How many spelling and sentence clarity questions are on the CritiCall?

Biddle Consulting Group publishes no question count at all — not for this type and not for the test as a whole, only that the whole sitting runs on average between one and three hours. Any site that gives you an exact count has made it up. The 30-question run on this site is this site's own practice length, and it deals the types evenly.

Is this section timed?

Not on this page. These sets are for learning the type — each answer comes with an explanation straight away. When you want the clock, the full-length run is 30 questions in 20 minutes, which is 40 seconds a question.

Are these real questions from the test?

No. Every question here is original, written to the published format. The real item banks are confidential and nobody outside the publisher has them.

CritiCall spelling and sentence clarity questions

The words that change the meaning of a record, and the clearest way to write what happened.

50 questions in this set Untimed — explanation after each answer

CritiCall spelling and sentence clarity 1 of 10

Which word correctly completes the sentence? “The caller said the van had been parked ______ for over an hour.”

What this type asks

Two of Biddle’s modules sit behind this one page because they are the same skill in two directions. Spelling “commonly misspelled or misused words” is not a vocabulary test — the booklet gives the reason with its own example, patience and patients, a pair that could delay help. Sentence Clarity asks which of four versions presents the same set of facts most clearly, which is what a dispatcher does every time they turn a caller into a line another person will act on. The two habits behind the answers are the ones the job runs on: the word that means what happened rather than the one that sounds like it, and the sentence that says who did what to whom without making the reader work it out.

Commonly confused pairsWords that change what a record meansThe clearest of four true sentencesAmbiguous pronouns and dangling clausesSaying what was observed rather than what was concluded

Now do it with the clock running.

30 questions in 20 minutes — 40 seconds each. That clock is this site's, not the publisher's: Biddle Consulting Group does not print a length per question. Working under one is still the part untimed practice cannot teach.

Take the full CritiCall test

The other question types

Dispatch decisions Reading comprehension Data checking Full timed test

Frequently asked

How many spelling and sentence clarity questions are on the CritiCall?: Biddle Consulting Group publishes no question count at all — not for this type and not for the test as a whole, only that the whole sitting runs on average between one and three hours. Any site that gives you an exact count has made it up. The 30-question run on this site is this site's own practice length, and it deals the types evenly.
Is this section timed?: Not on this page. These sets are for learning the type — each answer comes with an explanation straight away. When you want the clock, the full-length run is 30 questions in 20 minutes, which is 40 seconds a question.
Are these real questions from the test?: No. Every question here is original, written to the published format. The real item banks are confidential and nobody outside the publisher has them.

Sources

Every figure on this page comes from one of the documents below, with the date it was read. Requirements change; if a source has moved on since that date, the source is right and this page is out of date.

CritiCall — Public Safety Communications Pre-Employment Test Preparation Guide (Biddle Consulting Group, 2023, PDF) Read September 2, 2026
CritiCall — “CritiCall and the Dispatcher Applicant: F.A.Q.” (Biddle Consulting Group, 30 April 2024) Read September 2, 2026
CritiCall — CritiCall3D and CritiCall Classic Test Descriptions Read September 2, 2026
CritiCall (Biddle Consulting Group) — Public-Safety Dispatcher / Calltaker Applicants Read September 2, 2026

Hiring Test Practice is independent practice material and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or authorized by Criteria Corp, Wonderlic, Inc., National Testing Network, the electrical training ALLIANCE, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, NECA or Biddle Consulting Group, Inc. CCAT® is a registered trademark of Criteria Corp; Wonderlic® is a registered trademark of Wonderlic, Inc.; CritiCall is a trademark of Biddle Consulting Group, Inc. Test names are used only to describe what this material prepares you for. Every question here is original and none is taken from any actual assessment.