records still matter.✓ Answer
    • D.Deleted, because it repeats information from the prior sentence.

    The sentence builds on the previous one by explaining the lasting value of the keepers' logbooks, so it adds new, relevant information and should stay. It is not repetition, because the prior sentence says only what was recorded. It does not abandon the topic, because it is still about the keepers' records. It also says nothing about keepers predicting storms.

    Ref QB-GD387XSource: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Expression of Ideas, Development (Support)Report a problem with this question

14. 14. Informational passage excerpt: "Over the twentieth century, automated lamps gradually took over most [keepers'] duties, and the last families moved off the rocky islands." Which choice best revises the bracketed portion?

    • A.keepers
    • B.NO CHANGE✓ Answer
    • C.keepers's
    • D.keeper's

    The duties belong to many keepers, so the word needs the plural possessive form. For a plural noun ending in s, you add only an apostrophe: "keepers'." "Keeper's" refers to a single keeper, which does not fit "the last families." "Keepers" has no apostrophe and so does not show possession, and "keepers's" is not a standard form.

    Ref QB-WV6D9USource: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Standard English Conventions, Conventions of Punctuation (Possessive nouns and pronouns)Report a problem with this question

15. 15. Informational passage excerpt: "Automation saved money and made the lights more reliable. [In addition,] it came at a real human cost, ending a way of life that many families had known for generations." Which choice best revises the bracketed portion?

    • A.For instance,
    • B.However,✓ Answer
    • C.Similarly,
    • D.NO CHANGE

    The first sentence names benefits of automation, and the second names a cost, so the two ideas are in contrast and "However" is the right transition. "In addition" would treat the cost as one more benefit. "Similarly" signals a comparable point, which this is not. "For instance" would wrongly make the human cost an example of saving money.

    Ref QB-DDZ7PTSource: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Expression of Ideas, Organization (Transitions)Report a problem with this question

16. 16. Informational passage excerpt: "Physical therapist assistants help patients regain movement after an injury or surgery. Assistants must [monitor] a patient's heart rate during strenuous exercises and report any sudden change to the therapist." Which choice best revises the bracketed portion?

    • A.NO CHANGE✓ Answer
    • B.spy on
    • C.look upon
    • D.glance at

    "Monitor" means to watch and check something continuously over time, which is exactly what is needed to catch a "sudden change" in heart rate. "Glance at" suggests a brief, casual look and is too weak. "Spy on" carries a secretive, negative connotation. "Look upon" means to regard or view in a general way, not to track a measurement.

    Ref QB-XVHQEVSource: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Expression of Ideas, Effective Language Use (Precision)Report a problem with this question

17. 17. Informational passage excerpt: "Their duties include setting up equipment, [to teach patients] how to use crutches, and recording each session in the patient's chart." Which choice best revises the bracketed portion?

    • A.patients are taught
    • B.they teach patients
    • C.NO CHANGE
    • D.teaching patients✓ Answer

    Items in a series must share the same grammatical form. The first and third items are gerund phrases ("setting up," "recording"), so the middle item must be one too: "teaching patients." The infinitive "to teach" breaks the parallel structure, and the clauses "they teach patients" and "patients are taught" cannot serve as objects of "include" in this list.

    Ref QB-EDCJUUSource: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Standard English Conventions, Sentence Structure (Parallel structure)Report a problem with this question

18. 18. Informational passage excerpt: "Most assistants complete a two-year associate degree program. The program combines classroom study with supervised clinical work." Which choice best combines the two sentences?

    • A.Most assistants complete a two-year associate degree program; combining classroom study with supervised clinical work.
    • B.Most assistants complete a two-year associate degree program, it combines classroom study with supervised clinical work.
    • C.Although most assistants complete a two-year associate degree program, it combines classroom study with clinical work.
    • D.Most assistants complete a two-year associate degree program, which combines classroom study with supervised clinical work.✓ Answer

    The second sentence only describes the program, so it works best as a nonrestrictive relative clause beginning with "which." That removes the repeated noun and keeps the meaning. Using "it" after a comma creates a comma splice. A semicolon followed by an "-ing" phrase leaves a fragment after the semicolon. "Although" sets up a contrast that does not exist.

