Topics · Primary English · Comprehension: Literal
Literal comprehension: the answer is in the passage
A literal question can be answered by finding the right line and using what it says. Nothing has to be worked out — so the whole skill is locating the line and lifting the answer without spoiling it.
- 570 exam papers analysed
- appears in 98% of P4 English papers
- ~3 min read
01 Take the words from the question
A literal question nearly always reuses words from the passage. Those words are the address of the answer.
“Why did Mei sigh?” — find sigh in the passage, and the answer will be beside it.
So the method is: underline the key words in the question, find them in the passage, read the sentence before and after. The answer is almost always within those three lines.
02 What the question word is asking for
Each question word wants a particular kind of answer, and giving the wrong kind loses the mark even when the line found was right.
| Question word | Wants | Answer must contain |
|---|---|---|
| Who | a person or animal | a name or description |
| What | a thing or action | the thing itself |
| Where | a place | a place word |
| When | a time | a time reference |
| Why | a reason | because, so that, in order to |
| How | a manner or method | the way it was done |
03 Lifting without spoiling
The words are in the passage, but they usually cannot be copied straight across. Two things have to change.
- Change the pronouns. The passage says “she”; your answer must say Mei, or the marker cannot tell who is meant.
- Turn it into an answer to the question asked. “Why did Mei sigh?” → “Because her shoes were muddy”, not “Mei looked at her muddy shoes”.
- Copy the important words exactly. If the passage says drenched, do not write wet — the exact word is often what is being marked.
- Do not copy the whole sentence. Extra material that contradicts the answer can cancel a correct one.
- Answer in a full sentence unless the question says otherwise.
04 Reading the marks
The mark allocation tells you how much to write, and it is printed on the paper.
1 mark — one piece of information. A phrase is usually enough.
2 marks — two pieces, and both must be there. A question worth 2 with one idea in the answer gets 1.
“Give two reasons” — write two, numbered or separated clearly. One good reason cannot earn two marks.
Watch for “in your own words”. That question is no longer literal in the easy sense: the idea must come from the passage but the wording must be yours.
05 How to say them
These are words most children have never said out loud, and a word you cannot say is a word you avoid using. Capitals mark the syllable you lean on. Tap the speaker to hear it.
- literalsayLIT-uh-ruhl
Stated directly in the passage. A literal question can be answered from what is written.
- passagesayPASS-ijmore than onepassages
The piece of writing the questions are about.
- key words
The important words in a question, used to find the right place in the passage.
- pronounsayPROH-nownmore than onepronouns
A word standing in for a name: he, she, it, they. Answers must replace these with the name.
- quotationsaykwoh-TAY-shuhn
Words copied exactly from the passage, usually inside quotation marks.
06 What each level is tested on
The same topic, asked differently as it goes up. The percentage is the share of papers at that level in which it appears.
- P2
Finding an answer stated directly in a short passage.
Practise P2 Comprehension: Literal — 8 questions →92% of P2 papers
- P3
Using key words from the question to locate the answer, and answering in a full sentence.
Practise P3 Comprehension: Literal — 8 questions →94% of P3 papers
- P4
Replacing pronouns, and matching the answer to the question word.
Practise P4 Comprehension: Literal — 8 questions →98% of P4 papers
- P5
Longer passages, two-mark questions, and the first “in your own words” questions.
Practise P5 Comprehension: Literal — 10 questions →76% of P5 papers
- P6
Literal questions inside longer papers, with careful attention to mark allocation.
Practise P6 Comprehension: Literal — 10 questions →95% of P6 papers
07 Mistakes worth knowing about
Each of these is wrong. Decide why before you open it.
“I copied the whole sentence to be safe.”
Extra material can contradict the answer and cancel it. Copy the part that answers the question.
“She was tired.”
Who is “she”? Replace pronouns with names, or the answer does not identify anyone.
“Why did she sigh?” — “Mei looked at her muddy shoes.”
That is what happened, not why. A “why” answer needs because, so that, or in order to.
“I wrote wet instead of drenched.”
The exact word from the passage is often what is being marked. Copy important words as they stand.
“It was worth 2 marks so I wrote a long answer.”
Length is not the point — two pieces of information are. One idea written at length still scores 1.
Now try it
44 questions across 5 levels, marked as you go with the working shown.