Digital SAT Glossary: 43 Terms Explained in Plain English

This glossary explains the words you'll run into while preparing for the digital SAT, in plain English. Terms are grouped by topic: how the test is built, scoring, question types, tools, and registration and sending scores. Each definition links to a longer guide where there is one.

How the test is built

Term	Meaning
Digital SAT	The current SAT, taken on a laptop or tablet in Bluebook. 2 hours 14 minutes, 98 questions. See the format explained.
Section	One of the two parts of the test: Reading and Writing (54 questions, 64 minutes) and Math (44 questions, 70 minutes).
Module	A separately timed half of a section. Each section has two.
Multistage adaptive testing	The design where your second module depends on how you did on the first.
Routing module	College Board's name for the first module, which "routes" you to an easier or harder second module.
Higher-difficulty / lower-difficulty module	The two possible second modules. Both contain a mix of question difficulties; one is harder on average.
Operational question	A question that counts toward your score.
Pretest question	An unscored question being tried out for future tests. Each module has two, and you can't tell which.
Discrete question	A standalone question with its own short passage, which is how every SAT question now works.
Domain	One of the eight content areas: four in Reading and Writing, four in Math.
Skill	A narrower topic inside a domain, like "linear inequalities" or "transitions".

Scoring

Term	Meaning
Total score	400–1600: the sum of your two section scores. See how the SAT is scored.
Section score	200–800 for Reading and Writing and for Math.
Raw score	The number of questions answered correctly. On the adaptive SAT it isn't converted with a fixed table.
Scaled score	The reported 200–800 or 400–1600 score, adjusted so different test forms are comparable.
Item response theory (IRT)	The statistical method used to score the test, taking question difficulty into account.
Percentile	The percentage of test takers who scored at or below you.
Middle 50%	A college's range from the 25th to the 75th percentile of its students' scores. See what is a good SAT score.
Superscore	Your highest section scores from different test dates, combined. See superscoring.
Score release	The day scores appear in your College Board account, typically about two weeks after a weekend test.
Selection Index	The 48–228 number National Merit uses from the 11th-grade PSAT/NMSQT. See PSAT vs SAT.

Question types

Term	Meaning
SPR (student-produced response)	A Math question where you type your own answer. About 25% of Math.
Words in Context	Choose the most precise word for a blank. See Words in Context.
Command of Evidence	Pick the quotation or data that best supports a claim.
Cross-Text Connections	Two short passages; how would one author respond to the other?
Rhetorical Synthesis	Use a student's bullet-point notes to achieve a stated goal.
Transitions	Choose the connecting word that fits the logic. See transitions.
Boundaries	Punctuation between and within sentences. See grammar rules.
Standard English Conventions	The grammar and punctuation domain of Reading and Writing.
Advanced Math	The Math domain for quadratics, exponentials and other nonlinear functions. See SAT Math topics.

Tools and test day

Term	Meaning
Bluebook	College Board's testing app, used for the real test and official practice tests.
Exam setup	A step in Bluebook, available 5 days before the test, that prepares your device and gives you your admission ticket.
Admission ticket	The ticket you show at check-in; a printed copy is preferred.
Desmos	The graphing calculator built into every Math question. See Desmos techniques.
Reference sheet	The built-in list of common geometry formulas. See SAT math formulas.
Mark for review	The flag that lets you return to a question before the module ends.
SAT School Day	The SAT given at your own school on a weekday, often free.
SAT Weekend	The SAT at a test center on a Saturday, which you register for yourself.

Registration and sending scores

Term	Meaning
Registration deadline	About two weeks before a weekend test, followed by a short late-registration window.
Score Choice	Choosing which test dates to send to each college. Some colleges require all scores.
Test-required / test-optional / test-blind	Whether a college requires scores, lets you choose, or ignores them. See Fall 2027 policies.
Score cancellation	Cancelling a test's scores, possible until 11:59 p.m. Eastern one week after a weekend test.
PSAT/NMSQT	The fall PSAT that doubles as the National Merit Scholarship qualifying test.

Common questions

What is a module on the SAT?

A separately timed half of a section. Reading and Writing has two 32-minute modules and Math has two 35-minute modules. Your second module is easier or harder depending on how you did on the first.

What does SPR mean on the SAT?

Student-produced response: a Math question where you type your own answer instead of choosing from four options. About a quarter of Math questions are SPR.

What is Bluebook?

College Board's testing app. You take the digital SAT, PSAT and official full-length practice tests in Bluebook on your own laptop or tablet.

Sources

Dates, policies and test details change. Check the official source before you make a decision.