TEAS-style practice questions (all four sections): cram pack

Formula sheets, the key method steps for every topic and 16 practice problems, with full solutions at the back.

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1Formulas and methods

Reading comprehension (entrance exams)

Method

  1. Read the question first so you know what you are looking for.
  2. Skim the passage for its topic and main point; the first or last sentence often states it.
  3. Go back to the exact lines that answer the question.
  4. For inferences, choose the option the clues most strongly support, not one that goes further.
  5. For labels and tables, apply every rule that fits the case and do the small calculation carefully.

Pre-nursing math (entrance exam)

Order of operations
parentheses → exponents → × ÷ (left to right) → + − (left to right)
Fractions
a/b + c/d = (ad + bc)/bd, a/b × c/d = ac/bd, a/b ÷ c/d = a/b × d/c
Percent
p% of N = (p/100)·N; percent = part/whole × 100
Percent change
(new − original)/original × 100
Discount, then tax
price × (1 − d/100) × (1 + t/100)
Proportion
a/b = c/d → ad = bc
Mean, median, mode, range
sum/count; middle of ordered list; most frequent; max − min
Length, capacity, time
1 km = 1000 m, 1 m = 100 cm, 1 ft = 12 in, 1 yd = 3 ft, 1 mi = 5280 ft, 1 gal = 4 qt = 16 cups, 1 h = 60 min
Temperature
°F = °C·9/5 + 32, °C = (°F − 32)·5/9; a change of 1 °C = 1.8 °F
Area
rectangle l·w, triangle ½·b·h, circle π·r²
Perimeter and circumference
rectangle 2l + 2w, circle π·d = 2π·r
Volume
box l·w·h, cylinder π·r²·h; 1000 cm³ = 1 L
Speed
distance ÷ time (time in hours for mph or km/h)

Method

  1. Read the last sentence first: what exactly is asked, and in which unit or form (lowest terms, nearest cent, one decimal place)?
  2. Write the numbers in one form: turn mixed numbers into improper fractions, percents into decimals, and hours and minutes into one unit.
  3. Pick the method: PEMDAS for expressions, a common denominator for adding fractions, part ÷ whole × 100 for percents, cross-multiplying for proportions, inverse operations for equations.
  4. Work one step at a time and write each line down; round only at the very end.
  5. Check the size of the answer with an estimate, and put an equation’s answer back in.

Biology for nursing entrance exams

Method

  1. Name the topic of the question: cell parts, transport, division, DNA and protein synthesis, inheritance, biomolecules, microorganisms or experimental design.
  2. Recall the key rule: A–T and G–C, diffusion from high to low, water moves towards more solute, mitosis keeps and meiosis halves the chromosome number.
  3. For crosses, write the parents’ genotypes, list the gametes and fill a Punnett square before counting.
  4. For experiments, label the independent, dependent and controlled variables, and ask whether the evidence supports or only suggests the conclusion.
  5. Check each option against the question asked, not just whether it is a true statement.

Chemistry for nursing entrance exams

Method

  1. Identify what is given and asked: particles, a formula, a state change, a concentration, a pH or a mass.
  2. Use the periodic table: the atomic number gives protons, the group gives valence electrons and the usual ion charge.
  3. Balance equations with coefficients only, element by element, oxygen and hydrogen last.
  4. For amounts, go mass → moles → mole ratio → moles → mass, and for solutions use M = mol/L and C₁V₁ = C₂V₂.
  5. Remember that pH is logarithmic: one unit is a factor of 10.

English grammar & language usage (entrance exams)

Method

  1. Find the subject and the verb of the sentence before choosing a form.
  2. Strip away phrases (of the …, along with …) and extra people (you and …) to test agreement and pronoun case.
  3. Check each clause: can it stand alone? Join independent clauses with a comma + conjunction or a semicolon.
  4. Check modifiers and lists: the describing phrase next to its word, items in the same form.
  5. For word choice and register, pick the precise, formal and concise option.

Healthcare vocabulary (entrance exams)

Method

  1. Read the whole sentence and look for a context clue: a definition, a contrast, an example or a cause and effect.
  2. Split an unfamiliar word into prefix, root and suffix and translate each part.
  3. Read a medical term from the suffix back to the start (hepat-itis: inflammation of the liver).
  4. Put each option into the sentence and check that the meaning still fits.
  5. Choose the meaning used in this sentence, even if the word has another everyday meaning.

2Practice problems

1.Reading comprehension (entrance exams)Medium

Paragraph: “Many students struggle to focus at home. Phones buzz, family members talk, and the TV is often on. A quiet library can be a better place to study.” What is the author’s main point?

