Stated information and meaning in context

Identify what the question asks you to retrieve

A detail question gives you a small search task. Before rereading the passage, name the kind of information you need. A date, a comparison, the condition for an exception and the identity of a speaker each call for a different piece of evidence. Find the sentence containing the relevant idea and read one sentence on either side. An exception may appear after the rule it qualifies. A date may belong to a proposal mentioned before the project actually began. Keep both events in view until you know which the question asks about.

A correct restatement can use completely different words from the passage. To compare meanings, ask who did what, to which objects, when and under what condition. Suppose a notice says that staff may borrow unused screens after the exhibition closes. An answer saying employees have permission to take spare screens on loan after closure preserves those relationships. An answer saying staff borrowed the screens changes permission into an event. Both versions sound close to the notice until you check the verb.

Keep the boundaries of the claim

Qualifiers are part of the information. “At least twelve” includes twelve and any larger number. “No more than twelve” points in the other direction. “Most of the returned forms” concerns a narrower group than “most of the forms”. Circle the words naming the group before reading a percentage or a comparison. If a passage distinguishes respondents from invitees, a fact about respondents transfers to all invitees only when the passage explicitly supplies the link.

Keep track of the source of a statement too. A caretaker may report a leak, an engineer may suggest a possible cause and an inspection may later confirm damage. The passage explicitly states that the engineer made a suggestion. That alone leaves the actual cause open. A detail question can ask what someone claimed without asking whether that person's claim was established. Repeat a reporting verb such as “suggested”, “observed” or “confirmed” in your rough answer to keep the strength intact.

Infer a word’s sense locally

For meaning in context (significato nel contesto), cover the target word and read the remaining sentence as a gap. Decide what job the missing word does before scanning the alternatives. Does it describe a physical action, an attitude or the status of a decision? Try a plain substitute. Then inspect the neighbouring sentence for an example, contrast or consequence that tests your substitute. A “qualified welcome” followed by a list of reservations means approval with limits. The sense of being professionally trained fits a person but makes little sense as a description of that welcome.

Substitute each plausible answer into the complete phrase. Preserve the word’s grammatical role and the scale of its meaning. “Delayed” and “cancelled” might both describe a departure that fails to happen at noon. A line giving the new departure time distinguishes them. Avoid choosing a familiar dictionary meaning solely because it is the one you learned first. The surrounding sentences often do more work than the target sentence by itself.

Make an evidence check before selecting

Produce a short answer in your own words while the options are covered. When an option matches it, point to the smallest span that supports all of the option. Read the rest of that option too. An answer can begin with a supported detail and end by adding a reason that appears nowhere. For a word question, check both the replacement word and its effect on the paragraph as a whole. For a detail question, reread any restriction on the group or the time. These final checks take little space on paper and expose differences that a keyword match would miss.