GED drop-down editing items put a menu inside a passage, and you choose the wording that makes the sentence correct and clear. They test skills such as subject-verb agreement, modifiers, run-ons, transitions and confused words. Practice here with six original workplace documents and an explanation for every choice.
About GED drop-down editing
GED.com lists drop-down items among the RLA question types, alongside multiple choice, drag and drop and select an area. The 2016 Assessment Guide for Educators says drop-down items embedded in passages are used mainly to assess language skills such as conventions of edited American English, standard usage and punctuation, and that drop-down editing passages range from 350 to 450 words.
English language conventions and usage is listed as 20 percent of RLA reporting in that guide. The March 2025 Policy Manual notes that the editing questions are not included on the Spanish-language RLA test.
The practice documents
47 drop-downs in all, each with exactly one correct choice and an explanation of the rule.
Memo: New badge time clocks (8 drop-downs)
Email: Flu shot clinic schedule (8 drop-downs)
Notice: Water shut-off for pipe repairs (8 drop-downs)
Letter: Correction to your electric bills (8 drop-downs)
Policy update: Requesting paid time off (7 drop-downs)
Choose a document and a mode. Practice checks each choice right away; test style scores the whole document.
Open each menu and read the full sentence with every choice before you pick one.
Read the rule for anything you missed, then try a document that targets the same skill.
Questions and answers
What are drop-down questions on the GED RLA test? A drop-down item is a menu of choices placed right inside a passage. On the RLA test, GED Testing Service says this item type is used mainly to test language skills: standard English conventions, usage and punctuation. Once you choose, your choice appears in the passage so you can read the sentence in context.
What grammar is on the GED test? The RLA assessment targets include subject-verb agreement, pronoun use, misplaced and dangling modifiers, parallel structure, subordination and coordination, transitions, run-ons and fragments, capitalization, apostrophes with possessives, commonly confused words and punctuation. This lab practices ten of these skills in context.
How long are GED editing passages? The 2016 Assessment Guide for Educators says drop-down editing passages range from 350 to 450 words. The practice documents in this lab are about 330 to 350 words, a little shorter, so each one fits a short study session or a phone screen.
How much of the RLA score is grammar? In the 2016 Assessment Guide for Educators, English language conventions and usage is listed as 20 percent of RLA reporting. Grammar also counts in the extended response, where Trait 3 covers clarity and conventions.
Is the editing section on the Spanish-language GED test? No. The March 2025 GED Program Policy Manual says the Spanish-language test is a direct translation of the English test, except that the RLA editing questions are not included.
What is the best way to answer a drop-down item? Read the whole sentence, and the one before it, with each choice in place. Find the subject and verb first, then check what pronouns and describing phrases point to. For transitions, name the relationship between the two sentences (contrast, result, example, addition) before you look at the choices.
Next steps
Study GEDPilot lesson GP-R05, Editing for Clear, Correct English, then use the same checks on your own writing in the extended response planner.
GED Ready, the official practice test, reports three bands: Likely to Pass (145-200), Too Close to Call (134-144) and Not Likely to Pass (100-133). The passing score on the real test is 145 in each subject.
Independent preparation materials. Not affiliated with or endorsed by ACE or GED Testing Service. GED is a registered trademark owned by ACE. Practice results do not predict an official GED score, and GEDPilot does not guarantee a passing score.