    Ref QB-UVFQWRSource: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Expression of Ideas, Effective Language Use (Syntax)Report a problem with this question

19. 19. Informational passage excerpt: "Clinical rotations often take place in settings [such as:] hospitals, outpatient clinics, and nursing homes." Which choice best revises the bracketed portion?

    • A.such as,
    • B.such as✓ Answer
    • C.such as;
    • D.NO CHANGE

    A colon may introduce a list only after a complete independent clause. "Clinical rotations often take place in settings such as" is incomplete, because "such as" needs its object, so no punctuation belongs between "such as" and the list. A semicolon or a comma there would likewise wrongly separate the preposition from its objects.

    Ref QB-BDAJBRSource: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Standard English Conventions, Conventions of Punctuation (Within-sentence punctuation; unnecessary punctuation)Report a problem with this question

20. 20. Informational passage excerpt: "The job can be physically demanding. Assistants spend much of the day on their feet and may need to help lift patients who cannot stand on their own. [Some hospitals also employ chefs who plan meals for patients on special diets.]" Should the writer keep or delete the bracketed sentence?

    • A.Keep it, because it describes another job in a hospital setting.
    • B.Delete it, because it contradicts the claim that the job is hard.
    • C.Delete it, because it strays from the physical demands of the job.✓ Answer
    • D.Keep it, because it shows that assistants work with other staff.

    The paragraph's focus, set by its first sentence, is how physically demanding the assistant's job is. A sentence about hospital chefs is irrelevant to that focus and should be deleted. Describing another hospital job is exactly what makes it off topic. It says nothing about assistants working with chefs, and it does not contradict the claim that the job is hard.

    Ref QB-PPVJ2KSource: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Expression of Ideas, Development (Focus)Report a problem with this question

21. 21. Informational passage excerpt: "(1) Fresco painters work on wet plaster rather than on a dry wall. (2) As the plaster dries, it locks the pigment into the wall itself. (3) The painter brushes pigments mixed only with water onto the fresh surface. (4) This chemical bond explains why some frescoes have lasted for centuries." To make the paragraph most logical, where should sentence 3 be placed?

    • A.After sentence 1✓ Answer
    • B.After sentence 4
    • C.Before sentence 1
    • D.Where it is now

    The process runs in order: the plaster is wet, the painter applies pigment, and then the drying plaster locks that pigment in. Sentence 2 refers to "the pigment" as if it had already been mentioned, so sentence 3, which introduces the pigments, must come before it, right after sentence 1. Sentence 4's "This chemical bond" then correctly follows the locking described in sentence 2.

    Ref QB-773RMKSource: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Expression of Ideas, Organization (Logical sequence)Report a problem with this question

22. 22. Informational passage excerpt: "Because the plaster dries within a day, fresco painters must work in small sections, a [time-consuming] process that demands careful planning." Which choice best revises the bracketed portion?

    • A.time—consuming
    • B.time-consumed
    • C.NO CHANGE✓ Answer
    • D.time consuming

    When two words work together as a single adjective before a noun, they are joined with a hyphen, so "time-consuming process" is correct. Without the hyphen, the words do not read as one modifier. A dash would break the compound apart and wrongly signal a pause, and "time-consumed" uses the wrong verb form: the process consumes time; it is not consumed by time.

    Ref QB-QP8W7MSource: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Standard English Conventions, Conventions of Punctuation (Hyphenation conventions)Report a problem with this question

23. 23. Informational passage excerpt: "Humidity can [effect] how quickly the plaster sets, so painters in damp climates often have more time to work." Which choice best revises the bracketed portion?

    • A.affect✓ Answer
    • B.afflict
    • C.infect
    • D.NO CHANGE

    The sentence needs a verb meaning "to influence," and that verb is "affect." "Effect" is usually a noun meaning "a result," and as a verb it means "to bring about," which does not fit here. "Afflict" means to cause suffering, and "infect" means to spread disease; neither fits drying plaster.

    Ref QB-87E3TMSource: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Standard English Conventions, Conventions of Usage (Frequently confused words)Report a problem with this question

24. 24. Informational passage excerpt: "Mistakes are difficult to fix once the plaster has set. [Consequently,] painters often transfer a full-size drawing, called a cartoon, onto the wall before applying any color." Which choice best revises the bracketed portion?

