5 exercises — using exophoric references like "as shown above" and "see Figure 3" correctly, and converting fragile live-context pointers into durable written ones for postmortems and runbooks.
0 / 20 completed
1 / 20
A design doc says: "As shown above, the latency spikes correlate with GC pauses." What kind of reference is "as shown above", and how does it differ from anaphora?
Option B is correct. Exophoric reference points outside the text to something in the shared context — a chart, screenshot, diagram, or physical surroundings — rather than to another word within the discourse itself. "As shown above" typically points to a figure or graph embedded in the document, not to a specific noun phrase mentioned in prior sentences. This differs from anaphora (referring back to a previously mentioned word/phrase within the text, e.g., "the server crashed; it then restarted", where "it" = "the server") and cataphora (referring forward within the text, e.g., "Here's what happened: the server crashed"). Common exophoric markers in technical writing: "as shown above/below", "see Figure 3", "as illustrated in the diagram", "per the attached spreadsheet".
2 / 20
Which sentence uses exophoric reference correctly and safely for a document that might be reformatted or have its figures reordered?
"As shown in Figure 3, latency increases with load" is the safest option. While "as shown above" (option A) is grammatically correct exophoric reference, it is fragile: if the document is reformatted, exported to PDF with different pagination, or the figure is moved, "above" may become false — the referenced content might now be below or on a different page. Referencing a labeled, numbered figure ("Figure 3") is exophoric reference that survives reformatting because the label travels with the figure regardless of its position on the page. Option C is informal and vague ("the thing before this") — unclear which specific element it refers to. Option D ("it shows") uses "it" ambiguously without establishing what "it" refers to, which could be read as either exophoric or (incorrectly) anaphoric to a nearby noun. Rule for durable technical docs: prefer numbered/labeled references ("Figure 3", "Table 2", "Appendix A") over positional ones ("above", "below", "to the left").
3 / 20
In a live screen-share during a code review, an engineer says: "See, this line right here is the problem." What makes "this" and "here" exophoric in this spoken context?
Option B is correct. In live, situated communication (screen shares, in-person pairing, pointing at a whiteboard), demonstratives like "this" and locatives like "here" are classically exophoric — they depend entirely on shared physical or visual context to resolve, not on anything stated in the discourse itself. This works fine live, but becomes a problem when the same phrasing is copy-pasted into a written record (a meeting summary, a ticket comment) without the shared screen — "this line right here" means nothing to someone reading the ticket later without the recording. Practical rule: when converting live/spoken exophoric references into permanent written records, replace them with explicit, self-contained references — "line 42 of auth.py is the problem" — so the writing works without the missing visual context.
4 / 20
A postmortem written for future readers (who won't have seen the original incident dashboard) says: "As you can see here, CPU usage spiked at 14:02." Why is this exophoric reference problematic in this specific document?
Option B is correct. Exophoric reference assumes the reader shares the writer's immediate context — but a postmortem is, by design, an artifact meant to be read later, by people (including future team members) who were never in the incident channel and never saw the live dashboard. "As you can see here" with nothing for "here" to point to in the document itself leaves the reader with no way to verify or even locate the claim. Fix: embed the actual data — "CPU usage spiked to 94% at 14:02 (see attached Grafana screenshot, Figure 2)" — converting a fragile exophoric reference into a self-contained, durable one with an embedded or numbered reference. General principle: exophoric reference is appropriate for live, synchronous communication; durable written artifacts (postmortems, RFCs, runbooks) should minimize it in favor of self-contained, labeled references.
5 / 20
Which revision of a runbook step correctly eliminates risky exophoric reference?
"Click the 'Restart Service' button in the top-right of the admin panel" is the safest, most durable phrasing. It names the specific button by its exact label and location, so it works correctly even if the runbook is reformatted, printed, converted to a different tool, or read by someone unfamiliar with the current layout of surrounding elements. "The button below" (option A) is positional exophoric reference — fragile to reformatting, similar to "as shown above" from earlier exercises. "Click here" (option C) is a classic weak exophoric/deictic reference common in poorly written UI copy and documentation — it depends entirely on "here" being visually unambiguous, which fails as soon as there are multiple clickable elements nearby. "As discussed" (option D) relies on a shared conversational context the reader may not have had access to. Runbook-writing rule: name UI elements by their exact visible label, never by position or vague deixis alone.
