GCSE English Language revision · Reading closely

Inference and evidence

The idea

Inference is working out what a writer suggests but does not say. A good inference names the idea and backs it with a short quotation that proves it.

Find a detail and ask what it suggests about a person, place or idea.
State the inference in your own words.
Support it with a short, exact quotation.

Watch out Retelling what happens is not inference; say what the detail reveals.

See it worked

Worked example

"He checked the lock three times before he left, then went back to check it again." What can you infer about him?

The detail is repeated checking.
Repeating a check suggests he cannot settle.
Inference: he is anxious; "went back to check it again" shows it.

Answer He is anxious or worried, shown by "went back to check it again".

Your turn

Question 11 mark

"She smiled at the guests, but her hands stayed clenched in her lap." What does this most strongly suggest?

Question 21 mark

Which quotation best supports the inference "the house has been abandoned"?

Question 32 marks

"The teacher said nothing. He simply placed the test face down on her desk and walked on." Write one inference about the student's result, with evidence.

Write your answer, then see a model answer

Ask what silence and "face down" suggest.
State the inference, then quote the detail that proves it.

Answer Her result is probably poor: the teacher "said nothing" and placed it "face down", as if hiding it.

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