Which skill is commonly tested in the Reading for Information section?

• A. Main idea
• B. Details
• C. Vocabulary in context
• D. Grammar and punctuation

Answer: (C)

Understanding vocabulary in context is what the Reading for Information section often has you do. The goal is to figure out what a word or phrase means based on how it’s used in surrounding sentences, not by recalling a dictionary definition. This skill shows you can decode meaning from the text itself, which is essential when you’re reading to extract information.

Why this fits: the question is asking about a skill commonly tested in that section, and vocabulary in context directly targets how words convey meaning within the passage. It isn’t primarily asking you to identify the main idea of the whole passage, locate a specific fact, or parse grammar and punctuation, though those can appear elsewhere. Understanding context clues—like nearby synonyms, contrasts, or examples—helps you choose the best meaning for a term as the author intends.

For example, if the passage says a policy was “mitigated by an unexpected windfall,” you’d infer that “windfall” here means an unexpected benefit, based on how the sentence is framed. That kind of deduction is the essence of vocabulary in context.