Locate key supporting details explicitly stated in the text.
Core Idea
Find specific facts or claims that the passage states directly — no inference needed.
Understanding
Detail questions point you back to the text and ask: "What does the passage actually say?" The answer is always sitting right there in the words on the page. You don't need to read between the lines.
The challenge is that wrong answers play tricks with real details. A common move is to swap an adjective or number — the passage says "most species" but the wrong answer says "all species." Another move is to borrow language from the wrong sentence — the answer uses words from the passage, but they describe something different from what the question asks about.
The fix is simple: find the exact sentence the question refers to, reread it carefully, and match it word-for-word against the choices. If a choice changes even one key word, it's wrong.
Step by Step
- Read the question stem carefully — note exactly what it asks about (a person, a finding, a time period).
- Go back to the passage and locate the sentence(s) that address that specific subject.
- Reread those sentences slowly. Pay attention to qualifiers (some, most, all, only, primarily).
- Compare each answer choice against the actual wording. Eliminate any choice that changes a qualifier, adds a claim, or attributes information to the wrong subject.
- Select the choice that restates the passage's detail most faithfully.
Misconceptions
- Answering from memory instead of rereading the relevant sentence — small wording differences matter on these questions.
- Assuming a choice is correct because it's true in the real world — the question asks what the text says, not what's generally true.
- Overlooking qualifiers like "some," "often," or "primarily" — wrong answers frequently turn a qualified statement into an absolute one.
Worked Example
Octopuses are known for their intelligence, but a 2019 study revealed a surprising limitation. Researchers at the University of Cambridge tested whether octopuses could learn to delay gratification — choosing to wait for a preferred food rather than immediately eating a less desirable one. The octopuses succeeded, waiting up to two minutes for a piece of raw shrimp instead of accepting an immediately available piece of crab. The researchers noted that this ability had previously been documented only in vertebrates with large brains, such as chimpanzees and crows.
According to the text, what did the octopuses in the study do?
Select an answer to see the explanation