  1. AStudents should turn off their phones at night.
  2. BStudents study best with friends at home.
  3. CA library may be a better place to study.
  4. DFamilies should watch less TV in the evening.
2.Reading comprehension (entrance exams)Hard

“The forest fire was finally under control after three days. Firefighters praised the townspeople, who had cleared dry brush around their homes weeks earlier, for saving many houses.” Why did the firefighters praise the townspeople?

  1. AThey called the firefighters very quickly.
  2. BTheir earlier preparation helped protect houses.
  3. CThey put out the fire themselves on the first day.
  4. DThey left the town before the fire began.
3.Pre-nursing math (entrance exam)Medium
r = 15 m

A circle has a radius of 15 m. Using π ≈ 3.14, find its area A.

r = 15 mπ ≈ 3.14
A = m²
4.Pre-nursing math (entrance exam)Hard
ABCA: 10%B: 15%C: 75%

The pie chart shows how a hospital’s 400 employees are split between departments A to C. What is the angle θ of the sector for department B, in degrees?

θ = °
5.Human anatomyMedium

Which cranial nerve controls most of the muscles of facial expression?

  1. AOculomotor nerve (III)
  2. BFacial nerve (VII)
  3. CTrigeminal nerve (V)
  4. DHypoglossal nerve (XII)
6.Human anatomyHard

What is the correct order of structures that urine passes through after leaving the collecting ducts?

  1. ARenal pelvis, minor calyx, major calyx, ureter
  2. BMinor calyx, major calyx, renal pelvis, ureter
  3. CMinor calyx, renal pelvis, major calyx, ureter
  4. DMajor calyx, minor calyx, renal pelvis, ureter
7.Human physiologyMedium

What is the main effect of vagus nerve stimulation on the heart?

  1. AIt increases the heart rate
  2. BIt increases ventricular contractility strongly
  3. CIt constricts the coronary arteries
  4. DIt slows the heart rate
8.Human physiologyHard

Which mechanism mainly creates the concentration gradient in the medulla of the kidney?

  1. ASecretion of urea into the proximal tubule
  2. BADH acting on the descending limb
  3. CThe countercurrent multiplier of the loop of Henle
  4. DGlomerular filtration
9.Biology for nursing entrance examsMedium

A red-flowered plant is crossed with a white-flowered plant, and all offspring have pink flowers. What does this show?

  1. AComplete dominance
  2. BIncomplete dominance
  3. CA sex-linked trait
  4. DCodominance
10.Biology for nursing entrance examsHard

A scientist wants to show that a particular microbe causes a disease. According to Koch's postulates, which step is needed?

  1. AThe microbe must be found in healthy hosts just as often as in sick hosts
  2. BThe disease must be treated successfully with antibiotics
  3. CThe microbe grown from a sick host must cause the disease in a healthy host
  4. DThe microbe must be seen in the blood under a light microscope
11.Chemistry for nursing entrance examsMedium

Which reacts more vigorously with water, potassium or sodium?

  1. ASodium, because its outer electron is farther from the nucleus
  2. BSodium, because it has fewer electron shells to shield its electron
  3. CPotassium, because its outer electron is farther from the nucleus
  4. DThey react equally, because both are in group 1
12.Chemistry for nursing entrance examsHard

In 2H₂ + O₂ → 2H₂O, 4 g of hydrogen (molar mass 2 g/mol) reacts with plenty of oxygen. What mass of water forms (molar mass 18 g/mol)?

  1. A36 g
  2. B4 g
  3. C72 g
  4. D18 g
13.English grammar & language usage (entrance exams)Medium

Choose the correct word form: “She is ___ to peanuts.”

  1. Aallergically
  2. Ballergic
  3. Callergy
  4. Dallergies
14.English grammar & language usage (entrance exams)Hard

Which choice is the most concise way to write “due to the fact that”?

  1. Abecause
  2. Bowing to the fact of
  3. Cfor the reason being that
  4. Don account of the fact that
15.Healthcare vocabulary (entrance exams)Medium

Choose the meaning of the word in bold: “The child was febrile on admission.”

  1. AHaving a fever
  2. BDehydrated
  3. CShort of breath
  4. DVery confused
16.Healthcare vocabulary (entrance exams)Hard

Choose the meaning of the word in bold: “On the mental health assessment, the patient’s affect was flat.”

  1. AOutward expression of emotion
  2. BPhysical strength and energy
  3. CAbility to remember recent events
  4. DLevel of pain reported

3Solutions

1.Reading comprehension (entrance exams)

Answer: C · A library may be a better place to study.

