Home / Digital SAT / Craft and Structure-Words in Context - Medium

DSAT R&W Practice Question-Craft and Structure-Words in Context – Medium | New Syllabus

DSAT R&W Practice Question-Craft and Structure-Words in Context - Medium

DSAT R&W Practice Question-Craft and Structure-Words in Context – Medium

DSAT R&W Practice Question-Craft and Structure-Words in Context – Medium is part of Craft and Structure : This section evaluates skills in understanding advanced academic vocabulary words from the context they are used in, analyzing an author’s rhetorical (persuasive writing) techniques and purpose, and synthesizing key ideas by making connections between multiple related texts on a topic.

Weightage : 20%

Subtopic: Cross-Text Connections

DSAT R&W – Exam Style Practice Questions – All Topics

Question Medium

Text
The creation of Lotte Reiniger’s 1926 animated film The Adventures of Prince Achmed was ______ process. Over the course of three years, Reiniger and her collaborators painstakingly made more than 250,000 individual images of hand-cut paper silhouettes and repeatedly had to invent entirely new methods and tools to create the special effects Reiniger envisioned.

Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?

A) a haphazard

B) an ineffectual

C) a contentious

D) an arduous

▶️ Answer/Explanation
Solution

Ans: D

The correct answer is “an arduous” because:

  • The text emphasizes the lengthy (three years) and labor-intensive nature of the work (“painstakingly made more than 250,000 individual images”).
  • It mentions the need to invent new methods and tools, further highlighting the challenging process.
Question Medium

Text
Louise Arner Boyd, who led several scientific expeditions off the coast of Greenland in the 1930s, undoubtedly accomplished much, but to gain a lasting place in our historical memory, there is little that can ______ being the first to do something. For example, people will always remember that Enid Gordon-Gallien led the expedition that first mapped the area around Kalambo Falls between Zambia and Tanzania.

Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?

A) prevail over

B) constrain within

C) overreach by

D) fluctuate with

▶️ Answer/Explanation
Solution

Ans: A) prevail over

The blank requires a phrase meaning “surpass” or “outdo” because:

  • The text contrasts Boyd’s accomplishments with the superior memorability of being first
  • The example shows how first achievements endure in historical memory
  • “Prevail over” perfectly captures this competitive relationship
Question Medium

Text
Some robots such as Saika (developed in 1996) and Poppy (developed in 2013) are designed to resemble humans so that people will find it easier to interact with them. To this end, certain features such as bipedal locomotion can help to create the comforting semblance of humanity, but a robot that appears too similar to humans can make people feel more ____ than reassured.

Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?

A) vindicated

B) fanciful

C) unnerved

D) sympathetic

▶️ Answer/Explanation
Solution

Ans: C) unnerved

The blank requires a word that contrasts with “reassured” in the context of the “uncanny valley” effect:

  • Logical contrast: The text establishes that human-like robots usually comfort people, but excessive similarity has the opposite effect
  • Precision: “Unnerved” specifically captures the discomfort caused by near-human appearances
Question Medium

Text
Posted in 1970, McMullen’s g-conjecture ______ many mathematicians before yielding to the efforts of Karim Adiprasito, who presented a proof of it in 2018.

Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?

A) appeased

B) disregarded

C) confounded

D) indoctrinated

▶️ Answer/Explanation
Solution

Ans: C) confounded

The blank requires a verb describing how the conjecture affected mathematicians before it was solved. “Confounded” (meaning confused or perplexed) fits best

Question Medium

Text

Though it seemed _____ to many mathematicians, the Marden tameness conjecture, posed in 1974, eventually yielded to the efforts of Ian Agol, who presented a proof of it in 2004.

Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?

A) Insuperable

B) Unequivocal

C) Irreproachable

D) Ineluctable

▶️ Answer/Explanation
Solution

Ans: A) Insuperable

The blank requires a word describing how the conjecture appeared to mathematicians before it was solved. “Insuperable” (meaning impossible to overcome) fits best.

Question Medium

Text
Although Hawaiian literature is highly heterogeneous in many ways, it is also characterized by considerable thematic ______; scholars have drawn connections linking works by writers such as Mary Kawena Pukui and Gary Pak to the traditional stories of the Kamaka Maoli, the Native Hawaiian people.

Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?

A) subtlety

B) sophistication

C) continuity

D) innovation

▶️ Answer/Explanation
Solution

Ans: C

The text describes Hawaiian literature as diverse (“heterogeneous”) yet having connections to traditional stories. “Continuity” (Option C) best captures this enduring thematic connection. The other options don’t fit as well: “subtlety” (A) suggests hidden meanings, “sophistication” (B) implies complexity rather than connection, and “innovation” (D) would contrast with rather than complement the mention of traditional stories.

