CLT practice test

Free CLT practice test, with every answer explained

Ten sample questions from the three CLT sections, the way they look on the test. Tap a choice to check it. When you are ready, take a full timed practice test in the app, free and with no account.

Updated October 29, 2026

The real CLT is 120 questions in 2 hours: Verbal Reasoning (40 questions, 40 minutes), Grammar/Writing (40, 35 minutes) and Quantitative Reasoning (40, 45 minutes, no calculator). There is no penalty for a wrong answer, so never leave one blank.

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Verbal Reasoning: 3 questions

From Plato, Apology (c. 399 BC; Jowett translation 1871), public domain. Socrates, on trial in Athens for impiety and for corrupting the young, addresses the jury.

Men of Athens, do not interrupt, but hear me; there was an understanding between us that you should hear me to the end: I have something more to say, at which you may be inclined to cry out; but I believe that to hear me will be good for you, and therefore I beg that you will not cry out. I would have you know, that if you kill such an one as I am, you will injure yourselves more than you will injure me. Nothing will injure me, not Meletus nor yet Anytus—they cannot, for a bad man is not permitted to injure a better than himself. I do not deny that Anytus may, perhaps, kill him, or drive him into exile, or deprive him of civil rights; and he may imagine, and others may imagine, that he is inflicting a great injury upon him: but there I do not agree. For the evil of doing as he is doing—the evil of unjustly taking away the life of another—is greater far.

And now, Athenians, I am not going to argue for my own sake, as you may think, but for yours, that you may not sin against the God by condemning me, who am his gift to you. For if you kill me you will not easily find a successor to me, who, if I may use such a ludicrous figure of speech, am a sort of gadfly, given to the state by God; and the state is a great and noble steed who is tardy in his motions owing to his very size, and requires to be stirred into life. I am that gadfly which God has attached to the state, and all day long and in all places am always fastening upon you, arousing and persuading and reproaching you. You will not easily find another like me, and therefore I would advise you to spare me. I dare say that you may feel out of temper (like a person who is suddenly awakened from sleep), and you think that you might easily strike me dead as Anytus advises, and then you would sleep on for the remainder of your lives, unless God in his care of you sent you another gadfly.

When I say that I am given to you by God, the proof of my mission is this:—if I had been like other men, I should not have neglected all my own concerns or patiently seen the neglect of them during all these years, and have been doing yours, coming to you individually like a father or elder brother, exhorting you to regard virtue; such conduct, I say, would be unlike human nature. If I had gained anything, or if my exhortations had been paid, there would have been some sense in my doing so; but now, as you will perceive, not even the impudence of my accusers dares to say that I have ever exacted or sought pay of any one; of that they have no witness. And I have a sufficient witness to the truth of what I say—my poverty.

1. The main purpose of the passage is to
Show the answer and why

A. Correct. Paragraph 1 says killing him injures the jurors more than him; paragraph 2 explains why (he is the gadfly that rouses the state); paragraph 3 proves the mission is genuine.

  1. Read the first sentence of each paragraph: each one turns the argument toward what the jury will lose.
  2. A purpose answer must cover the whole passage. Only the correct choice covers all three paragraphs.

Why the others are wrong: B He says outright, "I am not going to argue for my own sake." His poverty appears as proof of his mission, not as a plea for pity. C Nothing in the passage mentions property. He says Anytus may kill or exile him, not rob him. D He describes private exhortation ("coming to you individually"), but he never explains a refusal to enter public life here.

2. In Paragraph 2, Sentence 2, the word “ludicrous” most closely means
Show the answer and why

B. Correct. He calls himself a gadfly, a comparison he admits is comically strange: "if I may use such a ludicrous figure of speech."

  1. Replace the word with each choice and reread the sentence.
  2. He is apologizing in advance for a comic comparison, so the word must mean something like "absurd."

Why the others are wrong: A He is not admitting a lie. He is apologizing for a comparison that may sound silly. C Comparing himself to an insect is undignified, not insulting to the jury. D There is nothing scholarly about the image; that is the point of his apology.

3. In the comparison in Paragraph 2, Socrates presents his role in Athens as that of
Show the answer and why

C. Correct. The steed is "tardy in his motions owing to his very size," and the gadfly is "arousing and persuading and reproaching."

  1. Find the image: the state is "a great and noble steed" that is slow because it is so big.
  2. A gadfly is a biting fly. Its job in the image is to sting the horse awake.

Why the others are wrong: A This puts Socrates on the horse. In the image he is the small insect, not the rider. B This reverses the image. The steed is "tardy" and needs to be "stirred into life," not slowed down. D The gadfly does not obey the horse; it stings it into action.

Grammar/Writing: 3 questions

Read the passage. For each underlined part, pick the best version. "NO CHANGE" keeps it as written.

In the centuries after the fall of Rome, much of the learning of the ancient world were preserved[1] by monks who copied it by hand. Bent over a slanted desk from first light until the page grew too dim to read, the copying was done by a scribe[2] in silence. Monasteries often set aside a room for this work, which came to be called the scriptorium after the Latin word for a place of writing. Scribes wrote with pens cut from reeds or bird feathers, and they had to stop often to sharpen them. The work was slow. A single Bible could take years to finish, it required[3] the skins of hundreds of animals for its pages.

