PTE Reading Multiple Choice (Single) practice: 12 questions with answers

Tree of Life is a peaceful villa complex set on the waters of Homestead, Florida, created to help visitors escape stress and anxiety. The design, envisioned by Iranian architect Milad Eshtiyaghi, consists of six separate villas linked by footpaths. Both the paths and the structures rest lightly on the existing pond, surrounding guests with nature. To match the calm setting, the villas feature organic shapes and avoid sharp angles, except for their sloped roofs. The natural forms of the buildings were influenced by the local plant life, allowing the complex to blend seamlessly with the Homestead landscape.

Based on the text, which statement is not true?

1. ATree of Life is a good destination for people who are stressed.
2. BEvery building in the complex has sharp angles.
3. CThe villa complex is surrounded by vegetation.
4. DVisitors can experience a sense of calm at Tree of Life.

The German Luftwaffe dropped thousands of bombs on London from 1939 to 1945, killing almost 30,000 people. More than 70,000 buildings were completely demolished, and another 1.7 million were damaged. The extent of the damage to each and every one of these buildings was logged and mapped in near real-time by surveyors, architects, engineers, and construction workers. The result is an incredible collection of maps, color-coded by hand, that reveal the amount of the destruction in painstaking detail. Today, the maps remain an invaluable resource for academics, family historians, and even builders trying to avoid touching off unexploded bombs. Now, these bomb census maps are available in a beautiful oversized book released earlier this year to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the end of the Blitz, a nine-month period during which London and other British cities were relentlessly attacked by the German air force. Visually, the maps are quite striking. The apparent randomness of the colors stands in contrast to the more orderly pattern of streets and buildings. The damage from World War II transformed London into the architecturally diverse city it is today. The maps showing how widespread the destruction was, really bring home the scale of the devastation.

Which of the following most accurately summarizes the opinion of the author in the text?

1. AThe author believes that the maps are a beautiful and accurate representation of pre-war London.
2. BThe author believes that the maps are an accurate representation of post-war London.
3. CThe author believes that the maps are a valuable piece of World War II history.
4. DThe author believes that the maps are works of art that give information about London’s destruction in World War II.

Many individuals regard melatonin as a natural sleep inducer. However, experts strongly advise consulting a physician or sleep specialist before using melatonin, partly because the supplement fails to tackle numerous underlying health issues that might disturb sleep. Rather than acting as an off switch for wakefulness, melatonin functions more like a dimmer, deactivating daytime processes and activating nighttime ones. Thus, taking a melatonin supplement resembles ingesting a dose of twilight, deceiving your body into sensing that night has arrived. It does not so much induce sleep as signal to the body that it is time to rest.

What is the main aim of this passage?

1. ATo introduce melatonin.
2. BTo convince readers to use melatonin.
3. CTo cause sleep disorders.
4. DTo discourage melatonin consumption.

Pidgin languages arise when speakers of different native languages need to communicate for trade or other purposes. A pidgin has a simplified grammar and a limited vocabulary drawn from the dominant language. If a pidgin becomes the first language of a community, it develops into a creole, which has a more complex grammar and a larger vocabulary. For example, Tok Pisin in Papua New Guinea began as a pidgin and is now a creole spoken by millions. The process from pidgin to creole typically takes one or two generations.

What distinguishes a creole from a pidgin, according to the passage?

1. AA creole is used only for trade purposes.
2. BA creole has a more complex grammar and larger vocabulary.
3. CA creole is derived from multiple dominant languages.
4. DA creole is always spoken by a smaller community.

When it comes to driving, the regulations in certain countries are famously lenient. So, here are a few illustrations of measures that could be implemented. The driving examination ought to be standardized and made considerably tougher than it currently is; all drivers should be required to undergo a test approximately every three years; the minimum age for operating any vehicle should be increased to at least 21; every vehicle should be subjected to rigorous yearly safety inspections. Both upper and lower speed limits should be enforced on all roads. Any advertising that emphasizes power and performance should be prohibited along highways.

What is the central idea of this passage?

1. AThe lenient driving laws in some nations.
2. BThe driving test needs to be standardized.
3. COffering proposals to create stricter driving regulations.
4. DTo forbid advertising along the highway.

Regular physical activity is beneficial for both physical and mental health. It can help control weight, reduce the risk of chronic diseases like heart disease and diabetes, and improve mood and energy levels. Experts recommend at least 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity per week, such as brisk walking or cycling. Strength training exercises for all major muscle groups should be done at least twice a week. Even small amounts of exercise can make a difference if done consistently.

What is the minimum amount of moderate aerobic activity recommended per week?

1. A60 minutes
2. B150 minutes
3. C200 minutes
4. D300 minutes

Four years ago on Earth, NASA’s Curiosity rover landed on the dusty surface of Mars after a tense descent through the planet’s thin atmosphere. Since then, this car-sized mobile laboratory has covered over 13.5 kilometers, snapping images, gathering samples, and studying rocks. New software now allows Curiosity to independently select rocks for examination—and zap them with lasers. The rover has spent more than 1,421 sols, or Martian days, investigating Gale Crater, a low-lying area that might have once supported life. Although it hasn’t yet proven that Mars ever harbored living organisms, Curiosity discovered signs of an ancient freshwater lake in the sediments of Yellowknife Bay, the crater’s deepest point, providing compelling clues about the planet’s past ability to sustain life. Since September 2014, Curiosity has been exploring Mount Sharp, a layered mountain rising over five kilometers high in the center of Gale Crater.

