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Inference, Paraphrasing, Summarizing

Total questions: 50

Worksheet time: 2hrs 12mins

Name
Class
Date
1.

__________ means putting information into your own words.

a)

Paraphrasing

b)

Plagiarizing

c)

Quoting

2.

When paraphrasing, it's helpful to _______.

a)

copy the same words

b)

find antonyms

(words with opposite meanings)

c)

use synonyms

(words with similar meanings)

3.

Which of the following IS NOT true about paraphrases?

a)

A good paraphrase has the SAME MEANING as the original text.

b)

A good paraphrase must include NEW INFORMATION.

c)

A good paraphrase must be in my OWN WORDS.

d)

A good paraphrase must MAKE SENSE.

4.

Which sentence best paraphrases this passage:

Although television was not widely used in American homes until the 1950s, small, experimental television images were broadcast in the 1920s.

a)

Television was not widely used in American homes until the 1950s.

b)

Television became popular in the 1950s, but the first televisions were used thirty years earlier.

c)

Television became popular in the 1920s, and again in the 1950s

5.
Is it an ant, you wonder, or a termite? Ants resemble termites, but they are quite different and can be easily distinguished. In contrast to termites, ants are usually dark in color, are hard bodied, and have constriction between the thorax and abdomen. Termites are light in color and shed their wings. Flying ants do not shed their wings. Also, ants and termites belong to different orders.
Select the best summary of this paragraph.
a)
Termites are lighter in color and loose their wings at a certain stage of development.
b)
Ants are dark in color, hard bodied and belong to a different order than termites.
c)
Ants and termites are both insects and have many things in common
d)
Although ants resemble termites, they have differences that can be easily seen.
6.
"I don't want a babysitter. I am eleven years old. My babysitter is only three years older than I am," she loudly yelled to her Mom. Now, she really wished she had somebody with her as she heard the clicking, scratching noises outside of the living room window. "This is silly. It's probably the storm," the girl said. She regretted watching the horror show she had been tuned into for the last half hour. As she searched for the remote to turn off the vampire movie, the front door blew open with a thunderous noise. Carla whirled around to see a dark image."
Carla didn't want a babysitter because:
a)
She believes she is old enough to take care of herself.
b)
She wants to watch scary movies.
c)
Carla's mother leaves her alone all the time.
d)
Carla's babysitter is only three years older than Carla.
7.
A summary of a literary text should include which of the following?
a)
every detail about the characters
b)
the titles of each chapter
c)
the major plot events the minor events of the plot
d)
the minor events of the plot
8.
Mary Anning was born May 21, 1799, in Lyme Regis, a small seaside community in Great Britain. The cliffs of Lyme Regis contain many dinosaur fossils. Mary's father, Richard, searched for fossils as a hobby. He passed on this passion to Mary and her brother Joseph.
After their father died in an accident, Mary and Joseph supported their family by selling fossils to tourists, museums, and scientists. In 1811, Joseph discovered the skull of a large dinosaur that once lived in the ocean. A year later, Mary found the rest of the skeleton. The Annings' discovery made them famous.
Which detail should be included in a summary of the article?  
a)
Lyme Regis is a small seaside community.
b)
Mary Anning's father died in an accident.
c)
Mary Anning discovered dinosaur fossils.
d)
Mary Anning's birthday was May 21.
9.
After their father died in an accident, Mary and Joseph supported their family by selling fossils to tourists, museums, and scientists. In 1811, Joseph discovered the skull of a large dinosaur that once lived in the ocean. A year later, Mary found the rest of the skeleton. The Annings' discovery made them famous.
Which sentence best summarizes this paragraph from the article about the Anning family?  
a)
Mary and Joseph Annings' father died in an accident.
b)
Mary and Joseph Annings' fossil discoveries made them famous.
c)
Scientists bought fossils from Mary and Joseph Anning.
d)
Mary Anning found the rest of the dinosaur skeleton.
10.
Mia watched her mother's car pull away and felt her heart sink. I can't believe she's leaving me here with my grandparents for the entire summer, she thought.
Tired from the trip, Mia brushed her teeth and went to bed. Still, she lay awake long after dark that night. Her grandparents had tried to make her feel welcome, but she still dreaded the weeks to come. The lights and sounds of the city made her feel happy and alive. She just knew that the countryside would be quiet and dull in comparison.
