A novel follows a girl from age twelve into adulthood and centers on her moral and psychological growth. Which term names this kind of novel?Purdue Online Writing Lab, Literary Terms. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, I. Reading, A. General Knowledge, topic 3 (subgenres).
A poem has fourteen lines of iambic pentameter and follows a set rhyme scheme. Which form is it?Academy of American Poets, poets.org, glossary: Sonnet and Ballad. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, I. Reading, A. General Knowledge, topic 3 (subgenres).
A story exaggerates a town council's endless meetings in order to poke fun at the council and challenge how it works. Which subgenre is this?Purdue Online Writing Lab, Literary Terms. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, I. Reading, A. General Knowledge, topic 3 (subgenres).
After the bus breaks down in the rain, Dena says, "Well, this day just keeps getting better." Dena's remark is an example of which device?Purdue Online Writing Lab, Literary Terms. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, I. Reading, B. Literature, topic 4 (what is stated and what is meant).
Show all 48 questions (44 more)
Reading, continued
Emily Dickinson writes: "Hope is the thing with feathers / That perches in the soul, / And sings the tune without the words, / And never stops at all." Which device carries these lines?Project Gutenberg, Poems by Emily Dickinson, Three Series; metaphor: poets.org glossary. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, I. Reading, B. Literature, topic 4 (word choice and figurative language).
John Donne is the most influential member of which group of seventeenth-century poets?Academy of American Poets, poets.org, A Brief Guide to Metaphysical Poets. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, I. Reading, A. General Knowledge, topic 1 (works, authors and contexts).
Langston Hughes wrote the poem "The Weary Blues". With which literary movement is he most closely associated?Academy of American Poets, poets.org, A Brief Guide to the Harlem Renaissance. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, I. Reading, A. General Knowledge, topic 1 (works, authors and contexts).
"Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary" (Edgar Allan Poe, "The Raven"). The words "weak and weary" are an example of which device?Project Gutenberg, The Raven by Edgar Allan Poe; alliteration: poets.org glossary. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, I. Reading, B. Literature, topic 5 (poetic devices and structure).
Passage 1: The new bike lanes on Main Street cut crashes by a third in their first year, city records show. Passage 2: Shop owners on Main Street say the bike lanes removed parking and cost them customers. How do the two passages differ?The answer is read from the passage printed with the question. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, I. Reading, C. Informational Texts and Rhetoric, topic 1 (texts with conflicting perspectives).
Passage: All summer Tavi laughed at his sister for hauling water to the dry corner of the garden, where nothing showed. "You are watering dirt," he said. In September the corner was thick with squash, and Tavi was the one asking for a share. Which theme does the passage develop?The answer is read from the passage printed with the question. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, I. Reading, B. Literature, topic 2 (theme).
Passage: City buses once ran every twenty minutes on Route 9. When the city cut service to once an hour, ridership fell by half within a year, and two grocery stores on the route closed. The city restored the old schedule last spring. What is the central idea of the passage?The answer is read from the passage printed with the question. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, I. Reading, C. Informational Texts and Rhetoric, topic 2 (central idea).
Passage: Fog pressed against the windows of the empty station. One lamp buzzed over the platform, and somewhere down the track a loose sign knocked against its post. How does the setting contribute to the passage?The answer is read from the passage printed with the question. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, I. Reading, B. Literature, topic 3 (setting, mood and tone).
Passage: In the game of Harrow, a "lock" is three tiles of one color in a row, and a "gate" is the empty space beside a lock. A player may enter a gate only on the turn after it forms. Why does the rule book define "lock" and "gate" before giving the rule?The answer is read from the passage printed with the question. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, I. Reading, C. Informational Texts and Rhetoric, topic 3 (technical language).
Passage: Lena walked to the piano without her sheet music. Her hands found the opening chord before the room had gone quiet, and she did not look down once. Which detail best supports the inference that Lena had prepared carefully?The answer is read from the passage printed with the question. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, I. Reading, B. Literature, topic 1 (textual evidence for an inference).