    • A.Similarly,
    • B.NO CHANGE✓ Answer
    • C.In contrast,
    • D.Nevertheless,

    Painters plan with a full-size drawing because mistakes are hard to fix, so the second sentence is a result of the first and "Consequently" fits. "Nevertheless" and "In contrast" would signal that the planning goes against the difficulty, which reverses the logic. "Similarly" would present the planning as a comparable fact rather than a response.

    Ref QB-MP6WPGSource: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Expression of Ideas, Organization (Transitions)Report a problem with this question

25. 25. Informational passage excerpt: "On summer afternoons, downtown streets can be several degrees warmer than nearby suburbs. Scientists call this pattern the urban heat island effect, and it is [a seriously big deal for] residents who lack air conditioning." Which choice best revises the bracketed portion?

    • A.a serious danger to✓ Answer
    • B.kind of a bummer for
    • C.super rough on
    • D.NO CHANGE

    The passage is objective and scientific, so the wording should match that formal register. "A serious danger to" is both formal and precise about the threat. "A seriously big deal," "kind of a bummer" and "super rough" are casual slang, and "kind of a bummer" also understates the risk.

    Ref QB-57C3AHSource: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Expression of Ideas, Effective Language Use (Style and tone)Report a problem with this question

26. 26. Informational passage excerpt: "Dark surfaces absorb sunlight and release that heat long after sunset. Measurements show that the surface temperature of a black roof can be far higher than [a white roof] on a sunny day." Which choice best revises the bracketed portion?

    • A.NO CHANGE
    • B.that of a white roof✓ Answer
    • C.those of a white roof
    • D.a white roof does

    A logical comparison sets like against like. The sentence compares the temperature of a black roof, so it must compare that with the temperature of a white roof, not with the roof itself. The singular pronoun "that" stands for the singular noun "temperature." "Those" is plural and does not agree, and "a white roof does" still compares a temperature with a roof.

    Ref QB-NPH8VHSource: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Standard English Conventions, Conventions of Usage (Logical comparison)Report a problem with this question

27. 27. Informational passage excerpt: "Planting trees is one of the most effective ways to cool a neighborhood. Their leaves block direct sunlight before it can heat streets and sidewalks." The writer wants to add a sentence that gives specific evidence for the claim in the first sentence. Which choice best accomplishes this goal?

    • A.Trees have been planted along city streets for many hundreds of years.
    • B.Some kinds of trees drop all of their leaves in the autumn months.
    • C.Shaded pavement can be 20 or more degrees cooler than sunlit pavement.✓ Answer
    • D.Many residents say that tree-lined streets look more attractive.

    The claim is about cooling, so the strongest support is a specific, measurable temperature difference produced by shade. The other sentences are about the history of street trees, how they look, or seasonal leaf loss. None of them gives evidence that trees cool a neighborhood.

    Ref QB-67QDFJSource: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Expression of Ideas, Development (Support)Report a problem with this question

28. 28. Informational passage excerpt: "Painted with a reflective white coating, [city officials expect the roofs to stay cooler] on summer afternoons." Which choice best revises the bracketed portion?

    • A.NO CHANGE
    • B.officials expect that the roofs will stay cooler
    • C.it is expected that the roofs will stay cooler
    • D.the roofs are expected by officials to stay cooler✓ Answer

    An introductory modifier must describe the noun that comes right after the comma. The roofs, not the officials, are "painted with a reflective white coating," so "the roofs" must begin the main clause. The original and "officials expect that..." make it sound as if the officials were painted. "It is expected" leaves the modifier with nothing to describe.

    Ref QB-TPAWQQSource: College Board Next-Generation ACCUPLACER Test Specifications — Writing: Standard English Conventions, Sentence Structure (Modifier placement)Report a problem with this question

Practice questions built from the content dimensions in the College Board's published Next-Generation ACCUPLACER test specifications. This site is not affiliated with or endorsed by the College Board, and these are not real test questions. Each college decides which tests you take and the scores it uses for placement, so check with your college before you test. The real Writing test is given in English; its answer choices are kept in English here for that reason. About ACCUPLACER (College Board) →