Making Inferences
Inference:Riddles
Main Ideas
Logical Inferences
100
The student woke up. He glanced at the clock, blinked and glanced again in disbelief. Minutes later he was out the front door, running, panicking, and all the while, buttoning his shirt. What can you infer from this short narrative? [A] The student is a dancer. [B] The student is happy to start the day. [C] The student overslept.
[C] The student overslept.
100
I'm a powerful stick, I'm a masterful thing. I go "poof" and a flower turns into a ring.
I am a wand.
100
Can fish climb trees? It sounds like a fishy story, but mudskippers living in the swamps of Asia really can climb trees. After filling their gills with air and water, they climb onto land. Mudskippers use their front fins to move along the ground. Suckers on their fins help them climb trees. What is the main idea?
How mudskippers are able to climb trees is the main idea
100
In all cultures, gestures are used as a form of communication, but the same gestures may have very different meanings in different cultures. (A) No two cultures use the same gestures. (B) One gesture will never have the same meaning in two cultures. (C) A person from one culture may misunderstand the gestures used by a person from another culture.
(C) A person from one culture may misunderstand the gestures used by a person from another culture.
200
The baker removes the pastries from her oven. A judge approaches. He cuts into a pastry, examines the middle, and places it back onto the baking sheet. He moves away, and the woman hangs her head. She looks over at her baking timer: five minutes remain. She bites into one of her pastries. The inside is doughy rather than crisp. What can you infer? [A] The judge approved of the pastry. [B] The woman kept the pastry in too long. [C] The woman under-cooked her pastries.
[C] The woman under-cooked her pastries.
200
Hang on to me and I'll never let you fall Find me in a toolbox, but rare is it to see me in a wall What am I?
A nail or screw.
200
What is the difference between a topic and a main idea?
The topic is what a passage or text is about. The main idea is what the author has to say about the topic.
200
Blood cholesterol used to be thought of as a problem only for adults. (A) Blood cholesterol is no longer a problem for adults. (B) Only children have a problem with blood cholesterol. (C) Blood cholesterol affects both adults and children.
(C) Blood cholesterol affects both adults and children.
300
A: Look at the long line! Do you think we’ll get in? B: I think so. Some of these people already have tickets. A: How much are the tickets? B: Only nine dollars for the first show. I’ll pay. A: Thanks. I’ll buy the popcorn. Where are these two people?
At the movies.
300
You can count on me if you need to connect with a friend, a family member or, even, a stranger. Oh and by the way, lest I forget to mention, I have a ring but no fingers. What am I?
I am a phone.
300
Soccer is known in some countries as football. It is a popular sport across the world, with over 200 countries playing the sport. It is estimated that over 250 million people, both men and women, play soccer. The sport has been part of the Olympic games from 1900 to 1928 and from 1936 to today. ------What is the main idea of this passage: A. Soccer is important at the Olympics. C. Soccer is also called football. D. Soccer is played by men and women.
B. Soccer is a worldwide sport.
300
When apple growers talk about new varieties of apples, they don’t mean something developed last month, last year, or even in the last decade. (A) Apple growers haven’t developed any new varieties in recent decades. (B) Some varieties of apples can be developed in a short time, but others take a long time. (C) New varieties of apples take many years to develop.
(A) Apple growers haven’t developed any new varieties in recent decades.
400
A: When did this happen? B: Yesterday. I was playing soccer and I fell down. A: Can you move it at all? B: Only a little. A: Can you walk on it? B: No. It hurts too much. A: I think we’ll have to take an X-ray. B: Will I be able to play in the game tomorrow? A: I’m afraid not. What are these people talking about? Where are they?
An injured leg, ankle or foot At the hospital
400
You buy it to eat, but you don’t eat it. What is it?
A plate, fork, spoon, knife, dining table, etc. The answer can be a lot of things, anything that you use to serve or eat food.
400
Always warm up before attempting any strength training exercises. Failure to warm up can cause injuries to cold muscles. Remember to use proper lifting procedures for safety sake. In addition, to avoid harm, make sure that you have a spotter with you if you are using free weights. You can also avoid injury by working within your limits and avoiding the need to show off. What is the implied main idea?
To avoid injury during strength or weight training, observe several safety precautions.
400
As an architect, Thomas Jefferson preferred the Roman style, as seen in the buildings of the University of Virginia, to the English style favored by Charles Bullfinch. (A) The architecture of the University of Virginia was influenced by the Roman style. (B) Bullfinch was an English architect. (C) Jefferson preferred to build in the English style of architecture.
(A) The architecture of the University of Virginia was influenced by the Roman style.
500
One dollar and eighty-seven cents. That was all. And sixty cents of it was in pennies. Pennies saved one and two at a time by bulldozing the grocer and the vegetable man and the butcher until one’s cheeks burned with the silent imputation of parsimony that such close dealing implied. Three times Della counted it. One dollar and eighty-seven cents. And the next day would be Christmas.There was clearly nothing to do but flop down on the shabby little couch and howl. So Della did it. Which instigates the moral reflection that life is made up of sobs, sniffles, and smiles, with sniffles predominating. Why is Della crying?
She is short on money.
500
What goes on four legs in the morning, on two legs at noon, and on three legs in the evening?
Man, who crawls on four legs as an infant, walks on two legs as an adult, and walks with a cane as an elderly citizen.
500
People who are obese are likely to develop type II, non-insulin dependent diabetes. In fact, 90% of obese people develop this disease. Seventy percent of obese people will develop heart disease, and 33% will develop hypertension. Colon and breast cancers are also linked to obesity.
Many diseases are related to obesity.
500
There is more quartz in the world than any one kind of feldspar, but the feldspars as a group are five times more common than quartz. (A) One type of quartz is five times more plentiful than feldspar. (B) Quartz is less common than the feldspars. (C) The most common type of feldspar is as plentiful as quartz.
(B) Quartz is less common than the feldspars.
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