The following text is adapted from Frances Hodgson Burnett's 1905 novel A Little Princess. Sara is a young student at...
GMAT Craft and Structure : (Structure) Questions
The following text is adapted from Frances Hodgson Burnett's 1905 novel A Little Princess. Sara is a young student at a school in London.
Sara not only could tell stories, but she adored telling them. When she sat or stood in the midst of a circle and began to invent wonderful things, her green eyes grew big and shining, her cheeks flushed, and, without knowing that she was doing it, she began to act and made what she told lovely or alarming by the raising or dropping of her voice.
As used in the text, what does the word 'invent' most nearly mean?
Mislead
Disguise
Create
Discover
Step 1: Decode and Map the Passage
Create Passage Analysis Table
| Text from Passage | Analysis |
|---|---|
| "Sara not only could tell stories, but she adored telling them." |
|
| "When she sat or stood in the midst of a circle and began to invent wonderful things," |
|
| "her green eyes grew big and shining, her cheeks flushed," |
|
| "and, without knowing that she was doing it, she began to act and made what she told lovely or alarming by the raising or dropping of her voice." |
|
Provide Passage Architecture & Core Elements
Main Point: Sara is a gifted and passionate storyteller who becomes physically animated and dramatically expressive when creating stories for an audience.
Argument Flow: The passage establishes Sara's storytelling abilities and love for the craft, then demonstrates these qualities in action by showing how she becomes physically and emotionally invested when creating stories, unconsciously turning into a theatrical performer.
Step 2: Interpret the Question Precisely
What's being asked? The meaning of the word "invent" as it's used in this specific context
What type of answer do we need? The best synonym that captures how "invent" functions in this passage
Any limiting keywords? "As used in the text" - we must focus on the contextual meaning, not general definitions
Step 3: Prethink the Answer
- The word "invent" appears when Sara "began to invent wonderful things" while storytelling to an audience
- The surrounding context shows her becoming animated, acting out stories, and using dramatic vocal techniques
- This points to the creative process of storytelling - making up narratives from imagination rather than recounting real events
- So the right answer should capture the creative, imaginative act of making up or generating stories from scratch
Mislead
✗ Incorrect
- Suggests Sara is trying to deceive her audience
- The passage presents storytelling as entertainment and artistry, not deception
- Context shows appreciation for her skill, not concern about being tricked
Disguise
✗ Incorrect
- Implies hiding or concealing something
- Sara is openly performing and entertaining, not concealing anything
- Her animated, expressive behavior contradicts the idea of disguising
Create
✓ Correct
- Perfectly captures what storytellers do - generate narratives from imagination
- Fits with "wonderful things" - she's creating marvelous stories
- Aligns with the creative, artistic context throughout the passage
- Matches the evidence of her engaged, theatrical performance
Discover
✗ Incorrect
- Suggests finding something that already exists
- Sara isn't uncovering existing stories; she's generating original ones
- Students might confuse "discover" with revealing stories to an audience, but the context clearly emphasizes creation, not finding