Question Medium

Text
In 2017, Austria, which has strong democratic institutions, experienced an inflation rate of 2.08%, much higher than the 0.64% rate seen in Cameroon, which has relatively weak democratic institutions. Such a result is _____, however: Raj Desai et al. have shown that democratic institution strength tends to restrain inflationary pressures.

Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?

A) anomalous

B) unfounded

C) facetious

D) inexplicable

▶️ Answer/Explanation
Solution

Ans: A

The text presents a counterexample to the general finding that strong democracies restrain inflation. “Anomalous” (Option A) means deviating from what’s expected, which perfectly describes this exception. “Unfounded” (B) would imply the research lacks evidence, “facetious” (C) suggests humor/sarcasm, and “inexplicable” (D) means unexplainable when the text actually provides the general pattern that makes this case exceptional.

Question Medium

Text
Though few critics consider Vasily Grossman’s novel Stalingrad—which focuses on the experience of the Soviet Union in the early years of World War II—to be as well written as his later book Everything Flows, some compliment it despite the damage ______ Soviet censors: Gary Saul Morson in The New York Review of Books called the novel “remarkably bold.”

Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?

A) bestowed on

B) wrought by

C) allocated to

D) concealed from

▶️ Answer/Explanation
Solution

Ans: B

The phrase “wrought by” (Option B) correctly indicates that Soviet censors caused the damage to the novel, which is still complimented despite this interference. “Bestowed on” (A) implies positive giving, “allocated to” (C) suggests distribution, and “concealed from” (D) would mean the censors hid the damage rather than causing it.

Question Medium

Text
Literary scholars often encourage those studying authors and their literary movements to understand how certain qualities of an author’s writings were perceived by his or her immediate audience. While most would not consider the works of Miguel de Unamuno to be especially controversial today, one should consider whether there are aspects of his work that may have been seen as ______ to some readers of his time.

Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?

A) provocative

B) irrefutable

C) pretentious

D) irrelevant

▶️ Answer/Explanation
Solution

Ans: A

The text contrasts how Unamuno’s works are perceived today (not controversial) with how they might have been received by his contemporary audience. The word “provocative” (Option A) best fits this context as it suggests his works may have been challenging or stimulating to readers of his time, even if they aren’t seen that way today. The other options don’t fit as well: “irrefutable” (B) suggests undeniable truth rather than controversy, “pretentious” (C) implies arrogance not supported by the text, and “irrelevant” (D) contradicts the scholarly focus on audience perception.

Question medium

Text 1
As a member of Indigenous Photograph, artist Tshabiso Mabula  can ___ her work more broadly than she could without the organization’s reach. Photography editors around the world can search for Indigenous photographer’s images on the organization’s website to find images that document and reflect Indigenous communities.

Question
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?

A) empty

B) promote

C) alter

D) discover

▶️ Answer/Explanation
Solution

Ans: B

The context suggests the organization helps the artist share her work more widely, making “promote” the most logical and precise choice.

Option A: empty (incorrect, does not fit the context)

Option B: promote (correct, aligns with broadening reach)

Option C: alter (incorrect, implies change, not distribution)

Option D: discover (incorrect, refers to editors, not the artist)

Question Hard

The following text is adapted from Nathaniel Hawthorne’s 1837 story “Dr. Heidegger’s Experiment.” The main character, a physician, is experimenting with rehydrating a dried flower.

At first [the rose] lay lightly on the surface of the fluid, appearing to imbibe none of its moisture. Soon, however, a singular change began to be visible. The crushed and dried petals stirred and assumed a deepening tinge of crimson, as if the flower were reviving from a deathlike slumber.

As used in the text, what does the phrase “a singular” most nearly mean?

A) A lonely

B) A disagreeable

C) An acceptable

D) An extraordinary

▶️ Answer/Explanation
Solution

Answer: D

“Singular” means extraordinary, as the rose’s revival from a deathlike state is an exceptional change, fitting the context of the experiment.

Question Hard

The work of molecular biophysicist Enrique M. De La Cruz is known for ______ traditional boundaries between academic disciplines. The university laboratory that De La Cruz runs includes engineers, biologists, chemists, and physicists, and the research the lab produces makes use of insights and techniques from all those fields.

Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?

A) epitomizing

B) transcending

C) anticipating

D) reinforcing

▶️ Answer/Explanation
Solution

Answer: B

“Transcending” fits best, meaning going beyond traditional boundaries, as the lab integrates multiple fields.

More DSAT R&W Practice Question..
Scroll to Top