STEP English Complete Review Guide 2026–2027

4. In a vocabulary question, put each option in place of the word, and the one that keeps the sentence sound is the answer. Example: The word "frontiers" is closest in meaning to borders.
5. Context clues: nearby text may explain a word with a synonym, definition, example or opposite, often after signals such as or, that is, such as and but. Example: He was reluctant, or unwilling, to go.
6. A stated detail question has its answer in the text: spot the key word in the question, then search for it in the named paragraph. Example: According to paragraph (2), when did the war begin?
7. In a NOT or EXCEPT question, cross out the three options stated in the text and the one left is the answer. Example: All of the following are mentioned EXCEPT…
8. Numbers, dates and names are compared exactly with the text, and an option that changes one number is wrong. Example: built in 1890, not 1980.
9. An inference question uses words such as suggests, implies and can be inferred, and its answer rests on one or more sentences without copying them. Example: The passage suggests that the author…
10. The author's purpose is shown by the verb: to inform explains, to persuade convinces, to describe depicts, to warn cautions. Example: The author wrote the passage to explain how volcanoes form.
11. Fact versus opinion: a fact can be checked, while an opinion carries judgment words such as best, should and beautiful. Example: It is the best city to live in (opinion).
12. In a pronoun reference question, replace the pronoun with the proposed noun and reread the sentence, and if it makes sense it is the answer. Example: The word "they" refers to the scientists.
13. A pronoun matches its referent in number: it is for a singular thing, they and them are plural, and this or that may point to the idea of a whole sentence. Example: Prices rose. This worried many families.
14. The topic sentence is usually the first sentence of a paragraph, and the other sentences are examples and details supporting it. Example: Paragraph 4 is mainly about the animals' diet.
15. Linking words reveal how the text is organized: first and then for order, however and but for contrast, because and therefore for cause and result, for example for an example. Example: It was cold. Therefore, we stayed inside.
16. When time is short, skip a question that needs long re-reading, answer vocabulary and detail questions first, then return to it. Example: do the word-meaning question before the best-title one.
17. If you do not know the answer, eliminate the wrong options first, since each one removed raises your chance, then choose and never leave the question blank. Example: remove two options, then pick between the other two.

Common mistakes in this chapter

• ✕ An option that is true in real life but not stated in the passage: reject it, because the question is about the text, not your own knowledge.
• ✕ An option that reuses the passage's words but changes the meaning, such as swapping cause and result or altering a number or name.
• ✕ A title that is too narrow and describes one detail, or too broad and goes beyond the topic of the passage.
• ✕ The word has a well-known meaning but the context needs another: do not pick the first meaning that comes to mind before testing the options in the sentence.
• ✕ In a NOT question a rushed reader picks the first option that is true in the text, but the answer is the one that is false or not mentioned.
• ✕ Absolute words in an option such as always, never, only and all often make it wrong, because passages rarely generalize that strongly.
• ✕ Linking a pronoun to the closest noun without checking the meaning: the closest noun is not always the referent.
• ✕ Reading the wrong paragraph: the question says according to paragraph (3) and the student answers from a similar-looking paragraph.