HESI A2 Reading Comprehension
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Free HESI A2 Reading Comprehension Questions
The author’s motive for writing the paragraph seems to
Let’s Go to the Circus
Everyone loves a circus! The bright lights, fanciful costumes, and fierce wild animals delight and entertain folks of all ages. The circus calls to the child in each one of us. Ernest Hemingway wrote that it "is the only ageless delight that you can buy for money…”
“Circus” is a magic word inspiring all sorts of exciting, colorful images. It's a theater of mind-boggling feats, elephants thundering around the rings, horses dancing, clowns cavorting and the sequins glittering under the lights.
There are historical references to animal displays and athletic competitions from the earliest days of civilization. The Romans were famous for their extravaganzas in the Coliseum. The shows we see today cannot compare to those great spectacles, but all who go to a circus enjoy the experience. It allows us all to be a child again and watch in awe as the athletes perform on the high wire or control the savage beasts in the center ring.
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Berate the reader for not going to the circus.
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Recover the child-like awe for the reader.
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Provide historical facts that are interesting to know.
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Encourage people to attend a circus.
Explanation
Correct Answer:
Recover the child-like awe for the reader.
Explanation:
The tone of the passage is nostalgic and enthusiastic, aiming to rekindle the joy and wonder people felt when first experiencing the circus — “It allows us all to be a child again.”
Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Berate the reader for not going to the circus: There is no scolding or criticism.
Provide historical facts that are interesting to know: History is mentioned, but it’s not the main goal.
Encourage people to attend a circus: While it is supportive of the circus, the emotional focus is on reliving child-like wonder, not solely on urging attendance.
The information presented in this article is
Food
Food and drink are necessary and desirable, but their abuse can cause serious physical and mental problems. Many physicians believe that overeating is one of the country's main health problems, since it places a great strain on the heart, can lead to diabetes, and often shortens the individual’s life span. To fill an emotional void, people often turn to food when they are bored or lonely.
Another area of concern is alcohol consumption. The results of alcohol abuse are widely publicized. The social drinker who becomes alcoholic, the drunken driver’s contribution to highway deaths, spousal and child abuse, are all concomitant problems associated with alcohol abuse.
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Against eating and drinking.
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Against drinking alcohol.
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Unbiased in its approach.
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Against eating rich foods.
Explanation
Correct Answer:
Unbiased in its approach.
Explanation:
The article takes a balanced view of both food and alcohol. It begins by acknowledging that food and drink are necessary and desirable, then discusses the problems that arise from abuse. Rather than taking a judgmental or one-sided stance, it presents the facts and concerns supported by physicians and public reports.
Why Other Options are Wrong:
Against eating and drinking:
The article clearly states that food and drink are necessary and desirable, which shows that it does not oppose them in general — only their abuse.
Against drinking alcohol:
Although it discusses problems related to alcohol abuse, it does not condemn alcohol itself or suggest abstinence. It focuses on the consequences of excessive use.
Against eating rich foods:
There is no mention of rich foods specifically. The passage speaks about overeating in general and its health risks, not specific types of food.
What body of water does The Golden Gate Bridge cross?
The Golden Gate Bridge
Linking San Francisco to Marin County in California, the Golden Gate Bridge is one of the most famous bridges in the world. The bridge crosses over a narrow strait which connects the Pacific Ocean to San Francisco Bay. Prior to the bridge, people traveled by ferry boat across the strait.
Although most people thought a bridge was necessary to expedite travel, some residents of the Bay Area felt the risk of building the bridge was too great. Joseph Strauss believed that nothing was impossible and dreams would never come to fruition if risks weren’t taken. So he decided to gather the best and brightest builders, architects, and workers to embark on the challenge of building a bridge across the Golden Gate Strait.
With safety nets in place, the construction began in 1937. Building the anchorages first, the builders then moved on to the towers on each end, and then to the three-foot thick cables to support the suspension bridge. Lastly, workers labored to complete the roadway, which became the most dangerous and treacherous part of the entire task. The builders had to keep the bridge balanced so it wouldn’t fall into the bay.
Today, over sixty-five years later, the bridge remains a life-line for the people of the San Francisco Bay Area.
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Marin Strait.
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San Francisco Bay.
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Pacific Ocean.
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Golden Gate Strait.
Explanation
Correct Answer:
Golden Gate Strait.
Explanation:
The passage clearly states that the Golden Gate Bridge was built to cross the Golden Gate Strait, which is the narrow body of water connecting the Pacific Ocean to San Francisco Bay.
Why Other Options are Wrong:
Marin Strait:
There is no such body of water mentioned in the passage. Marin is a county, not a strait.
San Francisco Bay:
While the bridge connects to the Bay, the passage explicitly says it crosses a strait, not the bay itself.
Pacific Ocean:
The strait connects to the Pacific Ocean, but the bridge does not span the Pacific—it spans the strait.
The passage explicitly states
The Game of Bridge
The ebb and flow of laughter and silence fills the room as four old friends gather to engage in a round of Bridge playing.
For the beginner, Bridge can be complicated, but with time, effort, and a good teacher, even the novice can become proficient.
