What is the main idea of the passage?

An additional unit can have less value when the most urgent needs have already been met. (The uses move from ending thirst to less urgent tasks, showing why the next cup matters less after key needs are met.)

Why would the hiker likely pay less for another cup after filling her bottle?

Her next possible use is less urgent than drinking or preparing for the walk. (Once thirst and the next mile are covered, another cup would serve a lower-priority use such as washing dust or watering a plant.)

What does “marginal” mean in “marginal value”?

Concerning one additional unit (The passage defines marginal value directly as the value of one additional unit, represented by the next cup.)

What does the hiker use the second cup to do?

Fill her bottle for the next mile (The first cup ends thirst, while the passage specifically says the second fills her bottle for the next mile.)

The Value of the Last Cup: Level 2 Reading Comprehension Questions

A hiker reaches a rest stop with no water left. The first cup from a public fountain feels precious. It ends her thirst. A second cup is welcome too. It fills her bottle for the next mile.

The fountain still has plenty of water. A third cup could wash dust from her hands. A fourth might water a small plant beside the bench. Each cup is useful, but the next use matters less to her than the one before it.

Economists call this marginal value. It is the value of one additional unit, not the value of water as a whole. The idea helps explain why the same person may pay much for a first needed cup but little for another when her bottle is full. Nothing about water’s nature changed. Her situation and the use of the next cup changed.

Comprehension questions