GMAT Verbal Practice Paper 1 Question Paper with Answer Key and Solutions PDF

The capacity of embryonic stem cells to develop into most types of human tissue, which makes them potentially valuable for medical applications, but the genetic program that underlies this quality is not yet known.

• (A) tissue, which makes them
• (B) tissue makes them
• (C) tissues, which make them
• (D) tissue, making them
• (E) tissue make it

By the mid-1700s, when it began a concerted effort to prevent famine and plague, the French government had fully realized that the success of its state building projects depended on the welfare of its people.

• (A) By the mid-1700s, when it began a concerted effort to prevent famine and plague, the French government had fully realized
• (B) Until the mid-1700s, when it had begun a concerted effort to prevent famine and plague, the French government had fully realized
• (C) By the mid-1700s the French government began a concerted effort to prevent famine and plague, when it fully realized
• (D) The French government began a concerted effort to prevent famine and plague by the mid-1700s, fully realizing
• (E) When the French government began a concerted effort to prevent famine and plague, it fully realized by the mid-1700s

Replete with bloody revenge, disasters (both deserved and undeserved) and agonizing moral dilemmas, the plots of tragedies also involve dramatic irony, where the audience recognizes the facts before they are recognized by the play's characters themselves.

• (A) they are recognized by the play's characters themselves
• (B) the play's characters recognize the facts
• (C) these facts are recognized by the play's characters
• (D) being recognized by the play's characters
• (E) the play's characters themselves do

Female sparrows and immatures are quite nondescript compared to the adult male sparrow's distinctive and conspicuous markings: a black bib, a gray cap, and white lines trailing down from the mouth.

• (A) the adult male sparrow's
• (B) those of adult males, their
• (C) the adult male, which has
• (D) adult males' markings
• (E) adult males, whose

Perhaps the boldest and most grandiose composition in the history of Indian painting, the blossoming of that nation's classical period cannot be better represented than by the Sinhala Avadana frieze.

• (A) Perhaps the boldest and most grandiose composition in the history of Indian painting, the blossoming of that nation's classical period cannot be better represented than by the Sinhala Avadana frieze.
• (B) The Sinhala Avadana frieze is perhaps the boldest and most grandiose composition in the history of Indian painting, the blossoming of that nation's classical period cannot be better represented than by it.
• (C) Representing the blossoming of India's classical period better than any other composition, the Sinhala Avadana frieze, which in the history of Indian painting is perhaps the boldest and most grandiose composition.
• (D) The blossoming of India's classical period cannot be better represented than by the Sinhala Avadana frieze, perhaps the boldest and most grandiose composition in the history of Indian painting.
• (E) The blossoming of India's classical period cannot better represent what is perhaps the boldest and most grandiose composition in the history of Indian painting: the Sinhala Avadana frieze.

Struthers College has built its reputation for academic excellence largely on significant contributions from wealthy alumni who are avid fans of the school’s football team. Although the team has won more national championships over the years than any other team in its division, this year it did not even win the division title, and so Struthers College can expect to see a decline in alumni contributions next year.
The above argument relies on which of the following assumptions about Struthers College?

• (A) The college’s reputation for academic excellence depends on the performance of its football team.
• (B) Contributions from alumni are needed for the college to produce a winning football team.
• (C) Struthers alumni contributions depend to an extent on a winning record by the college's football team.
• (D) The college’s football team will continue its losing streak next year.
• (E) As a group, the college’s alumni will have at least as much discretionary money to give away next year as this year.

Recent dental research shows that bacteria around the gum line produces a substance that in sufficient amounts can induce preterm labor in pregnant women and can cause heart disease by clogging arteries. Both medical outcomes add to payouts by health insurers to medical-service providers. The bacteria is best removed by a dentist or trained hygienist during a routine cleaning. One health insurer has calculated that it can reduce its payouts by reimbursing subscribers who are either pregnant or at high risk of developing heart disease for the cost of one professional dental cleaning per year.
Which of the following, if true, most strongly supports the assertion that the insurer's payouts to medical-service providers will decrease if it implements the reimbursement plan described above?

