Main idea of a passage

What the main idea is

The main idea is the single most important point the writer wants you to take away. It is broader than any one detail but narrower than the general subject. A passage about plastic in oceans has the subject “plastic”; its main idea might be “plastic waste is harming marine life faster than it can be cleaned up”.

How to find it

• Look at the first and last sentences of the passage and of each paragraph.
• Ask: what point do most sentences support?
• The best title usually states the main idea in a few words.

Traps

• An option that is true but covers only one paragraph is a detail, not the main idea.
• An option that is too broad (“the environment”) is a subject, not a main idea.