The next morning, Mia stood staring out the window. The sky was filled with color: streaks of the brightest yellow, orange, and pink. Her ears tuned in to the songs of birds. Mia laughed, wondering how she could ever have thought this place would be quiet and dull.
Which detail should be left out of a summary of this passage?  
a)
Mia is staying with her grandparents for the summer.
b)
Mia wishes to return to her home in the city.
c)
Mia realizes she was wrong about the countryside.
d)
Mia brushed her teeth and went to bed.
11.
Tired from the trip, Mia brushed her teeth and went to bed. Still, she lay awake long after dark that night. Her grandparents had tried to make her feel welcome, but she still dreaded the weeks to come. The lights and sounds of the city made her feel happy and alive. She just knew that the countryside would be quiet and dull in comparison.
Which sentence best summarizes this paragraph?  
a)
Mia worries that she will dislike the countryside.
b)
Mia goes to stay with her grandparents.
c)
Mia learns to appreciate life in the country.
d)
Mia goes to bed early.
12.
When some people think about Texas, they think of cowboys on the open range-herding cattle up a dusty trail. However, Texas has much more than open prairie with large herds of cows. There are the mountains of West Texas, the piney hills of east Texas, and the emerald waters off the coast of Padre Island. Texas also has large coastal harbors with numerous sailboats, powerboats, inland lakes, rivers, swamps of southeast Texas with alligators and other exotic wildlife.
The Summary of this passage is:
a)
There are a lot of cows in Texas.
b)
There are many different, varied parts of Texas.
c)
 Texas is one of the biggest states in the United States.
d)
 There are alligators in the swampland of southeast Texas.
13.
Tomorrow is Jill's birthday. She is excited because she gets to pick where she will eat dinner. Will it be Mexican food at the Big Enchilada House? Or will it be fried chicken at the Chicken Shack, or a big cheeseburger at Al's Hamburger Palace. She just couldn't decide. Then there was always the Pizza Shop with that great pepperoni pizza. How would she ever decide? Maybe she would just flip a coin.
The Summary of this passage is:
a)
Jill has many restaurants to choose from for her birthday.
b)
 Jill loves Mexican food.
c)
The Pizza Shop has the best pizza in town.
d)
 Jill will choose a place by flipping a coin.
14.
It started when they got to the bears. Peter felt tired and his stomach hurt. He dragged himself over to see the elephants, which were eating from a stack of hay. Normally, the elephants were his favorite. Without much interest, Peter followed his classmates to the camels, which were busy swatting flies with their tails. Peter knew he should be having fun at the zoo, but he just felt terrible and all he wanted to do was lie down and rest. Even the lions and tigers did not interest him now. 
The Summary of this passage is:
a)
Peter's favorite animals were the elephants.
b)
The camels were swatting flies with their tails.
c)
 It was really hot at the zoo.
d)
Peter didn't enjoy the zoo because he felt really bad.
15.
Right now Jason was playing right field. He really wanted to play third base. Earlier this year, coach had put him in left field and second base in a game, but never at third base. Once in practice, coach let him play third base, but he kept missing ground balls. When he did stop one, he made a bad throw to first base. Maybe if he kept practicing, Jason would be good enough to play third base. That was his dream.
The Summary of this passage is:
a)
Jason really wanted to play third base.
b)
Jason was the best player on his team.
c)
Jason had trouble catching ground balls.
d)
Jason was too lazy to practice.
16.
For the walls, Jenny thought she would use a bright yellow paint. She would pick a border that had mostly bright red and green colors, and maybe a little bit of blue. She already had found some curtains that were sky blue with streaks of red, blue and yellow that she thought would go great with the walls. And finally, she had picked a carpet that was mostly blue with specks of red and yellow. Jenny couldn't wait till she was done decorating her room. It was really going to look awesome.
 The Summary of this passage is:
a)
Jenny likes bright colors.
b)
Jenny was going to paint her room.
c)
Jenny was picking out colors and materials to decorate her room.
d)
Yellow is a good color to paint your walls.
17.
San Francisco is located on the coast of California in an area often called the Bay Area. The weather is generally very mild, seldom getting really cold or really hot. Its mild climate is one reason many people live there. It seldom snows in San Francisco and generally does not get below freezing during the winter. Even in the middle of summer, temperatures may be in the mid 80s with a cool breeze from the bay keeping the weather very comfortable.
The Summary of this passage is:
 
