Reading comprehension - lasīšanas prasme
The reading part presents short real-world texts - classified ads, notices on a door, timetables, menus, tickets, e-mails, instructions, simple contracts and news paragraphs - and asks you to locate information, match headings to paragraphs, decide patiesi/nepatiessi, or choose the correct continuation. Latvian word order is flexible, so meaning is carried by endings; the reader who hunts for familiar words instead of parsing cases will regularly pick the wrong option.
Core rules
- Identify the subject and object from endings, not position: 'Māra aicina Jāni' versus 'Jānis aicina Māru'.
- Read prepositions as case signals: uz + accusative = direction; uz + genitive = on; pie + genitive = at somebody's place; ar + accusative = with/by means; par + accusative = about; pēc + genitive = after.
- Watch debitive forms: 'jāiesniedz' = must submit, but 'nav jāiesniedz' = there is no need to submit - very different from 'nedrīkst iesniegt' (must not submit).
- Track scope words: tikai, arī, izņemot, vismaz, līdz.
Worked example
Text: 'Godājamie klienti! No 3. janvāra līdz 15. februārim veikals būs remontā un slēgts. Preču piegāde uz mājām šajā laikā notiks kā parasti.' Question: 'Vai februāra sākumā varēs saņemt preces mājās?' Reasoning: the text has two statements. The shop is closed for repairs until 15 February, but delivery 'notiks kā parasti' - continues as usual. The question asks about delivery, not about entering the shop, so the answer is yes.
Traps that cost marks
- Confusing slēgts (closed) with atvērts (open), atlaide (discount) with izpārdošana (clearance sale), darbdienās with brīvdienās.
- Treating 'līdz 15. februārim' as excluding the named date; in ordinary usage the end date is included.
- Missing a negative prefix on a verb (neiesniedza, nepiegādās) that reverses the whole sentence.
- Answering from general knowledge instead of the text - every correct option must be traceable to a line in the passage.