EVIDENCE-BASED READING AND
WRITING
Reading Test passages range in length from about 500 to 750 words. The Reading
Testalwaysincludes:
• one passage from a classic or contemporary work of U.S. or world literature.
• one passage or a pair of passages from either a U.S. founding document (such as an
essay by James Madison) or a text in the Great Global Conversation (such as a speech by
Nelson Mandela).
• one passage on a social science topic from a field such as economics, psychology, or
sociology.
• two science passages (or one passage and one passage pair) that examine foundational
concepts or recent developments in the natural sciences - Earth science, biology,
chemistry, or physics.
6 categories of reading questions:
• main idea
• specific details
• inferences
• tone/attitude
• vocabulary
• technique
• graphics
• command of evidence
QUESTION TYPES AND KEY TERMS
MAIN IDEA Questions that test your ability to find the central thought of a passage
or to judge its significance often take the following form:
The main point of the passage is to
The passage is primarily concerned with
The author's primary purpose in this passage is to
The chief theme of the passage can be best described as
Which of the following statements best expresses the main idea of the passage?
1
, • bolster | to support an idea or position
• delineate | to outline or describe with care
• depict | to represent or portray vividly
• discredit | to disbelieve ; to cause a loss of confidence in
• document | to support by documentary evidence
• elaborate | to add details to ; to work out in minute detail
• endorse | to support or approve
• exemplify | to serve as an example of
• illustrate | to clarify by the use of examples
• refute | to prove to be false or incorrect
• speculate | to reason, possibly on insufficient evidence
SPECIFIC DETAILS Questions that test your ability to understand what the author
states explicitly are often worded:
According to the author
The author states all of the following EXCEPT
According to the passage, which of the following is true of the
According to the passage, the chief characteristic of the subject is
Which of the following statements is (are) best supported by the passage?
Which of the following is NOT cited in the passage as evidence of
• aesthetic | artistic ; dealing with or capable of appreciating the beautiful
• allusion | an indirect reference ; a casual mention
• assumption | something accepted as true without proof
• attribute | essential quality / characteristic
• divergent | differing from another ; tending to move apart
• fluctuate | to shift continually ; to vary irregularly
• hypothetical | based on assumptions or hypotheses ; supposed
• incompatible | not able to exist in harmony ; discordant
• indicative | suggestive ; pointing out
• inherent | firmly established by nature or habit ; built-in ; inborn
• innate | inborn ; existing from birth
• innovative | novel ; introducing a change ; ahead of the times
• misconception | mistaken idea ; wrong impression
• phenomenon | observable fact or occurrence ; subject of scientific investigation
• preclude | to make impossible ; to keep from happening ; prevent
2
WRITING
Reading Test passages range in length from about 500 to 750 words. The Reading
Testalwaysincludes:
• one passage from a classic or contemporary work of U.S. or world literature.
• one passage or a pair of passages from either a U.S. founding document (such as an
essay by James Madison) or a text in the Great Global Conversation (such as a speech by
Nelson Mandela).
• one passage on a social science topic from a field such as economics, psychology, or
sociology.
• two science passages (or one passage and one passage pair) that examine foundational
concepts or recent developments in the natural sciences - Earth science, biology,
chemistry, or physics.
6 categories of reading questions:
• main idea
• specific details
• inferences
• tone/attitude
• vocabulary
• technique
• graphics
• command of evidence
QUESTION TYPES AND KEY TERMS
MAIN IDEA Questions that test your ability to find the central thought of a passage
or to judge its significance often take the following form:
The main point of the passage is to
The passage is primarily concerned with
The author's primary purpose in this passage is to
The chief theme of the passage can be best described as
Which of the following statements best expresses the main idea of the passage?
1
, • bolster | to support an idea or position
• delineate | to outline or describe with care
• depict | to represent or portray vividly
• discredit | to disbelieve ; to cause a loss of confidence in
• document | to support by documentary evidence
• elaborate | to add details to ; to work out in minute detail
• endorse | to support or approve
• exemplify | to serve as an example of
• illustrate | to clarify by the use of examples
• refute | to prove to be false or incorrect
• speculate | to reason, possibly on insufficient evidence
SPECIFIC DETAILS Questions that test your ability to understand what the author
states explicitly are often worded:
According to the author
The author states all of the following EXCEPT
According to the passage, which of the following is true of the
According to the passage, the chief characteristic of the subject is
Which of the following statements is (are) best supported by the passage?
Which of the following is NOT cited in the passage as evidence of
• aesthetic | artistic ; dealing with or capable of appreciating the beautiful
• allusion | an indirect reference ; a casual mention
• assumption | something accepted as true without proof
• attribute | essential quality / characteristic
• divergent | differing from another ; tending to move apart
• fluctuate | to shift continually ; to vary irregularly
• hypothetical | based on assumptions or hypotheses ; supposed
• incompatible | not able to exist in harmony ; discordant
• indicative | suggestive ; pointing out
• inherent | firmly established by nature or habit ; built-in ; inborn
• innate | inborn ; existing from birth
• innovative | novel ; introducing a change ; ahead of the times
• misconception | mistaken idea ; wrong impression
• phenomenon | observable fact or occurrence ; subject of scientific investigation
• preclude | to make impossible ; to keep from happening ; prevent
2
