A test generator produces a set of database query-language statements comprised of randomly chosen elements for testing one or more database management systems on arbitrary databases. The statements are syntactically correct according to the query language, and are semantically correct according to the query language and according to the schema of the target database. A configuration file further specifies parameters of the test statements, in terms of maximum elements, weights of different elements, etc. The generated statements include predicates in which tables in a from clause are tightly joined. In addition, a dictionary of words randomly selected from text columns in a test database is maintained and used to create predicates having words that actually appear in the row data.