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Chapter 6

Language Skills Practice Test

This chapter tests you on the three basic word knowledge portions you can expect to see on the various military flight aptitude tests. This test is designed to give you both the flavor of what questions you can expect on the different branch tests and the format they appear in.

Use the strategies in Chapter 5 to maximize your score and achieve your full potential.

Analogies

This part of the exam measures your ability to reason and see relationships between words. Choose the answer that best completes the analogy developed at the beginning of each question.

1. SQUARE is to ROUND as

(A) CAVITY is to MOUND

(B) HILL is to HOLE

(D) ROUND is to POINTED

(E) HILL is to CONVEX

2. TRESPASS is to ENTER as

(A) ABANDON is to EXIT

(B) CONCENTRATE is to FOCUS

(D) ROB is to STEAL

(E) SMELL is to ODOR

3. TREE is to LEAF as

(A) ROSE is to THORN

(B) BOOK is to CHAPTER

(D) ROOT is to STEM

(E) SEWER is to LAKE

4. PUPPY is to DOG as

(A) RODENT is to SKUNK

(B) BIRD is to BAT

(D) KITTEN is to CAT

(E) GOAT is to COW

5. WINCE is to JOY as

(A) EXPORT is to IMPORT

(B) MINIMIZE is to SHRINK

(D) SMILE is to SAD

(E) AIRPORT is to CAB

6. EXPOSURE is to INFECTION as

(A) SNEEZE is to COUGH

(B) COUGH is to COLD

(D) FOOD is to EAT

(E) SKY is to BLUE

7. LORD is to NOBILITY as

(A) RETIREMENT is to INJURE

(B) QUEEN is to ROYALTY

(D) BEAT is to DRUM

(E) UP is to SKY

8. HAND is to FINGER as

(A) BREAK is to SHATTER

(B) STRONG is to RAPID

(D) SMELL is to ODOR

(E) EASE is to DUTY

9. HELIUM is to BALLOON as

(A) OXYGEN is to AIR

(B) TRANSPORT is to AIRPLANE

(D) GAS is to ENGINE

(E) SUFFER is to WINTER

10. IMPRISONMENT is to PUNISHMENT as

(A) TRIAL is to LESSON

(B) CONFINED is to EDUCATION

(D) FALTER is to GLORY

(E) HOLD is to CAPTURE

11. SADNESS is to BLUE as

(A) BANJO is to COUNTRY

(B) SANCTUARY is to REFUGE

(D) GIFT is to REGISTER

(E) HAPPY is to WARM

12. LOYALTY is to DUTY as

(A) SACRIFICE is to COUNTRY

(B) HONOR is to HOPE

(D) ATTAIN is to HONEST

(E) FAITHFUL is to COMMITMENT

13. UTENSIL is to CHEF as

(A) BOOK is to LIBRARY

(B) WOOD is to AXE

(D) WRENCH is to MECHANIC

(E) SOUP is to BROTH

14. SEW is to CLOTHING as

(A) SCHOOLING is to RESULT

(B) READ is to EDUCATION

(D) PRISON is to GUARD

(E) DINOSAUR is to BONE

15. SPITE is to KINDNESS as

(A) CLAP is to HANDS

(B) CAVE is to SHIELD

(D) AUTHOR is to WRITING

(E) BOSS is to EMPLOYMENT

16. PLANET is to UNIVERSE as

(A) PLANT is to FOOD

(B) RIBOSOME is to CELL

(D) IGNORE is to OVERLOOK

(E) CLIMB is to WALK

17. DOCTOR is to HEALING as

(A) GUARD is to PRISON

(B) COACH is to VICTORY

(D) COW is to GOAT

(E) LEARN is to REMEMBER

18. AGREE is to CONSENT as

(A) GAMUT is to PROVINCIAL

(B) SOLDIER is to ARMY

(D) REFUSE is to RESIST

(E) OBLIVIOUS is to KEEN

19. PROMOTION is to ADVANCEMENT as

(A) MONOTONY is to HOMOGENOUS

(B) RECOGNITION is to RESULT

(D) DULL is to SHARPEN

(E) ATTACH is to SEPARATE

20. TEACHER is to CLASSROOM as

