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Comprehension

You read a passage, then answer questions on it: finding a detail, working out a feeling, a word’s meaning, or why the writer chose some words. Here’s how to earn the marks.

Comprehension isn’t part of Rush. These games practise related skills: Word Meanings, Missing Word and Two Meanings.

Start the guide Practise 5 questions

Chapter 1

What are comprehension questions?

You get a passage to read, usually part of a story, sometimes a poem or a piece of non-fiction. Its lines are numbered down the side. Then come questions about it.

In most 11+ papers each question has five options, A to E. Other papers ask you to write your answer, with its marks in brackets, like the question here.

  1. The passage. Read it first. The numbers help you find a line again.

  2. The question. It often names a line, like (line 16).

  3. The options or the marks. Five options to choose from, or marks that tell you how much to write.

How does Ella feel when the man with the greyhound stops to watch (line 16)? Give evidence from the passage. (2 marks)

Read it in three goes

  1. Skim it for the story. Read it once at a steady pace: who is there, what happens, how it ends. Don’t stop on hard words.
  2. Read the questions. Now you know what to look for. Note the line each one names.
  3. Go back for every answer. Find the line and read the sentences around it. Never answer from memory.

Exam passages are often longer than this one: a page or two.

The Lock

Written for this page. Lines are numbered as on a paper. 263 words.

  1. Line 1: Mum steered the narrowboat into the lock, and Ella climbed onto
  2. Line 2: the bank with her heart thumping. From up there, the lock looked
  3. Line 3: like a deep stone box with black, dripping walls. The boat sat at
  4. Line 4: the bottom, looking very small.
  5. Line 5: 'Your turn,' said Uncle Rob. He held out the windlass, the heavy
  6. Line 6: metal handle that opens the paddles to let the water in. 'Slow and
  7. Line 7: steady.'
  8. Line 8: Ella took it without a word. It was colder than she had expected,
  9. Line 9: and heavier.
  10. Line 10: She fitted the windlass onto the spindle and pushed. Nothing
  11. Line 11: happened. She pushed again, leaning her whole weight into it, and
  12. Line 12: the handle gave a grudging click. Then another. Below her, the
  13. Line 13: water began to churn as it poured in through the gate, and the
  14. Line 14: boat rose, slowly, like bread dough in a warm kitchen.
  15. Line 15: A man walking a greyhound had stopped on the towpath to watch.
  16. Line 16: Ella felt her cheeks burn. She kept her eyes on the handle.
  17. Line 17: When the water in the lock was level with the canal above, Uncle
  18. Line 18: Rob nodded at the long wooden beam on top of the gate. Ella put
  19. Line 19: her back against it and pushed with her legs. For a long moment
  20. Line 20: the gate refused to move. Then it swung open as smoothly as a door
  21. Line 21: in a dream.
  22. Line 22: The man with the greyhound clapped twice. Ella pretended not to
  23. Line 23: hear, but she was smiling all the way to the next bridge.
  24. Line 24: 'Same again at the next lock?' asked Uncle Rob.
  25. Line 25: 'I suppose so,' said Ella, and held out her hand for the windlass.

Chapter 2

Solve it in 3 steps.

Here’s the question from chapter 1: how Ella feels in line 16.

The question

How does Ella feel when the man with the greyhound stops to watch (line 16)? Give evidence from the passage. (2 marks)

  1. Step 1

    Read the question, then the marks.

    It asks how Ella feels and wants evidence. Two marks means two things: the feeling, and the proof.

    How does Ella feel when the man with the greyhound stops to watch (line 16)? Give evidence from the passage. (2 marks)

    A feeling, and the words that prove it.

  2. Step 2

    Go back to the line.

    Read line 16 and the line before it. The passage never says “embarrassed”, but it shows it: as soon as a man stops to watch, her cheeks burn and she won’t look at him.

    Two clues, both because someone is watching.

  3. Step 3

    Point, evidence, explanation.

    Say the feeling in your own words: that’s the point. Quote the few words that prove it: the evidence. Then say how they prove it: the explanation.

