Free GED RLA Exam Flashcards

The single point a whole passage is making. It lives in the thesis or topic sentence, not in any one detail. Test yourself: if a sentence only covers one example, it is a supporting detail, not the main idea.

A main idea the author never writes as one sentence. You infer it by combining the key points. Common in narrative or descriptive passages; look for the one sentence that could serve as a title for the whole text.

A fact stated directly in the text. The correct answer is verbatim or near-verbatim from the passage. Contrast with inference, which requires connecting text to logic rather than pointing at one line.

A conclusion the text supports but does not state outright. Must be true if the passage is true, and cannot depend on outside facts the passage does not supply. If your answer needs personal knowledge to be correct, it is too far.

A summary condenses the main idea and key effects into one short statement and drops minor details. A paraphrase restates line-by-line at similar length. GED summary items reward capturing what matters, not rewording everything.

Points are organized as causes and their results. Signal words include because, therefore, as a result, and consequently. A shift in structure often signals a new claim or counterpoint.

Events are presented in time order. Signal words include first, then, next, and finally. Common in historical passages and procedures; useful for sequence-of-events and timeline items.

The perspective a text is narrated from. First person uses I/we, second person uses you, third person uses he/she/they. Perspective controls what the reader can and cannot know; a first-person narrator may be biased or uninformed.

The author's main position on an issue; the sentence the rest of the argument tries to prove. Often appears as a thesis or topic sentence. Identifying the claim is step one in any RLA argument-analysis item.

The facts, statistics, examples, or quoted expert statements used to back a claim. An argument is only as strong as the evidence tied to it; unsupported assertions score poorly on the Extended Response.

A fact can be verified (the temperature was 92°F); an opinion is a judgment (it was too hot). GED items ask which statement is which and which opinion is best supported by verifiable facts.

An opposing view the author acknowledges before rebutting. Its presence signals a stronger, more balanced argument because the author does not ignore the other side. Its absence can expose a one-sided or weak argument.

An unstated belief an argument depends on. If the assumption is false, the argument collapses even if the evidence is real. Identifying assumptions is a high-value RLA skill for evaluating paired passages.

A logical fallacy that attacks the person rather than the argument. It weakens credibility because the speaker's character does not determine whether the evidence is sound. GED items may ask why a piece of reasoning is flawed.

Surrounding words that hint at a word's meaning. Types include definition, synonym, antonym, example, and contrast. The GED tests this skill rather than memorized dictionary definitions.

The emotional associations of a word beyond its literal meaning. Thrifty and cheap share a denotation but differ in connotation. Tone questions hinge on recognizing connotative differences.

The literal dictionary meaning of a word, independent of emotional coloring. Paired with connotation to analyze word choice; authors pick synonyms for connotation, not just denotation.

Words used with a precise meaning inside one field, such as migration in ecology versus politics. The passage usually defines or contexts these terms; rely on the surrounding sentence, not the everyday meaning.

A word with more than one dictionary sense, such as scale or draft. The correct meaning on the GED is the one the surrounding sentence uses, not the most common one. Read the whole sentence before choosing.

A comparison using like or as, for example as brave as a lion. Distinct from metaphor, which calls one thing another thing without those cue words. Similes are softer comparisons; metaphors assert identity.

A direct comparison that says one thing IS another, such as the classroom was a zoo. Stronger than a simile because it implies identity rather than resemblance; common in poetry and memoir on the RLA.

Giving human traits to non-human things, such as the wind whispered. Signals tone and mood, and is frequently tested on RLA literary passages because it shapes the reader's emotional response.

A reference to a well-known text, event, or person. The author assumes the reader recognizes it; missing the reference loses a layer of meaning but not always the main idea. Common in historical and literary passages.

Deliberate exaggeration for effect, not meant literally, such as I have a million things to do. Common in memoir and fiction; often signals humor, emphasis, or frustration rather than a verifiable claim.

The reason a text was written, usually to inform, persuade, entertain, or explain. Identified by looking at content and word choice across the whole passage, not just the title. A how-to passage is explain; an op-ed is persuade.