Why this is the answer

The details about phones, family and TV explain why home is distracting, which supports the main point that a library can be better for studying.

Answer

C · A library may be a better place to study.
2.Reading comprehension (entrance exams)

Answer: B · Their earlier preparation helped protect houses.

Why this is the answer

Clearing dry brush removes fuel, so the townspeople’s earlier preparation helped save houses.

Answer

B · Their earlier preparation helped protect houses.
3.Pre-nursing math (entrance exam)

Answer: A = 706.5 m²

Perimeter, area and volume: the perimeter is the distance around a shape (rectangle: 2l + 2w). Area is measured in square units: rectangle l × w, triangle ½ × base × height, circle π·r². The circumference of a circle is π·d = 2π·r. Volume is in cubic units: box l × w × h, cylinder π·r²·h. Use the value of π the question gives.

Area

A = 3.14 × 15² = 3.14 × 225 = 706.5 m²

Answer

A = 706.5 m²
4.Pre-nursing math (entrance exam)

Answer: θ = 54 °

Reading charts and tables: read the title, the categories and the scale first. On a bar chart or line graph, follow the top of the bar or the point across to the vertical axis; every gridline is one step of the scale. A pie chart shows parts of a whole: a sector of p% stands for p% of the total and has an angle of p% of 360°.

Share of 360°

θ = 0.15 × 360° = 54°

Answer

θ = 54°
5.Human anatomy

Answer: B · Facial nerve (VII)

Why this is the answer

The facial nerve (cranial nerve VII) supplies the muscles of facial expression. Damage causes facial palsy, as in Bell's palsy.

Answer

B · Facial nerve (VII)
6.Human anatomy

Answer: B · Minor calyx, major calyx, renal pelvis, ureter

Why this is the answer

Collecting ducts open at the renal papillae into minor calyces, which join to form major calyces, which empty into the renal pelvis and then the ureter.

Answer

B · Minor calyx, major calyx, renal pelvis, ureter
7.Human physiology

Answer: D · It slows the heart rate

Why this is the answer

The vagus releases acetylcholine on muscarinic receptors in the SA and AV nodes, slowing pacemaker firing and AV conduction.

Answer

D · It slows the heart rate
8.Human physiology

Answer: C · The countercurrent multiplier of the loop of Henle

Why this is the answer

The ascending limb actively transports NaCl into the interstitium without letting water follow, and the countercurrent flow multiplies this into a steep gradient that ADH then uses to concentrate urine.

Answer

C · The countercurrent multiplier of the loop of Henle
9.Biology for nursing entrance exams

Answer: B · Incomplete dominance

Why this is the answer

In incomplete dominance the heterozygote has an intermediate phenotype. In codominance both traits would show fully, for example red and white patches.

Answer

B · Incomplete dominance
10.Biology for nursing entrance exams

Answer: C · The microbe grown from a sick host must cause the disease in a healthy host

Why this is the answer

Koch's postulates require the microbe to be found in sick hosts, grown in pure culture, cause the same disease when given to a healthy host, and be recovered again from that host.

Answer

C · The microbe grown from a sick host must cause the disease in a healthy host
11.Chemistry for nursing entrance exams

Answer: C · Potassium, because its outer electron is farther from the nucleus

Why this is the answer

Potassium is below sodium in group 1. Its outer electron is farther from the nucleus and more shielded, so it is lost more easily and potassium reacts more vigorously.

Answer

C · Potassium, because its outer electron is farther from the nucleus
12.Chemistry for nursing entrance exams

Answer: A · 36 g

Why this is the answer

4 g H₂ = 2 mol; the ratio H₂ : H₂O is 1 : 1, so 2 mol H₂O = 2 × 18 = 36 g.

Answer

A · 36 g
13.English grammar & language usage (entrance exams)

Answer: B · allergic

Why this is the answer

“Allergic” is the adjective that describes the subject. “Allergy” is the noun, as in “She has a peanut allergy.”

Answer

B · allergic
14.English grammar & language usage (entrance exams)

Answer: A · because

Why this is the answer

“Because” replaces the wordy phrase without changing the meaning.

Answer

A · because
15.Healthcare vocabulary (entrance exams)

Answer: A · Having a fever

Why this is the answer

Febrile means feverish or having a raised body temperature.

Answer

A · Having a fever
16.Healthcare vocabulary (entrance exams)

Answer: A · Outward expression of emotion

Why this is the answer

In mental health, affect is the observable expression of emotion; a flat affect shows very little emotional expression.

Answer

A · Outward expression of emotion

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