Three answers that lose marks

The mistakeDo this instead
A feeling with no proof. “She feels embarrassed.” The right feeling, but the question asks for evidence. 1 mark out of 2.Add the words that show it, and say how they show it.
A feeling that fits one clue. “She is angry, because her cheeks burn.” Cheeks can burn with anger, but she looks away and says nothing.Choose the feeling every clue fits. Angry people glare; embarrassed people look away.
The wrong part of the story. “She is scared because the lock is deep.” That’s how she felt at the start, not when the man watched.Answer about the line the question names.

So: she feels embarrassed. Her cheeks ‘burn’, as when you blush, and she keeps her eyes on the handle, not on the man.

Remember: Find the line, then prove it.

Chapter 3

The four kinds of question.

Most questions are one of these. Each is worked here on the passage, with five options as most papers print them.

  1. Kind 1

    Find it.

    The answer is written in the passage. Go to the line and match it.

    Only C matches line 10. Trap: every option is in the passage. B is the closest: the windlass does work the paddles, but that answers a different question.

    What did Ella fit the windlass onto (line 10)?

    1. the gate The water pours in through it (line 13).
    2. the paddles It opens them (line 6), but that’s not this question.
    3. the spindle (the answer)
    4. the wooden beam She pushes that later (lines 18–19).
    5. the handle The windlass is a handle itself (line 6).

  2. Kind 2

    Work it out.

    The passage shows it but never says it. Collect the clues, then pick what they all point to.

    He hands her the job, nods at the next step instead of doing it, and offers her the next lock. Trap: a reason nobody wrote, like A. If no line backs it, it’s out.

    What does the passage suggest about Uncle Rob?

    1. He is too tired to do it himself. No line says so. It’s a guess.
    2. He trusts Ella to do the job. (the answer)
    3. He is in a hurry. “Slow and steady” (lines 6–7) says the opposite.
    4. He thinks the lock is too dangerous for her. Then he wouldn’t hand her the windlass.
    5. He has never worked a lock before. He knows what comes next.

  3. Kind 3

    A word in its line.

    Choose the meaning this line needs, not the one you know best.

    Put each option in the word’s place: “the water began to swirl and froth as it poured in”. Only D makes sense. Trap: the meaning you know best, like A. More on the vocabulary page.

    Which is closest in meaning to ‘churn’ as it is used in line 13?

    1. make butter Churning cream makes butter. This is water.
    2. feel sick That’s a churning tummy.
    3. drain away The water is pouring in, not out.
    4. swirl and froth (the answer)
    5. produce lots That’s churn out: to make lots, fast.

  4. Kind 4

    The writer’s choice.

    Say what the words make the reader see or feel, at this point in the story.

    “As smoothly as” makes this a simile. In a dream, things happen with no effort at all. Trap: reading it as if it were real, like A. Nobody is asleep.

    Why does the writer say the gate swung open ‘as smoothly as a door in a dream’?

    1. To show that Ella was asleep. That reads the comparison as real.
    2. To make the story more interesting. That fits any story.
    3. To show the gate was made of wood. It isn’t about what it’s made of.
    4. To show the gate was old and creaky. “Smoothly” says the opposite.
    5. To show it opened easily, almost like magic. (the answer)

Names for the writer’s tricks

Some questions ask you to name the technique. Then say what it does in the passage: the name alone earns little.

  • SimileCompares two things using like or as.Her hands were as cold as the canal.
  • MetaphorSays one thing is another.The lock was a stone mouth.
  • PersonificationGives a thing human feelings or actions.The wind grumbled at the door.
  • AlliterationNearby words share a first sound.Slow, steady steps.
  • OnomatopoeiaA word that sounds like its noise.Click, splash, creak.
  • HyperboleExaggerating, for effect.I’ve told you a million times.

Chapter 4: In the exam

Choosing or writing your answer.

Most papers give five options; some ask you to write. Here’s how to earn the marks either way.

  • Five options: answer it first

    Answer in your head before you read the options.

    Then cross out the catches: true but not what was asked, a passage word with its meaning changed, too strong (always, never), or not in the passage. Check the one left against the line.

  • Written answers: count the marks

    Each mark wants one thing from you.

    Write full sentences, starting with the question’s words: “Ella feels…”. Quote only the few words that prove your point. More than the marks ask for just uses up time.