a)
San Francisco has many neat things to do.
b)
 It seldom snows in California.
c)
 Many people choose to live in California.
d)
 The weather in San Francisco is generally very mild.
18.
Julie watched the ants as they carried small crumbs down the trail to the anthill. She thinks ants are very hard working and industrious little creatures. They always seemed busy, and you never saw an ant just laying around doing nothing. They were carrying food, building tunnels, or defending the anthill. One thing you could say about ants is that they sure aren't lazy.
The Summary of this passage is:
 
a)
Ants carry many things.
b)
Some ants may bite you.
c)
Ants are hard workers.
d)
Some ants help take care of the queen.
19.
The first book Chris read in fifth grade was about a lost kitten. Then he read a book about a family of bears, and then he read about a wild kangaroo in Australia. It seems every book Chris reads is about animals. Last week he found a good book about snakes and reptiles, and another book about elephants. Today Chris went to the library, and he checked out a book about dolphins, whales and other animals that live in the sea.
The Summary of this passage is:
a)
Chris likes kangaroos.
b)
Chris is in the fifth grade.
c)
Chris reads a lot of books about animals.
d)
Dolphins and whales live in the sea.
20.
It started when they got to the bears. Peter felt tired and his stomach hurt. He dragged himself over to see the elephants, which were eating from a stack of hay. Normally, the elephants were his favorite. Without much interest, Peter followed his classmates to the camels, which were busy swatting flies with their tails. Peter knew he should be having fun at the zoo, but he just felt terrible and all he wanted to do was lie down and rest. Even the lions and tigers did not interest him now. 
The Summary of this passage is:
a)
Peter's favorite animals were the elephants.
b)
The camels were swatting flies with their tails.
c)
 It was really hot at the zoo.
d)
Peter didn't enjoy the zoo because he felt really bad.
21.
Is it an ant, you wonder, or a termite? Ants resemble termites, but they are quite different and can be easily distinguished. In contrast to termites, ants are usually dark in color, are hard bodied, and have constriction between the thorax and abdomen. Termites are light in color and shed their wings. Flying ants do not shed their wings. Also, ants and termites belong to different orders.
Select the best summary of this paragraph.
a)
Termites are lighter in color and loose their wings at a certain stage of development.
b)
Ants are dark in color, hard bodied and belong to a different order than termites.
c)
Ants and termites are both insects and have many things in common
d)
Although ants resemble termites, they have differences that can be easily seen.
22.
Passages from Main Idea and Summarizing (Beech)                                    In 1588, the Spanish Armada sailed to fight against England.  The armada consisted of a fleet of 130 ships.  Aboard one of these sips was a tailless cat.  Her job was to catch mice.  After a great naval battle that England dominated, the Spanish ships set sail for home.  The cat's ship was wrecked near the Isle of man.  The nimble cat got ashore safely and lived there ever after.  Her many descendants became known as Manx cats after the name of their island home. Manx cats are known for being tailless.  The title that best summarizes this passage is__________.
a)
Why the Spanish Lost at Sea
b)
How the Manx Cat Got Its Name
c)
Catching Mice Aboard a Ship
d)
Why Some Cats Are Tailless
23.
Sailors have always needed lighthouses to warn them of dangerous conditions. The first tower that was built for such a purpose was at the entrance to Port Alexandria, a long-ago capital of ancient Egypt.  The tower, called Pharos, was very large.  It was so impressive a structure that it was known as one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. Fire beacons burning on the tower helped ships navigate through the treacherous waters approaching the city. Which title best summarizes this paragraph?
a)
Burning Fire Beacons in the Night
b)
Pharos, the First Lighthouse Tower
c)
Helping Ships Navigate Tricky Waters
d)
A Look at Ancient Egypt
24.
Everyone knows that thousands of athletes compete in the Olympic Games and that hundreds of thousands of visitors attend.  But did you know that about 60,000 more people work to make the Olympics run smoothly?  Some of these workers are paid, but thousands of others are volunteers.  All of them have to be trained for their job.  These workers do everything from sweeping up litter to escorting competitiors to selling tickets to announcing winners. Which title best summarizes this paragraph?
a)
How Athletes Compete at the Games
b)
Working as a Ticket Seller
c)
Tips for Visitors to the Olympics
