GMAT Exam: A Simple Guide To Solving Reading Comprehension Problems

GMAT Reading Comprehension Questions
Like the rest of the GMAT’s Verbal skills section, the Reading Comprehension section uses multiple-choice questions to measure your ability to read and comprehend the material presented.

You’ll be given a passage that can range from two paragraphs to five or more; all will be about 350 words long. The topic of the passage will be something of general interest—perhaps about the social sciences or the humanities—and you’re not expected to bring any prior knowledge about it to the test. You’re asked to read it carefully … but quickly, because you’ll then need to read, contemplate, and answer three or four multiple-choice questions based on each passage. The computer you’re taking the GMAT on will go to a split screen when you’re in this section. The passage you need to read and use will stay on the left side, while the question you need to answer will be on the right. This is helpful, but remember, you’ll still see only one question at a time, and once you confirm your answer, you can’t go back.

You can expect to read quite a few passages on subjects taken from science, history, and the arts, which is the GMAT’s attempt to make up for those subjects not being tested in any way. You can also expect to see multicultural topics and for women to be well represented.

You can expect that about 15 of the Verbal skills’ 50 or so questions will be Reading Comprehension.

Some of the questions you’ll be asked merely involve careful reading, as the answer will be contained within the passage. But some questions will ask you to infer—that is, to make assumptions based on the information presented in the reading.

While you do get about a minute and three-quarters to answer each question, that timing doesn’t include reading the passages, so, really, you have very little time to do all of that reading, thinking, and inferring.

There’s one important note you need to know before you move on to the types of questions.

Many standardized test prep books will advise you to read the questions in a Reading Comprehension section first and then save time by scanning the passage for the answers instead of reading it carefully first.

Here, you don’t have that option, we’re sad to say. The questions appear one at a time, so all you can really do is pull up the first question and have it on the screen while you read the passage. Not much of a time saver!

This is not a test you can skip around on. There’s no way to skip over the Reading Comprehension section and come back to it after you’ve answered the other questions. That’s one of the most difficult things about the test, because it goes against our instincts from other standardized tests.

The Different Kinds of Reading Comprehension Questions
Let’s take a look at the types of questions you’ll see in this section. First, you should know the directions that you’ll see on the GMAT:

The questions in this group are based on the content of a passage. After reading the passage, choose the best answer to each question. Answer all questions following the passage on the basis of what is stated or implied in the passage.

That last part is important. Let’s say you’re an expert on penguins, and the passage you’ve been given to read is about penguins. Well, you can only answer the questions given based on what you read in the passage. No matter how much more you could add or how your additional knowledge might change the answer, please only use the reading passage’s information!

Main Idea Questions
You’ve taken standardized tests before, so you know the drill. These questions rest your ability to capture the thesis of a passage. Main idea questions (up next) are the most common of the Reading Comprehension questions, usually appearing right after the passage.

Main idea questions might be worded like this:
- Which of the following statements most accurately captures the main point of the passage?
- Which of the following statements most accurately captures the central idea of the passage?
- The passage can best be described as which of the following?
- Of the following titles, which would be the most appropriate for the contents of this passage?

While you occasionally will come across a reading passage that explicitly states what its main idea is, it’s more likely that you’ll be required to use those inferring skills we mentioned earlier. The best place to look for the main idea are the first two sentences in the first paragraph, although it does sometimes appear at the end of the first paragraph, in the final paragraph, or—very rarely—in a middle paragraph.

If you can’t find a clear thesis statement, it’s helpful to ask yourself, “What is being discussed in this passage, and why?” The answer should point you to one of the choices given to the question. No matter what, since you know that you will likely be asked this question about nearly every passage, we think it’s worthwhile to try to sum up the thesis before you read the questions. Then you can look for the answer that best matches what you’ve already arrived at. Inevitably, one of the answer choices will be a point from the passage—but not the main point. It’s hard to not be tricked into choosing that answer, unless you’ve already determined the main idea.

Supporting Idea Questions
The second most common type of question is the supporting idea question. The test is seeking to measure how well you understand how an argument is built and supported. Being able to locate supporting ideas clearly helps show your skills. This type of question focuses on specific ideas or pieces of information presented in the passage. Sometimes you have to read the passage quite closely in order to find the answer.

Questions of this type often look something like:
- According to the passage, Hong Kong regulators believe what about the stock market?
- According to the passage, HIV+ prevention programs have done what in Namibia?
- Which of the following statements best expresses the Confederates’ outrage at Stewart’s maneuvering?
The answers are almost always directly in the text, so no inferring is needed here. You should find the main nouns in the questions (“Hong Kong regulators” and “stock market,” for example) by skimming the reading passage to locate them. The answer you’re looking for should be within a couple of lines of their location. Sometimes the answer will be in a sentence that’s been slightly paraphrased in an answer choice. At other times, you’ll need to combine information from two or even three sentences to arrive at your answer. But, trust us, it is in there!

