ACT Reading paired passages: how to read two texts and answer both
ACT Reading includes a part with two shorter passages on a related topic instead of one long passage. Some questions ask about Passage A, some about Passage B, and the last few ask about both, such as what the authors would agree on or how the two differ in focus. Those cross-passage questions belong to Integration of Knowledge & Ideas, which ACT says is 19–26% of the Reading section. Read and answer one passage at a time, then do the questions about both.
Where it shows up on the ACT
| Enhanced ACT | |
|---|---|
| Section | Reading |
| Length | 36 questions (27 scored) in 40 minutes, about 67 seconds each |
| Reporting category | Integration of Knowledge & Ideas (for the questions about both passages) |
| Share of the section | 19–26% of Reading, about 5–7 of the 27 scored questions |
| In the Composite | Yes. The Composite averages English, Math and Reading. |
The category also covers claims, evidence and reading a chart, not only paired passages. In ACT's 2025–26 practice test and its older practice test from Preparing for the ACT 2024–25, we counted one paired set per test, each ending with 3 questions about both passages. Source: ACT, Preparing for the ACT 2025–2026, pp. 6–10: what each section covers and its reporting categories.
What the questions ask you to do
- Find a detail or the main point in one of the two passages.
- Say what one passage focuses on more than the other.
- Identify an idea or element that appears in one passage but not the other.
- Predict what both authors would agree with, or how one author would respond to the other.
- Compare the purpose or tone of the two passages.
Cross-passage questions and how to answer them
Wordings from the paired set in ACT's 2025–26 practice test, with the check that answers each.
| The question asks | Check |
|---|---|
| Compared to Passage A, Passage B focuses more on… | Name each passage's main topic in a few words before you read the choices. |
| Which element of Passage B is not included in Passage A? | Check each choice against Passage A. The answer is in B and missing from A. |
| The authors of both passages would most likely agree that… | The answer has to be supported in both passages, not just one. |
A reading order for the paired set
- Read Passage A and answer the questions that ask only about Passage A.
- Read Passage B and answer the questions about Passage B.
- Write a few words for each author's main point and attitude next to the passage, or in your head if you test online.
- Answer the questions about both passages last, checking each choice against both texts.
Common mistakes
Wrong answer choices are often built around these.
- Choosing a cross-passage answer that's true for only one passage. "Both authors would agree" needs support in both.
- Reading both passages before any questions. By the time you reach the Passage A questions, the details have faded.
- Treating the passages as opposites. Paired passages often agree on the facts and differ in focus or emphasis.
- Answering from what you know about the topic instead of what the passages say. ACT says Reading questions don't test facts from outside the passage.
- Missing an answer that's half right. A choice can describe Passage A well and still misstate Passage B.
3 example questions with answers
Written by Ashore in the style of the enhanced ACT. They aren't official ACT questions. Try each one before you open the answer.
Question 1 · Easy
Passage A When the city planted street trees along the east side in the 1990s, the goal was shade, and on hot afternoons the planted blocks are the ones people choose to walk. But most of those trees were a single kind of fast-growing maple. When a beetle that feeds on maples reached the region, crews removed hundreds of them in two summers, and whole blocks lost their shade at once. A street of one kind of tree, the forester argues, is only as healthy as that one kind. Passage B Street trees are usually defended on comfort: shade, cooler air, prettier blocks. Those benefits are real, but they're hard to put a price on, which is why tree budgets are often the first to be cut. A stronger case is money. Trees catch rain that would otherwise flood storm drains, and shade keeps asphalt from cracking as fast. A city that counts those savings, the author writes, will find that its trees pay for themselves.
According to Passage A, why did crews remove hundreds of street trees?
- AA beetle that feeds on maples reached the region.
- BThe trees blocked sunlight from nearby homes.
- CThe city needed the money for road repairs.
- DResidents complained that the sidewalks were too dark.
Show the answer
A. Passage A says crews removed the trees after a beetle that feeds on maples reached the region. Neither passage mentions blocked sunlight or complaints, and money comes up only in Passage B.
Question 2 · Medium
Based on the two passages above, compared with Passage A, Passage B focuses more on:
- Fthe risk of planting one kind of tree.
- Ghow residents use shaded sidewalks.
- Hthe costs and savings of street trees.
- Jthe history of the east side planting.
Show the answer
H. Passage B argues that trees pay for themselves through storm-drain and repaving savings. The risk of one species, shaded walking and the east side history all come from Passage A.
Question 3 · Hard
Based on the two passages above, the authors of both passages would most likely agree that street trees:
- Ashould be chosen mainly for how fast they grow.
- Bprovide real benefits, including shade.
- Ccost cities more than they save.
- Dmatter less than storm drains do.
Show the answer
B. Passage A says people choose the shaded blocks, and Passage B calls shade and cooler air real benefits. Passage A warns against fast-growing single species, Passage B argues trees save money, and neither ranks trees below storm drains.
More ACT Reading guides
- Tips and timing
- ACT score calculator: questions right in each section to a 1–36 score and Composite.
- SAT vs ACT: which test fits you better.
- All ACT guides and free tools
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Practice test 1
Example
27
Composite
(28 + 26 + 27) ÷ 3
- English28
- Math26
- Reading27
- ScienceOptional, not in the Composite25