what is the purpose of a topic sentence in a paragraph
A: to express the central idea of a paragraph
B: to provide evidence for the ideas in the paragraph
C: to explain where readers can find more information about the topic of the paragraph
D: to describe the most important details that will be included in the paragraph
A: to express the central idea of a paragraph
The purpose of a topic sentence in a paragraph is to express the central idea of that paragraph. It acts as a guidepost for the reader, letting them know what to expect and providing a clear focus for the rest of the paragraph.
When determining the purpose of a topic sentence, you can use a few strategies to find the answer. One approach is to look for keywords or phrases that indicate the main idea or central concept of the paragraph. In this case, the keyword is "purpose," which suggests that the question is asking for the role or function of a topic sentence.
Another strategy is to eliminate the options that are clearly incorrect. In this case, option B (to provide evidence for the ideas in the paragraph) and option C (to explain where readers can find more information) do not accurately describe the purpose of a topic sentence in a paragraph. This leaves us with options A and D.
To further differentiate between these two remaining choices, we can take a closer look at their descriptions. Option A, "to express the central idea of a paragraph," aligns with the commonly accepted understanding of a topic sentence. On the other hand, option D, "to describe the most important details that will be included in the paragraph," does not accurately capture the purpose of a topic sentence.
Therefore, the correct answer is A: to express the central idea of a paragraph.