Why had Jack walked past the window every day that week?
Correct: B — To check the price of the box. The passage says he was "checking the price tag in the corner" — he was watching the price.
Comprehension: Reading Between the Lines
A short passage with inference, vocabulary-in-context and character questions — practice at the harder end of 11+ comprehension.
Read the passage below, then answer the questions. Every answer is in the passage, but you have to infer it rather than copy it out.
Jack counted the coins twice before he spoke. "Six pounds forty," he said, and slid them across the counter. The shopkeeper smiled and reached under the counter for the box that had been waiting there since Tuesday. Jack had walked past the window every day that week, checking the price tag in the corner. When the box was finally in his hands he did not open it; he simply held it, his face a mixture of pride and worry about the long walk home in the rain.
Practising: Inference · Vocabulary in context · Character and mood
English · Question 1 of 4
Score: 0 / 4
What does the phrase "a mixture of pride and worry" tell us about Jack?
Correct: A — He felt two different emotions at the same time. A mixture means two feelings together: pride at buying it, and worry about the walk home.
Which word best describes Jack’s behaviour in the passage?
Correct: B — determined. Counting his money twice and saving for a week show determination (and care), not carelessness.
What can we infer about Jack’s journey home?
Correct: B — It would be long and wet. The passage refers to "the long walk home in the rain", so it would be long and wet.
You scored 0 out of 4.
Read each explanation again for the questions you missed — the explanations are the part that makes the practice stick.
Tip for parents: let your child attempt every question before you step in. The explanation appears straight after they answer — read it together, then use Start again a day or two later to check it has stuck.
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