Passage: Mr. Okafor straightened the stack of permission slips twice, checked the clock, and counted the students again though no one had moved. What does the passage show about Mr. Okafor, and how?The answer is read from the passage printed with the question. Characterization: Purdue OWL, Literary Terms. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, I. Reading, B. Literature, topic 3 (direct and indirect characterization).
Passage: Our town's library should stay open on Sundays. Sunday is the one day many working parents are free, and last year's trial brought in more visitors than any weekday. Closing the doors saves little and shuts out the people who need the library most. What is the author's primary purpose?The answer is read from the passage printed with the question. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, I. Reading, C. Informational Texts and Rhetoric, topic 4 (purpose and point of view).
Passage: The creek behind Dale School flooded the playing field every spring. The district first tried sandbags, which washed out. It then dug a retention pond uphill from the field, and the field has stayed dry for three years. Which organizational pattern does the passage use?The answer is read from the passage printed with the question. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, I. Reading, C. Informational Texts and Rhetoric, topic 2 (organizational patterns).
Passage: The storm tore the roof off the gym, flooded the first floor and knocked out power for a week. In his letter to parents the principal wrote, "We have had a bit of weather." The principal's wording is an example of which device?The answer is read from the passage printed with the question. Hyperbole: Purdue OWL, Literary Terms. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, I. Reading, C. Informational Texts and Rhetoric, topic 3 (what is stated and what is meant).
"...that government of the people, by the people, for the people shall not perish from the earth." (Abraham Lincoln, Gettysburg Address). Which rhetorical device shapes the phrase "of the people, by the people, for the people"?Yale Law School, The Avalon Project, Gettysburg Address; parallel structure: Purdue OWL. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, I. Reading, C. Informational Texts and Rhetoric, topic 4 (how rhetoric supports a purpose).
Which pair of poets belongs to the English Romantic movement?Academy of American Poets, poets.org, A Brief Guide to Romanticism. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, I. Reading, A. General Knowledge, topic 1 (works, authors and contexts).
Which subgenre is a long narrative in verse that retells the heroic journey of a person or a group?Academy of American Poets, poets.org, glossary: Epic. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, I. Reading, A. General Knowledge, topic 3 (subgenres).
"You don't know about me without you have read a book by the name of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer; but that ain't no matter." (Mark Twain, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn). From which point of view is the novel told?Project Gutenberg, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, chapter I; point of view: Purdue OWL, Literary Terms. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, I. Reading, B. Literature, topic 3 (literary elements: point of view).
Language use and vocabulary 7
A student wants to know how the word "benevolent" is pronounced and which language it came from. Which reference gives both?The American Heritage Dictionary, entries "dictionary", "thesaurus" and "atlas". Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, II. Language Use and Vocabulary, topic 3 (reference materials).
Huck Finn, the narrator of Mark Twain's novel, says, "There was things which he stretched, but mainly he told the truth." What does the nonstandard wording "There was things" mainly do?Project Gutenberg, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, chapter I. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, II. Language Use and Vocabulary, topic 4 (dialect and diction).
In the sentence "The committee quickly approved the new schedule," what is the function of the word "quickly"?Purdue Online Writing Lab, Adjective or Adverb?. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, II. Language Use and Vocabulary, topic 1 (function of parts of speech).
Read the sentence: "The desert is arid; months can pass there without a drop of rain." Which meaning of "arid" does the context support?The answer is read from the passage printed with the question. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, II. Language Use and Vocabulary, topic 2 (context clues).
Which sentence contains an error in parallel structure?Purdue Online Writing Lab, Parallel Structure. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, II. Language Use and Vocabulary, topic 1 (errors in grammar and syntax).
Which sentence joins its two independent clauses correctly?Purdue Online Writing Lab, Run-ons, Comma Splices, Fused Sentences. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, II. Language Use and Vocabulary, topic 1 (errors in mechanics).
