Grammar
(10-15 questions)Tests grammar, syntax, and lexicology. Questions that can be answered out of context appear very rarely on the exams.
AP Latin Multiple-Choice Item Writing Tutorial
Types of Questions
Grammar
(10-15 questions)
Tests grammar, syntax, and lexicology. Questions that can be answered out of context
appear very rarely on the exams.
Translation/Comprehension (17-23 questions)
Tests translation or interpretation of words, phrases, and sentences.
Reference (10-15 questions)
Tests ability to draw inferences from the passage; may require candidates to recognize
allusions to specific people, places, or events mentioned in the passage; tests ability to
know what words must be understood from context, and ability to identify to whom or to
what such words as reflexive, relative, and demonstrative pronouns and adjectives refer.
Metrics (1-3 questions)
Tests scansion of dactylic hexameter or the first line of the elegiac couplet. Candidates
must know the metrical pattern of each meter and how to elide syllables. They are listed
in the Course Description ("Acorn" book).
Figures of speech (1-3 questions)
Tests figures of speech included in the course syllabus. They are listed in the Course
Description ("Acorn" book).
Background (1-3 questions)
Tests background information relevant to the passage. Background questions are asked only
on syllabus-based passages. Although the answer to the question is not contained in the
passage on the exam, a student who has read and understands the syllabus should know or be
able to derive the correct answer.