• (A) Dental-hygiene regimens such as brushing or flossing can slow the accumulation of the bacteria-produced substance.
• (B) Individuals are generally less likely to postpone or forego inexpensive or free dental procedures than expensive ones.
• (C) Pregnant women typically crave sugary foods, which are proven to contribute to tooth decay.
• (D) The risk of developing heart disease is greater for individuals with a family history of heart disease than for those with no such history.
• (E) The dental health of pregnant women and heart-disease patients, as a group, is similar to that of the general population.

Diane: As we both know, the population of this country is aging. Elderly people generally prefer not to live in harsh climates characterized by extreme temperatures. Accordingly, in this country’s coastal regions, where the climate is generally most temperate, the population is likely to grow, while other regions are likely to suffer population declines.
Paul: I disagree. With few exceptions, regions where the climate is harsh are characterized by comparatively low living costs, a compelling factor for retired people with little savings and on fixed incomes.
Which of the following is the most likely point of disagreement between Diane and Paul?

• (A) The reason for the population shift toward coastal areas and away from other regions.
• (B) Whether the country’s current decline in overall population will continue into the foreseeable future.
• (C) Why older individuals are likely to move to certain regions rather than others.
• (D) Why coastal regions are likely to experience population growth while other regions will suffer population declines.
• (E) Whether the country’s coastal regions are likely to be populated primarily by retirees.

An avid television viewer is statistically more likely to take sleeping pills at bedtime than a person who enjoys listening to classical music but does not watch television as a habit. Clearly, listening to classical music just before bedtime contributes to a more restful night's sleep, whereas watching television before bedtime has the opposite effect.
Which of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the above argument?

• (A) Reading a book before bedtime contributes to restful sleep more than listening to music does.
• (B) People who enjoy classical music typically like to read just before bedtime.
• (C) Sleeplessness is more common among people who watch late-night television than among people who do not.
• (D) Engaging in a bedtime activity that is mentally stimulating often interferes with a person’s ability to fall asleep.
• (E) A silent environment is less conducive to restful sleep than an environment with calming ambient sounds.

Last year, seniors at Jasper County’s public high schools performed worse on standardized college-entrance exams than their peers at Nesbit County’s public high schools. In recent years, more and more Jasper County residents have been enrolling their children in private high schools, where the teacher-to-student ratio is traditionally lower than in public schools, and enrollment in Jasper County’s public high schools has dwindled as a result.
Based only on the information above, parents residing in Jasper County and concerned about their child’s academic future should pursue which of the following courses of action?

• (A) Enroll their child in one of Jasper County’s public schools.
• (B) Stay in Jasper County and enroll their child in a private school.
• (C) Provide home schooling for their child rather than enrolling the child in either a public or private school.
• (D) Move away from Jasper County and enroll their child in a private school.
• (E) Move to Nesbit County and enroll their child in that county’s public schools.

According to the passage, Rossetti’s poems

• (A) were criticized by reviewers as not progressive enough
• (B) violated certain aesthetic ideals through their portrayals of violence
• (C) suggested that Rossetti had rejected the themes of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood
• (D) came under attack for their emphasis on conventional morality rather than meaningful content
• (E) were criticized for focusing too much on aestheticism rather than spiritual and tender themes

The author would probably view the developments discussed in the passage as

• (A) unsurprising
• (B) puzzling
• (C) alarming
• (D) encouraging
• (E) unexpected

Which of the following is the best title for the passage?

• (A) Why are Fish Gender Ratios Changing so Rapidly?
• (B) Dead Zones: Their Causes and Consequences
• (C) A Prescription for Reversing Hypoxia Levels
• (D) Dangers of Artificial Waste-water Runoff
• (E) What Causes Birth Defects in Salt-water Fish?

Which of the following best characterizes a Cartier-Bresson portrait sitting?

• (A) an awkward exchange
• (B) a diagnostic session with the artist
• (C) an intimate collaboration between artist and subject
• (D) a confrontation between the artist and subject
• (E) an exercise in artistic control by the artist

Based on the passage information, with which of the following statements would both Avedon and Reynolds most likely agree?

• (A) Control of the portrait-sitting experience should lie with the artist.
• (B) A portrait is most likely to reveal the subject’s true self when the sitting takes place in a setting familiar to the subject.
• (C) During portrait sittings, subjects often enjoy revealing secrets about themselves to the artist.
• (D) Paying an artist for a portrait of oneself undermines the mutual trust needed for a successful outcome.
• (E) A person can gain new insight into himself or herself by sitting for a portrait.