The author's attitude toward the subject, revealed through word choice. Examples include critical, objective, ironic, and admiring. Different from mood, which is the feeling the reader takes away.

The emotional atmosphere the reader feels. Created by setting, diction, and imagery. Differs from tone, which is the author's attitude; mood is the effect on the audience.

A slant toward one side of an issue. Detected through loaded words, one-sided evidence, and omitted counterarguments. Informational texts should minimize it; opinion pieces may use it openly.

Two complete sentences joined with no punctuation or only a coordinating conjunction. Fix with a period, a semicolon, or a comma plus a coordinating conjunction (and, but, or, so).

Two complete sentences joined by only a comma. A common GED editing error. Fix it the same way as a run-on: a period, a semicolon, or a comma plus a coordinating conjunction.

An incomplete sentence missing a subject, a verb, or a complete thought. Common in drafts. Fix by attaching the fragment to a neighboring sentence or by adding the missing element.

Using the same grammatical form for items in a series. She likes hiking, swimming, and biking is parallel; she likes hiking, swimming, and to bike is not. Tested heavily on RLA editing items.

A modifier with no logical subject to attach to. Walking home, the rain started implies the rain was walking. Fix by naming the actor right after the opening phrase: Walking home, I felt the rain start.

A modifier placed next to the wrong noun. I saw a dog on the way to school with three legs reads as if the school has three legs. Fix by moving the modifier next to the word it should describe.

The verb must match the subject in number. Singular subjects take singular verbs. Collective nouns (team, jury) and most indefinite pronouns (each, everyone) take singular verbs; this is a top-tested RLA rule.

Subject pronouns (I, he, who) do actions; object pronouns (me, him, whom) receive actions. Test who vs. whom by substituting he or him: if he fits, use who; if him fits, use whom.

A pronoun must match its antecedent in number and gender. Singular they is accepted for a person of unspecified gender; for a clearly singular antecedent like each student, traditional agreement uses his or her, not their.

Stay in one tense unless a shift is intentional. Switching between past and present without a reason is a common GED error. Fix by aligning tense to the time frame of the passage as a whole.

Used for an action completed before another past action. Formed with had plus the past participle: she had finished before I arrived. Signals sequence in narrative; often tested alongside chronological structure.

Words like each, everyone, anyone, somebody, and nobody. They usually take singular verbs: everyone is, not everyone are. A high-frequency agreement rule on RLA editing items.

Separates three or more items. The GED accepts both a, b, and c (Oxford comma) and a, b and c. Consistency within a passage matters more than which style you pick.

Joins two complete sentences without a conjunction, and separates items in a series when those items already contain commas. Stronger than a comma, weaker than a period. A semicolon never separates a sentence from a fragment.

Use 's for a singular possessor (the dog's bone) and s' for a plural possessor ending in s (the dogs' bone). Distinguish from contractions: it's means it is, while its means belonging to it.

Enclose direct speech and exact text from a source. Do NOT use them for paraphrases or indirect quotations. In U.S. convention, commas and periods go inside the closing mark; colons and semicolons go outside.

Required for proper nouns, the first word of a sentence, and titles. Common GED errors include capitalizing common nouns (the Manager) and missing capitalization on proper adjectives (french fries, victorian era).

Affect is usually a verb meaning to influence; effect is usually a noun meaning result. Test by substituting influence or result: if influence fits, use affect; if result fits, use effect.

Than compares (faster than) and then sequences (first, then). They look alike but have unrelated meanings; swapping them changes what the sentence says and is a common RLA trap.

Whose shows possession. Who's is a contraction of who is or who has. Test by expanding the contraction: if who is does not fit, use whose. The same pattern applies to its vs. it's.

The GED essay is scored on three traits: argument development, evidence use, and conventions. Each trait runs 0-2 for up to 6 raw points before scaling. Strong answers use both passages, cite evidence, and avoid relying on personal opinion.

The essay asks which passage is better supported, not which side you personally agree with. Pick the stronger argument and defend it using text evidence, not personal experience. Off-topic or opinion-only essays cap at low trait scores.