Reading Comprehension: Answer Only From the Passage
What is being tested
Passages of one or two paragraphs followed by questions on main idea, explicit detail, inference, vocabulary in context, and the author's purpose or tone.
Question types and how to attack them
- Main idea: the correct answer covers the whole passage, not one vivid detail. Test it by asking whether the author would use that sentence as a title.
- Detail: the answer is literally stated somewhere. Scan for a keyword from the question stem, then read the sentence before and after it.
- Inference: the answer must be forced by the text, not merely plausible in real life. If you needed outside knowledge to choose it, it is wrong.
- Vocabulary in context: cover the choices, read the sentence, substitute your own word, then match.
- Tone and purpose: notice the adjectives and verbs the author chose. Extreme emotion is rarely correct in neutral expository writing.
Traps
- True but irrelevant: a choice that is factually correct but not supported by this passage.
- Extreme language: words like always, never, all, only, or proves where the passage said often, some, or suggests.
- Reversal: a choice that flips cause and effect or swaps who did what.
- Half-right: the first clause is accurate and the second is false. Read every word of the choice.
Worked example
A passage states that fuel reserves are often a limiting factor in remote operations. A choice reading that fuel reserves are always the most important constraint is wrong twice: always overstates often, and most important is never claimed. A choice reading that fuel supply can restrict operations far from bases is supported and correct.
Rule of thumb
Predict the answer before reading the choices, then select the choice that matches your prediction most closely. Anything requiring an assumption outside the passage is a distractor.