Paragraph Comprehension
What the questions test
Paragraph Comprehension asks you to read a short passage and answer questions about main idea, supporting details, sequence, cause and effect, comparison, vocabulary in context, inference, and the author's purpose or tone. Nearly every answer is supported by a specific sentence or by a logical combination of sentences. Your job is to find that support, not to bring in outside knowledge.
Traps
- True but unsupported. A choice can be factually true yet not stated or implied in the passage.
- Detail mistaken for main idea. The main idea covers the whole passage; a detail covers one sentence.
- Extreme wording. Choices with "always," "never," or "all" often overstate a cautious passage.
- Outside knowledge. The passage may contradict what you know; answer from the text.
- "EXCEPT" questions. Three choices are supported; one is not. Mark the question type before reading the choices.
Worked example
"The city added protected bike lanes, yet intersection collisions rose. Investigators found that many drivers had not been trained to scan for cyclists at turns." What is the main point? Not that bike lanes fail, but that new infrastructure without driver education may not reduce collisions. A choice saying "bike lanes cause more collisions" is too strong; the passage attributes the rise to a training gap.
Rule of thumb
After reading, write a five-word summary of the passage. Then choose the answer that matches that summary or the specific line the question points to. Eliminate any choice you cannot underline in the text.