Almost always “In {the sentence/passage/line #}, what does {word} mean?” Usually a single word, occasionally more than one (e.g. a perfect passive verb form). The four answer choices always share the word's actual grammatical form in context: if the word being asked about is a verb, all four choices reflect its person, number, tense, voice, and mood (asking about invenio might give “I find / I come / I know / I see,” never a mix of different persons or tenses); if it's a plural noun, every choice is plural; if it's a comparative or superlative, every choice reflects that degree.

“Identify the meaning of {word} (line #) in context.” Scoring guidelines list several acceptable synonyms per word, sometimes including both a singular and plural phrasing for the same answer (though that isn't guaranteed on every question).

Three recurring types: (1) direct grammar-jargon questions: “what is the case of {noun}?” / “which of the following words is {case}?” / “the subject of the verb {verb} is”; (2) meaning-based questions: “what does {noun} specify?”, testing the same grammatical knowledge through comprehension instead of jargon; (3) translation-based questions: “how is {noun} translated?”, testing whether a case is rendered correctly (e.g. a genitive translated “of X”). No released question has directly asked for a noun's declension or gender, but the CED allows it.

“What are the case and number of {noun} (line #)?” or “Identify the case of {noun} (line #).” Sometimes asks students to identify or describe the grammatical USE of a case without requiring jargon: e.g. for an accusative noun, “direct object” and a plain-English equivalent like “the thing being acted upon” have both been accepted.

Only these terms appear as CORRECT multiple-choice answers on noun questions (they may still show up as wrong-answer distractors when other terms are correct). More specific jargon like “ablative of means” will not appear as a correct answer: that kind of nuance is tested through meaning or translation instead.

Same three-type pattern as nouns: direct grammar-term ID (“what is the {tense/mood} of {verb}?”, “what construction is introduced by {verb}/ut?”, “{verb} is (a) supine (b) gerund (c) adverb (d) infinitive”), meaning-based (“what does {verb phrase} specify?”), and translation-based (“how is {verb} translated?”, testing tense/mood/voice).

“Identify the tense of {verb} (line #)”: and potentially person, number, mood, or voice as well. Or “Identify or describe the grammatical use of the subjunctive verb/clause {…} (line #)”, where jargon like “purpose clause” is not required: a plain-English functional description (“it explains what the recipient is seeking”) earns full credit.

Only these terms appear as correct answers; anything outside this list is distractor-only.

Officially seen: identify the noun an adjective modifies; identify what an adjective specifies/indicates; identify when an adjective is used substantively; translate a comparative or superlative adjective; identify the case and/or number of a pronoun; identify a pronoun's antecedent; translate a pronoun or relative clause in context. Not yet seen but CED-fair-game: gender of an adjective/pronoun, its declension pattern, explicitly labeling comparative vs. superlative, whether a relative pronoun is used demonstratively, or translating a demonstrative relative pronoun.

“Identify the Latin word in the passage to which {pronoun} (line #) refers” / “…which {adjective} (line #) modifies”: plus translating a pronoun, adjective, or phrase containing one. Case, number, gender, declension, and comparative/superlative status are all possible follow-ups.

Officially seen: translate a comparative or superlative adverb; state what the enclitic –ne communicates on a question; translate a –ne question. CED-fair-game: identify what an adverb modifies; translate cum correctly in context; identify the object of a preposition (or its case); translate prepositional phrases or cum clauses; identify or describe the use of an interrogative word.

Only one FRQ type has been officially released for this LO, and it has appeared twice: “Identify the meaning of cum (line #) in context”: once with 4 choices (when/since/because/although), once with 2 (when/although). Any of the MCQ-tested skills above may also appear on an FRQ.

A variety of formats: what the passage describes; what is happening in the passage; what a person does or says; the purpose of something in the passage; who is speaking; which of four statements is true.

Appears as Part A of the Short Essay (FRQ #3): a three-part question: (i) identify one and only one {detail} in {lines} that fits a stated criterion, (ii) provide the Latin word(s) that support that answer, (iii) translate those words in context. For the Project Passage essays (FRQ #4/5): “In your own words, summarize the passage in 4–5 complete sentences,” addressing the whole passage: beginning, middle, and end: in one continuous response, not just the part you found interesting.

What a passage suggests; what can be inferred from the passage; what emotion or attitude someone has.

No FRQ has directly assessed this LO in officially released questions, but it can show up as support inside an interpretation/analysis essay response.

“How is the sentence translated?” / “In {stimulus}, {word/phrase} is translated” / “In {stimulus}, translate {word/phrase} in context.”

“Translate {word/phrase} (line #) in context” on the Short Answer section; part (iii) of FRQ #3's three-part Part A; and the standalone Translation FRQ (#2), whose exact prompt is “Translate the passage as literally as possible” over one short passage: literal accuracy and completeness earn points, not polished English or word order.

Only three repetition devices ever appear as correct answers: anaphora, alliteration, and parallelism/parallel structure. Any other repetition term appears only as a wrong-answer distractor. Question formats: which device is used in a given line; the effect a device creates; how a device relates to the passage's content. The device's definition is sometimes given directly in the question stem.

No FRQ directly assesses this LO, but citing a repetition device is a legitimate way to support an analysis-essay claim.

Only three word-order devices ever appear as correct answers: chiasmus, synchysis/interlocking word order, and enjambment. Formats: which device is used in a given line; which of four Latin phrases exemplifies a named device.

No FRQ directly assesses this LO; usable as analysis-essay support.

Only the literal terms “simile” and “metaphor” appear as correct answers (not, e.g., “extended metaphor”). Formats: which device a word like qualis, sicut, or velut introduces; what a simile or metaphor suggests.

No FRQ directly assesses this LO; usable as analysis-essay support.

“The metrical pattern of the first four feet of line {#} is (a) dactyl-spondee-dactyl-spondee…”: may draw on syllabus OR sight passages.

“Indicate the scansion of line {#}.” Full-line dactylic hexameter scansion: this is the one skill CertamenBot can auto-grade for you (see the scansion tool).

“Which of the following features of the {epic/epistolary} genre does the passage best illustrate?” / “This passage is typical of Roman {epistles/epic} because it” / “In which of the following ways does the passage exemplify the {epic/epistolary} genre?” Every correct answer is drawn directly from CED genre facts: nothing outside the CED will be correct, though it may appear as a distractor.

No FRQ directly assesses this LO; usable as analysis-essay support.

Any fact stated in the CED's essential-knowledge statements is fair game as a correct answer: specific people, places, customs, and values, no matter how minor: but nothing outside the CED can be correct (it may still appear as a distractor). The one officially released date-related question asked for a century, not an exact year, but a more specific date question is possible.

Asks students to identify a specific person, place, or thing tied to the passage, at the same level of detail as the MCQs.

No MCQs test this skill category at all: it is FRQ-only.

Appears as Part B of the Short Essay (FRQ #3): in 3–4 sentences, identify one thing meeting a stated criterion (as described in specific lines) and explain how the passage produces a particular effect, approach, feeling, or trait through it. Appears in a longer form on the Project Passage essays (FRQ #4/5): “Describe {detail}. Explain how the passage expresses {detail}.” in 7–8 sentences, requiring two Latin citations plus one contextual/stylistic point, each explained.