(A) COOK is to FOOD

(B) RUSTIC is to CITY

(D) SHORTEN is to NIP

(E) ACTOR is to STAGE

21. NOMADIC is to WANDERING as

(A) HALLOWED is to SACRED

(B) PATIENT is to DOCTOR

(D) SEDENTARY is to IMMOBILE

(E) METER is to ELECTRIC

22. PUDDLE is to OCEAN as

(A) CRACK is to DESTROY

(B) PRIDE is to FALL

(D) OUTSIDE is to BENCH

(E) CRUMB is to LOAF

23. PACIFIST is to PEACE as

(A) CONSTELLATION is to STARS

(B) AGGRESSIVE is to ANGRY

(D) INSOMNIAC is to SLEEPLESSNESS

(E) ANARCHIST is to DISORDER

24. YAWN is to BOREDOM as

(A) SMILE is to HAPPY

(B) GOOD is to BEST

(D) SLOTH is to LAZINESS

(E) FEATHER is to QUILL

25. BOW is to ARROW as

(A) CRYPT is to TOMB

(B) SHEEP is to LAMB

(D) CANNON is to BALL

(E) DOGWOOD is to OAK

26. DOCTOR is to PATIENT as LAWYER is to

(A) JUDGE

(B) CLIENT

(D) DISPOSITION

(E) LAWSUIT

27. FISH is to HOOK as BUTTERFLY is to

(A) COCCOON

(B) FLOAT

(D) INSECT

(E) NET

28. FLY is to FAST as ROWBOAT is to

(A) SLOW

(B) WATER

(D) RHYTHM

(E) MOTOR

29. LION is to TIGER as HUMAN is to

(A) MAN

(B) WOMAN

(D) APE

(E) WORK

30. DEER is to FAWN as SHEEP is to

(A) RAM

(B) LAMB

(D) LAWN

(E) GOAT

31. KNIT is to SWEATER as RIVET is to

(A) FLAME

(B) AIRFRAME

(D) STEEL

(E) GAS

32. FIRE is to HEAT as ICE is to

(A) WARM

(B) TEPID

(D) MILD

(E) COLD

33. TYPEWRITER is to LETTER as COMPUTER is to

(A) PAPER

(B) DOCUMENT

(D) E-MAIL

(E) FILE

34. BACKPACK is to TENT as SHOPPING BAG is to

(A) SIGHT

(B) FEAR

(D) SACK

(E) GROCERIES

35. SPEED is to ACCELERATION as BRAKE is to

(A) DECELERATION

(B) DISTANCE

(D) THRUST

(E) STOP

36. HORSE is to CAVALRY as TANK is to

(A) ARMY

(B) ARMOR

(D) FUEL

(E) WATER

37. PAGE is to BOOK as OFFICE is to

(A) STORY

(B) ROOF

(D) WING

(E) LOBBY

38. DRESS is to GOWN as SUIT is to

(A) TUX

(B) PANTS

(D) SHIRT

(E) SWEATER

39. WALK is to RUN as SIT is to

(A) STAND UP

(B) SLEEP

(D) FALL

(E) LAY

40. PARACHUTE is to DESCEND as ROCKET is to

(A) LAND

(B) ASCEND

(D) TRAVEL

(E) SPACE

41. WALK is to RUN as DRIVE is to

(A) SPEED

(B) BRAKE

(D) STEER

(E) GAS

42. BABY is to TODDLER as CHILD is to

(A) MONKEY

(B) BABY

(D) ADULT

(E) LITTLE

43. ORDER is to MAYHEM as NEAT is to

(A) CLEAN

(B) STRAIGHTENED

(D) UNTIDY

(E) FAST

44. ORDER is to DIRECT as INSTRUCT is to

(A) DUPLICATE

(B) EDUCATE

(D) LEARN

(E) KNOWLEDGE

45. SLOTH is to LAZINESS as FAST is to

(A) SPEED

(B) ENERGETIC

(D) CAREFUL

(E) UNCARING

46. STUMBLE is to FALL as SKIP is to

(A) LEAP

(B) STOMP

(D) STOP

(E) MOVE

47. ROUGH is to TEXTURE as SMOOTH is to

(A) RANDOM

(B) GRAB

(D) SOFT

(E) FEEL

48. SIGNAL is to STOPLIGHT as RADIO is to

(A) STRENGTH

(B) FREQUENCY

(D) WAVE

(E) TRANSMIT

49. KNIFE is to BLADE as FISHING ROD is to

(A) FISH

(B) HOOK

(D) BOAT

(E) FLEX

50. COMMAND is to OBEY as DIRECTIVE is to

(A) COMPLY

(B) ANSWER

(D) INFORM

(E) DICTATE

Word Definitions

This section tests your conceptual knowledge and understanding of the use of words in the English language. Select the best answer that means the same as the word given.