d)
Workers Behind the Olympics
25.
What does it take to be a survivor?  Gary Paulsen knows.  This well-known writer had a difficult childhood and left home at age fourteen.  He worked with a carnival, on a farm, on a ranch and as a truck driver. He's also been a teacher, editor and singer. Today, Paulsen receives more than 400 letters a day from readers who identify with the struggles of the main character in his award-winning books, Hatchet, Brian's Winter and The River.  When he's not writing, Paulsen enjoys sailing and adventure.  Which title best summarizes this paragraph?
a)
Reading Gary Paulsen's Books
b)
Why Paulsen Left Home at Fourteen
c)
Paulsen: Survivor in Life and Literature
d)
Getting to Know Book Characters
26.
The explorer Marco Polo left his home in Italy in 1271.  After many years of traveling, his party reached the summer palace of Kublai Khan in what is now China.  Polo remained at the court for seventeen years.  He marveled at things not yet seen in Europe. For example, common people bathed daily.  Roads and bridges were paved.  People used paper money as currency.  They also burned coal as a fuel.  When Polo finally returned to Europe, it took a while before people believed the stories he told or the book he wrote about his travels.  Which title best summarizes this paragraph?
a)
What Marco Polo Was Like
b)
Meeting Kublai Khan
c)
A Wanderer from Italy
d)
The Travels of Marco Polo
27.
At one time, people thought that blowing dust was the way to clean.  Then in the 1870s Hubert Booth, an engineer, tried placing a handkerchief between his mouth and a couch and sucking in.  The film of dirt on the other side of the handkerchief suggested that suctioning in dirt was the way to clean.  Booth designed fans that sucked dust into pillow cases.  He even sold some to the Queen of England.  About thirty years later, the Hoover Company came out with an upright suctioning machine on rollers.  The rest is vacuum cleaner history.  Which title best summarizes this paragraph?
a)
The FIrst Vacuum Cleaners
b)
How the Queen Cleaned
c)
Blowing in the Dust
d)
What Hoover Did
28.
You know that spiders spin silk, but do you know what spiders do with their silk? Mother spiders keep the eggs they lay in silk sacs.  Spiders also use their silk to make webs or homes.  Many spiders have hideouts in places such as window corners or under sills.  They line the entrances to these places with silk. Spiders also use silk threads to drop straight to the ground when enemies appear.  And, of course, spiders can spin silken traps and nets to catch their dinner. 
a)
How Spiders Find Food
b)
A Spider's Use of Silk
c)
Spinning Silken Clothes
d)
Outwitting Spider Enemies
29.
In 1638, a Swedish ship arrived in America.  The immigrants aboard founded a community called Fort Christina.  The Dutch soon took over this settlement but not before the Swedes had built snug log cabins like those in their homeland.  The cabins were made of notched logs carefully fitted together without nails.  The walls were chinked with moss or clay, and the roofs were made of hardwood.  Plentiful lumber made these easy-to-build cabins ideal for settlers.  Log cabins became a symbol of the pioneer spirit.   Which title best summarizes this paragraph?
a)
A Building Boom in 1638
b)
Building the Pioneer Spirit
c)
Contribution From the Dutch
d)
Log Cabins From the Sweedish
30.
Which is the best summary of the following passage?
As soon as she arrived at grandmother's house, Jessica ran into her bedroom to look at the blue quilt. It covered her grandmother's bed and was Jessica's favorite. It had patches of dark blue, medium blue, and light blue, with pictures of birds and flowers on every other patch. Jessica liked to take naps with the quilt wrapped around her. She loved the way it felt so soft and warm against her skin. Whenever she was visiting grandma, just looking at the quilt made Jessica happy.
a)
Jessica's grandmother has a pretty blue quilt.
b)
Jessica loved her grandmother's quilt.
c)
Jessica took naps at her grandmother's house.
d)
The quilt was warm.
31.
What is the best summary of  the following passage?
The Elk River flows from the far northern part of the state all the way to the southern tip. All kinds of animals rely on it for drinking water, people eat the fish they catch in it, and farmers in the state depend on it for irrigating their crops. Since there is very little rain in this state, the Elk River gives animals and humans the water they need to stay alive. Even though the river is not nearly the biggest in the nation, it is very important to the people and animals that live near it.
a)
The Elk River is a small river.
b)
The Elk River starts in the northern part of the state.
c)
The Elk River is very important to people and animals.
d)
People catch fish in the Elk River.
32.