6 / 20
Sarah is reviewing a PR for the user authentication service. The code includes this comment: // See Fig 5 for details on the JWT validation logic. What type of reference is 'See Fig 5' and what does it primarily rely on to be understood?
This is an exophoric reference because 'See Fig 5' directs the reader to external information (the figure) that isn't explicitly described in the text. Unlike anaphora which refers back to something already mentioned, this relies on the reader having access to and understanding of the referenced material. The key difference is reliance on outside context.
7 / 20
During a Slack conversation about debugging a performance issue in a microservice, Alex says: 'The bottleneck is definitely in the database query.' Which of the following best describes why Alex's statement uses exophoric reference?
Alex's use of 'the database query' is exophoric because it refers to a specific component – the database query – that hasn't been fully defined or made explicit within the ongoing Slack conversation. The reader needs to understand what a 'database query' *is* before Alex's statement makes complete sense; this reliance on shared knowledge is characteristic of exophoric reference. It differs from anaphora which would refer back to an already established term.
8 / 20
You're drafting a pull request description for a new API endpoint. You want to link to the API documentation. Which of the following sentences best demonstrates the correct use of exophoric reference in this context?
This sentence correctly employs exophoric reference by implicitly assuming the reader will understand that 'the API docs' refers to a previously referenced external resource. The lack of further explanation – like 'See API Docs for details' – is what makes it exophoric; it relies on shared knowledge and context rather than explicitly repeating information. It's about guiding the reader *to* something, not fully describing *what* they're finding.
9 / 20
During a standup meeting, David says: 'The new service is returning 500 errors.' What makes this statement exophoric and why might it be problematic in a meeting setting?
David's statement uses exophoric reference because '500 errors' is a technical term that requires the listener to possess prior knowledge of its meaning. Without this shared understanding, the statement is incomplete and potentially confusing. In a standup, where clarity and brevity are crucial, relying on implicit assumptions can lead to misunderstandings or require further clarification – highlighting the potential problem with exophoric reference.
10 / 20
You're writing a technical specification for a new feature. You want to avoid using potentially confusing exophoric references. Which of the following is the MOST effective way to phrase this:
The best approach is to explicitly state every detail needed for understanding. This eliminates any reliance on shared knowledge or external references – which is the core characteristic of exophoric reference. While diagrams and flowcharts can *supplement* a specification, they don't replace the need for clear, explicit descriptions of all relevant elements. This proactive approach minimizes potential confusion.
11 / 20
Sarah is reviewing a PR for the user authentication service. The code includes this comment: // See Fig 5 for details on the JWT validation logic. What type of reference is 'See Fig 5' and what does it primarily rely on to be understood?
This is an exophoric reference because 'See Fig 5' directs the reader to external information (the figure) that isn't explicitly described in the text. Unlike anaphora which refers back to something already mentioned, this relies on the reader having access to and understanding of the referenced material. The key difference is reliance on outside context.
12 / 20
During a Slack conversation about debugging a performance issue in a microservice, Alex says: 'The bottleneck is definitely in the database query.' Which of the following best describes why Alex's statement uses exophoric reference?
Alex's use of 'the database query' is exophoric because it refers to a specific component – the database query – that hasn't been fully defined or made explicit within the ongoing Slack conversation. The reader needs to understand what a 'database query' *is* before Alex's statement makes complete sense; this reliance on shared knowledge is characteristic of exophoric reference. It differs from anaphora which would refer back to an already established term.
13 / 20
You're drafting a pull request description for a new API endpoint. You want to link to the API documentation. Which of the following sentences best demonstrates the correct use of exophoric reference in this context?
This sentence correctly employs exophoric reference by implicitly assuming the reader will understand that 'the API docs' refers to a previously referenced external resource. The lack of further explanation – like 'See API Docs for details' – is what makes it exophoric; it relies on shared knowledge and context rather than explicitly repeating information. It's about guiding the reader *to* something, not fully describing *what* they're finding.
