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Detail questions
Detail questions are the friendliest type: the answer is written in the passage. You only have to find the right line and avoid the choice that copies the passage’s words but changes what they say.
The answer is written in one line
A honeybee colony can hold tens of thousands of bees, but only one of them lays eggs: the queen. Worker bees, all female, do every other job, from cleaning the hive to gathering nectar. A worker’s tasks change with age. Young workers stay inside and feed the larvae; older workers fly out to collect food. In summer, a worker usually lives about six weeks.
Question: According to the passage, what do young worker bees do? The key words are “young workers.” Scan for them, read that sentence, and the answer is right there: they stay inside and feed the larvae.
Can you point at it?
If you cannot put your finger on the line that proves your answer, it is not a detail answer. Choices that “sound right” but are not in the text are the trap.
How to solve them
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1
Pick the key word from the question
Choose the most unusual word in the question: a name, a number, a technical word. Common words like “bees” appear everywhere; “larvae” or “six weeks” appear once.
Next step: Scan and readGood key word“How long does a worker live in summer?”
summer: it appears once
Weak key word“…bees…”
appears in every sentence
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2
Scan for it, then read the whole sentence
Let your eyes run over the passage looking only for the key word. When you find it, read the full sentence, and the one before it if the sentence starts with “this,” “they” or “it.”
Next step: Meaning, not wordsExampleHow long does a worker bee live in summer?
- Scan for “summer.”
- The sentence: “In summer, a worker usually lives about six weeks.”
Answer About six weeks
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3
Match the meaning, not the words
The right answer usually says the same thing in different words. The trap choice repeats words from the passage but changes their meaning.
Next step: NOT / EXCEPTTrap“Young workers collect food outside.”
Same words, wrong bees
Right“Younger bees care for the young inside the hive.”
Different words, same meaning
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4
NOT and EXCEPT questions: find the one that is missing
When the question says “all of the following EXCEPT” or “which is NOT mentioned,” three choices are in the passage. Cross each one off as you find it; the one left is the answer.
Next step: Numbers & namesExampleWorker bees do all of these jobs EXCEPT…
- Cleaning the hive: mentioned. Gathering nectar: mentioned. Feeding larvae: mentioned.
- Laying eggs: only the queen does that.
Answer Laying eggs
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5
Numbers, names and dates: read them exactly
Detail questions love numbers. A choice that gives a number from a different sentence, or changes “about” into “exactly,” is wrong.
Next step: CheckPassage“about six weeks”
an approximate time
Wrong“exactly six weeks”
more certain than the text
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6
Check before you mark it
Go back to the line one more time and read your choice next to it. If any word in the choice adds something the line does not say (always, only, all), drop it.
ShortcutThe finger test
Put your finger on the line. Read the choice. If both say the same thing, mark it. If you need to “think a bit” to connect them, it is probably an inference, and the question did not ask for one.
4 traps in the answer choices
The test writes its wrong answers on purpose: each one is what you get if you make one of these mistakes.
Same words, different meaning
What do young workers do?
Wrongthey fly out to collect food
Rightthey stay inside and feed the larvae
True, but not in the passage
What do worker bees make?
Wronghoney (true, but never mentioned)
Rightonly what the text states
Missing the NOT
Which is NOT a job of worker bees?
Wronggathering nectar
Rightlaying eggs
More certain than the text
How long does a worker live in summer?
Wrongexactly six weeks
Rightabout six weeks
5 questions at test level
Pick an answer, then read why. No timer, no account.
Passage: “The town library lends more than books. Members can borrow tools, board games and even fishing rods, and a card is free for anyone who lives or works in town.” According to the passage, who can get a free card?
Show the answer
B. The line says “a card is free for anyone who lives or works in town.” Tools are something members borrow, not a condition for the card. The answer is Anyone who lives or works in town.
Using the same library passage: which of these is NOT mentioned as something members can borrow?
Show the answer
D. Tools, board games and fishing rods are all in the passage; bicycles are never mentioned. The answer is Bicycles.
From the honeybee passage: according to the passage, which bee lays the eggs in a colony?
Show the answer
A. The passage says “only one of them lays eggs: the queen.” Workers are female too, but they do every other job. The answer is The queen.
From the honeybee passage: according to the passage, what do older worker bees do?
Show the answer
C. The line: “older workers fly out to collect food.” Feeding larvae and staying inside are what young workers do. The answer is Fly out to collect food.
Passage: “The bridge closed in March for repairs. Crews replaced the old steel cables first and then repaved the deck. It reopened to cars in October, though bicycles were allowed back in August.” According to the passage, when could cyclists use the bridge again?
Show the answer
B. The last sentence says “bicycles were allowed back in August,” before cars returned in October. The answer is August.
8 flashcards
Tap a card to flip it. Keep the ones you miss until they stick.
All 8 cards known.
You finished detail questions.
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