What do Matching Features questions test?
This type tests your ability to scan for named features and understand what the passage says about each one. It rewards careful tracking of who did or said what, especially in passages that discuss several people or studies.
How do you answer Matching Features questions?
- 1Read the list of options (the features) and locate each one in the passage, underlining every place it appears — names and dates are easy to spot.
- 2Read the statements and identify the claim or characteristic each one describes.
- 3Match each statement to the option the passage links it to, checking the surrounding sentences rather than relying on proximity alone.
- 4Watch for options that appear in several places; the passage may attribute different points to the same person, so an option can be reused.
- 5Confirm each match by re-reading the relevant sentence — the connection must be stated, not implied by nearby text.
What are the common traps to avoid?
- Assuming each option is used exactly once — some are reused and some are distractors.
- Linking a statement to the nearest name rather than the name the sentence actually credits.
- Confusing what the writer says about a person with what that person claims themselves.
- Overlooking pronouns ("he", "she", "they", "her work") that carry the attribution across sentences.
How long should you spend on them?
Locating and marking every option in the passage first saves time overall. Spend the first minute mapping the features, then match statements quickly against that map.