Transcript for:
Reading Comprehension Tricks

No matter how much you try, in reading comprehension, you always narrow it down to two options out of four, feeling that either could be correct. But then you end up marking the wrong one. When I was preparing for MBA exams, I also couldn't figure out how to choose the right option. Aren't there any tricks that are very scientific and solid? Today, in this video, I will first share an example with you. I will read out a short paragraph to you. Based on that, I will tell you 10 tricks with which you can guarantee full marks in any reading comprehension. So let's start but before that, I have a small announcement and update for the regular subscribers of this channel. Guys, I have finally become an author. My book has been published, and its name is "Formulae & Tricks for Quantitative Ability." So if you are preparing for any competitive exam, it is a very concise book for the math section that you can use to revise. We are organizing a giveaway for this, but I will give the details at the end of the video so that we can concentrate on reading comprehensions. Those of you who want to check it out, watch till the end. I'll pick a short paragraph from a reading comprehension so that I can give you a sample of how to read it. Because if you don't read it correctly, you will reach the questions very late, and then the tricks won't work. I am sharing this paragraph on your screen. And let me show you how to read it. So, on a so and so date, amidst the chaos of revolution, the so and so party penned a defiant document. With the some signatories, including this person and the ever-persuasive this person, the Declaration of Independence declared the thirteen colonies free and sovereign states, severing ties with Great Britain nearly after so and so years of colonial rule. So, rule no. 1: don’t memorize. If you noticed, I didn't mention any names, numbers, or dates to anyone. I didn't try to memorize anything. I didn't mention the 4th of July, nor did I take John Adams' name. I simply said "so and so." What this does is, if you don't try to remember anything while reading comprehension, it saves you a lot of time. So this is rule no. 1. Rule no. 2 is to try to contextualize. Now, there were some words like "sweltering" and "severing ties." I don't know the meanings of these words, but I will try to contextualize, meaning I will try to understand their meaning from the sentence. "Severing ties" is written just before "free and sovereign states." Severing ties with Great Britain means to break or cut the ties. So in this way, you can find out the context. The final rule is always summarize. Once you have read this paragraph, can you tell me in one line what it means? This is done because if a passage has 7-8 paragraphs, I need to remember what was discussed in each paragraph. So, when I read the question, I will know which paragraph I need to go to find the answer. Now that we know how to read an RC paragraph. We will now move towards its questions and discuss how to solve them. If you want to learn these tricks in more detail, you can also join MBA Wallah's CAT coaching where their experienced faculty teach these tricks to their batches. Within 5 months, MBA Wallah will complete your entire syllabus from start to finish in their batches. They have two batches: MBA Ignite, priced at 6999, and MBA Pro, priced at 10999, currently available. In the MBA Ignite batch, you will get: Live and recorded lectures 20+ Mock Tests 10,000+ questions in DPP (Daily Practice Problem) format Weekly practice tests with analysis And 24/7 doubt support. For the first time ever, MBA Wallah has introduced GD and PI preparation from industry experts and mentorship from top B-school alumni. In the MBA Pro batch, apart from all these features, there are also some additional benefits: Preparation for exams like XAT, SNAP, MAT, and other OMETs with offline books. Infinite practice questions along with access to all 2024 batches. Access to PW Khazana. And free access to MBA One Pass test series for your extensive preparation. If you want to get a ₹500 additional discount on these batches, you can use my code "SHWETA". You will find the links and details for all these batches in the pinned comment and description. So now let's move towards those 10 tricks. These tricks will help you find the correct answers by eliminating the wrong options. The first one is "Cause and Effect". Suppose a question based on this passage asks Why was the Declaration of Independence declared? And option A states that Thomas Jefferson signed it, so it came into being. This is the wrong cause and effect. Just because Thomas Jefferson signed it does not mean that the Declaration came into being. The second trick is called "Comparison". John Adams isn't as persuasive as Thomas Jefferson. If we go back to the paragraph, it says "ever-persuasive Thomas Jefferson," meaning he is very persuasive. But nothing is given