ACT Reading cheat sheet

Main idea = the claim the whole passage supports; a detail supports only one paragraph and cannot serve as the main idea.

Correct main-idea answers cover the entire passage; choices that match only the first or last paragraph are too narrow.

For detail questions, the answer is stated or directly implied in a specific line range; if you cannot locate it, the choice is usually wrong.

Sequence questions: order events as the passage presents them, not as they occurred in real time, unless the question asks for chronological order.

Cause-effect questions require an explicit causal link (because, led to, as a result); mere co-occurrence of two facts is not causation.

Summary questions: the best answer names the topic plus the author's point about it, omitting supporting examples and statistics.

Inference answers must follow necessarily from stated evidence; an answer that is merely plausible or likely is a distractor.

When two choices seem right, prefer the one whose scope (who, when, how much) exactly matches the passage's wording.

Vocabulary-in-context: substitute each answer choice into the sentence and keep only the choice that preserves the sentence's logic.

A word's dictionary meaning is often wrong on this test; the correct answer is the sense the surrounding clause requires.

Author's purpose verbs (to describe, to contrast, to criticize, to illustrate) must match the function of the specific sentence or paragraph named.

Tone words are judged by connotation and intensity: 'amused' is milder than 'scornful'; 'objective' means no evaluative language.

Text-structure questions ask how a paragraph relates to the whole: example, counterargument, cause, comparison, or transition.

Transition signals (however, therefore, similarly, in fact) reveal the logical relationship between adjacent sentences.

Point-of-view questions: first person uses I/we; third-person limited stays inside one character's perceptions; omniscient reports multiple minds.

Figurative language questions identify the device (simile, metaphor, personification) and then state the quality being transferred.

Two-passage questions: identify each author's central claim first, then classify the relationship as agreement, disagreement, or partial overlap.

A common trap is a choice that accurately describes one passage but misstates the other; verify both halves of every answer.

When authors disagree, locate the specific point of conflict (a cause, a value, or a prediction) rather than assuming total opposition.

Evidence for one author's claim may come from the other passage's data; the answer must show how the evidence bears on the claim.

Analogies and comparisons in a passage transfer a relationship, not a topic: match the underlying structure (A is to B as C is to D).

Data or graphic questions: read axis labels and units first; the correct answer cites a value consistent with the figure and the passage.

If a passage presents a counterargument, the author's own view is usually stated after the concession, signaled by but, yet, or still.

Questions asking what would strengthen or weaken a claim require an answer that changes the likelihood of the claim being true.

Label each paired passage P1 and P2 mentally; predict each author's position in one sentence before reading the questions.

Shared-topic questions ask what both authors discuss; difference questions ask where their interpretations diverge.

An answer choice that quotes only P1 cannot be correct for a question asking about both passages.

Author 2 often responds to Author 1; identifying the response structure (rebuttal, extension, qualification) resolves most paired questions.

Evidence-based questions: the correct evidence line must directly support the claim in the question stem, not just mention the topic.

Reject evidence that is true but irrelevant to the specific claim, and evidence that supports a different claim in the passage.

When a figure accompanies a passage, check whether the passage's claim matches the trend the figure actually shows.

Predict the answer before reading choices; then eliminate any choice containing an unsupported absolute (all, never, only, proves).