Inference Questions
Inference questions are just the opposite of supporting idea questions. Now you’ll have to put together information to find an answer that’s not there in black and white on your screen. This type of question deals with ideas that aren’t in the passage, asking you to make a hop from the statements in the passage to a conclusion based on them. You have to infer, but to keep that inference relatively small: don’t make a leap, remember, but a hop! Don’t use any knowledge except that which is presented in the passage, and treat the information in the passage as if it is true even if you feel sure it isn’t.

Inference questions often look something like this:
- Based on the information given in this passage, it can be reasonably inferred that Jefferson would approve of which amendment?
- The author of this passage would most likely agree with which of the following statements?
- Based on the contents of the passage, it can be inferred that an astrophysicist would be LEAST likely to observe a comet through which of the following methods?

Another kind of inference question is less about the logical conclusions that could be drawn from the passage and more about the author’s purpose in writing the passage. For some people, these questions can be frustrating because logic tells them that we have no way of knowing why an author wrote a passage. Test-takers who feel that way must make a particular effort to push that conundrum out of their minds. Focus instead on the narrow view: what can we say the agenda or goal of the author might reasonably be deduced to be?

Inference questions are TRICKY because they work on your instincts. You may feel sure that you know one of the answer choices is true, but if it’s a leap and there’s a hop available, don’t get sucked in!

Usually, questions about the author’s purpose focus on the main idea of the passage (aren’t you glad you put that into words already?), but they may also look at the structure or tone of the passage. Some ask you to find the answer that best articulates what one could reasonably assume the next paragraph of the passage would say, had it been included. No matter what, make sure that your inference has clear support in the text.

This sort of question might read like these:
- Otello for what purpose?
- From the information presented in the final paragraph, it can be reasonably inferred that the author believes which of the following is true about Occam’s theory?

Applying Information Questions
This type of question also asks you to do something more than find the answer in the passage and note it. You’ll have to take the information given in the passage and apply it logically to a context outside of the passage. Again, you’ll need to take a logical hop, since you’ll need to be able to recognize the argument or idea from the text in a different context. These questions can be quite tricky; remember to stick to the passage and make the most logical choice you can.

A few examples:
- Which of the following situations is most similar to the environmental situation described in the second paragraph?
- The medical test in the passage would most likely be helpful for which of the following groups?
- Johnson’s reasoning, as presented in the passage, is most similar to which of the following lines of reasoning?

Logical Structure Questions
Exactly as they sound, these questions ask you to analyze the structure of the reading passage and to determine how the passage combines individual pieces into a cohesive whole. They usually require a blend of broad reading (the kind that helps you find the main idea) and focused reading (to identify those smaller parts).

Questions that are about logical structure might look like this:
- The third paragraph plays what role in this passage?
- The Tempest in lines 3–4 for what purpose?
- Which of the following most accurately describes the structure of the passage?

It might be helpful to approach a logical structure question as if you were going to write an Analytical Writing Assessment about the passage. What would you identify as the thesis? How about the premises?

Style and Tone Questions
This is the least common type of question you might encounter in the Reading Comprehension portion of the GMAT. In fact, you could take the entire test without bumping into a style and tone question. But, just in case, know that this type of question asks you to draw a conclusion about the author or the passage based on the author’s use of language.

The truth of the matter is that most of the reading passages on the test are far too dry to have any real tone or style; if you read a passage that has a little more zing to it, you can expect that you’ll be asked a style and tone question.

The key to answering these questions is to find the words in the passage that point to a tone—look for those with both positive and negative connotations.

A positive tone might appear in a phrase like “an auspicious beginning” or “a brilliant innovation,” whereas a negative tone is clear from phrases like “an utter failure” and “a complete debacle.” Don’t worry too much about being asked to give a name to a very subtle or literary tone; the test sticks to broad styles in the answer choices, and in general the passages are fairly moderate in opinion.

You’re more likely to read something along the lines of “The author is guardedly enthusiastic about the innovation” than “The author raves with near-zeal about the innovation.”

If you can’t find tone words, look for the overall feel of the article and trust your instinct: if you think the author is taking a dim view of the topic, he or she probably is.

Style and tone questions will resemble these examples:
- The author’s attitude toward international malaria prevention efforts could best be characterized as which of the following?
- Which of the following best describes the author’s tone in the passage?
- Based on the statements in lines 30–35, which of the following could be inferred about the author’s attitude towards Highland Cattle?

