In the early 1800s, the Cherokee scholar Sequoyah created the first script, or writing system, for an Indigenous language in...
GMAT Craft and Structure : (Structure) Questions
In the early 1800s, the Cherokee scholar Sequoyah created the first script, or writing system, for an Indigenous language in the United States. Because it represented the sounds of spoken Cherokee so accurately, his script was easy to learn and thus quickly achieved ______ use: by 1830, over 90 percent of the Cherokee people could read and write it.
Which choice completes the text with the most logical and precise word or phrase?
widespread
careful
unintended
infrequent
Step 1: Decode and Map the Passage
Create Passage Analysis Table
| Text from Passage | Analysis |
|---|---|
| "In the early 1800s, the Cherokee scholar Sequoyah created the first script, or writing system, for an Indigenous language in the United States." |
|
| "Because it represented the sounds of spoken Cherokee so accurately," |
|
| "his script was easy to learn" |
|
| "and thus quickly achieved _____ use:" |
|
| "by 1830, over 90 percent of the Cherokee people could read and write it." |
|
Provide Passage Architecture & Core Elements
Main Point: Sequoyah's accurate Cherokee script became highly successful because its accuracy made it easy to learn and adopt.
Argument Flow: The passage establishes Sequoyah's historic achievement, explains that the script's accuracy made it easy to learn, and then provides statistical evidence of its remarkable adoption rate.
Step 2: Interpret the Question Precisely
This is a fill-in-the-blank question asking us to choose the best logical connector. The answer must create the right relationship between what comes before and after the blank.
Step 3: Prethink the Answer
- The word must logically connect "easy to learn" with the evidence that follows
- It should make sense with the statistic that 90%+ of Cherokee people could read and write it by 1830
- The relationship is causal: because it was easy to learn, it achieved this type of use
- The 90% statistic suggests very broad adoption across the Cherokee community
widespread
- "Widespread" perfectly captures broad adoption across a population
- Matches logically with 90% literacy rate
- Creates clear cause-and-effect: easy to learn leads to widespread use leads to 90% literacy evidence
careful
- "Careful use" does not connect logically with the 90% statistic
- The passage is about how many people adopted it, not how cautiously they used it
unintended
- "Unintended use" contradicts the passage logic
- Sequoyah deliberately created the script, and its success was the natural result of being easy to learn
infrequent
- "Infrequent use" directly contradicts the 90% literacy statistic
- If 90% of people could read and write it, the use was clearly frequent, not rare