9 original Central Ideas and Details questions, easiest first. The main idea of a passage, or a detail it actually states. Answer them all, then submit once to see every answer explained.
A longitudinal study tracking over three thousand adults found that regularly learning a new skill unrelated to one's career, such as a musical instrument or a foreign language, predicted greater reported life satisfaction in retirement more strongly than pre-retirement income level did.
Which choice best states the main idea of the text?
A — Learning new, career-unrelated skills was found to be a stronger predictor of retirement satisfaction than income level.. The study's finding, stated directly, is that skill-learning predicted retirement satisfaction 'more strongly than' income—choice A captures this comparison accurately without overstating it as choice B does.
Medieval European guilds are often remembered primarily as economic organizations that controlled trade practices and set prices, but historical records of guild meeting minutes reveal that guilds also functioned as social welfare systems, providing funds for members' funerals, sick pay, and widow support.
Which choice best states the main idea of the text?
C — In addition to their economic role, guilds also served an important social welfare function.. The passage states guilds are 'often remembered primarily as economic organizations' but records reveal an additional social welfare function—matching choice C's emphasis on this dual role.
While solar panel manufacturing capacity has roughly quadrupled over the past decade, the primary driver of falling residential solar installation costs has actually been streamlined permitting and installation labor processes, which reduce costs far more than manufacturing gains alone would predict.
Which choice best states the main idea of the text?
A — Streamlined permitting and labor processes, more than manufacturing capacity, have driven down residential solar costs.. The passage explicitly attributes falling costs primarily to permitting/labor streamlining rather than manufacturing, directly stating manufacturing alone would predict smaller cost drops—matching choice A.
Traditional Japanese joinery techniques allow wooden structures to be assembled without any nails or metal fasteners, relying instead on precisely interlocking cuts; this method not only reduces material costs but also makes buildings easier to disassemble and repair, since individual pieces can be replaced without disturbing the surrounding structure.
Which choice best states the main idea of the text?
D — Interlocking joinery techniques offer practical advantages in cost, repair, and disassembly.. The text lists multiple practical benefits (reduced cost, easier repair/disassembly) of the joinery method, which choice D accurately summarizes; the other choices are either contradicted or unsupported.
Contrary to the common assumption that ancient Egyptian pyramids were built entirely by enslaved laborers, archaeological evidence from nearby worker settlements, including bakeries, breweries, and organized housing, suggests that at least the Great Pyramids were constructed largely by a paid, organized workforce.
Which choice best states the main idea of the text?
A — Evidence from worker settlements suggests the Great Pyramids were built largely by a paid workforce rather than enslaved laborers.. The passage directly challenges the assumption of enslaved labor, citing settlement evidence pointing to a paid, organized workforce—choice A captures this central, counterintuitive claim accurately.
A longitudinal study tracking over twenty-five hundred adults found that maintaining strong friendships outside one's immediate family predicted greater reported happiness in old age more strongly than the size of one's retirement savings did.
Which choice best states the main idea of the text?
D — Maintaining friendships outside one's family was found to be a stronger predictor of happiness in old age than retirement savings.. The study's finding, stated directly, is that friendships predicted happiness 'more strongly than' savings size—choice D captures this comparison accurately without overstating it as choice B does.
Contrary to the common assumption that ancient Roman roads were built primarily in straight lines regardless of terrain, recent surveys of surviving road segments show that Roman engineers frequently curved their routes to follow natural contours when doing so significantly reduced construction difficulty.
Which choice best states the main idea of the text?
A — Roman engineers sometimes deviated from straight construction to accommodate difficult terrain.. The passage directly challenges the assumption of purely straight construction, citing evidence that engineers curved routes for terrain—choice A captures this central, counterintuitive claim accurately.
Interviews conducted with retired restaurant chefs revealed that most did not cite the physical demands of standing for long hours or the stress of a fast-paced kitchen as their primary reason for retiring, but rather a desire to spend evenings with family after decades of working nights and weekends.
Which choice best states the main idea of the text?
C — A desire for more evening family time was the most commonly cited reason for retirement.. The passage explicitly rules out physical demands and stress as primary causes and instead identifies 'a desire to spend evenings with family' as the reason—matching choice C precisely.
Interviews conducted with retired professional dancers revealed that most did not cite chronic injury or the physical demands of aging as their primary reason for retiring, but rather a growing desire to explore choreography and teaching after years of focusing exclusively on performing.
Which choice best states the main idea of the text?
C — A desire to move into choreography and teaching was the most commonly cited reason for retirement.. The passage explicitly rules out injury and aging as primary causes and instead identifies 'a growing desire to explore choreography and teaching' as the reason—matching choice C precisely.
Score:
Every question above is now marked up: the correct answer is highlighted, any wrong option you picked is flagged, and each explanation is open.
No. Every question here is original, written to the College Board's published Digital SAT Reading & Writing specification for the Central Ideas and Details skill. No retired or copyrighted College Board material appears anywhere on this site.
Central Ideas and Details asks either for the main idea of a short passage or for a specific detail the passage states. Both are answered entirely from the text — nothing is inferred, nothing is brought in from outside — but the main-idea version requires the choice to cover the whole passage rather than one part of it.
For a main-idea question, summarise the passage in one sentence before looking at the choices, then eliminate any choice that is true of only one sentence. For a detail question, find the exact line the question points at and match against it word by word — the correct choice paraphrases it, but it never adds to it.
No, and deliberately so. This drill is 9 Central Ideas and Details questions back to back; a real Reading & Writing module is 27 questions in 32 minutes drawn from all eleven skills. Use a drill to fix one weakness, then take a full module to practice the real thing.
No. The SAT has no penalty for a wrong answer — a blank and a wrong guess both score zero — so answer every question, including the ones you have to guess.