Composed of two main parts, bidding and playing, Bridge requires the players' undivided attention. The dealer deals the entire deck of playing cards evenly between the four players, with each person receiving thirteen cards. In the bidding portion of the game, the four suits of cards in the deck are ranked highest to lowest as follows: spades, hearts, diamonds, and finally clubs. However, during play all the suits of cards are considered equal, and they go from highest to lowest from the ace being high to the two cards being low. The highest number of tricks wins. A trick is one card played by each player for a total of four. After the lead player lays down his/her card, the other players follow suit, if possible. The highest card within the four “same suit” cards played wins the trick and picks up all four cards. If a player cannot follow suit, he/she plays any card, but to make the game more interesting and challenging, one suit is named a trump suit which means that if a player plays a card from the trump suit, it always wins the trick. If two cards from the trump suit are played, the highest card within the trump suit wins the trick. Obviously the team with the most tricks wins the hand.
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The Ace card is always the lowest card.
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That if a player cannot follow suit, she loses her turn to the next player.
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That there is a pile of "leftover" cards that is placed in the middle of the game table.
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That the highest card within the "trump" suit always wins the trick.
Explanation
Correct Answer:
That the highest card within the "trump" suit always wins the trick.
Explanation:
The passage explicitly states: “If two cards from the trump suit are played, the highest card within the trump suit wins the trick.” This is a clear, direct quote from the text, making it the correct and most supported choice.
Why Other Options are Wrong:
The Ace card is always the lowest card:
The passage actually says the cards go from ace being high to two being low, which is the opposite of this statement.
That if a player cannot follow suit, she loses her turn to the next player:
The text says that if a player cannot follow suit, they may play any card, not that they lose their turn.
That there is a pile of "leftover" cards that is placed in the middle of the game table:
There is no mention of any pile of leftover cards or placement in the middle of the table. This is not part of the game's description in the passage.
If you thought nurseries were just for babies, well, think again! Being special kinds of farms, nurseries are used to raise plants in mass quantities. Plants, trees, and shrubs are typically grown in nurseries and then sold to farmers and gardeners to plant in homes, businesses and farms. Most nurseries are found in the more rural parts the country because much land is required to have a viable nursery. If a nursery sells plants to others, it must obtain a special permit from the local city or county, which keeps the competition fair and does not saturate the market with a large number of nurseries selling similar products.
Also on the grounds of nurseries are greenhouses which are made of glass or plastic panes that protect the plants from weather elements that may harm them and cause them not to grow and develop. The glass panels in greenhouses allow for sunlight to enter and moisture to be trapped inside. This creates a tropical environment which allows orchids and poinsettias to grow. It ensures that vegetables and fruits will grow large, which makes them valuable to farmers.
In the passage the word panel means:
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A list of jurors.
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A strip of board or other material that forms a section of a wall or door.
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The part of vehicle that supports the controls and dials.
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A strip of material set lengthwise in or on a garment.
Explanation
In the passage, greenhouses are described as being “made of glass or plastic panes.” These panes, or panels, are flat sections of material used to build the walls and roof of the greenhouse. This matches the definition of a panel as a flat piece of material forming part of a structure.
Children begin to taste freedom on bicycles. Historians believe that bicycles began around 3500 B.C. in the Middle East although it took 53 centuries before bicycles were fashioned in the way we know them today.
With over 1500 moving parts, bicycles are complex yet simple machines and amazingly the basic design has not changed since the 1880s. A few tweaks have been added, such as gears and hand-operated brakes, but bicycles remain a steady source of exercise and entertainment for both children and adults. Some forms of bicycling are mountain biking and BMX biking which is similar to cross-country motorcycle racing.
About how long did it take for bicycles to look and feel like they do today?
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5,300 years.
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100 years.
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3,500 years.
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53 years.
Explanation
The passage states that bicycles began around 3500 B.C. and that it took 53 centuries before bicycles were fashioned into the form we recognize today. One century is 100 years, so 53 centuries equals 5,300 years.
The author seems to
Food
Food and drink are necessary and desirable, but their abuse can cause serious physical and mental problems. Many physicians believe that overeating is one of the country's main health problems, since it places a great strain on the heart, can lead to diabetes, and often shortens the individual’s life span. To fill an emotional void, people often turn to food when they are bored or lonely.
Another area of concern is alcohol consumption. The results of alcohol abuse are widely publicized. The social drinker who becomes alcoholic, the drunken driver’s contribution to highway deaths, spousal and child abuse, are all concomitant problems associated with alcohol abuse.
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Oppose drinking alcohol.
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Favor a strict diet.
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Favor moderation.
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Oppose regulation of personal habits.
Explanation
Correct Answer:
Favor moderation.
Explanation:
The author clearly acknowledges that food and drink are “necessary and desirable,” but emphasizes the dangers of abuse. The balanced tone suggests that the author is not advocating for strict avoidance but rather for reasonable, moderate consumption of both food and alcohol to avoid health and social problems.
