Confused by College Board SAT Reading Practice Questions? Let’s Break This One Down Together!

When the SAT throws curveballs, don’t panic—break it down.

Some College Board SAT Reading Practice questions don’t ask you what a sentence says—they ask you why it’s there. Sound tricky? You’re not alone. In today’s breakdown, we’re tackling a common challenge: identifying the function of a specific sentence in a short passage. Let’s take a look at a real SAT-style example and walk through what’s really being asked—so you can face these questions with confidence on test day.

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The mimosa tree evolved in East Asia, where the beetle Bruchidius terrenus preys on its seeds. In 1785, mimosa trees were introduced to North America, far from any B. terrenus. But evolutionary links between predators and their prey can persist across centuries and continents. Around 2001, B. terrenus was introduced in southeastern North America near where botanist Shu-Mei Chang and colleagues had been monitoring mimosa trees. Within a year, 93 percent of the trees had been attacked by the beetles.

Which choice best describes the function of the third sentence in the overall structure of the text?

A) It states the hypothesis that Chang and colleagues had set out to investigate using mimosa trees and B. terrenus.

B) It presents a generalization that is exemplified by the discussion of the mimosa trees and B. terrenus.

C) It offers an alternative explanation for the findings of Chang and colleagues.

D) It provides context that clarifies why the species mentioned spread to new locations.

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Ready to see how you did?

Click your answer choice below to reveal the correct response—along with a clear explanation to boost your SAT skills and strategy!

Answer A

Choice A is incorrect because the third sentence doesn’t indicate that Chang and colleagues were investigating any particular hypothesis. According to the text, Chang and colleagues were simply monitoring mimosa trees when the beetles happened to be introduced to the area.

Answer B

Choice B is the best answer because it most accurately describes the function of the third sentence within the overall structure of the text. The third sentence makes a generalization, asserting that evolutionary links between predators and prey can persist across great expanses of time and distance. This generalization is exemplified by the text’s discussion of the relationship between mimosa trees and B. terrenus beetles. When mimosa trees were introduced to North America in 1785, no B. terrenus beetles were present, so the relationship between the trees and the beetles that exists in their native East Asia was disrupted. When the beetles were introduced to North America more than 200 years later, however, they quickly attacked mimosa trees, illustrating the generalization that links between predators and prey “can persist across centuries and continents.”

Answer C

Choice C is incorrect because the third sentence offers a generalization about the relationship between predators and prey, not an explanation for the findings of Chang and colleagues that differs from an explanation presented elsewhere in the text.

Answer D

Choice D is incorrect because the third sentence doesn’t discuss any particular species (either the species mentioned elsewhere in the text or any other) and doesn’t help explain why species spread to new locations.

Too easy? Check our other posts for more examples.