51. Challenging

(A) Demanding

(B) Dull

(D) Simple

(E) Surprising

52. Accentuate

(A) Acquire

(B) Climb

(D) Emphasize

(E) Participate

53. Apparent

(A) Complicated

(B) Inferior

(D) Evident

(E) Equal

54. Tepid

(A) Mental communication

(B) Marketing goods or services by telephone

(D) Study of climactic variations

(E) Rashness

55. Adjuvant

(A) Concise

(B) Helpful

(D) Misleading

(E) Sweet

56. Proximal

(A) Away from a center or axis

(B) Relating to the feet

(D) Toward a center or midline

(E) Circular

57. Dilapidate

(A) Criticize

(B) Conserve

(D) Neutralize

(E) Retreat

58. Repetitive

(A) Brilliant

(B) Held back

(D) Unruly

(E) Isolated

59. Affright

(A) Alarm

(B) Confirm

(D) Guarantee

(E) Question

60. Gratify

(A) Silent

(B) Sour

(D) Talkative

(E) Pleasing

61. Temporary

(A) Migrant

(B) Not permanent

(D) Schedule

(E) Character

62. Retrieve

(A) Forget

(B) Ignore

(D) Polish

(E) Snub

63. Egotistical

(A) Hopeless

(B) Lazy

(D) Rude

(E) Selfish

64. Pity

(A) Have compassion

(B) Specious

(D) Metallic

(E) Contain mercury

65. Malleable

(A) Flammable

(B) Fragile

(D) Rigid

(E) Separable

66. Irritate

(A) Predict the outcome

(B) Cut in two

(D) Antagonize

(E) Speak about

67. Veto

(A) Controversy

(B) Defeat

(D) Substitution

(E) Vexation

68. Mayhem

(A) Dealing with the digestive system

(B) Havoc

(D) Correct

(E) Give fresh life to

69. Vex

(A) Put chronologically out of place

(B) Curse

(D) Attribute conscious thoughts to inanimate objects or animals

(E) Disturb

70. Discombobulate

(A) Confuse

(B) Cooperative

(D) Helpful

(E) Respectful

71. Protracted

(A) Faulty

(B) Lengthy

(D) Pointed

(E) Written

72. Elaborate

(A) Cleared

(B) Clouded

(D) Enlarge

(E) Tightened

73. Calamitous

(A) Unnoticed

(B) Insignificant

(D) Hot

(E) Unfortunate

74. Alacritous

(A) Relating to the motion of material bodies

(B) Referring to motion pictures

(D) Relating to a sensory experience

(E) Referring to a relative

75. Frock

(A) Angrily silent

(B) Grayish yellow

(D) Soaking wet

(E) Apparel

Reading Comprehension

This section of the test checks your ability to fully grasp what message written documents are attempting to convey. Read each passage and answer the questions. Remember that incorrect response options may still appear to be true; however, only one answer to each item can be derived solely from the information in the passage.

Raoul Wallenberg

Many people have never heard of Raoul Wallenberg, one of the bravest and noblest people to ever walk the Earth.

Wallenberg was born in Lidingo, Sweden, in 1912 and received his degree from the University of Michigan in 1935. He was a businessman and later became a Swedish diplomat assigned as the special envoy to Hungary during the German invasion of that country in World War II. In March of 1944, the Nazi regime initiated a massive effort to deport the Hungarian Jews to the concentration camp Auschwitz-Birkenau. Wallenberg decided to take a personal stand by aiding any Jews he could through various means. As a senior diplomat, he began to issue provisional passes for Jews and convinced the Germans those with passes were considered Swedish citizens and exempt from deportation. Wallenberg’s office often resorted to bribery and extortion threats, and his unusual efforts saved an estimated 30,000 Jews.

On January 17, 1945, the Soviet army entered the city of Budapest. They found Wallenberg and, despite his assertion that he was under protection of the Swedish flag, took him prisoner. He was never seen in public again; it was later reported that he died of a heart attack in the Lubyanka prison in Moscow, but sightings of him were reported for many years after. Today, Raoul Wallenberg has been honored many times; the nation of Israel designated him as one of the Righteous among the Nations.

