Proof, not the same topic
Meaning and evidence asks three questions about a passage. After each answer you choose the paragraph that supports it, and the practice checks the two separately: a right answer with the wrong paragraph is only half done.
To choose, find the words that make your answer true. Ask: if someone asked how I know, which sentence would I point to? The paragraph that holds that sentence is the evidence.
Most paragraphs of a passage mention the same people and things. A paragraph that names the topic but does not state what your answer needs is not evidence for it.
1Answer the question.
2Find the sentence that makes the answer true.
3Choose the paragraph that holds that sentence.
The new bus timetable
1. For years the number 4 bus came every fifteen minutes, but at different minutes each hour. Riders said it was hard to remember when the next one would come.
2. In March the town changed the timetable. Now the bus leaves at the same minutes past every hour: 05, 20, 35 and 50. There are just as many buses as before.
3. A month later, the town asked riders about the change. Most said they now left home without checking the times, because the minutes were easy to remember.
The paragraph that says why
Why did riders stop checking the times? The answer: the minutes were easy to remember.
Paragraph 2 is about the new times, and it is tempting, but it does not say why riders stopped checking. The sentence that does is in paragraph 3: they left without checking because the minutes were easy to remember. So the evidence is paragraph 3.
The new bus timetable
1. For years the number 4 bus came every fifteen minutes, but at different minutes each hour. Riders said it was hard to remember when the next one would come.
2. In March the town changed the timetable. Now the bus leaves at the same minutes past every hour: 05, 20, 35 and 50. There are just as many buses as before.
3. A month later, the town asked riders about the change. Most said they now left home without checking the times, because the minutes were easy to remember.
Which paragraph proves it?
Why did the neighbours collect rain? The answer: the garden could not use tap water. Find the sentence that makes this true.
The library garden
1. Behind the library there was an empty lot full of stones. In April, a group of neighbours asked whether they could plant a garden there.
2. The library said yes, but only if the garden used no tap water, because the water bill was already high. So the neighbours set two barrels under the roof to collect rain.
3. By July the beds were full of beans and sunflowers, all watered from the barrels. Visitors began to read outside, and the library added two benches.
Try it
Which paragraph supports the answer?
- Paragraph 3
- Paragraph 2
Show the answer
Paragraph 2
Right. Paragraph 2 holds the reason: the garden could use no tap water, so the neighbours set up barrels for rain.
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Practice Meaning and evidence