Mastering English Reading Comprehension: A Practical Guide with Chinese-English Comparisons

Are you struggling with English reading comprehension for your postgraduate entrance exam? This guide breaks down common challenges and provides clear, actionable solutions with bilingual examples. Whether you're tackling vocabulary, grammar, or inference questions, we've got you covered with real-world scenarios and step-by-step explanations.

Understanding the Basics

English reading comprehension tests your ability to understand, analyze, and interpret academic texts. The questions often require you to identify main ideas, infer meanings, or compare different perspectives. By learning how to approach these questions systematically, you can improve your performance significantly. For example, when reading an academic passage, focus on topic sentences, transitional words, and key terms that indicate the author's purpose. This method works regardless of whether you're reading in English or Chinese, as both languages share similar rhetorical structures.

Top 5 Common Questions with Solutions

1. How to Handle Unknown Vocabulary?

When encountering unfamiliar words in English texts, try to deduce their meanings from context rather than immediately looking them up. For instance, if a passage mentions "a novel approach to sustainable energy," you can infer that "novel" means "new" or "innovative." Similarly, in Chinese, "创新的方法" (chuàngxīn de fāngfǎ) implies a fresh idea. Practice this skill by reading articles where you deliberately avoid dictionaries for the first pass, then review any words you missed. This method trains your brain to rely on contextual clues, which is essential for standardized tests.

2. What About Complex Sentence Structures?

Long, convoluted sentences can be confusing, but breaking them down into smaller clauses helps. In English, look for relative pronouns (who, which, that) and main clauses. For example, "The researcher, who conducted the experiment for five years, discovered a surprising pattern" can be simplified as "The researcher conducted an experiment → The researcher discovered a pattern." In Chinese, similar techniques apply: identify the subject-verb-object structure first, then analyze subordinate phrases. Practice by writing your own sentences that combine multiple ideas, then translate them to see how structure influences meaning.

3. How to Improve Inference Skills?

Inference questions ask you to understand implications beyond the text. For example, if a passage discusses "rising sea levels due to climate change," an inference question might ask about potential impacts. In Chinese, this is like reading between the lines of "天气变暖导致海平面上升" (tiānqì biànnuǎn dǎozhì hǎipíngmiàn shàngshēng) and thinking about consequences. To strengthen this skill, try summarizing paragraphs in your own words, then compare your version to the original. This helps you recognize implicit connections and develop a more analytical reading habit.

4. Why Does Paraphrasing Matter?

Paraphrasing tests your ability to restate ideas using different words. For example, "The study shows a clear correlation between pollution and respiratory diseases" might be paraphrased as "Research indicates a link between environmental contaminants and lung problems." In Chinese, this is akin to explaining "空气污染与呼吸系统疾病有关" (kōngqì wūrǎn yǔ hūxī xìtǒng jíbìng yǒuguān) in another way. Practice by reading a sentence, covering it, and writing your own version without copying any words. This improves both vocabulary retention and comprehension flexibility.

5. How to Approach Multiple-Choice Questions?

For multiple-choice questions, eliminate obviously incorrect answers first. Then, compare the remaining options to the passage. For example, if the text states "The experiment was successful," but one option says "The experiment failed," that can be ruled out. In Chinese, this is similar to cross-referencing details in "实验取得了成功" (shíyàn qǔdéle chénggōng) with provided choices. A useful strategy is to mark key information in the passage (e.g., dates, names, or conclusions) before answering, creating a visual guide for comparison.

Practical Tips for Test Day

When taking the exam, time management is crucial. Allocate specific minutes to each section, and don't get stuck on one question. If you're unsure about an answer, make an educated guess and move on. Also, practice reading both English and Chinese texts daily to build endurance. For English, focus on academic articles; for Chinese, choose essays or news reports. This dual approach sharpens your focus and helps you adapt to different writing styles under pressure.