GMAT Critical Reasoning: Question Types, Tips & Examples

Critical Reasoning questions give you a short argument — usually one paragraph — and ask you to do something with its logic: strengthen it, weaken it, find the assumption it depends on, or explain a puzzling fact. They test reasoning, not outside knowledge, and the same few patterns appear again and again. Once you recognise the question type and the gap in the argument, most questions become manageable in under two minutes.

This guide covers where Critical Reasoning fits on the GMAT, the main question types, a five-step method for any question, the trap answers to watch for and seven practice questions with full explanations.

What is Critical Reasoning on the GMAT?

Critical Reasoning is one of two question types in the Verbal Reasoning section, alongside Reading Comprehension. The section has 23 questions in 45 minutes — just under two minutes per question — and carries the same weight in your total score as Quantitative Reasoning and Data Insights. GMAC does not publish a fixed split between Critical Reasoning and Reading Comprehension, and the number of questions of each type can vary between exams.

Two points matter for preparation:

• Sentence Correction is gone. With grammar no longer tested, Critical Reasoning carries more weight in Verbal than it did on the Classic GMAT. Our comparison of the current GMAT and the Classic GMAT explains what else changed.
• The skills transfer. Critical Reasoning skills also help with Reading Comprehension and with certain Data Insights questions, particularly Two-Part Analysis tasks that ask you to evaluate arguments, assumptions or conclusions.

For an overview of the whole section, see the Verbal Reasoning guide.

How a Critical Reasoning argument is built

Almost every argument has the same parts:

• Conclusion: the main claim the author wants you to accept. Signal words include therefore, so, thus, clearly and hence.
• Premises: the evidence offered for the conclusion. Signal words include because, since, given that and after all.
• Assumption: the unstated link that must be true for the premises to support the conclusion. This is where most questions are won or lost.
• Background: context that sets the scene but does not support the conclusion directly.

GMAT arguments are deliberately imperfect. The most common gaps are a cause-and-effect claim based only on correlation, a plan that ignores a likely obstacle, a sample that may not be representative and a comparison between groups that are not alike.

GMAT Critical Reasoning question types

Strengthen, weaken and assumption questions are among the core Critical Reasoning question types and deserve the most attention in preparation. The other types follow the same logic, but two of them are worth a closer look.

Method of reasoning questions ask how the argument works rather than whether it is convincing. The correct answer describes the author’s technique — for example, “uses an analogy”, “draws a general conclusion from specific cases” or “rules out an alternative explanation”. To answer them:

• Identify the reasoning method in general terms before reading the choices.
• Identify how the evidence is used to support the conclusion.
• Distinguish the author’s own reasoning from claims the author reports from others, such as “some economists argue that…”.

Complete the argument (fill-in-the-blank) questions end the passage with a blank, often after “because” or “since”. The blank usually needs the premise that makes the conclusion follow, so treat it like a strengthen or assumption question: find the conclusion, name the gap and choose the answer that fills it. If the blank comes after “therefore”, you need a conclusion instead, and the question works like an inference question.

Strengthen vs assumption: what’s the difference?

These two types are easy to confuse because the correct answers often look alike. The difference is how strong the answer has to be:

• Strengthen: the answer makes the conclusion more likely. It can add new evidence, and the argument may still work without it.
• Assumption: the answer is a necessary condition for the argument. If it is false, the conclusion no longer follows.

Here is one argument with both kinds of answer: “After the Northside branch introduced a new sales training course, its revenue rose by 10%. So introducing the course at every branch will raise company revenue.”

How to solve GMAT Critical Reasoning questions

This five-step method works for every question type.

1. Read the question stem first. Knowing whether you must strengthen, weaken or infer tells you what to look for in the argument.
2. Find the conclusion and the premises. Say the conclusion to yourself in a few words. If there is no conclusion, as in many inference and paradox questions, note the key facts instead.
3. Name the gap. Ask what the author takes for granted. For causal claims, ask what else could explain the result.
4. Predict the answer. Before reading the choices, describe the kind of answer you need, such as “something showing the volunteers were typical employees”.
5. Eliminate, then choose. Remove choices that are out of scope, go the wrong direction or are too extreme. Compare the last two against the exact wording of the question.

For assumption questions, add the negation test: negate the answer choice. If the argument falls apart, the choice is a necessary assumption.

