Valencian Community PAU Foreign Language II - English (Lengua Extranjera II: Inglés) cheat sheet

Main idea = topic + the writer's claim about it; a title alone names the topic and is therefore never a complete main-idea answer.

Locate the thesis in argumentative texts at the end of the opening paragraph or after a contrast marker (however, yet, but, in fact); in expository texts the thesis is usually the first sentence.

Gist questions on short texts: delete every option that is true only of one paragraph; the survivor that covers all paragraphs is the answer.

Distractor types to eliminate: too narrow (one detail), too broad (beyond the text), reversed (opposite stance), and true-but-not-stated (world knowledge).

Tone and purpose are part of global understanding: identify the function of the whole text (inform, persuade, warn, review, narrate) before choosing a purpose option.

Paragraph-function mapping: label each paragraph as claim, evidence, counter-argument, concession, example or conclusion; the main idea is the claim, not the evidence.

A text whose first and last paragraphs agree and whose middle paragraphs qualify is still governed by the final position - read the closing sentence as the verdict.

Global questions rarely hinge on a single word; if one option depends on one phrase only, treat it as a detail distractor and keep reading.

Detail questions follow text order; scan for a paraphrase of the question stem (synonym, not identical wording) and read that sentence plus one before and after.

Absolute quantifiers in options (all, always, never, only, completely) are wrong unless the text itself contains the absolute.

Inference must be forced by the text: the correct option is unstated but entailed; if you need outside knowledge, the option is invalid.

Reference chains: pronouns and demonstratives (it, they, this, such, the former, the latter) resolve to the nearest compatible noun phrase, agreeing in number and semantic fit.

For 'the former / the latter', count back to the two most recently named entities in order of mention, not in order of importance.

Lexical cohesion signals reference too: a synonym or superordinate repeated later usually refers back to the first full mention.

Numbers, dates and comparatives are frequent detail traps: check whether the text says more than, less than, or exactly the figure in the option.

Negative detail questions: verify three options as stated in the text; the unverified one is the answer, so work by elimination.

Choose the option that fits both meaning and grammar: a synonym that breaks the syntactic frame (e.g. requires a different preposition) is wrong.

Collocation patterns to memorise: make a decision / do research, pay attention to / take notice of, heavy rain / strong wind, deeply concerned / highly unlikely.

Word-formation suffixes by class: -tion/-ment/-ance/-ness (nouns), -ive/-ous/-able/-al (adjectives), -ise/-ify/-en (verbs), -ly (adverbs, but friendly, likely, elderly are adjectives).

Prefix meaning set: un-/in-/im-/il-/ir- (not), dis- (not/reverse), mis- (wrongly), over- (too much), under- (too little), re- (again), pre- (before), post- (after).

Spelling changes on affixation: happy→happiness, decide→decision, succeed→success, begin→beginning, occur→occurrence, refer→reference.

False friends from Spanish/Catalan to reject: actual (real, not current), assist (help, not attend), library (biblioteca, not librería), sensible (sensato, not sensitive), eventually (finally, not occasionally).

Phrasal verbs are tested by particle: give up (quit), give in (surrender), give out (distribute), give away (reveal/donate); turn up (arrive) vs turn out (result).

In context gaps, first identify the part of speech required by the surrounding words, then filter options by class before meaning.

Present perfect vs past simple: past simple with a finished time expression (yesterday, in 2019, last week); present perfect with unfinished time (so far, recently, since, ever, yet).

Past perfect marks the earlier of two past events; if the order is already clear from before/after, past simple is preferred.

Stative verbs (know, believe, own, belong, contain, seem) resist the continuous form; some change meaning: I think (opinion) vs I am thinking (considering).

Future forms: will (prediction, spontaneous decision), be going to (plan, evidence-based prediction), present continuous (fixed arrangement), present simple (timetable).

Conditionals: 1st if + present, will; 2nd if + past, would; 3rd if + past perfect, would have + participle; mixed 3rd/2nd if + past perfect, would + infinitive.

Passive transformation keeps tense and aspect: they have cancelled the match → the match has been cancelled; with two objects either can become subject.

Reported speech backshift: present→past, past→past perfect, will→would, can→could; no backshift for universal truths or when the reporting verb is present.

Modality by function: must (obligation/strong deduction), have to (external obligation), should (advice), might/may/could (possibility), can't (negative deduction), needn't (absence of necessity).

