EIKEN Grade Pre-1 key terms
EIKEN Grade Pre-1 · Get comfortable with the vocabulary.
- inference
- Related: implication, tone
A conclusion drawn from evidence in a text rather than stated outright. Grade 1 reading questions often ask what a writer implies about causes, motives, or likely outcomes.
- implication
- Related: inference, connotation
A meaning suggested indirectly by word choice or context rather than said explicitly. Distinguishing implication from stated fact is a core skill in long EIKEN Grade 1 passages.
- connotation
- Related: tone, implication
The emotional or evaluative association a word carries beyond its literal meaning. Recognizing whether a term sounds approving, neutral, or critical helps identify an author's stance.
- tone
- Related: connotation, inference
The attitude an author conveys toward the subject, such as skeptical, sympathetic, or ironic. Questions may ask you to characterize tone from adjectives and qualifiers in the passage.
- cohesion
- Related: coherence, transition
The way sentences and paragraphs are linked so a text reads as one unit. Pronouns, repeated key nouns, and transition words all create cohesion in academic English.
- coherence
- Related: cohesion, thesis statement
The logical ordering of ideas so each point follows from the previous one. A coherent essay moves from claim to support to conclusion without unexplained jumps.
- thesis statement
- Related: coherence, counterargument
A single sentence that states the central claim of an essay or argument. Locating it early in a passage helps you predict how the rest of the text will develop.
- counterargument
- Related: thesis statement, rebuttal
An opposing view that a writer acknowledges and then answers. Recognizing where an author concedes a point prevents misreading the passage's overall position.
- rebuttal
- Related: counterargument, concession
The part of an argument that directly answers an objection. It usually follows a concession and signals the writer's final position with phrases like 'however' or 'even so'.
- concession
- Related: rebuttal, counterargument
A point a writer grants to the opposing side to appear fair or to narrow the debate. Concessions are often introduced by 'admittedly' or 'it is true that'.
- transition
- Related: cohesion, contrast
A word or phrase such as 'nevertheless' or 'in contrast' that shows how two ideas relate. Misreading a transition can reverse the meaning of a whole paragraph.
- contrast
- Related: transition, cohesion
A rhetorical move that sets two ideas against each other to highlight differences. Signal words include 'whereas', 'unlike', and 'on the other hand'.
- abstract
- Related: summary, thesis statement
A short summary placed at the start of an academic article. Reading the abstract first gives you the study's purpose, method, and conclusion quickly.
- anecdote
- Related: evidence, topic sentence
A brief personal story used to illustrate a point. Writers often open an essay with an anecdote before moving to a general claim.
- nuance
- Related: connotation, implication
A subtle difference in meaning or attitude. Grade 1 items often turn on nuance, where two answer choices differ only slightly in emphasis.
- gist
- Related: summary, inference
The overall meaning or main point of a spoken or written text. Listening questions frequently ask for the gist rather than specific numbers or names.
- distractor
- Related: paraphrase, gist
An answer choice that sounds plausible but is not supported by the recording. Distractors often repeat a word from the audio while changing the relationship between ideas.
- note-taking
- Related: signpost, gist
Writing brief keywords and symbols while listening to track structure and key points. Effective notes mark signposts, examples, and any shift in the speaker's argument.
- signpost
- Related: note-taking, transition
A spoken phrase such as 'first', 'to sum up', or 'on the other hand' that shows the structure of a talk. Signposts help listeners anticipate what comes next.
- speaker's stance
- Related: tone, gist
The position or attitude a speaker takes toward the topic, signaled by stress, word choice, and qualifiers. Identifying stance is often the key to a listening item.
- rhetorical question
- Related: speaker's stance, signpost
A question asked for effect rather than to obtain an answer. It often appears in persuasive speeches to draw listeners toward the speaker's conclusion.
- detail question
- Related: gist, note-taking
A listening question that asks for a specific piece of information, such as a time, a price, a place, or a reason, stated in the recording.
- intonation
- Related: stress, gist
The rise and fall of the voice when speaking. It can signal a question, surprise, or a change of topic, and it helps listeners follow the speaker's meaning.
- stress
- Related: intonation, gist
The extra loudness or length given to a particular syllable or word. In English, stressed words usually carry the most important meaning in a sentence.