Which option best captures the main idea of the passage?

1. AIn the past four years, NASA’s Curiosity rover has gathered samples and images from Mars that show evidence of water but have not yet confirmed the existence of life.
2. BNASA’s Curiosity rover lacks recent software updates that would allow it to search new regions of Mars for signs of life.
3. CImages of the Martian surface have not revealed any water evidence but have definitively proven that life once existed there.
4. DNASA’s Curiosity rover received recent software upgrades enabling it to investigate new areas of Mars in search of life evidence.

When American colonists rebelled against Britain to win their freedom, the practice of Black slavery was already firmly established. Yet the paradox of this situation caused ongoing discomfort for many. "It always seemed a most wicked scheme to me," Abigail Adams wrote to her husband in 1774, "to battle for what we are daily stealing and taking from those who have an equal claim to liberty as we do." Numerous Americans, like Abigail Adams, recognized the hypocrisy of their position during the Revolutionary War and were willing to take steps toward freeing the slaves. Quakers and other faith-based groups formed antislavery organizations, and many individuals freed their own slaves. Indeed, within a few years after the war's conclusion, most Eastern states had enacted laws for the gradual emancipation of slaves.

Which of the following best captures the main idea of the passage?

1. AThe Revolutionary War fostered among many Black Americans a greater awareness of societal injustices.
2. BThe Revolutionary War reinforced the chains of slavery for many Black Americans while fueling their longing for liberty.
3. CThe Revolutionary War revealed to many Americans the inconsistency of slavery in a nation fighting for its own freedom and led to actions to address that inconsistency.
4. DThe Revolutionary War drew sharp condemnation of slavery from many Americans, but resulted in little concrete action against it.

Cognitive dissonance is the mental discomfort experienced when a person holds two or more contradictory beliefs, values, or attitudes. For example, someone who smokes cigarettes despite knowing they cause cancer may feel dissonance. To reduce this discomfort, individuals often change their beliefs or behaviors. They might downplay the health risks, justify smoking as a way to relax, or quit altogether. The theory, first proposed by Leon Festinger in 1957, has been supported by numerous studies and is considered a fundamental concept in social psychology.

According to the passage, how might a person experiencing cognitive dissonance about smoking reduce their discomfort?

1. ABy increasing the number of cigarettes they smoke daily
2. BBy convincing themselves that the health risks are exaggerated
3. CBy avoiding all information about smoking
4. DBy blaming the government for not banning cigarettes

In a recent investigation, David Cressy explores two key questions about English migration to New England during the 1630s: who migrated and what motivated them? Drawing on literary sources from the period, shipping manifests, and customs data, Cressy determines that most adult migrants were skilled farmers or artisans, could read and write, and traveled in family groups. These traits set the roughly 21,000 individuals who departed for New England in the 1630s apart from the majority of the approximately 377,000 English people who had immigrated to America by 1700. Regarding their motivations, Cressy acknowledges the well-known fact that some migrants, especially leaders and clergy, gave religious reasons for leaving, but he argues that such justifications typically became prominent only later. Looking beyond these key figures, he finds that religious motives were less common and concludes that most people moved because they were enticed by prospects of material betterment.

The author's primary concern in the passage is

1. Aoutlining the results of a study
2. Bexamining a method of reasoning
3. Cassessing a particular viewpoint
4. Dspeculating about a set of conditions

Immediately relevant to game theory are the sex ratios in certain parasitic wasp species that have a large excess of females. In these species, fertilized eggs develop into females and unfertilized eggs into males. A female stores sperm and can determine the sex of each egg she lays by fertilizing it or leaving it unfertilized. By Fisher's genetic argument that the sex ratio will be favored which maximizes the number of descendants an individual will have and hence the number of gene copies transmitted, it should pay a female to produce equal numbers of sons and daughters. Hamilton, noting that the eggs develop within their host—the larva of another insect—and that the newly emerged adult wasps mate immediately and disperse, offered a remarkably cogent analysis. Since only one female usually lays eggs in a given larva, it would pay her to produce one male only, because this one male could fertilize all his sisters on emergence. Like Fisher, Hamilton looked for an evolutionarily stable strategy, but he went a step further in recognizing that he was looking for a strategy.

The author suggests that the work of Fisher and Hamilton was similar in that both scientists

1. AConducted their research at approximately the same time.
2. BSought to manipulate the sex ratios of some of the animals they studied.
3. CStudied game theory, thereby providing important groundwork for the later development of strategy theory.
4. DSought an explanation of why certain sex ratios exist and remain stable.

The development of the printing press by Johannes Gutenberg around 1440 revolutionized the spread of information in Europe. Before this invention, books were laboriously copied by hand, making them rare and expensive. The printing press allowed for the mass production of texts, which lowered costs and increased literacy rates. It also facilitated the rapid dissemination of new ideas, contributing to the Reformation and the Scientific Revolution. By the 16th century, printing presses were operating in major cities across the continent.

What was one major effect of the printing press mentioned in the text?

1. AIt made books more expensive and exclusive.
2. BIt decreased the number of people who could read.
3. CIt helped spread new ideas more quickly.
4. DIt led to the decline of cities.