For each individual passage, about two to four questions will ask about details. These questions are usually asked in the same order that the information appears in the passage. Details are the specific pieces of information like facts, statistics, examples, reasons, or illustrations that support other ideas in the passage. They make main ideas stronger and more convincing. TOEFL questions about the details in a passage look like this:
- According to the passage, who / what / why (and other wh- questions) _____?
- According to the author, _____?
- The passage / author states that _____.
- The author makes the point that _____.
- The author indicates that _____.
- What was one of the main reasons for _____?
- The author compares _____ with _____.
- The author mentions _____ as an example of _____.
Another kind of detail question on the TOEFL asks about information not presented in the passage. When there is NOT or EXCEPT in the question, look for the one answer choice with information that is 1) not in the passage or 2) not true according to the passage. These questions look like this:
- According to the passage, which of the following does NOT _____?
- Which of the following is NOT mentioned as / about _____?
- The author mentions all of the following EXCEPT
- The passage discusses all of the following EXCEPT
- Which of the following is NOT stated in the passage?
- Which of the following sentences should NOT be included in a summary of the passage?
Certain key expressions that can help you understand the relationships between ideas within sentences and paragraphs are words and phrases called transitions or correctors. Here is a list of the most common ones organized by their function.
Transitions
Function | Examples | ||
---|---|---|---|
Illustrate | for example such |
for instance such as |
next |
Explain | at this point in this case |
furthermore | in fact |
Compare | both like |
equally important similarly |
in the same way similar to |
Contrast | in contrast | instead | on the other hand |
Add | also in addition |
first, second, third... moreover |
furthermore not only...but also |
Limit | although however |
but yet |
except for |
Emphasize | certainly | indeed surely |
most importantly |
Show Result | as a result otherwise |
accordingly therefore |
consequently thus |
Conclude | at last in summary |
finally to sum up |
in conclusion |
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