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HSPT sample questions with answers, section by section

These are 10 sample questions, two from each of the five HSPT sections, each with its answer and a short explanation. They are original practice questions in the format STS describes, not questions from the real test. The full test has 298 questions; our free practice test has that many.

Updated October 24, 2026 · by AdmitTest

The sections, question counts and skills below follow STS's HSPT Interpretive Manual. Try each question first, then read the answer. For the method behind each type, every section has its own guide.

Verbal Skills (60 questions, 16 minutes)

Words and reasoning. More in the Verbal Skills guide.

Sample · Analogies · written by AdmitTest

Thermometer is to temperature as scale is to

  1. balance
  2. fish
  3. weight
  4. height

Answer: C. A thermometer measures temperature, and a scale measures weight. A balance is another weighing tool, not what is measured, and height is measured with a ruler.

Sample · Verbal logic · written by AdmitTest

Zane is older than Dora. Ivan is older than Zane. Dora is older than Ivan. If the first two statements are true, the third is

  1. true
  2. false
  3. uncertain

Answer: B. The first two statements tell us: Zane is older than Dora; Ivan is older than Zane. Going in order (Ivan, Zane, Dora), Ivan is older than Dora. So the third statement is false.

Quantitative Skills (52 questions, 30 minutes)

Number puzzles and comparisons. More in the Quantitative Skills guide.

Sample · Number series · written by AdmitTest

What number should come next in the series? 157, 132, 107, 82, ...

  1. 47
  2. 57
  3. 59
  4. 67

Answer: B. Each number goes down by 25, so 82 − 25 = 57.

Sample · Geometric comparison · written by AdmitTest

Examine the figures (a), (b), and (c) and find the best answer.

  1. (a) and (b) are equally shaded
  2. (b) and (c) are equally shaded, and (a) is less shaded
  3. (b) is more shaded than (a) but less shaded than (c)
  4. (b) is more shaded than (c)

Answer: B. Each figure has 4 equal parts: (a) has 2 of 4 parts shaded, (b) 3 of 4, and (c) 3 of 4. So (b) and (c) are equally shaded, and (a) is less shaded.

Reading (62 questions, 25 minutes)

Passages and vocabulary in context. More in the Reading guide.

Sample · Reading comprehension · written by AdmitTest

Passage: Above the Tree Line

By the fourth switchback, Eli had decided the mountain was a liar. From the parking lot it had looked friendly, a green hill wearing a cap of gray rock. Now, two hours up, the trail kept bending back on itself, and every turn revealed not the top but another stretch of loose stones climbing into the clouds.

"How much farther?" he asked, for the sixth time.

His sister, Nora, didn't turn around. She was sixteen and walked the way their father did, steady and unhurried, as if the mountain were a sentence she was reading carefully. "Farther than the last time you asked," she said.

Above the tree line, the wind found them. It tugged at Eli's hood and slipped cold fingers down his collar. The pines had shrunk to twisted shrubs no taller than his knees, then disappeared entirely, leaving only rock, lichen the color of rust, and a fog that rolled over the ridge like slow surf. Eli could see perhaps thirty feet in any direction.

He sat down on a boulder. "I'm done," he said. "You go. I'll wait."

Nora came back and sat beside him. She didn't argue, which surprised him. Instead she pointed at something just ahead: a small tower of flat stones, stacked knee-high, balanced so neatly it looked impossible.

"That's a cairn," she said. "Hikers build them to mark the trail when there's fog. Every person who passes adds a stone. Some of these have been growing for fifty years." She picked up a flat gray rock and handed it to him. "This one's yours, if you want it. But you have to put it on the one at the top."

Eli turned the stone over. It was cold and fit exactly into his palm, as if it had been waiting for him. He knew it was a trick. He also knew he was going to fall for it.

They followed the cairns upward, one after another, each appearing out of the fog like a person waiting by the road. Eli counted them: seven, eight, nine. His legs still ached, but now the aching had something to do, a number to reach.

