Which of the following best describes how inference and evidence are used together in SOL questions?

• A. Inference is used to make conclusions without any evidence.
• B. Inference must be supported by personal experience.
• C. Inference relies on two or more unrelated pieces of evidence.
• D. Inference relies on evidence from the text to justify a conclusion.

Answer: (D)

Inferring in SOL questions means using clues from the text to reach a conclusion, and backing that conclusion with evidence from the text. The best answer shows how the reader’s inference is grounded in the details the author provides, not in memory or guesswork. Inference should rely on information the text itself supplies, so the conclusion is justified by those textual clues. The other ideas don’t fit because drawing conclusions without any evidence ignores the text; relying on personal experience uses information outside the text; and depending on unrelated pieces would fail to connect the clues to a coherent conclusion. For example, if the passage notes dark clouds, a drop in temperature, and someone grabbing an umbrella, you can infer that rain is likely, and you base that inference on those specific textual details.