HSPT practice, Grade 8

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Scholar Tests · Set 1

HSPT practice test, Grade 8

Name ______________________ Date ____________

Verbal Skills

Circle the letter of the best answer. About 5 minutes.

  1. 1.

    Which word does NOT belong with the others?

    1. Aguitar
    2. Bharp
    3. Cdrum
    4. Dbanjo
  2. 2.

    Timid is to bold as frugal is to

    1. Aextravagant
    2. Bwealthy
    3. Ccareful
    4. Dpoor
  3. 3.

    Which word does NOT belong with the others?

    1. Awhale
    2. Brabbit
    3. Cbat
    4. Dsalmon
  4. 4.

    TRANQUIL

    Which word means most nearly the same as the word in capital letters?

    1. Achilly
    2. Bpeaceful
    3. Cchaotic
    4. Ddistant
  5. 5.

    The black rope is longer than the white rope. The blue rope is shorter than the white rope.
    The black rope is the longest of the three.

    If the first two statements are true, the third statement (in bold) is

    1. Atrue
    2. Bfalse
    3. Cuncertain
  6. 6.

    METICULOUS

    Which word means the OPPOSITE of the word in capital letters?

    1. Asloppy
    2. Bshy
    3. Ccareful
    4. Dslow
  7. 7.

    OMINOUS

    Which word means most nearly the same as the word in capital letters?

    1. Apromising
    2. Bnoisy
    3. Cdark
    4. Dthreatening
  8. 8.

    Quill is to porcupine as shell is to

    1. Aturtle
    2. Bsnail's food
    3. Cocean
    4. Dslow
  9. 9.

    Which word does NOT belong with the others?

    1. Asparrow
    2. Bowl
    3. Crobin
    4. Dsquirrel
  10. 10.

    Zoe has fewer than 45 stamps. Owen has fewer stamps than Zoe.
    Owen has more than 45 stamps.

    If the first two statements are true, the third statement (in bold) is

    1. Atrue
    2. Bfalse
    3. Cuncertain

Quantitative Skills

Circle the letter of the best answer. About 6 minutes.

  1. 1.

    (a) 63 ÷ 9
    (b) 58 − 34
    (c) half of 38

    Look at (a), (b) and (c). Which statement is true?

    1. A(b) is equal to (c).
    2. B(a) is equal to (b).
    3. C(b) is greater than (c).
    4. D(a) = (c), and both are less than (b).
  2. 2.

    What number multiplied by 4 equals 19 more than 9?

    1. A112
    2. B7
    3. C11
    4. D28
  3. 3.

    Look at the three figures. Each is cut into equal parts.

    Which statement is true?

    1. A(a) and (c) are equally shaded, and both are less shaded than (b).
    2. B(c) is more shaded than (b) but less shaded than (a).
    3. C(b) is more shaded than (c) but less shaded than (a).
    4. D(c) is more shaded than (a) but less shaded than (b).
  4. 4.

    Look at this series: 2, 6, 18, 54, 162, 486, 1458, ...

    What number should come next?

    1. A4374
    2. B2430
    3. C4375
    4. D2431
  5. 5.

    (a) 1/3 of 156
    (b) 20% of 185
    (c) 1/3 of 111

    Look at (a), (b) and (c). Which statement is true?

    1. A(b) = (c), and both are less than (a).
    2. B(a) = (c), and both are greater than (b).
    3. C(a) + (b) = (c)
    4. D(a) = (b), and both are greater than (c).
  6. 6.

    Look at this series: 22, 26, ____, 28, 26, 30, 28, ...

    What number should fill the blank?

    1. A31
    2. B52
    3. C25
    4. D24
  7. 7.

    What number is 20% less than 60?

    1. A48
    2. B40
    3. C12
    4. D72
  8. 8.

    Look at this series: 896, 448, 224, 112, 56, 28, 14, ...

    What number should come next?

    1. A0
    2. B7
    3. C9
    4. D28
  9. 9.

    What is 25% of the sum of 4 and 4?

    1. A2
    2. B8
    3. C3
    4. D5
  10. 10.

    Look at the three figures. Each is cut into equal parts.

    Which statement is true?

    1. A(c) is more shaded than (a) but less shaded than (b).
    2. B(a) and (b) are equally shaded, and both are less shaded than (c).
    3. C(a) and (c) are equally shaded, and both are less shaded than (b).
    4. D(a) and (c) are equally shaded, and both are more shaded than (b).

