Reading Comprehension

Comprehension is not a test of what you know; it is a test of what the passage says. Every correct option can be traced to a line you could underline.

1. Read the question stems first, then the passage once at normal speed. Knowing what is being asked turns one reading into a search rather than a study.
2. Factual questions. Locate the line, then match it against the options. Do not answer from memory of the passage — go back.
3. Vocabulary-in-context. The question asks what the word means as used here, which is often not its first dictionary meaning. Replace the word with each option and re-read the sentence.
4. Inference, tone and title. An inference is one small step beyond the text and no further. The main idea or best title must cover most of the passage, not one striking sentence in it.

The single most common mistake is choosing the option that is true in the real world but not stated in the passage. General knowledge is a liability here. If you cannot point to the words that support your option, it is the wrong option.

A useful second filter: options containing always, never, all, only, none are usually wrong, because passages are rarely that absolute, while options that hedge with may, often, generally are usually safer.

Question stems first, passage once · every answer must be underlinable in the text · vocabulary = meaning as used here, not first dictionary sense · inference = one step beyond, no more · reject options that are true in the world but absent from the passage · beware always / never / only

Passage line: "The irrigation scheme, though well designed, failed because the funds released were barely a third of the estimate." Question: Why did the scheme fail? Options: (a) it was badly designed (b) farmers did not cooperate (c) the funds released were far short of the estimate (d) the estimate was wrong. → (c). Sanity check: underline the supporting words — "failed because the funds released were barely a third of the estimate". Option (a) is directly contradicted by "though well designed", (b) appears nowhere in the passage however plausible it sounds, and (d) blames the estimate, which the line does not.