Reading Comprehension: Paraphrase, Purpose, and Reference
Reading Comprehension is the domain where Fukushima Entrance English tests whether you can build meaning from an unseen passage and match it to a paraphrase. It is not a translation test: the right answer usually restates the passage's logic in different words, while distractors copy vocabulary from the text.
Core rules
- Identify the passage's purpose first: explain, argue, compare, or describe. Purpose controls what counts as a main idea.
- Track reference words such as it, they, this, and the former. Return to the nearest grammatically possible noun phrase, then check sense.
- Treat contrast markers (but, however, although, while) as answer keys. They often signal the writer's real point.
- Separate stated fact from inference. If an option needs information the passage never supplies, reject it even if it sounds reasonable.
- Match scope: an option saying all, never, or mainly must be supported at exactly that strength.
Worked example
Passage: The town library once stayed open until 9 p.m. Last year, budget cuts forced it to close at 6 p.m. Library visits fell sharply. However, a survey found that many residents had started borrowing e-books through a new online catalog, so the shorter hours were not the main cause.
Question: What does the passage suggest about the fall in library visits? A. Budget cuts were the main reason. B. Online borrowing contributed to the decline. C. The library stopped lending e-books.
Reasoning: 'However' corrects the expected cause. 'Not the main cause' weakens A. The survey names online borrowing as a factor, so B is the safe paraphrase. C contradicts 'new online catalog.'
Traps
- Choosing an option because it repeats a passage word.
- Treating a possible cause as the stated main cause.
- Missing a concession: 'Although X, Y' makes Y the main claim.
- Overreading tone or opinion where the passage only reports a survey.