PiCAT Paragraph Comprehension Practice Test 2024

PiCAT Paragraph Comprehension Practice Test 2024: Try our free Prescreen Internet Computerized Adaptive Test (PiCAT) US Armed Forces Paragraph Comprehension review questions and answers. You can also download PiCAT Paragraph Comprehension Practice Test in PDF.

This test contains 11 items measuring your ability to obtain information from written passages. You will find one or more paragraphs of reading material followed by incomplete statements or questions. You are to read the paragraph(s) and select the lettered choice that best completes the statement or answers the question.

PiCAT Paragraph Comprehension Practice Test 2024

Q1. Few drivers realize that steel is used to keep the road surface flat despite the weight of buses and trucks. Steel bars, deeply embedded in the concrete, are sinews to take the stresses so that the stresses cannot crack the slab or make it wavy.

The passage best supports the statement that a concrete road

• A. is expensive to build.
• B. usually cracks under heavy weights.
• C. looks like any other road.
• D. is reinforced with other material.

Q2. Blood pressure, the force that the blood exerts against the walls of the vessels through which it flows, is commonly meant to be the pressure in the arteries. The pressure in the arteries varies with the contraction (work period) and the relaxation (rest period) of the heart. When the heart contracts, the blood in the arteries is at its greatest, or systolic, pressure. When the heart relaxes, the blood in the arteries is at its lowest, or diastolic, pressure. The difference between these pressures is called the pulse pressure.

According to the passage, which one of the following statements is most accurate?

• A. The blood in the arteries is at its greatest pressure during contraction.
• B. Systolic pressure measures the blood in the arteries when the heart is relaxed.
• C. The difference between systolic and diastolic pressure determines blood pressure.
• D. Pulse pressure is the same as blood pressure.

Q3. More patents have been issued for inventions relating to transportation than for those in any other line of human activity. These inventions have resulted in a great financial savings to the people and have made possible a civilization that could not have existed without them.

One of the following statements that is best supported by the passage is that transportation

• A. would be impossible without inventions.
• B. is an important factor in our civilization.
• C. is still to be much improved.
• D. is more important than any other activity.

Q4. The Supreme Court was established by Article 3 of the Constitution. Since 1869, it has been made up of nine members—the chief justice and eight associate justices—who are appointed for life. Supreme Court justices are named by the president and must be confirmed by the Senate.

The Supreme Court

• A. was established in 1869.
• B. consists of nine justices.
• C. consists of justices appointed by the Senate.
• D. changes with each presidential election.

Q5. With the exception of Earth, all of the planets in our solar system are named for gods and goddesses in Greek or Roman legends. This is because the other planets were believed to be in heaven like the gods and our planet lay beneath, like the earth.

All the planets except Earth

• A. were part of Greek and Roman legends.
• B. were believed to be in heaven.
• C. are part of the same solar system.
• D. were worshipped as gods.

Q6. Both the high school and the college should take the responsibility for preparing the student to get a job. Because the ability to write a good application letter is one of the first steps toward this goal, every teacher should be willing to do what he or she can to help the student learn to write such letters.

The paragraph best supports the statement that

• A. inability to write a good letter often reduces one’s job prospects.
• B. the major responsibility of the school is to obtain jobs for its students.
• C. success is largely a matter of the kind of work the student applies for first.
• D. every teacher should teach a course in the writing of application letters.

Q7. Many people think that only older men who have a great deal of experience should hold public office. These people lose sight of an important fact. Many of the founding fathers of our country were comparatively young men. Today more than ever, our country needs young, idealistic politicians.

The best interpretation of what this author believes is that

• A. only experienced men should hold public office.
• B. only idealistic men should hold public office.
• C. younger men can and should take part in politics.
• D. young people don’t like politics.

Q8. The X-ray has gone into business. Developed primarily to aid in diagnosing human ills, the machine now works in packing plants, in foundries, and in service stations and in a dozen ways contributes to precision and accuracy in industry.

The X-ray

• A. was first developed to aid business.
• B. is being used to improve the functioning of industry.
• C. is more accurate in packing plants than in foundries.
• D. increases the output of such industries as service stations.

Q9. In large organizations, some standardized, simple, inexpensive method of giving employees information about company policies and rules, as well as specific instructions regarding their duties, is practically essential. This is the purpose of all office manuals of whatever type.

The paragraph best supports the statement that office manuals

• A are all about the same.
• B should be simple enough for the average employee to understand.
• C are necessary to large organizations.
• D act as constant reminders to the employee of his or her duties.

Q10. In the relations of man to nature, the procuring of food and shelter is fundamental. With the migration of man to various climates, ever-new adjustments to the food supply and to the climate became necessary.

According to the passage, the means by which man supplies his material needs are

• 10-A accidental.
• 10-B inadequate.
• 10-C limited.
• 10-D varied.

Q11. Many experiments on the effects of alcohol consumption show that alcohol decreases alertness and efficiency. It decreases self-consciousness and at the same time increases confidence and feelings of ease and relaxation. It impairs attention and judgment. It destroys the fear of consequences. Usual cautions are thrown to the winds. Drivers who use alcohol tend to disregard their usual safety practices. Their reaction time slows down; normally quick reactions are not possible for them. They cannot judge the speed of their car or any other car. They become highway menaces.

The above passage states that the drinking of alcohol makes drivers

• A. more alert.
• B. less confident.
• C. more efficient.
• D. less attentive.