Reading Comprehension
🔒 Log in to trackInference and extrapolation questions
🔒 Log in to trackAn inference is something the passage strongly implies without stating. The line between detail and inference: if the option can be pointed to as a sentence, it is a detail; if it is the unavoidable next step of a stated sentence, it is an inference.
The must-be-true test. Ask: if this option were false, would the passage contradict itself? For a valid inference, yes. If the passage could still stand with the option false, the option goes too far.
Distance control. The correct inference sits one small step from the text:
- passage: "she cannot afford the electricity that cooling demands" → inference: cooling appliances are of limited use to the poorest residents (small step ✔);
- "her city will ban air conditioners" (large step ✘);
- "she cannot afford electricity" verbatim (that is a detail, not an inference ✘ for inference questions).
Outside knowledge is banned. If an inference needs a fact you happen to know — a court ruling, a statistic — it is wrong for this exam. The passage is the only permitted world.
| Option type | What it looks like | How to kill it |
|---|---|---|
| Out of scope | True in the real world, never said in the passage | Ask: where is this stated? If nowhere, reject |
| Too extreme | uses always, never, only, must, completely | Passages usually argue moderately; extremes overstate |
| Reversal | says the opposite of a stated line | Re-read the line the option is built on |
| Too narrow / too broad | covers one example, or drags in ideas beyond the passage | A title must cover the WHOLE passage, not one paragraph |
| Verbatim bait | copies a phrase but changes its use | Word-for-word options in inference questions are usually wrong |
Author-intent variants ("Why does the author mention Ahmedabad's plan?"): the answer is the point of the surrounding argument — here, that heat action is affordable and already working. Wrong options describe what the example literally is rather than what it does.
Detailed notes
What is an inference?
To infer means to reach a conclusion from clues. The passage does not say it in words, but it is clearly suggested. If a detail is written on the page, an inference is one small step beyond the page.
Everyday example: your friend comes in with a wet umbrella and wet shoes. Nobody told you, but you can infer that it is raining outside. You cannot infer that "it will rain all week" — that is too big a step.
Detail vs inference vs wrong
Passage: "Harish's free solar pump let him water his fields for longer than the crop needed. Two years later, his borewell water had dropped."
| Option | Type |
|---|---|
| "Harish watered his fields for longer than needed." | detail (written) |
| "Free power led Harish to over-use groundwater." | inference (one step) ✔ |
| "Solar pumps always destroy groundwater." | too big a step ✘ |
| "Harish will sell his land." | no support ✘ |
The must-be-true test
For each option ask: "If this were false, would the passage stop making sense?"
- If yes → strong inference, likely correct.
- If the passage could still be true → the option is only a guess. Reject it.
Types of inference questions
- "It can be inferred…" / "The passage suggests…" — the general type.
- Implied meaning of a line — "What does the author mean by '…'?" The answer explains the idea behind the words, often a figure of speech.
- Assumption — something the author takes for granted without saying it. Without it, the argument would not work.
- Argument: "Caterers cook extra food because running short is a disgrace."
- Assumption: leftover food is less embarrassing than running out.
- Prediction / application — "What is most likely to happen if…?" or "Which situation is most similar to…?" Use the passage's own logic on the new case.
How to handle an assumption question
- Find the conclusion (what the author wants you to accept).
- Find the reason given.
- Ask: what hidden link joins the reason to the conclusion? That link is the assumption.
- Check: if the assumption were false, the conclusion would collapse.
How to handle a prediction / application question
- Say the passage's rule in simple words: "extra sunshine now earns money instead of pumping more water."
- Apply that rule to the new situation.
- Pick the option that follows the SAME rule. Reject options that need new information.
Traps
- Copied line: an option that repeats a sentence word for word is a detail, not an inference. For "infer" questions, it is usually not the best answer.
- Outside knowledge: "Solar panels last 25 years" may be true, but if the passage does not support it, it is wrong.
- Too extreme: all, always, never, must, completely.
