Reading Comprehension: What does inferences mean and give an example for inferences by reading a literary passage?

Answer 1

Essentially, an inference is an educated guess based on the evidence or context of a situation. We make inferences in our every day lives without knowing they are "inferences." An example would be if your sibling stormed through the door, ran up the steps, and slammed the door to her room. Even though you may not know the exact reason, you can infer that something happened to make her upset.

An example of a literary passage where you could make an inference is below (please don't judge me, I'm writing this on the spot, haha):

Tommy ran hard through the forest, his heart pounding, his eyes scanning the trees, praying he wouldn't trip on a root or stump. At this point, he had lost all sense of direction, but he kept up a full sprint, ducking underneath and weaving between branches. Each shadow he saw in the corner of his eyes made his heart skip a beat, raising his adrenaline even higher than it had been. Finally, he spotted a small cave and dipped into it, hungry, exhausted, and cold, but safe.

Here, the inference would be that Tommy was running from something or someone and that he is hiding from them. Even though the passage does not directly mention who or what he is running from, you infer that this is not a leisurely run through the woods because of the context clues that are given. Context clues are critical to making inferences. Context clues can include details in the passage (his adrenaline being high), the language used (jog vs. sprint), the tone created (serious vs. sarcastic), and the overall feel/mood of the passage (intense vs. relaxed).

Hope this helps, cheers!