SAT Question Stems

SAT Question Stem Types for the Reading Test

1.  Which point about ____ is implied in Passage 1 and explicit in Passage 2?
2. Which choice provides the best evidence for the answer to the previous question?
3. The author of Passage 2 would most likely respond to the discussion of ____, by claiming that 
4. Which statement best describes the relationship between the passages?
5. As used in line 24, "____" most nearly means
6. The central claim of Passage 2 is that ____ has positive potential but
7. What function does the discussion of ____ in lines 20-25 serve in Passage 1?
8. As used in line 15, "____" most nearly means
9. Which choice provides the best evidence for the answer to the previous question?
10. The author of Passage 1 indicates that ____ could have which negative effect?
11. In lines 10-18, the author of Passage 1 mentions ____ primarily to
12. The ____ listed in lines 65-69 mainly serves to emphasize how
13. Which choice most closely captures the meaning of the figurative "____" referred to in lines 60 and 61?
14. Which choice provides the best evidence for the answer to the previous question?
15. [Author name] characterizes the questions in lines 43-47 as both
16. Which choice provides the best evidence for the answer to the previous question?
17. [Author name] indicates that the ____ describes in the passage
18. According to the passage, [Author name] chooses the setting of the ____ because it
19. [Author name] uses the word "we" throughout the passage mainly to
20. The central claim of the passage is that
21.  The main purpose of the passage is to
22. Based on the table, is the percentage of ____ in ____ the same or does it vary, and which statement made by the authors is most consistent with that data? (Science passage)
23. According to the table, which of the following pairs of base percentages in ____ DNA provides evidence in support of the answer to the previous question? (Science passage)
24. Do the data in the table support the authors' proposed pairing of bases in DNA? (Science passage)
25. Based on the table and passage, which choice gives the correct percentages of ____ in ____ DNA? (Science passage)
26. The author's use of the words, "exact," "specific," and "complement" in lines 40-42 in the final paragraph functions mainly to (Science passage)
27.  Based on the passage, the authors' statement "____" (lines 27-28) implies that (Science passage)
28. The author's main purpose of including the information about ____ evidence and ____ is to (Science passage)
29. In the second paragraph (lines 10-18), what do the authors claim to be a feature of biological interest? (Science passage)
30. A student claims that ____. Which of the following statements in the passage contradicts the student's claim? (Science passage)
31. The authors use the word "____" in lines 2 and 38 to indicate that (Science passage)
32. The authors would likely attribute the difference in ____ and ____ mean ____ as represented in the graph to
33. The graph following the passage offers evidence that ____ base their predictions of how much based on
34.  The authors refer to work by [Author name] and others (line 54) in order to
35. As it is used in line 45, "____" most nearly means
36. Which choice provides the best evidence for the answer to the previous question?
37. The passage indicates that the assumption made by ____ in lines 38-39 may be
38. The ____ mentioned in paragraph 2 (lines 14-30) would likely describe the ____ phenomenon as
39. Which choice provides the best evidence for the answer to the previous question?
40. The authors indicate that people value ____ because they feel it
41. In line 9, the word "____" most nearly means
42. The authors most likely use the examples in line 5-14 of the passage to highlight the
43. Which choice provides the best evidence for the answer to the previous question?
44. Why does [Character name] say his meeting with [Character name] is "____"?
45. As used in line 3, "____" most nearly means
46. The main purpose of the first paragraph is to
47. In the passage, [Character name] addresses [Character name] with
48. Which choice provides the best evidence for the answer to the previous question?
49. Which reaction does [Character name] most fear from [Character name]?
50. As used in line 2 and 66, "____" most nearly means
51. Which choice best describes the developmental pattern of the passage?
52. Which choice best describes what happens in the passage? 

(The information in this handout was excerpted and adapted from The Official SAT Study Guide, 2015.)