Intermediate Reading Course. Section 1: The Basics
Practice 1. Identifying general and specific ideas
In this exercise, you will practice recognizing general and specific concepts. This is a necessary skill when reading a paragraph because you must distinguish general topics and main ideas from the details.
Instructions. Use what you have learned in the lesson about the anatomy of a paragraph. In this exercise, you will see groups of words and phrases. One of them refers to a general concept or idea while the others are specific ideas related to it. Identify the general idea.
For example, in “bananas, apples, fruit, pears” the general idea is “fruit” while the others are specific types of fruit.
When you are finished, click “Answer” to check your answer.
Note. Your answers will not be submitted. When you leave this page, they will be deleted.
PDF Handout
Group 1: guitar — piano — flute — instrument
Instrument. (Guitars, pianos, and flutes are musical instruments.)
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Group 2: beverage — coffee — iced tea — lemonade
Beverage. (Coffee, iced tea, and lemonade are beverages.)
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Group 3: strawberries and cream — apple pie — ice cream — dessert
Dessert. (Strawberries and cream, apple pie, and ice cream are desserts.)
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Group 4: device — laptop — smartphone — tablet
Device. (Laptops, smartphones, and tablets are electronic devices.)
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Group 5: necklace — jewelry — diamond ring — bracelet
Jewelry. (Necklaces, diamond rings, and bracelets are jewelry.)
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Group 6: chess — monopoly — checkers — game
Game. (Chess, monopoly, and checkers are games.)
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Group 7: foot — hand — body part — chest
Body part. (Feet, hands, and chests are body parts.)
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Group 8: brick — material — wood — steel
Material. (Brick, wood, and steel are building materials.)
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Group 9: ideology — liberalism — socialism — conservatism
Ideology. (Liberalism, socialism, and conservatism are political ideologies.)
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Group 10: carbon — oxygen — hydrogen — element
Element. (Carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen are chemical elements.)
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Group 11: poetry — genre — drama — novel
Genre. (Poetry, drama, and novel are literary genres.)
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Group 12: addition — multiplication — division — operation
Operation. (Addition, multiplication, and division are mathematical operations.)
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