Which term best matches the definition: the subject of a passage?

Which term best matches the definition: the subject of a passage?

• A. Topic
• B. Facts
• C. Phrase
• D. Synonym

Answer: (A)

The subject of a passage is its topic—the broad thing the text is about and what everything else in the passage relates to. The best choice is topic because it naming the subject itself helps you grasp the overall focus of the text, which is what the question asks for. Facts are the specific details or data the author provides to support the topic. A phrase is just a small group of words, not the overall subject. A synonym is a word with a similar meaning to another word, which is about vocabulary, not the subject of the passage. For example, in a piece about the effects of deforestation, the topic would be the impact of deforestation as the subject; the facts would be statistics or examples; a phrase might be “loss of habitat”; a synonym would be a word related in meaning to a key term, not the subject itself.

The subject of a passage is its topic—the broad thing the text is about and what everything else in the passage relates to. The best choice is topic because it naming the subject itself helps you grasp the overall focus of the text, which is what the question asks for. Facts are the specific details or data the author provides to support the topic. A phrase is just a small group of words, not the overall subject. A synonym is a word with a similar meaning to another word, which is about vocabulary, not the subject of the passage. For example, in a piece about the effects of deforestation, the topic would be the impact of deforestation as the subject; the facts would be statistics or examples; a phrase might be “loss of habitat”; a synonym would be a word related in meaning to a key term, not the subject itself.