76. What nation did Raoul Wallenberg represent?

(A) The United States of America

(B) Sweden

(D) Italy

77. Raoul Wallenberg was educated in America and received his degree from

(A) Bregetta College

(B) Georgetown University

(D) The Ohio State University

78. Raoul Wallenberg saved an estimated _____ Jews

(A) 30,000

(B) 10,000

(D) 8,000

79. Raoul Wallenberg saved Jewish lives by issuing people

(A) Diplomatic passports

(B) Housing and sanctuary

(D) Provisional passes considering them citizens of Sweden

80. Raoul Wallenberg

(A) Continued on as a Swedish diplomat after World War II

(B) Was captured by the Soviets during the siege of Budapest in 1945

(D) Was released from prison in 1947

Early Female Aviators

Early aviators were mostly male, but a few brave female aviators were destined to break into flying history. Balloon flights in the late 1700s and early 1800s featured an estimated 20 female aeronauts, the first of whom was Elisabeth Thible, who flew over the French countryside. In the early 1900s, another French aviator, Elise Deroche, became the world’s first licensed female aviator. The first American woman to fly solo was Blanche Scott, who was hired by the Curtis Aircraft Company in order to demonstrate the safety of its aircraft from 1910 to 1916. Another female aviator, Bessie Coleman, was denied entry into a U.S. flight school because of her race, so she received her license from a French flying school and then returned to the United States to open a flight school in 1921. Other notable early aviators were Harriet Quimby (who was ejected from her aircraft and killed before the days of safety belts), Ruth Law (who tried to gain entry into combat aviation in World War I), and Amelia Earhart. During World War II, the Soviet Union employed many female aviators, with Lydia Litvyak scoring 12 aerial victories before being shot down and killed.

81. How many female aeronauts were there in the early 1800s?

(A) Approximately 10

(B) Approximately 20

(D) Approximately 40

82. Who was the first American woman to fly solo?

(A) Harriet Quimby

(B) Ruth Law

(D) Blanche Scott

83. In what year did Bessie Coleman return to the United States to begin a flight school?

(A) 1919

(B) 1920

(D) 1922

84. Which female aviator attempted to gain a combat flying role in World War I?

(A) Bessie Coleman

(B) Harriet Quimby

(D) Amelia Earhart

85. How many air victories did the highest-ranking female ace have in World War II?

(A) 12

(B) 14

(D) 18

Mackinac Island

Mackinac Island is an island in Lake Huron between Michigan’s Upper and Lower Peninsulas. The island was a Native American settlement first visited by French Canadians in 1634, with a mission established in 1670. Because of the mission in the Straits of Mackinac and the value of fur trading, the location’s importance grew, and the British built Fort Mackinac on the bluffs overlooking Lake Huron shortly after the French and Indian War.

The fort, important in protecting the area from hostile native tribes, didn’t see any military action during the American Revolution, and the fledging United States acquired the entire area through the treaty of Paris in 1783. During the War of 1812, the British launched a surprise attack from St. Joseph Island in Ontario (with help from Canada) and captured the unsuspecting fort; the Americans weren’t aware that war had been declared at the time. In a second battle, the Americans failed to recapture the island, and they didn’t regain possession of it until 1815.

Mackinac Island is currently a popular tourist resort, with a majority of the island belonging to the Michigan state park system. The island is 3.8 miles long and has approximately 500 year-round residents. During the summer, ferries, along with an active port, bring as many as 15,000 tourists a day. The fort overlooking the straits still exists and, along with the Grand Hotel, serves to capture an era gone by. With the exception of emergency vehicles, no motorized vehicles are allowed on the island; travel is by foot, bicycle, or horse-drawn carriage. An eight-mile road follows the perimeter and is the only U.S. highway that does not allow motorized vehicles.

86. How many battles did the fort on Mackinac Island participate in during the American Revolution?

(A) 0

(B) 1

(D) 3

87. Where did the group who launched a surprise attack on Fort Mackinac depart from?

(A) The Upper Peninsula of Michigan

(B) The Lower Peninsula of Michigan

(D) Fort George in Niagara, Ontario

88. Which of the following isn’t a method of transportation on the island?

(A) Automobile

(B) Bicycle

(D) Horse-drawn carriage

89. Who first built the fort on the island?

(A) The French

(B) Native Americans

(D) The British

90. Which of the following isn’t a true statement?

(A) The fort was built after the French and Indian War.

(B) The Americans recaptured the fort during a battle in the War of 1812.

(D) Except for emergency vehicles, no motorized form of transport is allowed on the island.

The Legend of Sleeping Bear

The Ojibwa tribe has a tale about a mother’s love and the formation of the Sleeping Bear dunes along the western shore of Michigan and two Manitou islands. As the story goes, a mother bear and her two cubs lived on the shores of Wisconsin. Wisconsin suffered from a great famine, and the bear and her cubs looked longingly over Lake Michigan toward the western Michigan shoreline. Eventually, their fear of the long swim was overcome by hunger and the prospect of living in the land of plenty. The bears swam and swam, the mother followed by her two cubs. As they neared the western Michigan shoreline, a forest fire obscured the shoreline, and the cubs lost their way. Twelve miles from shore, the mother turned around to see that one cub had dropped out of sight; just two miles closer to shore, she lost sight of the second cub. The exhausted mother bear made it to the shore alone and mourned for her lost cubs, lying on the sandy shore and looking over the water for the cubs she knew had perished. The great god Manitou took pity on the mother bear; while she was watching over the waters of Lake Michigan, two islands slowly arose, marking the spots where each of her cubs disappeared. Manitou then marked the spot to honor the faithful mother by forming a solitary dune along the shoreline where she waited for the cubs that would never join her.