4. Which choice is best for underlined part 1?
Show the answer and why

B. Correct. "Much ... was preserved." Skip the prepositional phrase to find the true subject.

  1. Cross out the phrase "of the learning of the ancient world." What is left: "much ... were preserved."
  2. "Much" is singular, so the verb must be "was."

Why the others are wrong: A The subject is "much," which is singular. "Of the learning of the ancient world" is only a phrase describing it. C "Have" is plural, and the subject "much" is singular. D An "-ing" form cannot be the main verb of a sentence; this leaves a fragment.

5. Which choice is best for underlined part 2?
Show the answer and why

C. Correct. Now the person who is "bent over a slanted desk" comes right after the comma.

  1. An introductory modifier describes whatever comes right after the comma.
  2. Ask: who was bent over a desk? The scribe. So "a scribe" must follow the comma.

Why the others are wrong: A The opening phrase, "Bent over a slanted desk," must describe the word right after the comma. "The copying" cannot be bent over a desk. B The phrase still attaches to "copying," not to the scribe. D The phrase still attaches to "copying."

6. Which choice is best for underlined part 3?
Show the answer and why

D. Correct. A semicolon can join two complete sentences.

  1. Test each side: "A single Bible could take years to finish" and "it required the skins..." are both complete sentences.
  2. Two complete sentences need a period, a semicolon, or a comma with "and," "but," etc.

Why the others are wrong: A This joins two complete sentences with only a comma: a comma splice. B With no punctuation at all, this is a run-on sentence. C "It requiring" is not a proper verb, and the result is awkward and ungrammatical.

Quantitative Reasoning: 4 questions, no calculator

7. If 4x − 12 = 28, what is the value of x?
Show the answer and why

B. Correct. Check: 4(10) − 12 = 40 − 12 = 28. ✓

  1. Undo the subtraction first: add 12 on both sides. 4x = 28 + 12 = 40.
  2. Divide both sides by 4: x = 40 ÷ 4 = 10.
  3. Check: 4(10) − 12 = 40 − 12 = 28. ✓

Why the others are wrong: A This comes from subtracting 12 instead of undoing it. To remove −12, do the opposite operation. C An arithmetic slip. Check by substituting: it does not make the equation true. D This is 4x, not x. The last step, dividing by 4, was skipped.

8. In an orchard, the ratio of apple trees to pear trees is 3 to 5. If there are 64 apple trees and pear trees in all, how many are apple trees?
Show the answer and why

B. Correct. Apple trees: 3 parts × 8 = 24.

  1. The ratio 3:5 splits the group into 3 + 5 = 8 equal parts.
  2. Each part is 64 ÷ 8 = 8.
  3. Apple trees: 3 parts × 8 = 24.

Why the others are wrong: A This is the difference between the two groups. C This is the number of pear trees. The apple trees get 3 of every 8. D Ratios are not subtracted from totals. Find the size of one part first.

9. If 34 · 91 ÷ 273 = 3n, what is the value of n?
Show the answer and why

B. Correct. Multiplying adds exponents and dividing subtracts them: 4 + 2 − 9 = −3.

  1. Rewrite with base 3: 91 = (32)1 = 32 and 273 = (33)3 = 39.
  2. Multiplying adds exponents and dividing subtracts them: 4 + 2 − 9 = −3.

Why the others are wrong: A The exponent rule is (basem)p = basemp: multiply, do not raise to a power. C This treats 9 and 27 as if they were 3. Rewrite them first: 9 = 32 and 27 = 33. D Dividing powers subtracts exponents; this added them.

10. If a + b = 11 and a − b = 5, what is the value of a2 − b2?
Show the answer and why

B. Correct. Check: a = 8 and b = 3, and 64 − 9 = 55. ✓

  1. Factor: a2 − b2 = (a + b)(a − b).
  2. Substitute: 11 × 5 = 55.
  3. Check: a = 8 and b = 3, and 64 − 9 = 55. ✓

Why the others are wrong: A This adds the two factors. They multiply. C This squares the sum and the difference. But a2 − b2 factors as (a + b)(a − b). D There is no factor of 2 here.

How did you do?

One sample set says little. A full timed test tells you your score on the CLT's 0 to 120 scale, section by section, and Owl-y builds a study plan to your test date from it. Every question in the app has an explanation like the ones above, and there is a short lesson for every skill.

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Questions people ask

Is there a free CLT practice test?

Yes. Classic Learning Initiatives offers free official practice tests on its site, and its Student Guide has more. Owl Test Prep adds two free full-length timed practice tests and a large bank of free practice questions, all original and all with full explanations. The other full tests come with College Test Prep.

How many questions are on the CLT?

120: 40 in Verbal Reasoning, 40 in Grammar/Writing and 40 in Quantitative Reasoning. Testing time is 2 hours, plus about 20 minutes of instructions. There is also an optional essay for students testing at school.

Can I use a calculator on the CLT?

No. Calculators are not allowed on any section, so the math is built to be done by hand. Practice that way from the start.

Is there a penalty for guessing on the CLT?

No. Your score counts only correct answers, so answer every question.

Is there a CLT practice test PDF?

Owl Test Prep tests run online, timed like the real test, so you get your score and explanations at once. The official site has its own sample materials.

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Sources

Read on October 29, 2026 from the test makers' own pages. If something here is out of date, write to hello@owltestprep.com and we will fix it.

Owl Test Prep is independent. CLT and Classic Learning Test are trademarks of Classic Learning Initiatives, which does not endorse this site. Every question here is original, written for Owl Test Prep.