14 / 20
During a standup meeting, David says: 'The new service is returning 500 errors.' What makes this statement exophoric and why might it be problematic in a meeting setting?
David's statement uses exophoric reference because '500 errors' is a technical term that requires the listener to possess prior knowledge of its meaning. Without this shared understanding, the statement is incomplete and potentially confusing. In a standup, where clarity and brevity are crucial, relying on implicit assumptions can lead to misunderstandings or require further clarification – highlighting the potential problem with exophoric reference.
15 / 20
You're writing a technical specification for a new feature. You want to avoid using potentially confusing exophoric references. Which of the following is the MOST effective way to phrase this:
The best approach is to explicitly state every detail needed for understanding. This eliminates any reliance on shared knowledge or external references – which is the core characteristic of exophoric reference. While diagrams and flowcharts can *supplement* a specification, they don't replace the need for clear, explicit descriptions of all relevant elements. This proactive approach minimizes potential confusion.
16 / 20
Sarah is reviewing a PR for the user authentication service. The code includes this comment: // See Fig 5 for details on the JWT validation logic. What type of reference is 'See Fig 5' and what does it primarily rely on to be understood?
This is an exophoric reference because 'See Fig 5' directs the reader to external information (the figure) that isn't explicitly described in the text. Unlike anaphora which refers back to something already mentioned, this relies on the reader having access to and understanding of the referenced material. The key difference is reliance on outside context.
17 / 20
During a Slack conversation about debugging a performance issue in a microservice, Alex says: 'The bottleneck is definitely in the database query.' Which of the following best describes why Alex's statement uses exophoric reference?
Alex's use of 'the database query' is exophoric because it refers to a specific component – the database query – that hasn't been fully defined or made explicit within the ongoing Slack conversation. The reader needs to understand what a 'database query' *is* before Alex's statement makes complete sense; this reliance on shared knowledge is characteristic of exophoric reference. It differs from anaphora which would refer back to an already established term.
18 / 20
You're drafting a pull request description for a new API endpoint. You want to link to the API documentation. Which of the following sentences best demonstrates the correct use of exophoric reference in this context?
This sentence correctly employs exophoric reference by implicitly assuming the reader will understand that 'the API docs' refers to a previously referenced external resource. The lack of further explanation – like 'See API Docs for details' – is what makes it exophoric; it relies on shared knowledge and context rather than explicitly repeating information. It's about guiding the reader *to* something, not fully describing *what* they're finding.
19 / 20
During a standup meeting, David says: 'The new service is returning 500 errors.' What makes this statement exophoric and why might it be problematic in a meeting setting?
David's statement uses exophoric reference because '500 errors' is a technical term that requires the listener to possess prior knowledge of its meaning. Without this shared understanding, the statement is incomplete and potentially confusing. In a standup, where clarity and brevity are crucial, relying on implicit assumptions can lead to misunderstandings or require further clarification – highlighting the potential problem with exophoric reference.
20 / 20
You're writing a technical specification for a new feature. You want to avoid using potentially confusing exophoric references. Which of the following is the MOST effective way to phrase this:
The best approach is to explicitly state every detail needed for understanding. This eliminates any reliance on shared knowledge or external references – which is the core characteristic of exophoric reference. While diagrams and flowcharts can *supplement* a specification, they don't replace the need for clear, explicit descriptions of all relevant elements. This proactive approach minimizes potential confusion.
What will I practise in "Exophoric Reference (As Shown Above, See Figure 3) in Technical English — Grammar Exercise"?
Practise exophoric reference — as shown above, see Figure 3, click here — and when to replace fragile positional pointers with durable labeled ones.
How many exercises are in this module?
This module has 20 multiple-choice exercises, each with instant feedback and a full explanation of the correct answer.
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Where can I find more Grammar exercises?
Browse the full Grammar hub for related drills, or check the "Next up" link below to continue with a connected topic.
How is this different from reading an article on the same topic?
Articles explain grammar rules in prose; this exercise tests and reinforces those rules through active recall with immediate feedback — the two work best together.
Who writes these exercises?
Every exercise is written by the CoderSlingo team, drawing on real workplace English used in IT roles, then reviewed for accuracy and clarity.