Tell excess supply from widespread presence
Read for meaning first. Select a highlighted word if you want a closer look.
A glut of souvenir mugs fills the exhibition storeroom after organizers order far more than visitors are likely to buy during the short run. The volunteer message board is rife with complaints about boxes occupying spaces needed for ordinary work. A preference for lightweight postcards is prevalent among visitors who answer the exhibition's small exit questionnaire. The shop manager compares the actual stock with recorded purchases and the limited questionnaire, avoiding the assumption that a common preference among respondents settles what every future visitor will choose.
The glut remains an excessive supply even though a few visitors genuinely like the mugs and purchase them. With storage complaints rife, the manager moves the surplus out of the main work area and stops placing additional orders. The prevalent postcard preference informs the next small stock decision, while the manager keeps its evidence limited to the people who responded. By the final weekend, staff have more room to work and a clearer record of which items sold, which remained, and which assumptions need reconsideration.
Before you move on
Look away from the passage. Can you explain each focus word in your own words?
Original fictional passages for vocabulary practice.