Which sentence uses "its" and "it's" correctly?Purdue Online Writing Lab, Apostrophe Introduction. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, II. Language Use and Vocabulary, topic 1 (justifying usage choices).
Writing, speaking and listening 11
A paragraph has this main idea: "School gardens help students learn science." Which detail best develops it?The answer is read from the passage printed with the question. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, III. Writing, Speaking, and Listening, topic 3 (details that develop a main idea).
A poster for a town fun run reads, "Your neighbors have all signed up. Don't be the one who stays home." Which method of persuasion is this?Purdue Online Writing Lab, Logical Fallacies. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, III. Writing, Speaking, and Listening, topic 6 (methods of appeal).
A seventh grader wants the school board to keep the art program. Which piece of writing best fits the task, purpose and audience?Purdue Online Writing Lab, Levels of Formality. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, III. Writing, Speaking, and Listening, topic 2 (task, purpose and audience).
A student adds a labeled diagram and a short video clip to a talk on volcanoes. According to the Common Core standards for grade 8, what are such displays for?Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts, speaking and listening standard 5, grade 8. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, III. Writing, Speaking, and Listening, topic 5 (multimedia and visual displays).
A student researching the causes of the Dust Bowl finds four sources. Which one should the student treat as the most credible?Purdue Online Writing Lab, Evaluating Sources of Information. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, III. Writing, Speaking, and Listening, topic 4 (credibility of sources).
A student restates an author's idea entirely in her own words. What must she still do to avoid plagiarism?Purdue Online Writing Lab, Quoting, Paraphrasing, and Summarizing. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, III. Writing, Speaking, and Listening, topic 4 (paraphrasing and plagiarism).
A student writes to support a claim about school start times with clear reasons and relevant evidence. Which type of writing is this?Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts, anchor standards for writing 1 to 3. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, III. Writing, Speaking, and Listening, topic 1 (types of writing).
A works-cited entry reads: Rivera, Ana. Rivers of the West. Canyon Press, 2019. What does "Canyon Press" identify?Purdue Online Writing Lab, MLA Works Cited Page: Books. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, III. Writing, Speaking, and Listening, topic 4 (interpreting a citation).
Passage: Two students in my class were late on Monday. Clearly, students at this school do not care about being on time. What weakens this argument?Purdue Online Writing Lab, Logical Fallacies. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, III. Writing, Speaking, and Listening, topic 7 (sound reasoning and sufficient evidence).
Which set of behaviors do the Common Core speaking standards for the middle grades name for presenting claims and findings?Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts, speaking and listening standard 4, grades 6 to 8. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, III. Writing, Speaking, and Listening, topic 5 (delivery of a speech).
Which transition best fills the blank? "The class had planned an outdoor lab. ____, heavy rain forced the students to work inside."Purdue Online Writing Lab, Transitional Devices. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, III. Writing, Speaking, and Listening, topic 3 (transitions).
English language arts instruction 8
A newcomer to a seventh-grade class listens closely and follows along but does not yet speak English in class. Which term names this stage of second-language acquisition?Colorín Colorado, Language Acquisition: An Overview. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, IV. English Language Arts Instruction, topic 1 (language acquisition).
A teacher is using the Model-Practice-Reflect cycle to teach a planning strategy for essays. What happens in the first part of the cycle?Institute of Education Sciences, Teaching Secondary Students to Write Effectively (2016), recommendation 1. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, IV. English Language Arts Instruction, topic 7 (teaching components of writing).
A teacher models how to summarize a paragraph, guides students with feedback as they try it, then has them summarize on their own. Which approach to comprehension instruction is this?Institute of Education Sciences, Improving Adolescent Literacy (2008), recommendation 2. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, IV. English Language Arts Instruction, topic 6 (strategies for teaching adolescent reading).
