Spotting Facts and Opinions

Introduction

Read these two sentences:

1. "London is the capital of England."
2. "London is the best city in the world."

They look similar, don't they? Both are about London. Both sound confident. But there's a crucial difference: the first is a fact — it can be checked and proved. The second is an opinion — it's someone's personal view.

Being able to tell the difference between facts and opinions is one of the most important critical thinking skills you'll need for the FSCE 11+ exam. In comprehension passages, you'll need to work out which parts are factual information and which parts are the writer's opinion. In this lesson, you'll learn exactly how to do that.

What Is a Fact?

A fact is a statement that can be proved to be true or false. It doesn't matter whether you agree with it — what matters is that it can be checked.

Examples of facts:

• Water boils at 100°C at sea level.
• There are 26 letters in the English alphabet.
• The Great Fire of London started in 1666.
• Mount Everest is 8,849 metres tall.

Even a wrong statement can be a factual claim. "There are 30 letters in the English alphabet" is a factual statement — it's just a false one. The point is that it can be checked.

What Is an Opinion?

An opinion is a personal belief, view, or judgement. It cannot be proved true or false because different people may reasonably disagree.

Examples of opinions:

• Chocolate ice cream is the tastiest flavour.
• Art is more important than science.
• The book was boring.
• Football is the best sport.

How to Tell Them Apart

graph TD
    A["Read the statement"] --> B{"Can it be checked or proved?"}
    B -->|Yes| C{"Is it based on measurable data or verifiable information?"}
    C -->|Yes| D["It’s a FACT"]
    B -->|No| E{"Does it express a personal view, judgement, or preference?"}
    E -->|Yes| F["It’s an OPINION"]
    C -->|No| E
    E -->|No| G["Look more carefully — it may be a hidden opinion or a factual claim"]
    style D fill:#e8f5e9
    style F fill:#fff3e0

Clue Words for Opinions

Opinions often (but not always) contain words like:

• Judgement words: best, worst, beautiful, ugly, boring, exciting, important
• Belief words: I think, I believe, in my view, it seems, arguably
• Should/ought words: should, ought to, must (when expressing duty rather than certainty)

Tricky Cases

Some statements look like facts but are actually opinions:

• "Shakespeare is the greatest writer in the English language." — This sounds factual, but "greatest" is a judgement.
• "Everyone knows that dogs are better pets than cats." — Starting with "everyone knows" doesn't make it a fact.

Some statements look like opinions but are actually facts:

• "Scientists believe that the universe is approximately 13.8 billion years old." — This is a fact about what scientists believe, even though it reports a belief.

Worked Examples

Worked Example 1: Sorting Statements

Sort these statements into facts and opinions:

Statement	Fact or Opinion?	Why?
"The River Thames flows through London."	Fact	Can be verified on a map
"The River Thames is the most beautiful river in England."	Opinion	"Most beautiful" is a personal judgement
"Queen Victoria reigned for 63 years."	Fact	Can be checked in history records
"Queen Victoria was the best monarch Britain ever had."	Opinion	"Best" is a personal judgement
"Over 8 million people live in London."	Fact	Can be checked with census data
"London is too crowded."	Opinion	"Too crowded" is a personal judgement — some people may disagree

Worked Example 2: Spotting Facts and Opinions in a Passage

Passage: "The Amazon rainforest covers approximately 5.5 million square kilometres. It is the most important ecosystem on Earth. The rainforest is home to around 10% of all species on the planet. Sadly, deforestation is destroying this precious habitat at an alarming rate. Between 2001 and 2020, the Amazon lost approximately 8% of its forest cover."

Analysis:

• "covers approximately 5.5 million square kilometres" — Fact (measurable, can be checked)
• "the most important ecosystem on Earth" — Opinion (a judgement — others might argue oceans are more important)
• "home to around 10% of all species" — Fact (can be checked with scientific data)
• "Sadly" — Opinion signal (this word shows the writer's emotional view)
• "precious" — Opinion signal (a value judgement)
• "alarming rate" — Opinion (what one person finds alarming, another might not)
• "lost approximately 8% of its forest cover" — Fact (measurable, can be checked)

Worked Example 3: Why This Matters in Comprehension

Question: "The writer says the rainforest is 'the most important ecosystem on Earth.' Is this a fact or an opinion? How can you tell?"

Strong answer: "This is an opinion, not a fact. The word 'most important' is a judgement — it depends on how you define 'important.' Some scientists might argue that the oceans are more important because they produce more oxygen and cover more of the Earth's surface. Because people can reasonably disagree about which ecosystem is 'most important,' this is an opinion, even though the writer states it very confidently."

Worked Example 4: Disguised Opinions

Sometimes opinions are disguised to look like facts. Can you spot the opinions?

Statement	Hidden Opinion?	Explanation
"Obviously, everyone should learn to code."	Yes	"Obviously" and "should" reveal an opinion
"The school has 500 students."	No	This is a checkable fact
"It's clear that renewable energy is the only solution to climate change."	Yes	"It's clear" and "only solution" are judgements
"The film was released in 2019."	No	Checkable fact
"Naturally, the best approach is to start early."	Yes	"Naturally" and "best" signal opinions

Worked Example 5: Before and After

Passage: "Jamie Oliver's campaign to improve school dinners was the most significant achievement in children's health in the 21st century. After his television programme aired in 2005, the government invested £280 million in school meals."

Question: "Identify one fact and one opinion from this passage."

Before (a student who confuses facts and opinions): "The fact is that Jamie Oliver's campaign was the most significant achievement. The opinion is that the government invested £280 million."

This student has them completely backwards!

After (a student who can distinguish them): "A fact is that 'the government invested £280 million in school meals' — this is a specific amount that can be checked in government records. An opinion is that the campaign was 'the most significant achievement in children's health in the 21st century' — the word 'most significant' is a judgement, and other people might argue that different health initiatives, such as vaccination programmes, were more significant."

Worked Example 6: Mixed Statements

Some statements mix facts and opinions in the same sentence:

"The Eiffel Tower, which is 330 metres tall, is the most stunning building in the world."

• Fact part: "which is 330 metres tall" — this can be measured and checked.
• Opinion part: "the most stunning building in the world" — "most stunning" is a personal judgement.

"Although the test was only 45 minutes long, it was extremely difficult."