Sadlier-Oxford VOCABULARY WORKSHOP SAT Practice Worksheet
PASSAGE-BASED READING
Level G Unit 7
Name
Date
Questions 1-4 are based on the following
passage.
Both sides of the Great Seal can be seen on the
reverse of the United States one-dollar bill.
Read the passage and the questions below.
Then choose the letter of the best answer for
each question.
1. Which of the following BEST expresses the
writer’s purpose in the passage?
With the signing of the Declaration of
Independence on July 4, 1776, the Continental
Congress faced two tasks of great symbolic
importance: the adoption of a flag that would be
the new nation’s principal emblem, and the design
of a Great Seal that would be used to authenticate
certain documents. The flag issue was promptly
addressed, and the Stars and Stripes was formally
adopted on June 14, 1777. Approval of a design
for the Great Seal, however, took considerably
longer.
On the very day that the Declaration was
signed, Congress appointed a committee to design
a great seal. After six years had passed with no
agreement, Charles Thomson, the Congressional
secretary, was requested to produce a design.
Essentially, Thomson integrated the suggestions
from the previous attempts. His design, which is
rich in symbolic elements, was approved on June
20, 1782.
The front side (obverse) of the Great Seal is
dominated by the image of a bald eagle with its
wings outstretched. Symbolizing the United States,
the eagle carries in its left talon (from the bird’s
perspective) a bundle of 13 arrows (a reference to
the 13 colonies); the arrows symbolize war. In the
right talon is an olive branch, symbolizing peace.
The eagle’s head faces right—signaling the nation’s
preference for peace. In its beak, the eagle clutches
a furled strip of cloth with the motto “E Pluribus
Unum”: Latin for “Out of many, one.” Over the
eagle’s head is a sunburst or “glory,” with thirteen
white stars on a blue field. The final symbolic
element on the seal’s front is a shield on the eagle’s
breast which greatly resembles, though it does not
actually duplicate, the American flag.
On the Great Seal’s rear side (reverse), appears
an unfinished pyramid with 13 layers of bricks. On
the base of the pyramid is etched the date 1776 in
Roman numerals (MDCCLXXVI). Atop the
pyramid is a single eye, interpreted by many as the
all-seeing eye of providence. Above the eye is the
Latin motto, “Annuit coeptis” (“[Providence] has
favored our undertakings”); below the pyramid is a
Latin quotation from the poet Virgil: “Novus
Ordo Seclorum” (“a new order of the ages”). The
rising sun casts a shadow extending westward.
(A) to explain why adoption of the Great
Seal was so delayed
(B) to compare the symbolic elements of
the Great Seal with those of the flag
(C) to discuss the major symbolic features
on both sides of the Great Seal
(D) to identify the types of documents on
which the Great Seal is used
(E) to propose changes in the Great Seal
2. The writer singles out which of the following as
playing a major role in the design of the Great
Seal?
(A) George Washington
(B) Benjamin Franklin
(C) John Adams
(D) Thomas Jefferson
(E) Charles Thomson
3. According to the passage, which of the
following is the most dominant image on the
obverse of the Great Seal?
(A) a pyramid
(B) a bald eagle
(C) a Latin motto
(D) an eye
(E) a bundle of arrows
4. Considering other symbolic elements on the
Great Seal, what might the rising sun on the
reverse side most likely symbolize?
(A) the completion of the pyramid
(B) the beginning of the new nation
(C) the preference of the nation for peace
(D) the separation of powers
(E) the nation’s desire to remain neutral
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