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100+ Free STAAR English II Practice Questions

Pass your State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) End-of-Course English II exam on the first try — instant access, no signup required.

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Read the lines from a poem. The winter wind, a thief with empty hands, crept down the chimney, stole the morning's warmth. The phrase "a thief with empty hands" mainly suggests that the wind —

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2026 Statistics

Key Facts: STAAR English II Exam

Grade-10 end-of-course assessment

Course and Level

Texas Education Agency

52 base-test questions worth 64 points

Test Length

TEA STAAR English II Blueprint

Online assessment with multiple-choice and technology-enhanced items

Current Format

TEA STAAR Overview

Reading and Composition reporting categories plus one 10-point essay

Test Design

TEA STAAR English II Blueprint

Approaches Grade Level

Passing Standard

TEA STAAR Performance Standards

Required for graduating classes of 2026 and 2027

Graduation Requirement

Texas Education Agency

No student fee

Cost

Texas state assessment administration

Same school day; no session over 7 hours except approved support

Administration Timing

2025-2026 STAAR Test Administrator Manual

STAAR English II is the Texas end-of-course assessment for grade-10 English, delivered online. The TEA blueprint lists 52 base-test questions worth 64 points across a Reading reporting category and a Composition (revising and editing) reporting category, plus one 10-point extended constructed response. Approaches Grade Level is the passing standard, and a passing result satisfies the English II graduation requirement for the classes of 2026 and 2027.

Sample STAAR English II Practice Questions

Try these sample questions to test your STAAR English II exam readiness. Each question includes a detailed explanation. Start the interactive quiz above for the full 100+ question experience with AI tutoring.

