Reading Comprehension590 words11 questions

The Wrong ShadowFree SEAG Reading Comprehension Practice

A complete practice passage in the style of the SEAG English paper: one story, then 11 questions in order (6 multiple-choice and 5 short written answers). Read the story first. Each question says which lines to look at, and checking an answer shows the correct answer and why.

In the SEAG test

Questions 16 to 28 of the English section are all about one reading passage: 7 multiple-choice questions, then 6 short written answers. That is nearly half the English marks.

The Wrong Shadow

Fiction
  1. Line 1: Nia arrived for final rehearsal and sat at the lighting desk beside the stage.
  2. Line 2: Her job was to turn a floor-level lamp towards a cardboard moon on cue.
  3. Line 3: She had marked the cue in blue pencil.
  4. Line 4: She knew the scene and could hear the next line in her head.
  5. Line 5: Still, her thumb pressed a fold into the corner of the cue sheet.
  1. Line 6: The curtain opened on painted cottages beneath a dark cloth sky.
  2. Line 7: Owen crossed the stage as Priya waited beside a paper lantern.
  3. Line 8: Nia watched for the storm line.
  4. Line 9: Before Owen reached it, a crooked shadow crept across one cottage roof and covered the moon.
  5. Line 10: It had a hooked beak, a broad wing and a tail that shivered against the chimney.
  1. Line 11: Owen stopped speaking, and Priya lowered the lantern.
  2. Line 12: The director raised one hand, quietly pausing the rehearsal.
  3. Line 13: Nia checked the number.
  4. Line 14: It was the correct cue, but the strange shape had appeared before she touched the lamp control.
  5. Line 15: She would check before she blamed anything.
  1. Line 16: First, Nia compared her blue number with the director's copy; they matched.
  2. Line 17: Next, she confirmed the cardboard moon remained clipped flat in its frame.
  3. Line 18: Finally, she checked the lamp base against strips of tape on the floor.
  4. Line 19: It had not shifted from its marked position.
  5. Line 20: She had now tested three possible causes, yet none explained the bird.
  1. Line 21: The shadow kept quivering although the stage was still.
  2. Line 22: Its beak tilted towards the door whenever a draught passed beneath it.
  3. Line 23: When the draught faded, the beak settled.
  4. Line 24: Nia crouched beside the desk without touching the hot lamp and followed the shadow back towards its source.
  5. Line 25: Something narrow was swaying on a low prop hook between the lamp and the cloth sky.
  1. Line 26: A folded black umbrella hung there after the afternoon rain.
  2. Line 27: One loose strap lifted whenever air moved under the door.
  3. Line 28: The umbrella's shadow was a black bird, stretched enormous by the lamp.
  4. Line 29: Its handle formed the beak, and its strap made the tail flick.
  5. Line 30: Nothing was wrong with the cue sheet, the moon or the lamp after all.
  1. Line 31: Nia explained her finding, then waited while an adult moved the umbrella to the coat rack.
  2. Line 32: She returned the lamp control to its starting mark.
  3. Line 33: Owen repeated the scene; the cottages remained clear until the cue.
  4. Line 34: Nia turned the control, and the round moon rose exactly when the storm line ended.
  5. Line 35: Priya lifted the paper lantern, completing the picture they had rehearsed.
  1. Line 36: The director was ready, but Nia kept looking at the empty hook.
  2. Line 37: The accidental bird had crossed the roof at the scene's tensest moment.
  3. Line 38: Could they use a bird shadow on purpose before the moon appeared?
  4. Line 39: Owen liked the idea, provided the movement did not cover his face.
  5. Line 40: Priya suggested that the bird should leave as her lantern entered.
  1. Line 41: They tried a flat bird cut-out fixed to a separate handle.
  2. Line 42: An adult placed it at the safe mark Nia indicated, away from the lamp casing.
  3. Line 43: This time, Priya moved the cut-out slowly while Nia watched the roof and Owen continued speaking.
  4. Line 44: The bird crossed one chimney, paused, then slipped away as the lantern rose.
  5. Line 45: The new effect was deliberate, repeatable and clear.
  1. Line 46: Afterwards, the director thanked Nia for finding the cause before suggesting a change.
  2. Line 47: Owen joked that the unexpected bird had auditioned for the play without asking.
  3. Line 48: Nia unfolded the corner of her cue sheet and smoothed it against the desk.
  4. Line 49: Tomorrow's audience would never know which shadow was an accident.
  5. Line 50: Nia would know, and she would know why the second one belonged.

Answer the questions

Skill: Check Every Option, from Finding Information in the Text

Question 1Stretch

Refer to: the whole passage

Which statement is fully supported by the story?

Skill: Infer Feelings in Context, from Reading Between the Lines

Question 2Standard

Refer to: Lines 1–5

How does Nia seem before the rehearsal begins?

Skill: Find a Stated Fact, from Finding Information in the Text

Question 3Stretch

Refer to: Lines 25–29

What caused the first bird-shaped shadow?

Skill: Work Out a New Word, from Words in Context

Question 4Standard

Refer to: Line 42

In line 42, what does indicated mean?

Skill: Why That Word?, from How Writers Use Language

Question 5Standard

Refer to: Line 9

What is the effect of crept in line 9?

Skill: Fiction or Non-Fiction?, from Text Types, Purpose and Audience

Question 6Standard

Refer to: the whole passage

Which feature best shows that this passage is fiction?

Skill: Find a Stated Fact, from Finding Information in the Text

Question 7Confidence builder

Refer to: Lines 16–20

According to lines 16–20, how many possible causes had Nia tested? Write the number in figures.

0 of 2 characters

Skill: Put Events in Order, from Finding Information in the Text

Question 8Standard

Refer to: Lines 12–13

What did Nia do first after the director paused the rehearsal? Copy the exact four-word sentence from lines 12–13.

0 of 28 characters

Skill: Prove It from the Text, from Reading Between the Lines

Question 9Standard

Refer to: Lines 14–15

Which seven-word sentence in lines 14–15 shows that Nia decides to use evidence before making an accusation? Copy the sentence.

0 of 52 characters

Skill: Closest in Meaning, from Words in Context

Question 10Confidence builder

Refer to: Line 21

Which one word in line 21 is closest in meaning to shaking slightly? Copy the word.

0 of 20 characters

Skill: Spot the Technique, from How Writers Use Language

Question 11Standard

Refer to: Line 28

“The umbrella’s shadow was a black bird” (line 28). Which technique directly compares the shadow with a bird without using like or as? Write one word.

0 of 20 characters

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