Reading Comprehension of Chinese Texts
What this domain tests
Reading tasks present authentic or semi-authentic Chinese texts - notices, articles, letters, advertisements, short literary extracts - and ask you to locate information, infer meaning, identify purpose and tone, and explain the writer's attitude. The challenge is volume and unfamiliar characters under time pressure.
Concepts to master
- Skimming for gist before reading closely: title, first and last sentences of paragraphs, and any bold or repeated terms.
- Scanning for detail: names, numbers, dates, and negation words.
- Inference: the answer is often implied, not stated. Look for 说明, 可见, 因此, 其实.
- Cohesion: how 这, 那, 它, 他 refer back; connectives such as 虽然……但是, 不但……而且, 因为……所以.
- Word formation: recognising a compound from known characters even if the whole word is new (e.g., 环保 from 环境 + 保护).
Common traps
- Negation and double negation: 不是不重要 means it is important. 不能不 means must.
- Scope words: 都, 只, 大多数, 所有 - a question may hinge on whether the text said "most" or "all".
- False friends from character recognition: guessing a word from one character only.
- Answering from general knowledge rather than from the text.
- Time sink: spending too long on one unknown character when context supplies the meaning.
Rule of thumb
When a sentence is unclear, find the subject and the main verb first, then attach the modifiers. Chinese modifiers precede the noun ("一个我非常喜欢的城市"), so locate the noun and work backwards.
Worked example
Text: 虽然这家店的价钱比别的地方贵一点儿，但是因为质量好，所以很多顾客还是愿意来。 Question: 这家店为什么受欢迎? Trap answer: 因为便宜。(The text says 贵一点儿.) Correct answer: 因为质量好。 The 虽然……但是 structure signals the concession is not the main point; the 因为 clause carries the reason.