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Craft and StructureEasyPurpose of a short science text

Craft and Structure practice question

An octopus can change color in under a second. Its skin holds thousands of tiny sacs of pigment, each ringed by muscles; when the muscles squeeze, the sac spreads wide and shows its color, and when they relax, the color shrinks to an invisible dot.

Which choice best describes the main purpose of the text?

  1. A. To explain how an octopus changes the look of its skinCorrect
  2. B. To argue that octopuses make poor aquarium animals
  3. C. To compare octopuses with squid
  4. D. To describe where octopuses live

Answer: A. To explain how an octopus changes the look of its skin

The text walks through the mechanism — pigment sacs opening and closing — so its purpose is to explain how the color change works.

Why the other answers are wrong

B. To argue that octopuses make poor aquarium animals
Aquariums are never mentioned.
C. To compare octopuses with squid
Squid are never mentioned in the text.
D. To describe where octopuses live
Habitat is never discussed; the text is about skin.

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