91. Why did the bear and her two cubs leave Wisconsin?

(A) Adventure

(B) Forest fire

(D) To escape hunters

92. This legend is from which Native American tribe?

(A) Huron

(B) Chippewa

(D) Ojibwa

93. Where were the mother bear and cubs attempting to go?

(A) Gitchegumee

(B) Wisconsin

(D) Canada

94. How far from shore did the first cub vanish?

(A) 2 miles

(B) 12 miles

(D) 12 kilometers

95. Which god, seeing the mother’s love, raised two islands and then created sand dunes to honor the bears?

(A) Manitou

(B) Ypsilanti

(D) Hiawatha

The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald

One of the most famous of all Great Lakes shipwrecks is the Edmund Fitzgerald. Many legends and one famous song have commemorated the demise of the ship and the entire 29-man crew one stormy November night in 1975.

The Edmund Fitzgerald, 729 feet long, departed the port of Superior, Wisconsin, with approximately 26,000 tons of iron ore bound for Detroit, Michigan, on November 9, 1975. At 7:00 p.m. that same day, the National Weather Service issued a gale warning for Lake Superior; that forecast was later upgraded to a storm warning. The captain of the Fitzgerald consulted with the captain of a ship traveling the same route; they decided to change the route by hugging north, closer to the coast of Canada, to protect them from large waves formed along the open body of water. On the afternoon of the 10th, the Fitzgerald contacted the Anderson and reported “a fence rail down, two vents lost, and a list.” The Anderson reported that waves were 12 to 16 feet high and the winds were steady at 43 knots.

Later in the afternoon, the Fitzgerald made contact with another ship, the Avafor, and reported that the Fitzgerald had a bad list, had lost both radars, and was taking heavy seas over the deck in one of the worst seas the captain had ever been in. At 7:10 p.m., the Anderson made contact with the Fitzgerald and had her on its radar. The Fitzgerald was 17 miles from Whitefish Point when the captain replied, “We are holding our own.” The Fitzgerald disappeared from radar contact shortly afterward and was lost at sea with all souls on-board. Shipwreck expeditions in 1989, 1994, and 1995 showed evidence that no attempts were made to abandon the ship and that the sinking must have come suddenly, with no distress signals issued. On July 4, 1995, the ship’s bell was removed from the Edmund Fitzgerald; it’s now on display at the Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum on Whitefish Point, Michigan.

96. How many men were lost at sea on the Edmund Fitzgerald?

(A) 24

(B) 31

(D) 29

97. Which port did the Edmund Fitzgerald depart from on November 9, 1975?

(A) Thunder Bay, Ontario

(B) Superior, Wisconsin

(D) Sault Sainte Marie, Ontario

98. The last statement from the Edmund Fitzgerald was

(A) “We are holding our own.”

(B) “We are listing to the port side.”

(D) “Mayday!”

99. The ship disappeared how far from Whitefish Point?

(A) 13 miles

(B) 17 miles

(D) 13 kilometers

100. The ship’s brass bell now sits at the

(A) Coast Guard Academy

(B) Edmund Fitzgerald museum

(D) Home of the late captain’s family members

Answer Key

1. C

2. A

3. D

4. D

5. D

6. B

7. B

8. C

9. C

10. B

11. E

12. E

13. D

14. B

15. C

16. B

17. B

18. D

19. B

20. E

21. D

22. E

23. E

24. A

25. D

26. B

27. E

28. A

29. D

30. B

31. B

32. C

33. D

34. E

35. A

36. B

37. C

38. A

39. E

40. B

41. A

42. C

43. D

44. B

45. B

46. A

47. E

48. C

49. B

50. A

51. A

52. D

53. D

54. C

55. B

56. D

57. C

58. C

59. A

60. E

61. B

62. C

63. E

64. A

65. C

66. D

67. B

68. B

69. E

70. A

71. B

72. D

73. E

74. C

75. E

76. B

77. C

78. A

79. D

80. B

81. B

82. D

83. C

84. C

85. A

86. A

87. C

88. A

89. D

90. B

91. C

92. D

93. C

94. B

95. A

96. D

97. B

98. A

99. B

100. C