The purpose of a paragraph is the job it does in the text: introducing an idea, explaining a cause, giving an example, describing a problem, comparing two views or recommending an action. Reading questions in IGCSE English as a Second Language can ask what a writer is trying to do, not only what the writer says.
This skill belongs to reading for main ideas. It also supports choosing a heading and the inference questions in vocabulary and inference.
How is purpose different from topic?
The topic is what the paragraph is about. The purpose is why the writer put it there. Two paragraphs can share a topic and have different purposes: one might describe a canteen, another might complain about it.
A useful test is to finish the sentence The writer uses this paragraph to… If your sentence starts with a verb such as explain, give an example of, warn, compare or recommend, you are talking about purpose.
A step-by-step method
- Read the whole paragraph once without choosing yet.
- Underline signal words: for example, however, as a result, so, therefore, in fact.
- Ask what each sentence does: states, explains, illustrates, contrasts or concludes.
- Find the job that controls most sentences. That is the purpose.
- Test your answer by checking that no sentence contradicts it.
Worked example
Read this paragraph.
Last year our school cut the lunch break from sixty minutes to forty. The change was meant to let classes finish earlier. However, most students now eat quickly and skip the library, where they used to read or finish homework. As a result, the quiet hour has almost disappeared.
What is the purpose of the paragraph?
- A. to explain how to use the library
- B. to describe an unwanted effect of a school decision
- C. to argue that lunch should be longer than sixty minutes
- D. to describe what students eat at lunch
Step 1, sentence jobs. Sentence 1 states a decision. Sentence 2 gives its intended aim. Sentence 3 begins with However, so it shows something going differently. Sentence 4 begins with As a result, so it shows the consequence.
Step 2, the controlling job. Three of the four sentences are about what followed the decision, and the last two are about a loss.
Step 3, test the options. A is never mentioned. C goes beyond the paragraph, because the writer does not recommend sixty minutes. D picks up the word eat but ignores the rest.
Answer: B. The paragraph describes an unwanted effect of a school decision.
The mistake to watch for
A common slip is to choose the option that repeats words from the paragraph.
Mistaken answer: D, “to describe what students eat at lunch”, because lunch and eat both appear.
The student matched vocabulary instead of asking what the sentences do.
The correction is to cross out any option that only shares words with the text, then check the remaining options against the signal words. Here However and As a result point to a problem and its effect, which matches B.
Check yourself
1. Read: “Households waste food simply because they buy too much. For instance, a family of four may throw away half a bag of rice each month. Planning meals for the week can prevent this.” What is the purpose of the second sentence?
Show answer
It gives an example of the claim in sentence 1. The signal words For instance show this. It is not the main claim itself, because it describes one family only.
2. Read: “Some people say online lessons are lonely. Others say they are easier to fit into a busy week.” What is the purpose of the paragraph: to recommend online lessons, to compare two views, or to explain how online lessons work?
Show answer
To compare two views. The phrases Some people say and Others say present two positions, and the writer does not choose between them.
3. A paragraph begins “Clearly, the council must act now” and ends “Otherwise the river will keep flooding the market.” What is its purpose in a few words?
Show answer
To urge or recommend action. The word must and the warning in the last sentence both push the reader toward a decision.
Where this leads next
Once you can name a paragraph’s job, try choosing a heading from its whole meaning, then the full reading for main ideas practice set. The summary selection and paraphrase studio lets you practise deciding which sentences do the important work.
Some students read accurately but lose marks because they describe content when the question asks for function. Our teachers look for that pattern in online one-to-one English as a Second Language tuition.