TEAS reading practice test 2026: free timed drill and section guide
TEAS Reading is 45 questions in 55 minutes (39 scored), the first section of the exam: Key Ideas and Details 15 scored, Craft and Structure 9 and Integration of Knowledge and Ideas 15. That is about 73 seconds a question, including the reading, so the skill being tested is finding the sentence that answers the question, fast.
- 45
- questions (39 scored)
- 55 min
- on its own clock
- 73 s
- a question, evenly paced
- 15
- scored: Key Ideas and Details
Last checked · Section facts from ATI's own pages
Free Reading drill: 12 original TEAS-style questions in 14:40, the real section's pace. Your score, your time per question and the question that cost you most, explained. No sign-up.
Free TEAS Reading drill · real section pace
12
questions
14:40
time limit
Free
instant score
By the LifeScore Editorial Team · Updated · How we check facts · How this is scored
What is on the TEAS Reading section?
45 questions in 55 minutes, 39 of them scored, across 3 sub-areas: Key Ideas and Details (15), Craft and Structure (9), Integration of Knowledge and Ideas (15).
| Questions | 45 shown: 39 scored and 6 unscored pretest items you cannot tell apartPublished by the ownerATI, "TEAS exam details" |
|---|---|
| Time | 55 minutes on its own clock; time left over does not carry to the next sectionPublished by the ownerATI help, "What is the time limit for the ATI TEAS?" |
| Even pace | 73 seconds an item (55 × 60 ÷ 45)LifeScore |
| Sub-areas (scored items) | Key Ideas and Details 15, Craft and Structure 9, Integration of Knowledge and Ideas 15Published by the ownerATI help, "ATI TEAS content areas and question counts" |
| Share of the scored test | 39 of 150 scored items, 26%LifeScore |
| Position | Section 1 of 4 (Reading, Math, Science, English and Language Usage)Published by the ownerATI help, "TEAS sections, timing, and going back" |
| Going back | Inside the open section you can move around, flag and change answers; once you submit it, it is closedPublished by the ownerATI help, "TEAS sections, timing, and going back" |
| Question types | Mostly multiple choice; across the exam about 20% are multiple select, fill in the blank, ordered response or hot spot, with no partial creditPublished by the ownerATI help, "ATI TEAS question types with examples" |
What does each TEAS Reading sub-area ask?
Key Ideas and Details and Integration of Knowledge and Ideas carry 15 scored questions each and Craft and Structure 9, so 30 of the 39 points are about finding and combining what a text actually says.
Sub-areas and counts are ATI's; "what it covers" follows the objectives in ATI's Version 7 content outline, and "how it reads" is our description.
Key Ideas and Details
15 scored
What it covers: Summarising a multi-paragraph text, drawing conclusions about its purpose and meaning, following a set of written directions, finding specific information, reading charts and other visuals, and putting events in order.
How it reads: Short passages, schedules, labels and instructions: "what is the main idea", "what should you do second", "when is the clinic open".
Craft and Structure
9 scored
What it covers: Telling fact from opinion, working out a word's meaning from context, and judging the author's purpose and point of view.
How it reads: "Which statement is an opinion", "as used in the passage, X most nearly means", "the author's main purpose is to...".
Integration of Knowledge and Ideas
15 scored
What it covers: Using evidence from a text to make predictions and conclusions, comparing themes across texts, evaluating an argument, and combining information from more than one source or format.
How it reads: Two short texts on one topic, a claim and its support, or a passage plus a table, with a question that needs both.
What do TEAS Reading questions look like?
Four original passages with one question each, one per question family: following directions, fact versus opinion, a word in context and weighing two sources, each with its working and trap.
Read the question before the passage, then hunt for the sentence that answers it. That order is the single biggest time-saver in this section. These are original passages, multiple choice only, not real TEAS items.
TEAS-style question 1 · Following directions
Read the passage, then answer the question. "To collect a clean-catch urine sample, wash your hands and open the sterile cup without touching the inside. Clean the area with the wipe provided. Begin to urinate into the toilet, then move the cup into the stream to collect the sample. Finish in the toilet, close the lid tightly, and wash your hands again." What should the patient do immediately before moving the cup into the stream?
- AClose the lid tightly
- BBegin to urinate into the toilet
- CWash their hands again
- DOpen the sterile cup
Worked answer
B: Begin to urinate into the toilet. The sentence "Begin to urinate into the toilet, then move the cup into the stream" puts starting into the toilet directly before the cup.