Relative clauses: defining clauses take no commas and allow that; non-defining clauses take commas and never that, and cannot be omitted without losing information.

Word-count rule: stay within 10% above or below the stated limit; both under-length and over-length are penalised as task failure.

Cover every element of the prompt: for each bullet in the task, write one identifiable sentence or short paragraph; unaddressed bullets cap the task-achievement mark.

Register decision first: formal (essay, letter of complaint, application) forbids contractions and slang; informal (email to a friend) expects them.

Paragraph architecture: introduction stating position, 2–3 body paragraphs each with one idea plus support, conclusion restating the position without new arguments.

Cohesion devices: link within sentences (because, although, which) and between them (however, therefore, in addition, as a result); avoid starting every sentence with the same connector.

Referencing for coherence: use this, such, the former, the latter to tie sentences together instead of repeating full noun phrases.

Opinion tasks require a stated position in the introduction and a consistent one throughout; a balanced essay still needs a verdict in the conclusion.

Formal letter conventions: Dear Sir/Madam → Yours faithfully; Dear Mr Smith → Yours sincerely; no comma after the salutation in British convention.

Time budget for a 150-word task: about 5 minutes planning, 20 writing, 5 checking for agreement, tense consistency and spelling.

Range is rewarded through varied structures: at least one conditional, one passive, one relative clause and one modal per composition signals syntactic range.

Lexical range means precise verbs and collocations (carry out a study, pose a threat, raise awareness), not rare words used inexactly.

Subject–verb agreement traps: collective nouns (the government is/are), indefinite pronouns (everyone is), and phrases between subject and verb do not change agreement.

Articles: a/an for first mention and professions; the for unique referents, superlatives and previously mentioned nouns; zero article for general plurals and abstract nouns.

Common accuracy errors to self-check: third-person -s, irregular past forms, double comparatives (more better), and preposition after depend/consist/insist (on).

Register markers: formal uses full forms, nominalisation and impersonal constructions (it is believed that); informal uses phrasal verbs, direct address and contractions.

Avoid L1 transfer structures: Spanish 'people is', 'I have 18 years', 'depend of', 'explain me' - correct to people are, I am 18, depend on, explain to me.

Punctuation carries meaning: comma after a fronted adverbial, no comma splicing two main clauses, semicolon or full stop instead.

Genre markers: a review contains evaluation adjectives and a recommendation; an editorial contains a thesis plus call to action; a news report leads with the most important fact (inverted pyramid).

Purpose verbs to match: inform, persuade, warn, entertain, instruct, complain, advertise, review - the answer must fit the whole text, not one sentence.

Tone adjectives: neutral, ironic, critical, enthusiastic, cautious, nostalgic; irony is signalled by contrast between positive wording and negative content.

Formality cline: contracted forms, exclamation marks and direct address indicate informal register; passive voice, nominalisation and hedging indicate formal register.

Cohesion types: reference (pronouns), substitution (one/do so), ellipsis, conjunction (however, thus) and lexical cohesion (repetition, synonymy, antonymy, hyponymy).

Discourse markers signal structure: on the one hand/on the other hand (contrast pair), moreover (addition), consequently (result), admittedly (concession), to sum up (conclusion).

Hedging devices (may, tend to, it seems, arguably) indicate caution and usually belong to academic or scientific register.

Audience identification: second-person address and imperatives target the reader directly; third-person impersonal distance signals a report or academic text.

Paraphrase = same proposition, new wording: change word class (decided → made a decision), voice (active ↔ passive) and clause order, but keep the truth value identical.

Summarising rule: retain the main claim and the key supporting point, delete examples, repetition and rhetorical flourishes; a summary never adds opinion.

Word-count control for summaries: draft, then cut adjectives, adverbs and illustrative detail first, since they carry least propositional weight.

Faithful transfer means preserving modality and hedging: 'may cause' must not become 'causes', and 'some studies suggest' must not become 'it is proven'.

Numbers, names, dates and negation are invariant in reformulation; a dropped not or an altered figure is a mediation error, not a stylistic choice.

When mediating into another language or register, translate the function not the words: English 'Could you...?' becomes a polite request, not a literal question about ability.

Attribution in summary: keep the original source's stance explicit (the author argues/claims/warns) so reported content is not presented as fact.

Cohesion in a reformulated text: replace pronouns whose antecedent you deleted with the full noun phrase, or the summary becomes ambiguous.