Which sentence best paraphrases this passage:

Although television was not widely used in American homes until the 1950s, small, experimental television images were broadcast in the 1920s.

a)

Television was not widely used in American homes until the 1950s.

b)

Television became popular in the 1950s, but the first televisions were used thirty years earlier.

c)

Television became popular in the 1920s, and again in the 1950s

33.

Which of the following is NOT a reason to paraphrase what you read?

a)

to avoid plagiarism

b)

to make sure you understand what you read

c)

to show that you can memorize text

d)

to help clarify text

34.

Which of the following is true about plagiarizing?

a)

Only people who copy a text word for word are plagiarizing.

b)

Plagiarizing can be done accidentally, even if you didn’t mean to cheat.

c)

It is okay to plagiarize as long as you cite the source you used.

d)

You can avoid plagiarizing by changing one or two words.

35.

What is the difference between paraphrasing and plagiarizing?

4 lines
36.

Explain the difference between quoting a text and paraphrasing.

4 lines
37.

Which is the best paraphrase of the following sentence?

Deserts cover one fifth of the surface of the Earth.

a)

Deserts cover one fifth of the Earth.

b)

Deserts cover a lot of area.

c)

Deserts cover more than half of the Earth's surface.

d)

One fifth of the Earth's surface is desert.

38.

Paraphrase this sentence:


"They like to swim on their back and sides and can see just as well underwater as they can above."

a)

Sea otters are good at floating on the water's surface, as air trapped in their fur makes them more buoyant.

b)

Otters love swimming, They can also see very well underwater --like how they see well on land.

c)

They like to swimming and they can be seen underwater by divers and other animals.

39.

Paraphrase the phrase by putting it into your own words: beside my father

a)

next to my dad

b)

along my father

c)

beside the man

d)

beside my father

40.
 Choose the BEST paraphrase of this text: 

Lionel Messi earns a whopping $39.6 million a year for playing striker for La Liga's Barcelona team.
(Scholastic Book of World Records 2011 page 99)
a)
Lionel Messi earns a whopping $39.6 million a year for playing striker for La Liga's Barcelona team.
b)
According to Scholastic Book of World Records 2011, I think it is great that soccer player Lionel Messi earns a whopping $39.6 million a year for playing striker for La Liga's Barcelona team!
c)
Soccer player Lionel Messi earns a whopping $39.6 million a year for playing soccer as striker/winger for La Liga's Barcelona team. Barcelona is the capital of Catalonia and the second largest city in Spain.
d)
According to Scholastic Book of World Records 2011, soccer player Lionel Messi makes over $39 million dollars annually. This impressive salary is from his work as a striker for La Liga's Barcelona team (page 99).
41.

