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Test Prep CLEP Composition and Literature Exam
CLEP Composition and Literature: American Literature, English Literature, Humanities (Page 5 )

Updated On: 30-Jan-2026
Page 5 of 44
PDF with 213 Questions

(1) I always thought trips to my grandmother’s house were boring.
(2) They were boring until I started to find out about my family’s past.
(3) As it turns out, I have some interesting relatives, including a professional dancer, a magician, and an entrepreneur.
(4) Even my grandmother never consider them to be interesting until we began to have our discussions.
(5) I remember her saying one time, “Hmm, I guess we’re related to some pretty unique people.”
(6) Everyone has to admit that the most interesting relative was grandmother’s cousin Jerry.
(7) Jerry was involved in more business schemes than you could imagine.
(8) He started a laundry service, a publishing company, a hat shop.
(9) He owned a minor league baseball team, a circus tent, and one of the country’s first motorcycle shops.
(10) Cousin Jerry had his hands in everything!
(11) None of his ventures turned a profit until he opened his famous ice cream shop.
(12) Jerry’s Ice Cream weren’t no ordinary ice cream store.
(13) He made some of the strangest flavors in the world: including tomato vanilla, chocolate watermelon, and even potato strawberry.
(14) As weird as those flavors may sound, people flocked to the store, perhaps just to try something so strange.
(15) Grandmother remembers how excited Jerry was when his shop became a success.

In the context of the second paragraph, which of the following is the best way to begin sentence 11?

  1. However,
  2. Of course,
  3. Little did we know,
  4. On the contrary,
  5. Most importantly,

Answer(s): A

Explanation:

The author lists several of Jerry’s ventures, then contrasts that list to the one that makes a profit. Therefore, a word of contrast – “However” – is warranted. D. is also a contrasting phrase, but it is not appropriate in this context. B. and E. do not establish a contrast. C. does not make sense because someone, probably the grandmother, did know this fact about Jerry’s ice cream shop.



(1) I always thought trips to my grandmother’s house were boring.
(2) They were boring until I started to find out about my family’s past.
(3) As it turns out, I have some interesting relatives, including a professional dancer, a magician, and an entrepreneur.
(4) Even my grandmother never consider them to be interesting until we began to have our discussions.
(5) I remember her saying one time, “Hmm, I guess we’re related to some pretty unique people.”
(6) Everyone has to admit that the most interesting relative was grandmother’s cousin Jerry.
(7) Jerry was involved in more business schemes than you could imagine.
(8) He started a laundry service, a publishing company, a hat shop.
(9) He owned a minor league baseball team, a circus tent, and one of the country’s first motorcycle shops.
(10) Cousin Jerry had his hands in everything!
(11) None of his ventures turned a profit until he opened his famous ice cream shop.
(12) Jerry’s Ice Cream weren’t no ordinary ice cream store.
(13) He made some of the strangest flavors in the world: including tomato vanilla, chocolate watermelon, and even potato strawberry.
(14) As weird as those flavors may sound, people flocked to the store, perhaps just to try something so strange.
(15) Grandmother remembers how excited Jerry was when his shop became a success.

Which of the following is the best way to revise the underlined portion of sentence 12 (reproduced below)? Jerry’s Ice Cream weren’t no ordinary ice cream store.

  1. (No change)
  2. was not no ordinary
  3. wasn’t an ordinary
  4. weren’t an ordinary
  5. wasn’t no ordinary

Answer(s): C

Explanation:

There are two problems with the original sentence A. First, the plural verb structure “weren’t” (“were not”) does not agree with the singular subject “Jerry’s Ice Cream.” Second, the phrase “weren’t no” is a double negative, canceling the author’s intended meaning. D still has the problem with the verb. B and E fix the verb, but they still have the problem with the double negative. The only choice that fixes both problems is C.



