Question 163·Easy·Central Ideas and Details
A small crowd gathered by the village notice board where a freshly painted sign announced the reopening of the bridge. For weeks the flooded river had forced residents to take a long detour to reach the market on the other side. As they read the sign, people traded relieved smiles; children whispered plans for afternoon adventures across the water. No one seemed to mind that the paint was still wet.
Based on the passage, what is the most likely effect of the bridge reopening on the villagers?
For central idea and detail questions, first restate what the question is asking (emotion, effect, purpose, etc.). Then quickly locate the key lines in the passage that mention that event or idea. Pay close attention to emotionally loaded words (like “relieved,” “worried,” “excited”) and clear factual details. Eliminate any answer choices that (1) contradict the emotional tone, (2) add new facts not supported by the passage, or (3) ignore the main situation described. Choose the option that is both fully supported by the text and best matches its overall tone.
Hints
Identify what changed when the bridge reopened
Reread the sentence about the flooded river and the long detour. What did the villagers have to do while the bridge was closed?
Pay attention to emotional clues
Focus on the phrases describing how the people react to the sign about the bridge reopening. Are the words used to describe their reactions positive or negative?
Connect the feeling to the situation
Ask yourself: If something that caused a long detour is fixed, and people respond with the kind of emotion described in the passage, what effect would that likely have on them?
Step-by-step Explanation
Understand what the question is asking
The question asks for the most likely effect of the bridge reopening on the villagers. That means you need to identify both:
- how they feel about the reopening, and
- what practical change the reopening causes in their lives.
Find the problem the villagers had before the bridge reopened
Look at the second sentence:
For weeks the flooded river had forced residents to take a long detour to reach the market on the other side.
This tells you the closed, flooded bridge created a long, inconvenient detour to get to the market. So the main practical problem was that reaching the market became harder.
Notice how the villagers react to the reopening
Now read the description of their reaction:
As they read the sign, people traded relieved smiles; children whispered plans for afternoon adventures across the water. No one seemed to mind that the paint was still wet.
Key clues:
- The phrase “relieved smiles” shows a positive, relieved feeling.
- Children making plans for adventures suggests excitement, not worry.
- “No one seemed to mind” the wet paint means they are pleased enough that small problems don’t bother them.
So overall, their response is happy and relieved, not frustrated, confused, or fearful.
Match the evidence to the best answer choice
Combine the two pieces:
- Before: the bridge was flooded, so villagers had to take a long detour to reach the market.
- Now: the bridge is reopening, and villagers show relief and excitement.
The most logical effect is that the villagers feel relief because the bridge reopening makes their trip to the market easy again, without the long detour. That matches the choice: “It provides relief because reaching the market will be easier again.”