1Read the excerpt from a short story. The lighthouse had not burned for thirty years, yet every evening Old Hannah climbed its rusted stairs and pressed her palm against the cold glass, as if warmth alone could call a ship home. Which theme is best developed by this excerpt?
A.Hope can endure long after its purpose seems lost.
B.Technology always replaces older ways of life.
C.Family bonds are stronger than friendship.
D.Hard work guarantees a successful outcome.
Explanation: Hannah keeps returning to a lighthouse that no longer works, hoping to guide a ship home. Her persistent ritual after thirty years develops the idea that hope can outlast its original purpose. The other options are not supported by the details given.
2Read the sentence from an informational article. Urban beekeeping has surged in popularity, but novices often underestimate the meticulous care a hive demands throughout the year. As used in this sentence, the word "meticulous" most nearly means —
A.careful and precise
B.occasional and brief
C.expensive and risky
D.simple and relaxed
Explanation: The sentence contrasts the surge in popularity with the demanding care a hive needs, and the word follows "underestimate," signaling that the care is more involved than expected. "Meticulous" means showing great attention to detail, so "careful and precise" fits. The other choices do not match this contrast.
3Read the lines from a poem. The city wears its lights like borrowed jewels, bright for an hour, then handed back to dawn. Which literary device is most clearly used in these lines?
A.Metaphor
B.Hyperbole
C.Onomatopoeia
D.Allusion
Explanation: The lines compare the city's lights to "borrowed jewels" without using "like" or "as" in the comparison itself, treating the lights as jewels the city wears. This is a metaphor. The phrase also implies the lights are temporary, but the device shaping the image is metaphor.
4Read the sentence from a student's draft. (1) Because the river flooded last spring, the town council decided to build a new levee, and they raised property taxes to pay for it. Which revision best combines the ideas while keeping the cause-and-effect relationship clear?
A.After the river flooded last spring, the town council decided to build a new levee, raising property taxes to fund it.
B.The river flooded last spring, the town council built a new levee, and taxes went up.
C.The town council raised property taxes; the river flooded; a levee was built.
D.Building a levee, the river flooded and the town council raised property taxes last spring.
Explanation: The best revision preserves the cause (the flood) and effect (building a levee and raising taxes) in a logical order while improving flow. Option A uses "After" to keep the time and cause relationship and a clear participial phrase. The other options create comma splices, lose the cause-effect order, or produce a misplaced modifier.
5Read the sentence from a student's essay. Neither the coaches nor the team captain ___ satisfied with the referee's final call.
A.was
B.were
C.being
D.are
Explanation: With "neither/nor," the verb agrees with the nearer subject, which is the singular "team captain." Therefore the singular verb "was" is correct. "Were" and "are" are plural, and "being" is not a complete verb.
6Read the excerpt from a literary nonfiction memoir. My grandmother spoke four languages but wrote in none of them. Her stories lived only in the kitchen, stirred into pots and passed to whoever stood close enough to listen. The author's word choice in the second sentence mainly emphasizes that the grandmother's stories were —
A.oral and tied to everyday life
B.written down for future generations
C.told only to large audiences
D.forgotten soon after they were told
Explanation: The verbs "stirred into pots" and "passed to whoever stood close enough to listen" connect the stories to cooking and spoken sharing. This word choice emphasizes that the stories were oral and rooted in daily life. The text states she wrote in none of her languages, ruling out the written option.
7Read the sentence from a draft. The documentary explores how coral reefs recover after storms it features footage from three oceans. What is the best way to correct the error in this sentence?
A.Insert a period and capital letter: ...after storms. It features...
B.Insert only a comma: ...after storms, it features...
C.Delete the word "it": ...after storms features footage...
D.Change "explores" to "exploring": The documentary exploring...
Explanation: The sentence is a run-on (fused sentence) joining two independent clauses with no punctuation. Splitting them into two sentences with a period fixes the error correctly. A comma alone would create a comma splice, and the other options change the meaning or create a fragment.
8Read the excerpt from an argumentative essay. Critics claim that requiring service hours turns generosity into a chore. Yet students who volunteer regularly report stronger ties to their communities and a clearer sense of purpose. How does the author use the second sentence?
A.To counter the critics' claim with a benefit of the requirement
B.To agree with critics that the requirement is harmful
C.To introduce an unrelated topic about purpose
D.To define what generosity means
Explanation: The transition "Yet" signals a contrast with the critics' claim in the first sentence. The second sentence offers benefits of volunteering, countering the objection. This is a counterargument structure common in argumentative writing.
9Read the sentence from a student's report. The scientist explained that the experiment ___ several times before the results could be confirmed.
A.had been repeated
B.has repeated
C.repeating
D.were repeated
Explanation: The experiment received the action (it was repeated) and the repetition happened before confirmation, so a past perfect passive form is needed. "Had been repeated" correctly expresses this sequence and voice. The other options use the wrong voice, tense, or are not complete verbs.
10Read the excerpt from a drama. MARCUS: (lowering his voice, glancing toward the door) We agreed to say nothing. Not a word, remember? DELIA: (turning away) I remember everything, Marcus. That is the problem. What does the stage direction "(turning away)" most likely reveal about Delia?
A.She is troubled by the secret and avoids facing Marcus.
B.She is bored and ready to leave the room.
C.She does not understand what Marcus is asking.
D.She is excited to share the secret with others.
Explanation: Delia's line about remembering "everything" being "the problem" shows the secret weighs on her, and turning away signals discomfort or reluctance to confront Marcus. The stage direction supports a reading of inner conflict. The other options contradict her words or the tense mood.

About the STAAR English II Exam

The STAAR English II end-of-course assessment measures how well Texas grade-10 students read, analyze, revise, and edit grade-level texts aligned to the TEKS. It combines literary and informational reading comprehension, author's craft and structure, vocabulary, revising and editing, and one extended constructed response, delivered online with multiple-choice and technology-enhanced items.

Assessment

The TEA blueprint for English II lists 52 base-test questions worth 64 points plus field-test items. The test has two reporting categories: Reading (literary and informational comprehension and author's craft, about 29-31 questions) and Composition (revising and editing, about 21-23 questions). One extended constructed response worth 10 points is included.

Time Limit

Campus coordinators schedule STAAR sessions for about 3-4 hours. Students still testing after about 4 hours are consolidated, must complete the assessment within the same school day, and no session may exceed 7 hours except approved Extra Day support.

Passing Score

Approaches Grade Level or higher is passing. STAAR reports four performance categories: Did Not Meet Grade Level, Approaches Grade Level, Meets Grade Level, and Masters Grade Level, each with a TEA-set scale-score cut point.