The summit cairn was taller than he was. As Eli reached up to set his stone on the top, the wind tore a hole in the fog, and for a moment the whole valley appeared below them: the toy-sized parking lot, the silver thread of the creek, the dark pines combed in long rows down the slopes. Then the cloud closed again, as if a curtain had been drawn.

"Did you see it?" Eli shouted.

"I saw it," Nora said, smiling. "Most people who come up here in fog never do."

On the way down, Eli carried a second stone in his pocket, just in case someone behind them needed one.

What surprised Eli when he said he was done?

  1. Nora said they could turn back.
  2. Nora agreed to wait beside him.
  3. Nora did not argue with him.
  4. Nora offered him her water.

Answer: C. Paragraph 6 says, "She didn't argue, which surprised him." She did not agree to stop; she gave him a stone and a goal instead.

Sample · Vocabulary in context · written by AdmitTest

a nimble climber Nimble most nearly means

  1. fearless
  2. careful
  3. tired
  4. agile

Answer: D. In "a nimble climber," nimble means quick and light in movement. Example: Nimble fingers tied the knot.

Mathematics (64 questions, 45 minutes, no calculator)

Numbers, geometry, measurement, algebra and statistics. More in the Mathematics guide.

Sample · Numbers and operations · written by AdmitTest

In the number 13.7269, which digit is in the tenths place?

  1. 2
  2. 3
  3. 7
  4. 9

Answer: C. After the decimal point the places are tenths, hundredths, thousandths, and so on. In 13.7269 the tenths digit is 7.

Sample · Geometry · written by AdmitTest

In an isosceles triangle, the angle between the two equal sides measures 76°. What is the measure of each of the other two angles?

  1. 42°
  2. 52°
  3. 76°
  4. 104°

Answer: B. The other two angles are equal and share 180 − 76 = 104°, so each is 104 ÷ 2 = 52°.

Language (60 questions, 25 minutes)

Punctuation, capitalization, usage, spelling and composition. More in the Language guide.

Sample · Punctuation · written by AdmitTest

Look for errors in punctuation. Choose the sentence with an error. If you find no error, choose No mistakes.

  1. Our neighbor, who works as a nurse, gave us helpful advice.
  2. The tallest girl in our class plays center on the basketball team.
  3. Mr. Garcia our music teacher, taught us a new song today.
  4. No mistakes

Answer: C. "our music teacher" renames Mr. Garcia, so it needs a comma on both sides: "Mr. Garcia, our music teacher, taught us."

Sample · Usage · written by AdmitTest

Look for errors in usage. Choose the sentence with an error. If you find no error, choose No mistakes.

  1. The twins and their mother walked to the park after lunch.
  2. Everyone on the team brought a water bottle to practice.
  3. To who should I give this permission slip?
  4. No mistakes

Answer: C. The error is "To who." It should be "To whom." After a preposition such as "to," use the object form "whom."

After the samples

Ten questions show the types; they do not show the pace. The tightest clock is Verbal Skills, 16 seconds a question. The way to find out where the points go is one full timed test, then short practice on the weakest skills (see how to prepare).

Free full-length HSPT practice test. 298 questions in five timed sections, no sign-up. Your child's score by section and by skill when it ends.

Start the free test

Common questions

Are these real HSPT questions?

No. Every question here was written by us from STS's published description of the format. The real HSPT is a secure test with a new form every year, and STS says it never sells the test to test-preparation companies, so nobody outside the schools can offer you real questions.

Does STS publish HSPT sample questions?

STS publishes a description of the sections and skills in its manual, and a preview sample can be requested by high schools only. It publishes no sample test for families. Ask your target high school whether it offers practice for applicants.

How many sample questions should my child do?

Samples show the question types; they are not enough practice. A full timed test (298 questions) shows the pacing, and short sessions on the weakest skills do the rest.

Where can I find a full HSPT practice test?

Our free HSPT practice test has all five sections on their own clocks, with the score by section and skill at the end.

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