Reading

Circle the letter of the best answer. About 5 minutes.

  1. The Old Oak Remembers

    I was an acorn once, a small brown thought, Dropped by a squirrel who forgot the spot. The rain came kindly, and the dark soil, too, And I pushed upward, as small thoughts do. I watched the farmhouse rise, its paint grow thin; I watched the dirt road paved, the cars roll in. Children climbed my arms on summer days, Then grew, and left, and walked their separate ways. I've worn a hundred winters' heavy snow, And lost my leaves, and grown them back to show That losing is not ending. Every spring My branches open wide to everything. So if you sit beneath me, hot and still, And wonder how a seed becomes a hill Of leaves and shade, I'll answer, as trees do: By staying put, and growing, and coming through.

    1.

    Who is the speaker of the poem?

    1. AAn acorn that never grew
    2. BA squirrel
    3. CAn old oak tree
    4. DA child who climbs trees
  2. 2.

    According to the poem, how did the acorn end up in the ground?

    1. AA farmer planted it.
    2. BThe wind blew it from the farmhouse.
    3. CA squirrel dropped it and forgot where.
    4. DIt fell from another oak in a storm.
  3. 3.

    What does the speaker mean by saying "losing is not ending"?

    1. ALosing its leaves each winter does not stop it from growing again.
    2. BWinter never ends for the tree.
    3. CThe tree will soon be cut down.
    4. DThe children lost a game under the tree.
  4. 4.

    In the poem, the phrase "coming through" most nearly means

    1. Awalking into a room
    2. Bgrowing too tall
    3. Csurviving hard times
    4. Dbeing forgotten
  5. 5.

    The second stanza mainly shows

    1. Ahow the tree first sprouted
    2. Bwhy the squirrel forgot the acorn
    3. Chow much has changed around the tree over many years
    4. Dwhat the tree says to visitors

  6. Earth's Traveling Water

    The water in your glass may once have fallen as snow on a mountain, floated in a cloud over the ocean, or flowed through a river. That is because Earth's water is always moving, in a never-ending journey called the water cycle.

    The cycle is powered by the sun. When sunlight warms oceans, lakes and puddles, some of the water evaporates, turning from liquid into an invisible gas called water vapor. Plants add more vapor through their leaves. The warm, moist air rises.

    As the air rises, it cools. Cool air cannot hold as much water vapor as warm air, so some of the vapor condenses into tiny droplets of liquid water. Billions of these droplets, gathered around specks of dust, form clouds.

    Inside a cloud, droplets bump into one another and join together. When they grow heavy enough, they fall as precipitation: rain, snow, sleet or hail, depending on the temperature.

    Precipitation that reaches the ground does several things. Some soaks into the soil and becomes groundwater, which can feed wells and springs. Some runs off into streams and rivers that carry it back to the sea. Some freezes into glaciers and may stay there for thousands of years before it melts and moves on.

    Almost all of Earth's water is salty ocean water, and much of the fresh water is locked in ice. Only a small fraction is fresh water that people can easily use. The water cycle constantly renews that supply, which is one reason keeping rivers, lakes and groundwater clean matters so much.

    6.

    Which statement best expresses the main idea of the passage?

    1. AClouds are made mostly of dust.
    2. BGroundwater is the only safe drinking water.
    3. CEarth's water constantly moves through a cycle powered by the sun.
    4. DMost of Earth's water is frozen in glaciers.
  7. 7.

    Eye color is controlled by more than one gene.

    This sentence is from a science book. What does gene mean?

    1. Aa cell that fights germs
    2. Ba section of DNA that controls a trait passed from parents to offspring
    3. Ca bone in the inner ear
    4. Dthe green part of a leaf
  8. 8.

    ad·dress
    1. n. the number and street where someone lives
    2. n. a formal speech
    3. v. speak or write to someone directly
    4. v. deal with a problem

    The principal's graduation address lasted twenty minutes.

    Which meaning of address is used in the sentence?

    1. AMeaning 1
    2. BMeaning 2
    3. CMeaning 3
    4. DMeaning 4
  9. 9.

    Test results will vindicate Dr. Ruiz, who had warned that the water was unsafe.

    What does the word vindicate mean in this sentence?

