R42: Hard True/False/Not Given under pressure

This lesson is a practice workout. You know the rules of True/False/Not Given (R11) and the tricky qualifiers (R31). Now let's test them on harder statements, the kind that appear in Passages 2 and 3 at band 8 level. Give yourself 6 minutes for the passage and the eight statements below.

Why this matters

At band 8, you need to get almost every True/False/Not Given question right. The difficult ones usually involve comparisons, causes, time, or statements that are partly right. Practising these specific traps builds the precision you need.

The passage

Urban Foxes

Red foxes first began to settle in British cities in the 1930s, when new suburbs with large gardens offered both food and shelter. Today, foxes are found in most major British cities, although numbers vary widely from one city to another.

Contrary to popular belief, urban foxes do not depend mainly on rubbish bins for food. A study in Bristol found that around a third of their diet came from food deliberately left out by residents, while the rest was made up of insects, birds, small mammals and fruit.

Urban foxes generally live shorter lives than many people imagine. Most survive for only one or two years, and road traffic is the most common cause of death. Despite this, the overall urban population has remained fairly stable in recent decades, as high birth rates replace the animals that die.

The statements

1. Foxes started living in British cities before the 1930s.
2. Large gardens attracted foxes to suburbs.
3. Every major British city has a similar number of foxes.
4. Rubbish bins are the main source of food for urban foxes.
5. Residents in Bristol provide more food for foxes than residents in other cities.
6. Traffic kills more urban foxes than any other cause.
7. Urban foxes live longer than rural foxes.
8. The number of urban foxes has fallen sharply in recent decades.

Answers and explanations

1. FALSE. They "first began" in the 1930s, so not before.
2. TRUE. "New suburbs with large gardens offered both food and shelter."
3. FALSE. "Numbers vary widely from one city to another."
4. FALSE. "Contrary to popular belief... do not depend mainly on rubbish bins."
5. NOT GIVEN. The passage only describes Bristol. There's no comparison with other cities.
6. TRUE. "Road traffic is the most common cause of death."
7. NOT GIVEN. Rural foxes are never mentioned.
8. FALSE. The population "has remained fairly stable".

What made these hard

• Statement 1: a time trap. First began in means not before.
• Statement 5: a comparison trap. The passage gives one side only, so it's NOT GIVEN, not FALSE.
• Statement 7: another comparison, with something never mentioned.
• Statement 6: a paraphrase. Kills more than any other cause means the most common cause of death.

Score yourself

Honest note

The facts in this passage are written for practice and simplified. In your real test, you'll meet passages on any topic. The thinking process is what transfers.

Your task today

Write two hard True/False/Not Given statements of your own about this passage. Try them on a friend.