Reading comprehension: stay close to the evidence
Distinguish a main idea, an explicit detail and an inference using a complete original practice passage.
In this guide
Different questions require different evidence
A detail question asks what the text states. An inference question asks what follows reasonably from the text without being stated in exactly those words. A main-idea question asks which statement represents the passage's central point and scope. These tasks overlap, but they are not interchangeable. An answer can repeat a true detail and still be too narrow for the main idea. Another can sound sensible in real life while adding information the passage never supplied.
Original passage
The San Isidro reading room used to close at four in the afternoon. After several working students asked for later hours, the volunteers kept it open until six on Tuesdays for a four-week trial. Tuesday visits increased during the trial, but the volunteers did not record whether the additional visitors were working students. They also introduced a new collection of illustrated science books in the same month. At the next meeting, the coordinator proposed continuing the later hours for another month while recording visitors' reasons for coming. She said the first trial was encouraging but did not yet show which change had attracted the additional visits.
Worked example: locate the main point
The strongest main-idea statement is that a promising attendance change needs more information before its cause can be identified. The passage begins with a schedule change, reports an increase, introduces a second possible influence and ends with a plan to gather better evidence. 'The room acquired science books' is true but too narrow. 'All working students prefer Tuesday visits' is unsupported. 'The trial failed' conflicts with the coordinator's encouraging assessment. A good main idea covers the whole argument without making the author's conclusion stronger.
Trace an inference to specific sentences
A reasonable inference is that the coordinator wants to improve how the trial is evaluated, rather than merely collect another attendance total. Her proposal to record visitors' reasons supports that interpretation. By contrast, concluding that no working students visited would be unsupported: the absence of a record is not proof of absence. The request for reasons suggests an attempt to understand visitor behaviour, but it does not guarantee that the next month's data will establish causation. Match the strength of your answer to the strength of the evidence.
Notice qualifiers and transitions
Words such as 'some,' 'may,' 'during the trial' and 'not yet' limit a claim. Replacing them with 'all,' 'must,' 'always' or 'never' often changes the meaning. A transition such as 'but' signals that the next clause qualifies what came before. However, no single signal word is an automatic answer key; read how it functions in the sentence. An author's attitude can also be mixed, such as hopeful about a result while cautious about its explanation.
- Point to the sentence or combination of sentences supporting your choice.
- Check whether an answer changes the population, time period or certainty.
- Separate what the author reports from what a speaker inside the passage claims.
Try it yourself
Return to the original reading-room passage above. What two changes occurred during the month? What additional information would help assess the explanation about working students? Is the coordinator completely dismissive, cautiously positive or certain of the cause? Support each answer with the passage.
Reveal the worked answer
What two changes occurred in the month described? The room extended Tuesday hours and added illustrated science books. What fact would help assess the working-student explanation? Information about who visited and why would be relevant; simply counting more books would not answer that question. Which description best fits the coordinator's attitude: completely dismissive, cautiously positive or certain of the cause? Cautiously positive fits her encouragement and her stated uncertainty. These answers come from the original passage, not from assumptions about actual reading rooms.
What two changes occurred in the month described? The room extended Tuesday hours and added illustrated science books. What fact would help assess the working-student explanation? Information about who visited and why would be relevant; simply counting more books would not answer that question. Which description best fits the coordinator's attitude: completely dismissive, cautiously positive or certain of the cause? Cautiously positive fits her encouragement and her stated uncertainty. These answers come from the original passage, not from assumptions about actual reading rooms.
Put one idea into practice.
Try a short reading comprehension session, then use the explanations to choose what to review next.
Start a short sessionSources & further reading
Purdue OWL — Logic in writing and evaluating supportSomething unclear or incorrect? Suggest a correction to this guide.
Original FreeReviewer.ph guidance, informed by the linked sources. Exam requirements and procedures should always be checked with the examining body.