Inference and deduction
Working out what the writer suggests but does not say directly, using clues in the text.
📌 Key points
- To infer means to work out something that is not said directly, using clues in the text.
- Clues come from what characters say and do, their body language and the words the writer chooses.
- Combine the clue with what you already know: wet coats and umbrellas suggest it has been raining.
- Your answer must be supported by evidence from the text, not just a guess.
- Use PEE: make a Point, give Evidence (a quotation), then Explain what it shows.
- Questions that ask “How do you know…?” or “What does this suggest…?” are inference questions.
- Look closely at verbs: “she muttered” suggests something very different from “she announced”.
- Questions worth more marks usually need more than one piece of evidence.
📖 Key words
- Infer
- To work something out from clues, when it is not said directly.
- Deduce
- To reach an answer by thinking about the evidence.
- Evidence
- Words from the text that support your answer.
- Clue
- A detail that helps you work something out.
- Retrieve
- To find information that is stated directly in the text.
- Suggest
- To show something without saying it directly.
✏️ Worked example
Read: 'Sam stared at the floor. His football boots were still clean, and the coach did not look at him as the team ran onto the pitch.'
How do you think Sam feels? Give evidence.
- Find clues: Sam 'stared at the floor'; his boots are 'still clean'; the coach 'did not look at him'.
- Clean boots suggest he has not played. Staring at the floor is body language for sadness.
- Point, Evidence, Explain: Sam feels left out because he 'stared at the floor', which shows disappointment.
- Answer: Sam feels sad and left out because he has not been chosen to play.
Never answer an inference question with a quotation alone: always explain what the words suggest.
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