Am I Illiterate?

Take this quiz to find your reading level!

You might've heard we're in a literacy crisis. People read less, and so they understand less. Are you one of those people?

Answer these 10 quiz questions about language, grammar, and vocab, and we'll tell you whether or not you have a literacy problem!

An illustration of a woman reading a book.

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Questions Overview

1. Fill in the blank: "Hey, are you gonna finish ____ fries?"
  1. your
  2. you're
  3. ur
  4. yoor
2. Fill in the blank: "I want those pants because _____ on sale!"
  1. they're
  2. their
  3. there
  4. thair
3. What does the word "cleave" mean?
  1. To split.
  2. To stick to or cling to.
  3. It can mean either to split or to stick to.
  4. It's a kind of knife.
4. When a character in a story does something bad, it means that...
  1. They're making a choice that helps the story move forward.
  2. The writer wants us to dislike them.
  3. The story is bad.
  4. The writer is evil.
5. If someone says, "I'm not unashamed," what do they mean?
  1. They're at least a little embarrassed.
  2. They're not at all embarrassed.
  3. They're sad.
  4. They're happy.
6. The color "vermillion" is a shade of...
  1. Red
  2. Green
  3. Yellow
  4. Blue
7. Fill in the blank: "This salsa is ___ spicy!"
  1. too
  2. to
  3. two
  4. 2
8. What are homophones?
  1. Words that sound the same but have different meanings.
  2. Words that are spelled the same but have different meanings.
  3. Words that share a meaning.
  4. Words that are spelled the same but pronounced differently.
9. What does the word "engender" mean?
  1. To cause something to happen.
  2. To be a good example of something.
  3. To have a gender.
  4. To be nonbinary.
10. How many books did you finish in the last month?
  1. 3+
  2. 1-2
  3. 0, but I did read a book! I just didn't finish it.
  4. I didn't read any books last month...

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How to Improve Your Reading Skills

Everyone deserves to be a skilled reader. It's an ability that opens doors and alters how you see and interact with the world, whether that means understanding breaking news or just analyzing and interpreting your favorite books, and even your favorite movies! The good news is, anyone can get better at reading, and we talked to top academics to tell you how:

  • Academic tutor and test prep specialist Jake Adams says, "I think for building reading comprehension, the main thing is to ask yourself to read through at the pace that you feel like you're able to understand what's going on... And then from there, ask yourself, well, what happened? ...what does that mean for the story? Or what does that mean in general?"[1]
  • Teacher and education researcher Soren Rosier, PhD, explains, "the number one thing that helps is reading a lot independently, books that are within their independent reading level... If [students] are reading texts that are above their independent reading level, they're going to be struggling through them, and they're going to hate reading..."[2]
  • English teacher Tristen Bonacci, MEd, suggests that to get better at reading, "pick a book or a newspaper, just a little bit above your reading level," and read at least a little bit every day.[4]
  • English language teacher Janette Karaca says, "Be consistent, you know, when you pick a book that is based on your interest, start reading it, start small, and then be consistent. If you cannot read like 10 pages in a day, try to read two to three pages a day, and then stay consistent... or allot at least 10 to 15 minutes a day. It is enough to build yourself gradually..."[5]

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References

  1. ↑ Jake Adams. Academic Tutor & Test Prep Specialist. Expert Interview
  2. ↑ Soren Rosier, PhD. Teacher & Education Researcher. Expert Interview
  3. ↑ Kiera Ayres. English Language Teacher. Expert Interview
  4. ↑ Tristen Bonacci, MEd. English Teacher. Expert Interview
  5. ↑ Janette Karaca. English Language Teacher. Expert Interview