A 3-mark questionIn line 14 the writer says the boat rose “like bread dough in a warm kitchen”. Why do you think the writer chose this comparison? (3 marks)

  1. How to answer

    Three marks, three things.

    Name the technique, say what it shows, then say what it makes the reader feel. The name on its own earns one mark at most.

Other ways the exam asks it

Papers also ask what a paragraph is mostly about: choose the option that covers all of it, not one detail. Some ask what kind of word one is, like a noun or a verb: the grammar page teaches those.

  • Find and copy

    Copy the exact words, in quotation marks.

    Find and copy the word that shows how Ella’s heart was beating at the start: “thumping”. Trap: your own word, like fast, scores nothing, even when the idea is right.

  • True, false or not stated

    False means the passage says the opposite. Not stated means no line says it at all.

    Ella pushed the gate (line 19), so “pulled” is false. No line says who owns the boat. Trap: calling something false because it seems unlikely.

Use your time well

In Buckinghamshire, for example, each paper takes about 45 minutes, and the English questions, passage and all, are one timed section of it. Skim the passage in a few minutes, not ten.

  • Stuck on a question? Choose your best option, mark the question and come back at the end.
  • Never leave an option question blank: a blank can’t score.

Chapter 5

Try it yourself.

Easier ones first. Try each one before you open its answer. They’re on the passage above.

  1. Question 1Level 1, Vocabulary in context

    'the handle gave a grudging click' (line 12). Which of these words means most nearly the same as 'grudging' does here? (1 mark)

    • angry
    • unwilling
    • loud
    • sudden
    Show answer

    Answer: unwilling.

    How to answer it

    1. Read the sentence before as well: 'Nothing happened.' She had to push again with her whole weight before the handle moved at all.
    2. So the click came only after a struggle, as if the handle didn't want to move.
    3. Swap each option in: 'the handle gave an unwilling click' matches the struggle. The answer is unwilling.
    Why the other answers are wrong
    • angryA grudge is an angry feeling, so this is the trap. Here, though, grudging describes a handle that is hard to move. Nothing in the sentence is about anger.
    • loudNothing says how loud the click was. The sentence is about how hard the handle was to turn.
    • suddenThe click came only after Ella pushed twice and leaned her whole weight in, so it was slow to come, the opposite of sudden.

  2. Question 2Level 1, True, false or not stated

    Are these statements true, false, or not stated in the passage? (4 marks)

    1. Uncle Rob steered the boat into the lock.
    2. The windlass was heavier than Ella expected.
    3. Ella had never been on a narrowboat before.
    4. The man with the greyhound clapped.
    • True
    • False
    • Not stated
    Show answer

    Answer: (a) False. (b) True. (c) Not stated. (d) True.

    How to answer it

    1. (a) The first line says Mum steered the narrowboat, so the statement says the opposite of the passage: false.
    2. (b) Line 8: it was colder than she had expected, and heavier. True.
    3. (c) The passage never says whether Ella has been on a boat before. She seems nervous about the lock, but that is a guess, not something the passage says: not stated.
    4. (d) The man with the greyhound clapped twice. True.
    Answers that lose marks
    • (c) FalseFalse means the passage says the opposite. It says nothing either way about earlier boat trips, so the answer is not stated.
    • (a) Not statedThe passage does say who steered: Mum. A statement that disagrees with the passage is false, not unstated.

  3. Question 3Level 2, Find and copy

    Look at the paragraph beginning 'When the water' (line 17). Find and copy a group of words that shows the gate did not open at first. (1 mark)

    Show answer

    A full-marks answer: 'the gate refused to move'

    How to answer it

    1. Find and copy means the exact words from the passage, in quotation marks.
    2. Read the paragraph for the moment before the gate opens. Ella pushes, and then: 'For a long moment the gate refused to move.'
    3. Copy just the words that do the job: the gate refused to move.
    Answers that lose marks
    • It was stuck.These are your own words. A find-and-copy answer has to be copied, so this scores nothing even though the idea is right.
    • 'Then it swung open as smoothly as a door in a dream'Copied correctly, but it shows the gate opening easily, the opposite of what the question asks for.

