Inferences sample question 1

the ingredients of Roman concrete may help explain its durability in seawater.

Inferences sample question 2

spacing out review sessions may improve long-term retention.

Inferences sample question 3

conserve body heat and energy during the long incubation.

Inferences sample question 4

high clouds may have covered more of the planet during the second transit than during the first.

Inferences sample question 5

the dam likely reduced the sediment reaching the delta, so erosion began to outpace deposition.

SAT · Reading and Writing · Information and Ideas

Inferences

Inferences is part of Information and Ideas in the SAT Reading and Writing section. The questions below are written in the style of the real test, each with the answer and a worked explanation.

Question types you will see here include logical completion after a study, choose the claim that fits a hypothesis, what must be true for the scholar's claim and inference about a character.

Common traps: overgeneralization beyond the sample; conclusion that reverses the result; true statement that the passage does not support.

Sample questions

Inferences
Ancient Roman concrete has survived for two thousand years in harbors exposed to seawater, while many modern concrete structures degrade within decades. Scientists studying Roman harbor walls found that seawater reacting with the volcanic ash in the concrete formed new minerals that strengthened it over time. This finding suggests that
Question 1
Which choice most logically completes the text?
- A.
  modern concrete is never used in harbors.
- B.
  Roman engineers did not use volcanic ash.
- C.
  the ingredients of Roman concrete may help explain its durability in seawater.
- D.
  seawater weakens all types of concrete equally.
Answer: C. the ingredients of Roman concrete may help explain its durability in seawater.
The text links the reaction between seawater and volcanic ash to strengthening, suggesting the concrete's ingredients explain its durability.
Question 2
Which choice most logically completes the text?
- A.
  long study sessions are always more effective.
- B.
  the first group did not study at all.
- C.
  vocabulary cannot be learned in a week.
- D.
  spacing out review sessions may improve long-term retention.
Answer: D. spacing out review sessions may improve long-term retention.
The group with spaced sessions retained more words a month later, suggesting that spacing improves long-term memory.
Question 3
Which choice most logically completes the text?
- A.
  find food under the ice.
- B.
  keep their eggs away from the ocean.
- C.
  attract mates during the summer.
- D.
  conserve body heat and energy during the long incubation.
Answer: D. conserve body heat and energy during the long incubation.
Huddling and rotating into the warmer interior reduces heat loss, helping the fasting males conserve energy.
Question 4
Which choice most logically completes the text?
- A.
  the planet lost much of its atmospheric water vapor in the months between the two transits.
- B.
  the instrument recorded the first transit inaccurately, overstating the amount of water vapor present.
- C.
  changes in the star's brightness made the water vapor signal appear stronger the first time.
- D.
  high clouds may have covered more of the planet during the second transit than during the first.
Answer: D. high clouds may have covered more of the planet during the second transit than during the first.
The team's reasoning hinges on the point that high clouds can hide gases beneath them, so a weaker signal could reflect more cloud cover rather than less water vapor. Choice A is the most tempting, but it ignores the clouds premise the team relies on; the text gives no evidence that the water itself disappeared.
Question 5
Which choice most logically completes the text?
- A.
  the dam likely reduced the sediment reaching the delta, so erosion began to outpace deposition.
- B.
  the delta retreated mainly because the dam reduced the volume of water that the river delivered to the sea.
- C.
  stronger waves and currents after the dam's completion carried more sediment away from the delta.
- D.
  the delta will keep retreating at its current rate until the shoreline returns to its original position.
Answer: A. the dam likely reduced the sediment reaching the delta, so erosion began to outpace deposition.
With water flow and waves unchanged, the remaining difference after the dam is the sediment trapped in its reservoir, so less sediment arriving would let erosion exceed deposition. Choice B blames reduced water flow, but the text states that the volume of water reaching the river's mouth stayed nearly the same.

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