NB ELPA Reading flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Main idea

The central claim that the entire passage is written to support. It must cover every paragraph, unlike a topic, which only names the subject under discussion.

Too-narrow distractor

An answer choice that is accurate about one paragraph or detail but does not account for the rest of the passage. It is the most common wrong answer on main-idea questions.

Too-broad distractor

An answer choice that stretches the passage's specific claim into a general statement about society, humanity, or all cases, usually with words like always, every, or all.

Topic versus claim

The topic is what the passage is about, such as urban farming. The claim is what the passage asserts about that topic, such as urban farms reduce food transport costs.

Gist of a short passage

The one-sentence summary a brief paragraph supports. It typically appears as a restatement of the opening claim in the closing sentence.

Stated detail

Information written explicitly in the passage, including facts inside examples and subordinate clauses. Detail questions are answered only from such explicit text.

Locator keyword

A distinctive word, name, date, or number from the question that can be scanned for in the passage to find the relevant sentence quickly.

EXCEPT and NOT questions

Questions asking which option the passage does not support. The three stated options are verified against lines, and the unverified one is the answer.

Scope matching

Selecting the answer choice whose subject and qualifiers exactly match the question, especially when two choices both appear in the passage.

Order-of-events question

A question about sequence that must be answered by the order events appear in the passage, not by the order logic or history would suggest.

Valid inference

A conclusion that follows necessarily from stated text combined with common knowledge. Mere consistency with the passage is not enough to make it correct.

Overreach in inference

Adding a cause, motive, or outcome the passage never supplies. Extreme words such as never, only, and impossible often mark this error.

Restatement trap

An answer choice that repeats a stated detail. It is correct on detail questions but wrong on inference questions, which require a derived conclusion.

Hypothetical inference

A question asking what would follow if a situation changed. The passage's stated rule is located and applied unchanged to the new case.

Attitude implication

A conclusion about the author's stance drawn from word choice and emphasis rather than from an explicit statement of opinion in the passage.

Context meaning

The sense a word carries in its specific sentence, which overrides its dictionary definition. Substituting each choice into the sentence tests the fit.

Connotation

The emotional or evaluative coloring a word carries beyond its literal sense. A neutral and a loaded word can share a meaning but differ in tone.

Contrast signal

A word such as but, however, unlike, or rather that indicates a nearby term means the opposite of the tested word.

Appositive definition

A phrase set off by commas, dashes, or parentheses that restates a term's meaning directly in the text, often supplying the answer to a vocabulary question.

Pronoun reference

The noun or clause a pronoun stands for, resolved by number and gender agreement plus the logic of the surrounding verb.

Idea reference

Use of it, this, or such to point to an entire preceding clause or statement rather than to a single noun.

Former and latter

Words that refer to the first and second items of the most recent two-item list. They never refer to items outside that pair.

Cohesive transitions

Connecting words that signal logical relations: however for contrast, therefore for result, moreover for addition, and for example for illustration.

Cause-effect structure

A passage organization built on causal verbs such as lead to, result in, and because of, often separating immediate from underlying causes.

Problem-solution structure

A passage organization that presents a difficulty first and a remedy later, with the remedy's constraints usually the tested point.

Paragraph function

The role a paragraph plays in the argument, such as claim, evidence, illustration, or qualification, as distinct from a summary of its content.

Comparison-contrast structure

A passage organization weighing similarities and differences between two items, usually concluding with the author's preference and the reason for it.

Author purpose

The dominant aim behind a passage: to inform, persuade, explain, entertain, or criticize. The verb in the correct choice must match that aim.

Tone carriers

Adjectives, adverbs, and figurative language that reveal the author's tone. The topic itself does not determine tone.

Hedged tone

A measured stance signaled by qualifiers such as somewhat, arguably, and may, which rules out extreme attitude choices.

Balanced versus indifferent

An author who presents both sides and then concludes is balanced, not indifferent. The conclusion reveals the actual stance.

Question sequencing

An answering order that takes vocabulary and reference items first, details second, and main-idea items last on dense passages, securing easy points early.