  4. Question 4Level 2, Author's purpose

    At the start, the writer describes the lock as 'a deep stone box with black, dripping walls' (line 3). Why do you think the writer describes it this way? (2 marks)

    Show answer

    A full-marks answer

    To show how frightening the lock looks to Ella before she starts. The words 'black' and 'dripping' make it seem dark, cold and gloomy, and a deep stone box sounds like somewhere you could be trapped.

    How to answer it

    1. A why-did-the-writer question wants the effect on the reader, not a list of what the lock looked like.
    2. Pick out the words doing the work: black, dripping, deep, stone box. Together they make the lock sound dark, cold and closed in.
    3. Link it to the story: Ella's heart is thumping in the sentence just before, so the description shows the lock as she sees it, before she has worked it.
    Answers that lose marks
    • To tell us what the lock looks like.Every description does that. The marks are for what these particular words make us feel, and why that matters at this point.
    • Because locks are made of stone.This is a fact about locks, not about the writing. It doesn't explain the choice of words, so it scores nothing.

  5. Question 5Level 3, Inference across the passage

    At the end (line 25), Ella says 'I suppose so'. What do her words, and what she does next, suggest about how she feels? Explain using the passage. (3 marks)

    Show answer

    A full-marks answer

    Her words sound as if she doesn't mind either way, but she 'held out her hand for the windlass' as she says it, so she wants another go. She is proud of opening the gate (she 'was smiling all the way to the next bridge') but doesn't want to show how pleased she is, just as she 'pretended not to hear' the man clapping.

    How to answer it

    1. Compare what she says with what she does. The words sound lukewarm; the action, holding out her hand as she speaks, is keen.
    2. When words and actions disagree, the action is usually the truer guide. So she wants to do the next lock.
    3. Look back for the same pattern: she pretended not to hear the clapping but was smiling all the way to the next bridge. She hides her pleasure each time.
    4. Three marks: the contrast between words and action, the feeling (proud, keen to go again), and evidence for it.
    Answers that lose marks
    • She doesn't want to do it again, because she says 'I suppose so'.This takes her words at face value and ignores what she does next. It misses the point of the question and scores nothing.
    • She is happy.Roughly right but vague, with no evidence and nothing about the gap between her words and her actions. One mark at most.
Next in English Spelling How 11+ spelling questions work and the few checks that settle them, plus homophones and silent letters, with real questions worked through. Read the guide

For parents.

What parents ask us about comprehension.

Questions parents ask

Should my child read the questions first or the passage first?

Both work for some children. Questions first tells you what to look for, which helps with short find-it questions on a long passage. The risk is treating the passage as a treasure hunt and missing the story, which costs marks on the inference questions that are usually worth most. Passage first takes a minute longer, but every question is then about something your child already understands. We suggest the passage first, then a glance down the questions, then going back to the passage for each answer. If time runs out on practice papers, try questions first on the next one and compare.

How long should a comprehension answer be?

Let the marks decide. A one-mark answer needs one clear point. Two marks need two points, or a point and its evidence. Three marks need a point, a short quotation and an explanation, usually two or three sentences. Write in full sentences unless the question asks you to find, copy or list. Starting with the question's own words ('Ella feels embarrassed because…') keeps the answer on track. Writing more than the marks ask for uses up time the later questions need.

How can I help my child with inference?

Talk about the books and films you share. Ask how a character feels, then ask what made them think so. That second question is the important one: a child who can point to a detail, like cheeks burning or eyes kept down, and say what it shows is doing what inference questions ask.

Does every answer need a quotation?

Any answer that explains (a how, why or what-does-it-suggest question worth two marks or more) should have one. A find-it question like Kind 1 just needs the right detail. Keep it short: the few words that prove the point, in quotation marks. A long quotation hides which part is the evidence.

What should my child read to get better at comprehension?

A mix of modern and older stories, some non-fiction and some poetry, a little above what feels easy. Older novels help with long sentences and unfamiliar words, which some passages have. After each chapter, ask one how-do-you-know question.

Practise the related skills in Rush.

  • Word MeaningsIt asks which word matches a meaning, with look-alike words beside the answer, which is what a vocabulary-in-context question tests.
  • Missing WordChoosing the word that makes sense in a sentence means reading the words around the gap, which is the same habit as working out a word from its line.
  • Two MeaningsKeeping two senses of one word apart helps when a passage uses a familiar word in a less familiar way.

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