12 PART I: TOEFL Reading Basics
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It can be inferred from the passage that
(A) Gershwin became a famous jazz pianist in Russia.
(B) Gershwin admired the music of Franz Shubert.
(C) Gershwin disliked music by Kern and Berlin.
(D) Gershwin never became a well-known musician.
The correct answer is (B). Choices (A), (C), and (D) are not true.
Gershwin compared the music of Jerome Kern, who was his friend, to that
of Franz Shubert’s.
Questions with Black Squares
During the reading section of the computer-based test, you will have to answer
questions with black squares. On the left side of the screen, you will see the reading
passage with the following black-square mark located throughout the text: ■
On the right side of the screen, you will read a sentence followed by the question:
Where in the passage would the sentence best fit in the passage? Click on
the square ■ to add the sentence in the passage.
When you point to the square and click the mouse, the sentence in the question will
appear in the passage.
This is a very difficult kind of question to answer, and you should not answer it until you
have answered all other kinds of questions! To answer this kind of question, carefully
read the sentence and determine the most important words, usually found at the end
of the sentence. Then, scan the passage for the squares. Look at the sentences before the
square and particularly after the square. You will find that in the sentence to be
inserted, the words at the end contain information that introduces ideas in the
beginning of the next sentence that is in the passage.
The American composer, George Gershwin, was born in 1898 in Brooklyn, New
York, the son of Russian-Jewish immigrants. He began his musical education at
age 11, when his family bought a second-hand piano. The piano was not bought for
him, but for his older brother, Ira. However, George surprised everyone when he
played a popular song, which he had taught himself by following the keys on a

Where would it best fit in the passage? Click on the square ■ to add the sentence to the
passage.
Look at the ideas at the end of the sentence:
However, Gershwin’s income rose, and he worked harder and
harder.
This sentence best fits at the place marked by the second square. With the new sentence
inserted, the passage would read as follows:
At that time, sheet-music sales were the measure of a song’s
popularity, and song pluggers had to work long hours for the
music publishers who employed them. However, Gershwin’s
income rose, and he worked harder and harder. As a result
of his hard work, Gershwin’s piano technique improved greatly,
so much so that, while still in his teens, Gershwin became
known as one of the most talented pianists in New York City.
(15)
(20)
(25)
01_TOEFL Reading Ch 1,1-14 7/29/06, 11:4713
14 PART I: TOEFL Reading Basics
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SUMMING IT UP
Do not read the entire passage. Begin each passage by reading the first sentence in each
paragraph and the last sentence of the last paragraph.
You should answer the questions not in numerical order but in the following order (as
they were presented in this chapter) according to kind of question:
• All vocabulary questions
• All questions that ask you to identify a noun or a pronoun
• All questions that ask for detailed information in the passage
• All questions that ask about the main idea of the passage
• All questions with EXCEPT and NOT