In the Simple View of Reading, which two abilities multiply to produce reading comprehension?

• A. Decoding plus understanding language
• B. Fluency plus vocabulary
• C. Word recognition and language comprehension
• D. Decoding and spelling accuracy

Answer: (A)

Understanding reading comprehension through the Simple View of Reading comes from two abilities that multiply: decoding printed words into sounds and understanding language. Decoding is what lets you access the text by turning letters into words, while language comprehension is your ability to grasp meaning—vocabulary, sentence structure, and background knowledge. When both are strong, you can understand what you read; if one is weak, comprehension suffers. For example, you might read aloud smoothly but miss meaning if you don’t know the vocabulary or how sentences fit together, or you might understand the ideas but can’t read the words well enough to access them. That’s why the best pairing is decoding plus understanding language. The other options mix in aspects like fluency, vocabulary, or spelling, which are important for reading performance but do not define the two components specified in this model.