    1. Aforget someone
    2. Bprove that someone was right or innocent
    3. Chire someone
    4. Dblame someone unfairly
  10. 10.

    Jordan chose to spend all of his summer earnings.

    Which word could take the place of spend to make Jordan's choice sound better, without changing what the sentence means?

    1. Asquander
    2. Bsave
    3. Cdebate
    4. Dinvest

Mathematics

Circle the letter of the best answer. About 7 minutes.

  1. 1.

    Which inequality is the solution of 6x + 6 ≥ 18?

    1. Ax ≥ −2
    2. Bx ≥ 4
    3. Cx ≤ 2
    4. Dx ≥ 2
  2. 2.

    Work out 88.5 ÷ 1.5.

    1. A590
    2. B0.59
    3. C59
    4. D132.75
  3. 3.

    A stall owner sold 37 plants at $39.50 each. In total this was a profit of $370. How much did one of the plants cost the owner?

    1. A$29.50
    2. B$49.50
    3. C$39.50
    4. D$1091.50
  4. 4.

    A small farm holds only hens and goats. Altogether there are 33 animals and 108 legs. How many goats are there?

    1. A12
    2. B75
    3. C27
    4. D21
  5. 5.

    What number should replace the question mark?   3 × ? + 34 = 67

    1. A34
    2. B11
    3. C12
    4. D33
  6. 6.

    A rectangular pool is 22 yd long and 21 yd wide. A strip of paving 4 yd wide runs all the way around the outside of it. What is the area of the strip of paving?

    1. A408 sq yd
    2. B870 sq yd
    3. C472 sq yd
    4. D344 sq yd
  7. 7.

    Which one had the most tickets altogether, and how many was that?

    1. AChoir, 48
    2. BChess, 36
    3. CGardening, 71
    4. DRobotics, 65
  8. 8.

    In the diagram below, what is the size of the angle marked x?

    1. A20°
    2. B30°
    3. C35°
    4. D40°
  9. 9.

    The two lines with arrowheads on them are parallel. What is the size of the angle marked with a question mark?

    1. A145°
    2. B135°
    3. C68°
    4. D45°
  10. 10.

    Seven players each kept a tally of their points over a season. The totals were 95, 79, 79, 26, 45, 97, 51. What is the mean, correct to one decimal place?

    1. A68.4
    2. B67.4
    3. C79.0
    4. D59.0

Language

Circle the letter of the best answer. About 5 minutes.

  1. 1.

    Which sentence has a mistake in capitalization, punctuation or usage?

    If none of them has a mistake, choose "No mistakes."

    1. AThe hike to the falls, in fact, took less than two hours.
    2. BThe rain stopped, so we, went outside to play.
    3. CMr. Bell saved two seats on the bus for Nia and her.
    4. DNo mistakes
  2. 2.

    Which sentence has a mistake in capitalization, punctuation or usage?

    If none of them has a mistake, choose "No mistakes."

    1. AOur school is on Maple Street.
    2. BMany of the students in my homeroom is riding the bus to school.
    3. CThe list of supplies for the camping trip was posted on the bulletin board.
    4. DNo mistakes
  3. 3.

    Which sentence has a mistake in capitalization, punctuation or usage?

    If none of them has a mistake, choose "No mistakes."

    1. AWe seventh graders collected more than four hundred cans for the food bank.
    2. BA park ranger led the Nguyens and us through the cave.
    3. CThe governor shook hands with mayor chen at the opening of the new bridge.
    4. DNo mistakes
  4. 4.

    Which sentence has a mistake in capitalization, punctuation or usage?

    If none of them has a mistake, choose "No mistakes."

    1. AFew of the hikers on the mountain were ready for the sudden snowstorm.
    2. BMr. Lee and Ms. Grant are chaperoning the dance on Friday.
    3. CLeo asked Mom if he could take Spanish next year.
    4. DNo mistakes
  5. 5.

    Which sentence has a mistake in capitalization, punctuation or usage?

    If none of them has a mistake, choose "No mistakes."

    1. AOur neighbors said that they and their dog would walk with us to the parade.
    2. BThe Alamo, a former mission in San Antonio is now a museum and historic site.
    3. COn the Fourth of July, we watched fireworks over the Potomac River.
    4. DNo mistakes
  6. 6.