about John Adams. In this option, we have compared John Adams with Thomas Jefferson without any basis, which is a faulty comparison. So, this is the second trick. The third trick is called "Extreme Words". Sometimes, options use words that are overly extreme and mention something that is not stated in the passage. If an option says, "It was the most defiant document which was signed by 56 signatories", the incorrect word used here, the extreme word used here was "most". The passage mentioned "defiant document" but never said "It was the most defiant document." The fourth trick is called "Unknown". Unknown means something is given in the options that was not mentioned in the passage at all. For example, "All the 56 signatories were present in the same place at the same time when they signed the document." If this option comes up, we definitely know that this option is wrong. Why? Because it is mentioned in the passage that the document was signed and signed by 56 people. But were they present at same place on the same date? There is no information given about this. So this is unknown. The fifth trick is called "Traps". Sometimes, an option seems to answer the question, but it contains a word that makes it incorrect. For example, if the question is "What did the Declaration of Independence declare?" And an option says, "It declared 13 weak colonies free and sovereign states." Now, everything else in this option is correct, but the word "weak" makes this option wrong. Why is this not an unknown? Because there is some hint about it given in the passage. It's not entirely unknown. But at the same time, it's only a hypothesis. We can't declare it as truth. The sixth trick is called "Doesn’t Answer". Suppose the question asks, "Why was the Declaration of Independence declared?" And the option says, "With 56 people who signed the document, Declaration of Independence was declared." Now, the option is 100% correct. There is no mistake in it. But the problem is that it doesn't answer the question. This is a very important trick that you must remember, especially because it appears frequently in the CAT exam. The seventh trick is called "Numbers". For example, if an option says, “More than half the number of total signatories signed the Declaration of Independence,” we might assume 56 signatories as more than half of the total because sometimes we think the total is 100, and we assume 56 as a percentage. And we think, "Okay, more than half, this is correct." Sometimes numbers are presented in such a confusing way that we end up making mistakes. The eighth one is called "Tone". Sometimes the person setting the paper keeps the meaning of a particular line the same in an option but completely changes the tone. For example, “The Declaration of Independence got finally signed on the 4th of July, getting rid of Great Britain and its miserable colonial rule of the long-lasting 170 years.” So basically, if we change the tone of an option, then that option becomes incorrect as well. The ninth one is "Irrelevant Information". Sometimes a statement is completely correct, but it is so irrelevant or insignificant that it is considered wrong. For example, "Which of the following tells us about the Declaration of Independence?" And the option says, "It was signed on a very hot day." Think about it, what relevance does the fact that it was very hot that day have to Declaration of Independence? The final trick is called "Replica". Sometimes an option matches 100% with the statement in the passage, except for just one very tiny word. For example, if the statement is, “The Declaration of Independence declared 13 colonies free but sovereign states." In the option, the word "but" is replaced with "and," this small word change alters the meaning of entire line. So these are mainly the 10 tricks that can be used to prove an option wrong or eliminate it in any RC. Now that we have come to the end of the video, let me share more about this giveaway that we are doing. So, this book of mine, "Formulae & Tricks for Quantitative Ability," you can use it for any exam for revision purposes. I will also make a video to explain how you can use it. A total of 50 people who watch this video and meet 3 conditions will have this book delivered to their homes for free. Those 3 conditions are: Firstly, you need to like this video. Secondly, you need to comment the word "Formula Book." Thirdly, in the video description and pinned comment, there is a form provided. You need to fill out that form and add your details. A list of 50 lucky winners will be randomly generated. Next week, this list will be published on the channel. And these 50 lucky winners will have this book dispatched to them directly. Thank you so much for watching this, guys. And I hope that the rest of the video also helps you. See you next time with another video. If you have any suggestions in your mind, Be sure to add them in the comments. Thank you so much and have a nice day.