Why Other Options are Wrong:
Oppose drinking alcohol:
The author does not argue against alcohol entirely but focuses on the consequences of abuse, not responsible drinking. The tone is cautionary, not prohibitive.
Favor a strict diet:
There is no mention of promoting strict dietary restrictions. Instead, the author warns against overeating, which implies moderation rather than rigidity.
Oppose regulation of personal habits:
The passage does not mention laws, policies, or opposition to regulation. It focuses solely on the personal consequences of behavior, not political or legal measures.
Why was the roadway so dangerous to build?
The Golden Gate Bridge
Linking San Francisco to Marin County in California, the Golden Gate Bridge is one of the most famous bridges in the world. The bridge crosses over a narrow strait which connects the Pacific Ocean to San Francisco Bay. Prior to the bridge, people traveled by ferry boat across the strait.
Although most people thought a bridge was necessary to expedite travel, some residents of the Bay Area felt the risk of building the bridge was too great. Joseph Strauss believed that nothing was impossible and dreams would never come to fruition if risks weren’t taken. So he decided to gather the best and brightest builders, architects, and workers to embark on the challenge of building a bridge across the Golden Gate Strait.
With safety nets in place, the construction began in 1937. Building the anchorages first, the builders then moved on to the towers on each end, and then to the three-foot thick cables to support the suspension bridge. Lastly, workers labored to complete the roadway, which became the most dangerous and treacherous part of the entire task. The builders had to keep the bridge balanced so it wouldn’t fall into the bay.
Today, over sixty-five years later, the bridge remains a life-line for the people of the San Francisco Bay Area.
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There weren’t enough materials available to build the road.
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The men would fall to their deaths.
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The workers might get hit by passing cars.
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If the road wasn’t balanced, it would collapse.
Explanation
Correct Answer:
If the road wasn’t balanced, it would collapse.
Explanation:
The passage states that the builders had to keep the bridge balanced so it wouldn’t fall into the bay, specifically when constructing the roadway. This made the task especially dangerous and challenging.
Why Other Options are Wrong:
There weren’t enough materials available to build the road:
The passage makes no mention of material shortages.
The men would fall to their deaths:
Although construction work can be dangerous, this specific danger is not stated in the passage.
The workers might get hit by passing cars:
There is no mention of traffic or cars during construction in the passage.
The Electoral College has nothing to do with college and contains no students. The Electoral College consists of votes that each state acquires based on the number of representatives it has in Congress.
Each state has two electoral votes because each state has two senators. The remaining electoral votes are determined by the number of Congressmen, the number of which is based on the population of the state established by the Census taken each decade.
During the presidential election, most states cast all their electoral votes for the candidate who wins the popular vote in that particular state. It's all very confusing, but the founding fathers knew what they were doing. By having and using the Electoral College candidates campaign in every state, but just because they win the popular vote across the country doesn't mean they will always win the election. Case in point, in election 2000, Al Gore won the popular vote across the country, but George W. Bush won more electoral votes.Therefore he became our 43rd president.
In the passage, the word cast means to:
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turn and send in a particular direction.
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give one's vote.
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throw
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select actors for a play.
Explanation
In the sentence, “most states cast all their electoral votes for the candidate who wins the popular vote,” the word cast refers specifically to formally giving or recording a vote. This is the standard meaning when discussing elections.
What is the main reason that athletes want to participate in the Olympics?
The Summer Olympic Games
Once every four years the countries of the world send their best and brightest to participate in the Summer Olympic Games. The site for the event is decided years before, and most countries contend strongly for the privilege to host the Games. The 2008 games were held in Beijing, China.
There is a lot of pageantry and tradition attached to the event. The opening ceremony is elaborate and awe-inspiring. China put on a spectacularly beautiful fireworks display to welcome the world’s athletes in 2008.
The track events, water events (swimming, diving), and precision activities such as archery and rhythmic gymnastics are wonderful to watch. Seeing these athletes perform their special skills is a treat for those of us who achieve a vicarious satisfaction from it. Everyone roots for the athletes from their own country and we thrill when our anthem is played during the medal ceremony. Being an Olympian is an honor every athlete dreams of.
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They get a sizable stipend for their performance.
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They have a patriotic pride in their performance.
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Travel to foreign countries.
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They can win a scholarship for future education.
Explanation
Correct Answer:
They have a patriotic pride in their performance.
Explanation:
The passage emphasizes that athletes are honored to represent their countries and that “being an Olympian is an honor every athlete dreams of.” It also states that “everyone roots for the athletes from their own country,” suggesting a strong sense of national pride. This makes it clear that athletes are largely motivated by patriotic feelings and a desire to bring pride to their country.
Why Other Options are Wrong:
They get a sizable stipend for their performance:
The passage does not mention any monetary reward or stipend as a motivation. In fact, the tone focuses on tradition, honor, and pride rather than financial gain.
Travel to foreign countries:
While athletes do travel, the text does not imply that this is the main reason they participate. The emphasis is instead on representing their country and the honor of competing.
They can win a scholarship for future education:
There is no mention in the passage of scholarships or educational benefits tied to participation in the Olympics.
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