- Find the step the question names: moving the cup into the stream.
- Read the clause just before it in the same sentence: "Begin to urinate into the toilet".
- That is the step immediately before.
The trap: Picking "open the sterile cup" because the cup is mentioned. It happens earlier, not immediately before.
TEAS-style question 2 · Fact and opinion
Read the passage, then answer the question. "The new urgent care center opened in March. It is open from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. every day. In its first month it treated 1,200 patients. It is the best thing to happen to this town in years." Which sentence states an opinion?
- AThe new urgent care center opened in March.
- BIt is open from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. every day.
- CIn its first month it treated 1,200 patients.
- DIt is the best thing to happen to this town in years.
Worked answer
D: It is the best thing to happen to this town in years.. Dates, hours and patient counts can be checked. "The best thing" is a judgement that people could disagree with, so it is an opinion.
- For each sentence ask: could this be checked against a record?
- Opening date, hours and patient numbers: yes, facts.
- "The best thing in years": a judgement, the opinion.
The trap: Thinking a number makes a sentence a fact and its absence makes it an opinion. Test checkability, not numbers.
TEAS-style question 3 · Word in context
Read the passage, then answer the question. "After two weeks of physical therapy, the swelling in her knee began to subside, and she could climb stairs without the cane." As used in the sentence, "subside" most nearly means
- Aincrease
- Bdecrease
- Cspread
- Dharden
Show the worked answer
B: decrease. The result of the change is that she could climb stairs without a cane, so the swelling went down: subside means decrease.
- Cover the word and predict one that fits: the swelling began to "go down".
- Check the clue after it: she could climb stairs without the cane, an improvement.
- Match the prediction: decrease.
The trap: Choosing from the sound of the word instead of the sentence. Predict your own word first, then match it.
TEAS-style question 4 · Evaluating evidence
Read the two passages, then answer the question. Passage 1: "Our hospital's quiet-hours program, which dims hallway lights after 10 p.m., is clearly working. Several patients told staff they slept better." Passage 2: "Over six months, a hospital compared two similar wards. On the ward with quiet hours, patients averaged 50 more minutes of sleep a night, measured by wrist monitors, than on the ward without them." Which statement best compares the two passages?
- ABoth passages rely on what patients said about their sleep.
- BPassage 2 offers stronger evidence because it measured sleep and compared two wards.
- CPassage 1 offers stronger evidence because it comes from staff.
- DThe passages reach opposite conclusions about quiet hours.
Show the worked answer
B: Passage 2 offers stronger evidence because it measured sleep and compared two wards.. Passage 1 rests on a few patient comments; Passage 2 measures sleep and compares against a ward without quiet hours. Both favour quiet hours, but Passage 2's support is far stronger.
- Name each passage's evidence: anecdotes in Passage 1; measured sleep and a comparison group in Passage 2.
- Check the conclusions: both favour quiet hours, so "opposite conclusions" is out.
- Measured, compared evidence beats a few reports: Passage 2 is stronger.
The trap: Choosing on the conclusion rather than the evidence. The question asks how they compare as support, and they agree on the conclusion.
Make Reading a section you bank
Twelve questions show the gap. 4 more Reading drills and 6 full mocks close it.
The TEAS Pass Pack gives you 6 full mocks on the real clock, 16 drills of 12 questions for the sections that cost you points, and a predictor that turns your mocks into the odds of reaching your target. One payment, no subscription, and your free score stays free.
Prep courses for these tests usually cost $19 to $129. The TEAS Pass Pack is US$39 (£29), once.
- 6
- timed mocks
- 16
- topic drills
- 1
- score predictor
What kinds of questions does TEAS Reading ask, and how do I attack each?