A teacher wants new academic words to stay with her eighth graders. Which plan matches the advice of the federal practice guide on adolescent literacy?Institute of Education Sciences, Improving Adolescent Literacy: Effective Classroom and Intervention Practices (2008), recommendation 1. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, IV. English Language Arts Instruction, topic 1 (vocabulary development).
Before students write their own editorials, a teacher has them study two published ones to see how each writer states and supports a claim. Which recommended practice is this?Institute of Education Sciences, Teaching Secondary Students to Write Effectively (2016), recommendation 2. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, IV. English Language Arts Instruction, topic 7 (teaching components of writing).
In reciprocal teaching, students and teacher take turns leading a dialogue about sections of a text. Which four comprehension strategies do they apply?Institute of Education Sciences, What Works Clearinghouse, evidence snapshot: Reciprocal Teaching. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, IV. English Language Arts Instruction, topic 6 (strategies for teaching adolescent reading).
Which of these is a formative assessment and not a summative one?Carnegie Mellon University, Eberly Center, Formative vs Summative Assessment. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, IV. English Language Arts Instruction, topic 8 (formative and summative assessment).
Which teacher move best sustains a class discussion about what a text means?Institute of Education Sciences, Improving Adolescent Literacy (2008), recommendation 3. Outline: ETS Study Companion for Praxis 5047, IV. English Language Arts Instruction, topic 2 (collaborative discussions).
How this list was compiled: Our own questions, written to the content topics of the ETS Study Companion for Praxis Middle School English Language Arts (5047) (https://www.ets.org/pdfs/praxis/5047.pdf, read 2026-10-13; test page https://praxis.ets.org/test/5047.html). The test has 110 selected-response questions: Reading 50, Language Use and Vocabulary 16, Writing, Speaking, and Listening 26, English Language Arts Instruction 18; and 2 constructed-response questions, which this bank does not hold. The bank holds 22, 7, 11 and 8 questions. Every fact was read on 2026-10-13 on the public page the question names: the Academy of American Poets (poets.org), the Purdue Online Writing Lab, the Common Core State Standards, practice guides of the Institute of Education Sciences, Colorín Colorado, Carnegie Mellon University, The American Heritage Dictionary, and public-domain texts at Project Gutenberg and the Avalon Project. Where a question prints a passage of our own, the answer is read from that passage. Licence: Questions, choices and explanations are original work of this site.
How it works
Practice for Praxis 5047 with 48 free questions of our own, weighted like the four selected-response categories of Middle School English Language Arts. This unofficial practice test is not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by ETS.
Read the full guide
What the test covers
ETS splits the selected-response questions four ways in its Study Companion, read October 13, 2026: 50 on reading, 16 on language use and vocabulary, 26 on writing, speaking and listening, and 18 on English language arts instruction. The bank here holds 22, 7, 11 and 8.
Timing
ETS allows 160 minutes, 130 of them for the selected-response section. Exam mode gives you 57 minutes for these 48 questions, which is that section's pace.
A few real questions use an audio or video clip, a grid or a passage to highlight. Every question here has four choices.
Lines quoted from Dickinson, Poe, Twain and Lincoln name the public-domain edition they were checked in.
Questions and answers
Is this 5047 Praxis practice test the real exam?
No. These 48 questions are this site's own, written from the content topics in the ETS Study Companion for test 5047. No real question and no ETS sample question is copied or reworded, and your result here does not predict a real score.
How many questions are on the Praxis 5047?
110 selected-response and 2 constructed-response questions, on a computer. According to ETS, some of the questions may not count toward your score.
Does this practice test for Praxis 5047 include the essays?
No. ETS says one essay has you interpret a literary or informational text and the other has you discuss ways of teaching reading or writing, from a sample of student writing or a classroom context. Their points are reported apart from the rest.
What is a passing score on Praxis 5047?
It depends on the state. ETS does not set passing scores, so look up the qualifying score of the state or agency that will license you. Here you get the number right and no verdict.