Paraphrase the phrase by putting it into your own words: harmless to pets

a)

nontoxic to animals

b)

harmful to animals

c)

damaging to dogs

d)

painless to pets

42.
What is the best paraphrase of the following sentence?
A type of shark called a shortfin mako can leap 20 feet above the surface of the water.
a)
A shark can leap 20 feet out of the water, it is called a shortfin mako. 
b)
The shortfin mako shark can jump above the surface of water.
c)
A shortfin mako is a kind of shark that can leap 20 feet out of the water. 
d)
A shortfin mako can jump 20 feet above the surface of the water.
43.

How are paraphrasing and summarizing different?

a)

Paraphrasing is longer and more detailed.

b)

Paraphrasing and summarizing are exactly the same.

c)

A summary uses your own words, but a paraphrase does not.

d)

A summary is closest to the original quote.

44.

Read the following passage and answer the question below: "Anna was a talented musician. She played the piano beautifully and had a natural ear for music. She spent hours practicing and composing her own pieces. One day, she was invited to perform at a prestigious concert. She was nervous but excited for the opportunity to showcase her talent." Which of the following best summarizes Anna's feelings about the concert?

a)

Anna was indifferent and did not care about the performance.

b)

Anna was nervous but excited to perform.

c)

Anna was confident and not nervous at all.

d)

Anna was uninterested and did not want to perform.

45.

What information should go in your summary?

a)

small details

b)

the most important information

c)

your opinion

d)

a list of characters

46.
 “Larry, as your boss, I must say it’s been very interesting working with you,” Miss Valdez said. “However, it seems that our company’s needs and your performance style are not well matched. Therefore, it makes me very sad to have to ask you to resign your position effective today.”
What was Miss Valdez telling Larry?   
a)
She would feel really bad if he decided to quit.
b)
He was being fired.
c)
He was getting a raise in pay.
d)
She really enjoyed having him in the office.
47.
Which of these is an inference that can be supported by the passage above? Tony was delighted to see the pavement disappearing under the attack of the bulldozers. The more park, the better, he thought. His delight gradually turned to concern, however, when it became clear that the construction workers were also laying the forms for new pavement, much more pavement than had been there before.  
Which of the following can you infer from the passage above?   
a)
Tony was in the construction business.
b)
Tony enjoyed spending time in the park.
c)
 Tony was an avid environmentalist.
d)
Tony was in the construction business.
48.
Tim looked out the window. The house looked so lonely. Tim's father put the last suitcase in the trunk and started up the car. Thor, his dog, put his head on Tim's lap, like he understood how  Tim was feeling. "It's okay Thor," he said, "Dad says we will like California." What is happening?
a)
Tim is sad because his dog doesn't have a house to live in.
b)
Tim is taking a trip to visit peolpe he doesn't know.
c)
Tim is taking Thor to live with his grandmother.
d)
Tim is moving to California with his family.
49.
Rachel was on her way to volunteer at the animal shelter.  She was very excited!  She really liked dogs.  Her brother was allergic to dogs, however, so she was rarely around them.  Rachel had a lot of fun playing with the puppies, but after her shift, itchy bumps appeared on her arms.
It is likely that:
a)
Mosquitoes bit Rachel
b)
Rachel is allergic to dogs, too
c)
Rachel fell in poison ivy
d)
Rachel was already sick
50.
As I walked in the door, I was amazed at the beautiful colors and smells. I knew it would be hard to decide what I would buy with my $3. The chocolate truffles looked delicious, but they were expensive. The jelly beans were not only cheaper, but so colorful! With so much to choose from, I knew I would be here a long time. Where am I?
a)
Gas station
b)
Candy store
c)
Grocery store
d)
Shoe store