Language term
Fact versus opinion
Telling apart statements that can be proven from personal beliefs or judgements.
What it means
Distinguishing fact from opinion means knowing the difference between two kinds of statement. A fact can be proven true or false. An opinion expresses a personal belief, judgement or preference.
A fact, such as the shop opens at nine, can be checked. An opinion, such as the shop is the best in town, reflects a viewpoint. Writers often blend the two, presenting opinions as if they were facts to sound more convincing.
Learning to separate them is essential for reading critically, weighing an argument fairly, and building your own writing on solid ground.
Why it matters in the exam
In the reading paper, distinguishing fact from opinion is central to questions on how a writer argues and persuades. It also helps you judge how far to trust a text. Examiners reward you for recognising when an opinion is dressed up as a fact.
In argumentative writing, backing opinions with facts strengthens your case. Confusing the two, or stating opinion as certainty, weakens it and can mislead the reader.
Example
The bridge is two hundred years old is a fact that can be checked. The bridge is the ugliest structure in the city is an opinion others might dispute.
How to use it
In analysis, separate a writer's checkable facts from their opinions. Note where opinions are presented as facts to seem persuasive. In your own argumentative writing, support your opinions with facts and signal clearly which is which.
Reading critically, ask of each claim whether it could be proven, which protects you from accepting a viewpoint as settled truth.
Knowing the term is the first step. In a paid one-hour trial, a teacher helps your child use "Fact versus opinion" accurately in an answer.