What the exam asks
- The stem never changes: “Which choice most logically completes the text?”
- The texts run about 60–150 words and come from the natural sciences, social sciences or humanities. They typically set out an observation, a hypothesis, an experiment, a competing explanation or a limitation, then end with a signal phrase such as this suggests that, therefore, the researchers concluded that or if this is correct, one would expect that.
- The blank is almost always at the end and completes the last sentence.
- Difficulty grows with the number of reasoning steps (conditions, exceptions, eliminated alternatives). It also grows with distractors that are reasonable, true in the real world or only slightly too strong.
Core ideas
Treat the text as an argument with a missing conclusion
Summarize the premises in a line before you look at the choices: “Fact 1 + Fact 2 → blank.” Then read the words just before the blank. They tell you what kind of conclusion you need.
| Words before the blank | What the blank must do |
|---|---|
| “This suggests that” / “Therefore” | State what the premises jointly support |
| “If this hypothesis is correct, one would expect that” | Make a prediction that follows from the hypothesis |
| “The researchers most likely found that” | Give the result an experiment would produce under the stated rule |
| “Therefore, the study’s results ______” | Often a limitation: what the evidence does or does not show |
| A sentence containing “unless”, “only” or “except” | Apply the stated condition or exception |
Six patterns that cover most items
| Pattern | What the text sets up | The conclusion looks like |
|---|---|---|
| Testing a cause | One factor is removed or added, and the outcome changes | That factor contributes to the outcome |
| Eliminating an alternative | Two explanations, one ruled out by evidence | The other is favored, or “X is probably not the cause” |
| Applying a rule | A general rule plus a specific case | What the rule implies about that case |
| Prediction | “If A is true, then...” | An observation that A would produce |
| Confounding factor | A correlation plus a second factor that could explain it | The result does not by itself show that the first factor caused the outcome |
| Broken expectation | “Researchers expected X; instead, Y” | The assumption behind X is wrong or incomplete |
Scope: “must follow” beats “could be true”
The right answer is the one the author would have to accept given the text. Watch the strength of the wording:
- Too strong: proves, always, never, only, all, cannot, definitely.
- Appropriately cautious: suggests, likely, may, probably, does not by itself show.
A choice can point in the right direction and still be too strong. If the text says a factor “may contribute”, a choice calling it “the sole cause” is wrong.
A conditional-logic toolkit
| Statement in the text | Valid conclusion | Invalid conclusion |
|---|---|---|
| “A happens only if B” | A happened, so B was present. No B means no A. | B was present, so A will happen |
| “Whenever A, B follows” | A was present, so B follows. No B means no A. | B happened, so A was present |
| “A happens unless B” | A did not happen, so B must have been present | Nothing is guaranteed about A when B is present |
| “No evidence of X has been found” | X has not been established | X did not happen |
Outside knowledge is a trap
If a choice needs a fact the text never gives, eliminate it, however true it is in the real world.
Worked examples
Exam technique
- Read the whole text, then paraphrase the premises in a few words.
- Classify the blank from the words just before it: conclusion, prediction, result or limitation.
- Predict an answer before reading the choices, even a rough one (“so the distant source is out”).
- Eliminate choices that are too strong, need outside knowledge, reverse a relationship, or address a detail the text never connects to the blank.
- Test the survivor. Does it follow from the premises alone? Would the author have to agree?
- Time: 75–90 seconds on average. A hard module 2 inference can deserve up to two minutes. Earn that time on Conventions questions, which should take 30–45 seconds each.
Common mistakes
Quick recap
- The blank completes an argument: premises lead to a conclusion.
- The words before the blank set the job: conclusion, prediction, result or limitation.
- Predict before reading the choices. Then eliminate for scope, outside knowledge and reversal.
- Match the text’s certainty: suggests and likely beat proves and always.
- Handle conditions precisely. Only if states a requirement, and unless states an exception.
- Use every premise. The one you ignore is usually the one that decides the answer.