- Added motive: an option that says someone did something "deliberately" or "to hurt" when the passage gives no motive.
Quick revision
- Inference = one small step from a line, never a big leap.
- Use the must-be-true test.
- Implied meaning → explain the idea behind the words.
- Assumption → hidden link between reason and conclusion.
- Prediction/application → apply the passage's rule to the new case.
- Reject: word-for-word copies, outside facts, extreme words, invented motives.
Types of questions asked
Every way this subtopic shows up in exams — how to recognise it, the formula or logic to use, and a solved example.
Type 1: 'It can be inferred from the passage that…'very common3 practice Q
Stem uses infer, imply, suggest, 'most probably', or 'it can be concluded'.
- Find the line the question is about.
- Take ONE logical step from that line.
- Apply the must-be-true test to each option.
- Reject copies, extremes, and outside facts.
Example: "The shop is crowded every morning since the government moved its forms online." What can be inferred? (a) Many people need help filling online forms (b) The government has closed all offices (c) The shop sells food (d) People dislike computers
Crowd began when forms went online → people come for help with online forms. (b) is extreme, (c) unsupported, (d) contradicts (they come to use computers). Answer: (a).
Type 2: Implied meaning of a quoted linecommon2 practice Q
'What does the author mean by…?', 'The statement "…" implies that…'.
- Read the quoted line and the sentence around it.
- Ask what idea the line expresses (often figurative).
- Choose the option that explains the idea, not one that reads the words literally.
Example: "Earlier, extra sunshine meant extra pumping. Now it means extra money." What is implied?
Earlier, spare solar power was used to pump more water; now the farmer sells spare power. So: surplus power now earns money instead of being spent on pumping.
Type 3: Assumption behind a statementoccasional2 practice Q
'The author assumes that…', 'The statement is based on the assumption that…'.
- Separate reason and conclusion.
- Find the unstated link that makes the reason lead to the conclusion.
- Negate the option: if the argument breaks, it is the assumption.
Example: "The road will reduce travel time, so traders will earn more." What is assumed?
Link needed: saving travel time helps traders earn more (for example, they can sell more or reach markets sooner). If time saved did not matter to earnings, the conclusion would fail. Answer: traders' earnings depend partly on travel time.
Type 4: Prediction or application (most likely / most similar)occasional2 practice Q
'If … happens, which is most likely?', 'Which of the following situations is most similar to…?'
- Write the passage's rule in one line.
- Apply it to the new case.
- The answer follows the same rule; reject options that need extra facts or go to extremes.
Example: Passage: volunteers collect untouched wedding food and give it to shelters. Most similar: (a) a shop raising prices (b) a bakery giving unsold bread to an orphanage (c) a family cooking less (d) a hotel adding new dishes
Rule: surplus food is collected and given to people in need. Only (b) follows it. Answer: (b).
Shortcut tricks
⚡ One-step rule
Correct inference = stated idea + one logical step. If you need two steps, extra facts, or a change of scale (one city → all countries), reject it.
Example: Passage: 'A workforce that cannot plan a month ahead cannot borrow, train or save with confidence.'
One step: income insecurity itself blocks long-term commitments. Two steps: gig work will soon be banned (needs outside assumption) ✘.
⚡ Verbatim is a verdict
In an inference question, an option that repeats passage wording without adding the step is wrong by definition. Cross it out first.
⚡ Extremity filter
Inferences with only, never, must, inevitably are almost always one step too far. Moderate options (may, tends to, is likely) fit the must-be-true test better.
Where students lose marks
Importing real-world facts to justify an option the passage never supports.
Treating a copied line as an inference (it is a detail).
Inferring the author's personal life or politics from a neutral informational passage.
Choosing an inference so weak it could follow from any passage — it must follow from this one.
Practice sets — 12 questions
Sets of 10, mixed across the question types above. Each answer comes with a step-by-step explanation.
Topic test · 12 questions
Suggested time 9 min · wrong answers go to your mistake notebook automatically.