(1) I always thought trips to my grandmother’s house were boring.
(2) They were boring until I started to find out about my family’s past.
(3) As it turns out, I have some interesting relatives, including a professional dancer, a magician, and an entrepreneur.
(4) Even my grandmother never consider them to be interesting until we began to have our discussions.
(5) I remember her saying one time, “Hmm, I guess we’re related to some pretty unique people.”
(6) Everyone has to admit that the most interesting relative was grandmother’s cousin Jerry.
(7) Jerry was involved in more business schemes than you could imagine.
(8) He started a laundry service, a publishing company, a hat shop.
(9) He owned a minor league baseball team, a circus tent, and one of the country’s first motorcycle shops.
(10) Cousin Jerry had his hands in everything!
(11) None of his ventures turned a profit until he opened his famous ice cream shop.
(12) Jerry’s Ice Cream weren’t no ordinary ice cream store.
(13) He made some of the strangest flavors in the world: including tomato vanilla, chocolate watermelon, and even potato strawberry.
(14) As weird as those flavors may sound, people flocked to the store, perhaps just to try something so strange.
(15) Grandmother remembers how excited Jerry was when his shop became a success.

Which of the following is the best way to revise sentence 13?

  1. (No change)
  2. Change the colon to a dash
  3. Change the period to an exclamation point
  4. Omit the word “including”
  5. Add a comma after the word “including”

Answer(s): D

Explanation:

The original sentence A uses a colon to set up a series, but it incorrectly adds the word “including” before the series begins. D is the best correction. It is possible to use a dash instead of a colon to set up a series, but B does not fix the problem of “including.” C does not help the series, and E. makes the series even more confusing.



(1) I always thought trips to my grandmother’s house were boring.
(2) They were boring until I started to find out about my family’s past.
(3) As it turns out, I have some interesting relatives, including a professional dancer, a magician, and an entrepreneur.
(4) Even my grandmother never consider them to be interesting until we began to have our discussions.
(5) I remember her saying one time, “Hmm, I guess we’re related to some pretty unique people.”
(6) Everyone has to admit that the most interesting relative was grandmother’s cousin Jerry.
(7) Jerry was involved in more business schemes than you could imagine.
(8) He started a laundry service, a publishing company, a hat shop.
(9) He owned a minor league baseball team, a circus tent, and one of the country’s first motorcycle shops.
(10) Cousin Jerry had his hands in everything!
(11) None of his ventures turned a profit until he opened his famous ice cream shop.
(12) Jerry’s Ice Cream weren’t no ordinary ice cream store.
(13) He made some of the strangest flavors in the world: including tomato vanilla, chocolate watermelon, and even potato strawberry.
(14) As weird as those flavors may sound, people flocked to the store, perhaps just to try something so strange.
(15) Grandmother remembers how excited Jerry was when his shop became a success.

Which of the following would be a good conclusion to the essay?

  1. I myself would like to own an ice cream shop one day, but I would serve more normal flavors.
  2. The next time I visit grandmother, I’m going to get some more details about my aunt, the dancer.
  3. The store is long-gone, but the memories of those strange flavors and their success still remain in the family.
  4. As interesting as the ice cream shop may sound, Jerry also owned a pet store that specialized in exotic birds.
  5. The next time you visit an ice cream shop, imagine eating a flavor like cherry pistachio.

Answer(s): C

Explanation:

The concluding sentence should relate to what has been discussed in the essay but also leave the reader with a sense of finality. C accomplishes the mission well. A, D, and E are related to ice cream, but they introduce new ideas that do not give the reader a sense that the narrative is over. B is completely unrelated to the third paragraph and is not a sufficient way to conclude the text.



Bart’s frivolous warning led to noticeable solemnity among the sailors. Change “led” to “but it led”.

  1. warning, although frivolous
  2. warning was frivolous
  3. warning that appeared
  4. warning, seemingly frivolous
  5. warning, frivolously

Answer(s): B

Explanation:

The instructions ask you to change “led” to “but it led,” leading to a compound sentence. The appropriate structure is: “Bart’s warning was frivolous, but it led to noticeable solemnity among the sailors.”
A) would lead to: “Bart’s warning, although frivolous, but it led to noticeable solemnity among the sailors.” (Missing verb in the opening dependent clause)
C) would lead to: “Bart’s warning that appeared frivolous, but it led to noticeable solemnity among the sailors.” (Missing verb in the opening dependent clause)
D) would lead to: “Bart’s warning, seemingly frivolous, but it led to noticeable solemnity among the sailors.” (Missing verb in the opening dependent clause)
E) would lead to: “Bart’s warning, frivolously delivered, but it led to noticeable solemnity among the sailors.” (Missing verb in the opening dependent clause)



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