Main idea, detail, sequence, inference, fact or opinion, word in context, author's purpose, and comparing or evaluating sources; each has a fast method, below.
| Stem looks like | Family | Fast method |
|---|---|---|
| "The main idea of the passage is..." | Key ideas | The answer covers the whole passage, not one sentence of it |
| "According to the passage..." / "When does..." | Detail | Scan for the key word, then read only that sentence |
| "What should be done after..." | Sequence | Number the steps on scratch paper; watch for "before", "after", "until" |
| "Which conclusion is best supported..." | Inference | Pick what must be true from the text, not what is true in life |
| "Which statement is an opinion..." | Craft | Ask whether it could be checked against a record |
| "As used in the passage, X means..." | Craft | Predict your own word, then match it |
| "The author's purpose is to..." | Craft | Inform, persuade, instruct or entertain: look at the verbs |
| "Which best compares the passages..." | Integration | Compare the evidence and the conclusion separately |
Wrong answers in Reading are usually true-sounding statements the passage does not say, or details that are in the passage but do not answer the question. Both are beaten the same way: point to the sentence.
How should I pace the TEAS Reading section?
About 73 seconds an item on an even pace, or 67 seconds on a first pass that keeps 5 minutes back, with item 23 done by minute 25.
| Mark | Number | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Even pace | 73 s an item | 55 minutes for 45 items, counting the unscored ones because you cannot spot them |
| First pass | 67 s an item | Keep 5 minutes back for flagged items, so the first pass runs a little faster than even |
| Halfway check | Item 23 by minute 25 | Behind? Guess on the next slow one, flag it and move on |
| Reserve | 5 min | Return to flags in order of how close you were; never leave one blank, as guessing carries no penalty |
| Our free drill | 12 items in 14:40 | The same seconds per item as the real section |
Reading time is part of the 73 seconds, so the order you do things in matters more than how fast you read. Question first, then the passage with that question in mind, then the answer. On a passage with several questions, read the passage once and answer all of them before moving on.
Reading opens the exam, which makes it easy to spend nerves here. Do not reread a passage a third time: flag the question, give your best answer, and come back with the reserve.
What traps cost the most points on TEAS Reading?
Answers that are true but not stated, true details that do not answer the question, extreme words like always and never, and mixing up when a step happens in a sequence.
- True in life, not in the text. If you cannot point to the sentence, it is not the answer.
- A real detail that answers a different question. It is in the passage, but not the one you were asked.
- Extreme wording. "Always", "never" and "all" are rarely supported by a short passage.
- Sequence words. "Before", "after", "until" and "immediately" change which step is right; underline them.
- Opinion hidden in a fact-shaped sentence. "Best", "should" and "clearly" signal judgement.
- Multiple select. A question that asks for every correct statement gives no credit for a partial set.
How should I study for TEAS Reading?
Seven days: a baseline drill, two days on key ideas and details, one on craft and structure, two on integration, and a mixed timed day.
Day 1
25 min
Take the free reading drill on this page. Write the question family next to each miss.
Day 2
40 min
Key ideas: eight short passages, main idea and detail only, question-first every time.
Day 3
40 min
Key ideas: directions, schedules, labels and simple charts; number every sequence on paper.
Day 4
40 min
Craft and structure: fact or opinion, word in context, author's purpose; predict before you look at options.
Day 5
40 min
Integration: paired passages and claims with evidence; name the evidence type for each.
Day 6
40 min
Integration: passages with a table or graph; answer only from what both show.
Day 7
60 min
A full timed TEAS-style mock, reading section first, to practise starting the exam calmly.
How much does Reading count on the whole TEAS?
Reading is the first section and worth 39 of the 150 scored items (26%), the second-largest share after Science.
A steady reading score also protects your total: it is the section most applicants find familiar, so dropped points here are often pace and method, not knowledge. Set a target on what is a good TEAS score and check where it leaves your total with the TEAS score calculator.
For the other sections, see the TEAS math practice test, the TEAS science practice test and the TEAS English practice test. Then take the full TEAS practice test and follow how to pass the TEAS.
Frequently asked questions
How many reading questions are on the TEAS?
How long are TEAS reading passages?
What is on TEAS Reading?
How do I get faster at TEAS Reading?
Is the TEAS reading section first?
Is the drill on this page the real TEAS?
Know your level before test day
16 topic drills (4 for Reading), 6 full mocks and a predictor, in one payment with no subscription.
The TEAS Pass Pack gives you 6 full mocks on the real clock, 16 drills of 12 questions for the sections that cost you points, and a predictor that turns your mocks into the odds of reaching your target. One payment, no subscription, and your free score stays free.
Prep courses for these tests usually cost $19 to $129. The TEAS Pass Pack is US$39 (£29), once.
- 6
- timed mocks
- 16
- topic drills
- 1
- score predictor