TABE Reading flashcards
TABE Reading · Build recall with a focused review session.
32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.
- Main Idea
- The central point a passage makes about its topic, stated as a complete sentence broad enough to cover the whole text rather than a single paragraph.
- Topic
- The subject a text is about, expressed as a word or short phrase such as recycling or volcanoes; it does not state what the author says about that subject.
- Supporting Detail
- A fact, example, statistic, or reason in a passage that explains, proves, or develops the main idea and answers who, what, when, where, why, or how.
- Implied Main Idea
- The central point of a passage that the author never states directly; the reader must build it from the pattern of supporting details across the whole text.
- Summary
- A brief restatement that gives the main idea plus the most important supporting details, follows the order of the original, and leaves out minor examples and repetition.
- Sequence Signal Words
- Words such as first, next, then, before, after, and finally that show the order of events or steps in a passage.
- Cause and Effect
- A relationship in which one event, the cause, makes another event happen, the effect; it is often signaled by because, since, therefore, as a result, and due to.
- Inference
- A logical conclusion drawn from details in the text combined with the reader's background knowledge; a valid inference is supported by evidence and never contradicts the passage.
- Theme
- The underlying message about life or human nature that a literary text conveys, expressed as a general statement rather than a single word such as friendship.
- Stated Main Idea
- The central point that the author writes out directly in the passage, most often appearing in the opening or closing sentences of a text or section.
- Chronological Order
- A text structure that presents events in the order they happened in time, usually marked by dates, times, and words such as first, later, and finally.
- Context Clue
- Information in the surrounding sentence or paragraph, such as a definition, example, or contrast, that helps a reader figure out an unfamiliar word's meaning.
- Denotation
- The literal, dictionary meaning of a word, considered separately from the feelings or associations the word may carry for readers.
- Connotation
- The emotional or cultural association a word carries beyond its dictionary meaning; it can be positive, negative, or neutral, as with thrifty versus cheap.
- Text Structure
- The way an author organizes information, such as chronological order, cause and effect, compare and contrast, problem and solution, or description and list.
- Compare and Contrast
- A text structure that shows how two or more things are alike and different, signaled by words such as both, similarly, unlike, whereas, and in contrast.
- Problem and Solution
- A text structure that presents an issue and one or more ways it is or could be resolved, signaled by words such as problem, issue, solution, and remedy.
- Author's Purpose
- The reason an author writes a text, usually to inform, persuade, entertain, or explain; the purpose shapes the tone, word choice, and details included.
- Tone
- The author's attitude toward the subject or audience, revealed through word choice and details and described with words such as critical, humorous, admiring, or serious.
- Mood
- The feeling or atmosphere a text creates in the reader, produced by setting, word choice, and imagery and described as tense, gloomy, cheerful, or calm.
- First-Person Point of View
- A perspective in which the narrator uses I, me, and we and takes part in the events being described, sharing only what that character knows.
- Metaphor
- A figure of speech that states one thing is another in order to suggest a likeness, as in the classroom was a zoo, without using like or as.
- Claim
- A statement an author asserts as true and then supports with evidence; it is the position the argument is trying to establish.
- Evidence
- The facts, statistics, examples, expert quotations, or observations an author uses to support a claim and make it convincing to readers.
- Relevant Evidence
- Support that directly relates to the claim being made; evidence about a different topic, however accurate it may be, does not strengthen the argument.
- Opinion
- A statement of belief, judgment, or feeling that cannot be proven true or false, often containing evaluative words such as best, should, or beautiful.
- Counterclaim
- An opposing position that challenges the author's claim; a strong argument acknowledges it and offers a rebuttal showing why the original claim still holds.
- Synthesis
- Combining information from two or more sources to form a new understanding or conclusion that neither source states on its own.
- Loaded Language
- Words chosen to trigger strong emotions and sway the reader toward a position, often signaling bias rather than presenting neutral information.
- Overgeneralization
- A claim that stretches a limited observation to all cases, usually marked by words such as all, every, always, never, or none.
- Credible Source
- A source whose author has relevant expertise and whose information can be checked, such as a peer-reviewed study or a government agency report.
- Comparing Two Texts
- A process of identifying each passage's main idea and then noting where the two agree, where they differ, and what information one adds that the other lacks.