Exam Fee

No student fee; STAAR English II is a state-administered end-of-course assessment for eligible Texas public school and open-enrollment charter school students. (Texas Education Agency through the Texas Assessment Program online testing system)

STAAR English II Exam Content Outline

About 29-31 questions

Reading Comprehension

Identify theme, central idea, summary, inferences, character development, and plot relationships in literary and informational passages, including paired texts.

Embedded in reading

Author's Purpose and Craft

Analyze purpose, tone, point of view, word choice, figurative language, genre features, and the effect of an author's structural and stylistic choices.

Embedded across categories

Vocabulary in Context

Use context clues, roots, affixes, word origins, and multiple-meaning words to determine precise meanings in grade-10 texts.

About 21-23 questions

Revising and Editing

Revise passages for clarity, development, organization, transitions, and sentence combining; edit for grammar, punctuation, capitalization, spelling, and usage.

1 extended response worth 10 points

Extended Constructed Response

Write an organized composition based on one or more passages, scored for idea development, organization, and command of conventions.

How to Pass the STAAR English II Exam

What You Need to Know

  • Passing score: Approaches Grade Level or higher is passing. STAAR reports four performance categories: Did Not Meet Grade Level, Approaches Grade Level, Meets Grade Level, and Masters Grade Level, each with a TEA-set scale-score cut point.
  • Assessment: The TEA blueprint for English II lists 52 base-test questions worth 64 points plus field-test items. The test has two reporting categories: Reading (literary and informational comprehension and author's craft, about 29-31 questions) and Composition (revising and editing, about 21-23 questions). One extended constructed response worth 10 points is included.
  • Time limit: Campus coordinators schedule STAAR sessions for about 3-4 hours. Students still testing after about 4 hours are consolidated, must complete the assessment within the same school day, and no session may exceed 7 hours except approved Extra Day support.
  • Exam fee: No student fee; STAAR English II is a state-administered end-of-course assessment for eligible Texas public school and open-enrollment charter school students.

Keys to Passing

  • Complete 500+ practice questions
  • Score 80%+ consistently before scheduling
  • Focus on highest-weighted sections
  • Use our AI tutor for tough concepts

STAAR English II Study Tips from Top Performers

1Practice with the full range of STAAR genres: fiction, poetry, drama, literary nonfiction, informational, argumentative, and persuasive texts, since English II passages can come from any of them.
2For inference and theme questions, point to the exact sentence or detail in the passage that supports your answer before you choose an option.
3For author's craft questions, ask how a word choice, figurative device, or sentence structure affects meaning, tone, or pacing rather than just naming the device.
4For revising questions, prioritize the writer's purpose, development, organization, and transitions before focusing on small grammar details.
5For editing questions, read each sentence carefully and check subject-verb agreement, pronoun case and reference, verb tense, punctuation, comma splices, and parallel structure.
6For vocabulary questions, substitute each option into the sentence and keep the meaning and tone of the passage intact to find the precise word.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who takes the STAAR English II EOC?

Texas public school and open-enrollment charter school students take the STAAR English II end-of-course assessment when they are enrolled in the English II course, typically in grade 10.

How many questions are on STAAR English II?

The TEA blueprint lists 52 base-test questions worth 64 points, split between a Reading reporting category and a Composition (revising and editing) reporting category, plus one extended constructed response and field-test items that do not count toward the score.

Is STAAR English II a reading test or a writing test?

Both. STAAR English II combines reading comprehension and author's craft questions with revising and editing questions and one extended constructed response, reflecting the integrated English II TEKS.

What score is passing on STAAR English II?

Approaches Grade Level or higher is passing. STAAR reports Did Not Meet, Approaches, Meets, and Masters Grade Level, each with a scale-score cut point set by the Texas Education Agency.

Is the STAAR English II EOC still required to graduate?

A passing English II result is required for the graduating classes of 2026 and 2027. Beginning with the class of 2028, TEA has indicated the English II EOC will no longer be a graduation requirement.

Are official released STAAR English II questions available?

Yes. TEA posts released test forms, answer keys, item rationales, assessed-curriculum documents, blueprints, and full-length practice tests through the STAAR released test questions and TexasAssessment.gov practice resources.