    Which sentence has a mistake in capitalization, punctuation or usage?

    If none of them has a mistake, choose "No mistakes."

    1. ADuring our tour of the state capitol, Mr. Webb showed Hannah and herself the room where lawmakers vote on new bills.
    2. BAlthough the trail was steep and muddy, the park rangers promised that they would lead the hikers to the waterfall before noon.
    3. CAfter two days of listening, the jury is ready to announce its decision.
    4. DNo mistakes
  7. 7.

    Which sentence has a spelling mistake?

    If none of them has a mistake, choose "No mistakes."

    1. ALook up the meaning of the word in a dictionary.
    2. BThe word "glad" is a synonymn for "happy."
    3. CSoccer is the most popular sport at our middle school.
    4. DNo mistakes
  8. 8.

    The glacier moved down the valley so slowly that nobody could see it change from one day to the next.

    Which word could replace moved to make the sentence more exact?

    1. Awent
    2. Bcrept
    3. Ctumbled
    4. Draced
  9. 9.

    Ava read this sentence by sleep doctor Nina Patel in an article about teenagers and sleep:
    "Most teenagers need between eight and ten hours of sleep each night, but many get far less on school nights."

    Which sentence uses the source correctly in a report?

    1. ATeenagers are often tired because "many get far less on school nights."
    2. BSleep doctor Nina Patel says most teenagers need between eight and ten hours of sleep each night, but many get far less on school nights.
    3. CSleep doctor Nina Patel explains that teenagers generally should sleep eight to ten hours a night, though many fall well short of that during the school week.
    4. DSleep doctor Nina Patel explains that teenagers need only five or six hours of sleep a night.
  10. 10.

    Students can borrow laptops from the media center who need them for homework.

    This sentence has a misplaced modifier. Which revision corrects it?

    1. AStudents who need laptops for homework from the media center.
    2. BStudents who need laptops for homework can borrow them from the media center.
    3. CStudents can borrow laptops who need them for homework from the media center.
    4. DStudents who need laptops for homework can buy them from the media center.

Science (optional test)

Circle the letter of the best answer. About 6 minutes.

  1. 1.

    The transfer of pollen from the anther to the stigma is called

    1. Agermination
    2. Bpollination
    3. Cseed dispersal
    4. Dfertilization
  2. 2.

    Which of these is a chemical change?

    1. ARusting of iron
    2. BCutting paper into pieces
    3. CMelting of ice
    4. DDissolving sugar in water
  3. 3.

    The number of oscillations per second is called

    1. Aloudness
    2. Bamplitude
    3. Cfrequency
    4. Dtime period
  4. 4.

    Amoeba captures its food with the help of

    1. Aa pair of tentacles
    2. Bhair-like cilia
    3. Cpseudopodia
    4. Da sucking tube
  5. 5.

    The image formed by a plane mirror is

    1. Ainverted, virtual and larger in size
    2. Berect, real and smaller in size
    3. Cinverted, real and the same size
    4. Derect, virtual and the same size
  6. 6.

    Coke, a product obtained from coal, is mainly used in making

    1. Asteel
    2. Bglass
    3. Cplastics
    4. Dpaper
  7. 7.

    Most earthquakes are caused by

    1. Avery strong winds near the ground
    2. Bheavy rainfall over many days
    3. Cmovement of plates in the earth's crust
    4. Dchanges in the shape of the moon
  8. 8.

    Water should not be used on a fire in electrical equipment because

    1. Awater conducts electricity and may give a shock
    2. Bwater would make the fire burn much hotter
    3. Cwater cannot cool down the hot wires at all
    4. Dwater breaks down into oxygen gas in fire
  9. 9.

    A tired athlete is given glucose solution instead of a plate of rice for quick energy. Why does glucose work faster?

    1. AIt is absorbed only through the mouth
    2. BIt turns into starch in the small intestine
    3. CIt is broken down quickly by stomach acid
    4. DIt is a simple sugar and needs no digestion
  10. 10.

    A tester shows that tap water conducts electricity but distilled water does not. Why?

    1. ATap water has dissolved salts in it
    2. BDistilled water has more dissolved salts
    3. CDistilled water is heavier than tap water
    4. DTap water is warmer than distilled water

Written by Scholar Tests in the style of the published HSPT question types. Not a real HSPT test, and a practice score is not a real score.