Be careful not to confuse your own opinion with the tone of a passage. If you detest going to the beach, and the passage is about the dangers of sun exposure, you might leap to the conclusion that the author is against going to the beach. But does the passage’s tone really justify that opinion?

Problem-Solving Strategies
There are a few specific strategies you can use to approach the Reading Comprehension questions on the GMAT.

Strategic Reading
Now that you have an idea of what kind of questions you’ll be asked in the Reading Comprehension section, we’ll suggest a method you can follow to be successful in this section.

First, skim/read the passage in one to two minutes. Focus on the main idea of the passage, and jot it down on scrap paper when you think you’ve found it. Also, ask yourself what the basic structure of the passage is, and think about what each paragraph does as part of that structure. You can also think in terms of keywords: if someone tapped you on the shoulder and asked you what the passage is about, what would you say?

As tempting as it is to use a pen or pencil to mark up the passage when using our practice questions, we suggest you try to use a separate piece of paper instead. The GMAT will be on a computer screen, and you won’t be able to write on that.

Remember that you are not being tested on anything but the three or four questions about the passage. At no point will you be asked to explain every idea in it or recall the entirety of the passage. Don’t waste your time trying master the entire thing.

Just try to get a clear idea of what the passage is about. If you get to the end and feel lost, go back and try again.

Take a few notes as you read. Jot down that main idea if you find it. If you don’t, try to put it into your own words at the end of your read-through.

You should also number your paper to match the number of paragraphs (1–5 for a five-paragraph passage) and jot down a few words that capture each of the supporting paragraphs.

If you see any words that point to the tone, you should jot those down too.

And if there are any words that indicate a reversal in thinking (such as “However,” or “On the other hand,”), you can make note of them, as well.

Focused Reading
Once you have a good grip on the passage, it’s time to put that knowledge to work. You’ll need to get more focused to answer the questions.

Slow down and read the questions, their answer choices, and the relevant parts of the passage carefully.

Make sure you understand the question, and reread the relevant parts of the passage until you’re sure you have the right answer. The correct answer is always in the text!

The test-makers put a lot of time and energy into creating answer choices that look like they might be correct but, in fact, are wrong. After all, if it were easy to spot the wrong choices, the test would be pretty … easy. And it’s not.

Keep in mind that they also aren’t above little tricks like using words that look similar but mean something different, or giving you a couple of choices that are probably true, plus one that is definitely true. The last one is the only one you want to click on, of course, but you’re going to have to eliminate those near-misses first.

Look for the type of question being asked, because that will help you know what kind of answer to choose. If you recognize a question as being a main idea question, look back at your notes. What did you jot down for the main idea? Which answer choice most closely matches your note? There’s your answer.

Supporting idea questions are almost always rooted in the text. When you run into one, find the specific place in the text that it’s referring to and choose the answer choice that best matches. These questions have to be indisputable, so the answer is in the text somewhere. Find it and move on.

Inference and applying information questions require you to take a step back and think about the passage. The question should give you a specific subject matter; take a moment to think about what the passage has to say about it and to infer the larger message. Once you have that in mind, find the answer choice that best matches what you think. To put it simply: find the answer choice that has to be true if the statements in the passage are true.

If you hit a style and tone question—remember that these are only asked about passages that have a tone!—you probably jotted down a few telling words from the passage. Choose the answer that best matches, remembering that the moderate choice is usually the best.

Be Aware of How the GMAT Wants to Trick You
The Reading Comprehension section can drive you absolutely crazy if you let it, because there’s just so much room for subjectivity.

How you read a passage will probably be quite different from how the person next to you in the testing center reads it. And neither of you are wrong, of course: it’s just that reading is subjective.

In order to create questions that have correct answers, the test-makers go out of their way to make sure that the other answers are definitely wrong (and not just a matter of opinion or reading).

Here are two of the techniques that they might use:
- Leaping Instead of Hopping. You might recall that we encouraged you to take a hop when inferring, since the correct answer will not be found in the passage. The test-makers like to make a leap in one of the answer choices, hoping you’ll choose it because it seems like it could be true (but isn’t quite proven by the passage). Remember, stick as close as you can to the text. Choose the little jump instead of the big one. And never add in your outside knowledge!

- Catching You Skimming. Another popular trick is to offer you an answer that’s clearly taken directly from the text, in the hope that you will recognize, choose it, and move on. The only problem is that you’ve chosen the correct answer to a different question! For example, the test might offer the thesis of the passage as an answer choice … but the question is about the supporting idea.

Don’t get tricked: read carefully.