1Formulas and methods
Reading comprehension (entrance exams)
Method
- Read the question first so you know what you are looking for.
- Skim the passage for its topic and main point; the first or last sentence often states it.
- Go back to the exact lines that answer the question.
- For inferences, choose the option the clues most strongly support, not one that goes further.
- For labels and tables, apply every rule that fits the case and do the small calculation carefully.
English grammar & language usage (entrance exams)
Method
- Find the subject and the verb of the sentence before choosing a form.
- Strip away phrases (of the …, along with …) and extra people (you and …) to test agreement and pronoun case.
- Check each clause: can it stand alone? Join independent clauses with a comma + conjunction or a semicolon.
- Check modifiers and lists: the describing phrase next to its word, items in the same form.
- For word choice and register, pick the precise, formal and concise option.
Healthcare vocabulary (entrance exams)
Method
- Read the whole sentence and look for a context clue: a definition, a contrast, an example or a cause and effect.
- Split an unfamiliar word into prefix, root and suffix and translate each part.
- Read a medical term from the suffix back to the start (hepat-itis: inflammation of the liver).
- Put each option into the sentence and check that the meaning still fits.
- Choose the meaning used in this sentence, even if the word has another everyday meaning.
2Practice problems
1.Reading comprehension (entrance exams)Medium
“The whale is the largest animal on Earth. Some blue whales are longer than two buses parked end to end.” Why does the author compare whales to buses?
- ATo suggest that buses are bigger than whales
- BTo show that whales are as fast as buses
- CTo explain how whales travel
- DTo help readers picture the whale’s great size
2.Reading comprehension (entrance exams)Hard
The author writes: “Our survey found that 9 out of 10 dentists recommend chewing gum.” The survey was paid for by a chewing gum company and asked only 10 dentists. Why should a reader be cautious about this claim?
- AChewing gum is not sold in most countries.
- BThe survey should have asked only one dentist.
- CThe sample is tiny and the sponsor has an interest.
- DDentists know little about teeth.
3.English grammar & language usage (entrance exams)Medium
Which sentence refers correctly to the whole Jones family?
- AThe Jone’s are coming to dinner.
- BThe Joneses’ are coming to dinner.
- CThe Joneses are coming to dinner.
- DThe Jones’s are coming to dinner.
4.English grammar & language usage (entrance exams)Hard
What is the function of the underlined word? “Her mother is a surgeon.”
- ADirect object
- BAppositive
- CIndirect object
- DPredicate noun (subject complement)
5.Healthcare vocabulary (entrance exams)Medium
Choose the meaning of the word in bold: “The nurse collected a sputum sample in the morning.”
- ABlood taken from a vein
- BFluid running from the nose during a cold
- CMucus coughed up from the lungs
- DUrine passed from the bladder
6.Healthcare vocabulary (entrance exams)Hard
What does the term hepatorenal mean?
- ARelating to the liver and kidneys
- BRelating to the liver and heart
- CRelating to the kidneys and bladder
- DRelating to the liver and stomach
3Solutions
1.Reading comprehension (entrance exams)
Answer: D · To help readers picture the whale’s great size
Why this is the answer
Comparing a blue whale with two buses gives readers a familiar picture of its great length.
D · To help readers picture the whale’s great size
2.Reading comprehension (entrance exams)
Answer: C · The sample is tiny and the sponsor has an interest.
Why this is the answer
A sample of 10 is too small to generalise from, and a gum company has a reason to want a positive result, so the claim may be biased.
C · The sample is tiny and the sponsor has an interest.
3.English grammar & language usage (entrance exams)
Answer: C · The Joneses are coming to dinner.
Why this is the answer
To make a family name ending in s plural, add -es: the Joneses. An apostrophe never makes a plural.
C · The Joneses are coming to dinner.
4.English grammar & language usage (entrance exams)
Answer: D · Predicate noun (subject complement)
Why this is the answer
After a linking verb, a noun that renames the subject is a predicate noun, also called a subject complement. Linking verbs do not take direct objects.
D · Predicate noun (subject complement)
5.Healthcare vocabulary (entrance exams)
Answer: C · Mucus coughed up from the lungs
Why this is the answer
Sputum is mucus brought up from the lower airways by coughing.
C · Mucus coughed up from the lungs
6.Healthcare vocabulary (entrance exams)
Answer: A · Relating to the liver and kidneys
Why this is the answer
Hepatorenal refers to both the liver and the kidneys, as in hepatorenal syndrome.
A · Relating to the liver and kidneys