Which phrase best describes a reading disorder in which readers struggle to understand what they have read?

• A. Problems with reading comprehension
• B. Dyslexia
• C. Lack of reading fluency
• D. Alexia

Answer: (A)

The main idea tested is distinguishing where the difficulty lies in reading: understanding meaning versus decoding words or reading quickly. When someone struggles to understand what they’ve read, the issue is with reading comprehension—the ability to derive meaning, recall details, and integrate text with what they already know.

Dyslexia is mainly about decoding—turning print into spoken sounds and recognizing words. It often shows up as trouble with phonological processing and word recognition, even if the person can understand spoken language. Lack of reading fluency refers to the pace and smoothness of reading aloud, which can affect overall comprehension but is a separate skill from understanding the text. Alexia is a neurological impairment that affects the ability to read, typically due to brain injury, not a typical learning difficulty.

So the phrase that best captures the described difficulty—understanding what has been read—focuses on reading comprehension. If a reader can decode words but misses the meaning, the core issue is comprehension rather than decoding or fluency.