Read this sentence from the passage: 'Behind that board, in a hollow under a stack of bricks, lived a thin…
Read a Literary Passage · ELPAC Grades 3–5 reading. The correct answer, and the reasoning behind it.
A short story or scene, with questions about characters, events and what words mean in context.
Read the passage. Then answer the questions.
The Loose Board
Every afternoon Yusuf took the long way home so he could pass the empty lot on Palm Street. A wooden fence ran along one side, and one board near the corner hung loose. Behind that board, in a hollow under a stack of bricks, lived a thin gray cat.
On Monday Yusuf brought half of his cheese sandwich. The cat would not come out. On Tuesday he set the food down, walked ten steps away, and sat on the curb with his back turned. He heard nothing. He counted to two hundred.
When he finally looked, the sandwich was gone.
By Friday the cat was waiting. It pressed its nose against the gap in the fence before Yusuf even opened his backpack. Yusuf grinned so wide that his cheeks ached, and he was still grinning when he reached his own front steps.
The question
Choose the best answer.
Read this sentence from the passage: 'Behind that board, in a hollow under a stack of bricks, lived a thin gray cat.' What does the word hollow mean here?
- an empty spaceCorrect answer
- a loud sound
- a narrow path
- a piece of wood
Why “an empty space” is correct
This is a vocabulary-in-context question on a word most learners have only met as an adjective. Here 'hollow' is a noun, and the surrounding words do the work: something 'under a stack of bricks' that a cat can live in must be an open space. Teach the child to replace the word with each choice and see which version still makes sense.
Why the other answers are wrong
- a loud sound — 'Hollow' can describe a sound in other sentences, but here it names a place where an animal lives.
- a narrow path — A path would not be described as being under a stack of bricks.
- a piece of wood — The piece of wood is the loose board, which is in front of the hollow rather than being it.
Practice more of this
More reading practice for Grades 3–5, or see the ELPAC practice test for grades 3–5. For other grades, see free ELPAC practice tests by grade.
This is an independent study resource. It is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to the California Department of Education or the official ELPAC program. All questions here are original practice material written to match the published task formats.