Common GMAT Critical Reasoning traps

• Out of scope. True or interesting, but about something the argument does not discuss.
• Wrong direction. A choice that strengthens when the question asks you to weaken, or the reverse.
• Too extreme. Words like always, never, all or only are rarely correct in inference and assumption questions.
• Repeats the premise. A choice that restates evidence already given adds nothing new.
• Half-right. Starts well, then adds one claim the argument does not support.
• Familiar wording. A choice that reuses the passage’s exact words can feel safe but still miss the point; the correct answer often paraphrases.

GMAT Critical Reasoning practice questions

Below are seven practice questions with full explanations, one for each major question type. Try each question before reading the explanation. Aim for about two minutes per question.

Question 1: Weaken

Brightline Foods began printing calorie counts on its menus in March. Over the following six months, sales of its lowest-calorie dishes rose by 20%. The company concludes that the calorie labels led customers to choose healthier dishes.

Which of the following, if true, most seriously weakens the company’s conclusion?

(A) Customers at some other restaurant chains ignore calorie labels.
(B) Over the same period, sales of Brightline’s highest-calorie dishes fell.
(C) In March, Brightline also cut the prices of its lowest-calorie dishes by 25%.
(D) Calorie labelling is required by law in some countries.
(E) Brightline plans to add more low-calorie dishes to its menu next year.

Explanation. The argument assumes the labels, and nothing else, caused the change. Choice (C) offers another cause at the same time: a large price cut on exactly those dishes. (B) supports the conclusion, (A) is about other chains, and (D) and (E) are irrelevant.

Answer: (C).

Question 2: Strengthen

A café owner moved her pastry display from the back of the shop to a spot next to the cash register. In the following month, pastry sales rose by 15%. She concludes that the new location caused the increase.

Which of the following, if true, most strengthens her conclusion?

(A) Pastry sales at other cafés in the area also rose that month.
(B) The café introduced three new pastry varieties during the same month.
(C) During that month, the café’s number of customers and its prices stayed the same as in previous months.
(D) Most of the café’s customers order coffee.
(E) Moving the display cost very little.

Explanation. To strengthen a causal claim, rule out other explanations. (C) removes two obvious ones: more customers and price changes. (A) and (B) suggest other causes and weaken the argument; (D) and (E) are irrelevant.

Answer: (C).

Question 3: Assumption

Company Z ran a three-month pilot in which a group of volunteers worked four ten-hour days instead of five eight-hour days. Their output per hour rose by 12%. Management concludes that moving all employees to a four-day week would raise company-wide output per hour.

The conclusion depends on which of the following assumptions?

(A) Most employees would prefer a four-day week.
(B) The rise in output among the volunteers was not mainly due to ways in which the volunteers differ from other employees.
(C) Output per hour is the only measure of productivity that matters to management.
(D) Four-day weeks have succeeded in other industries.
(E) The pilot lasted at least a year.

Explanation. Volunteers may be unusually motivated, so their results might not apply to everyone. Apply the negation test to (B): if the gains were mainly due to how volunteers differ, the conclusion collapses — so (B) is necessary. Negating (A), (C) or (D) does not destroy the argument, and (E) contradicts the facts given.

Answer: (B).

Question 4: Inference (must be true)

At a consulting firm, every analyst who passed the certification exam received a bonus. Every analyst who attended the training course passed the certification exam. Some analysts who received a bonus did not attend the training course.

If the statements above are true, which of the following must also be true?

(A) Every analyst who received a bonus passed the certification exam.
(B) Every analyst who attended the training course received a bonus.
(C) Some analysts who passed the certification exam did not attend the training course.
(D) No analyst who failed the certification exam received a bonus.
(E) Most analysts attended the training course.

Explanation. Chain the rules: attended training → passed the exam → received a bonus, so (B) must be true. (A) and (D) reverse the first rule: the facts never say the exam was the only route to a bonus. (C) might be true but does not have to be, because the bonus-without-training analysts may have earned their bonus another way. Nothing supports (E).

Answer: (B).

Question 5: Resolve the paradox

Over the past decade, the number of bookstores in Region R fell by a third. Yet over the same period, the number of print books sold in Region R rose.

Which of the following, if true, best explains this apparent discrepancy?

(A) Sales of e-books in Region R also rose over the decade.
(B) The bookstores that remain open have raised their prices.
(C) Over the decade, supermarkets and online retailers came to account for a much larger share of print book sales in Region R.
(D) Many of the bookstores that closed were small independent shops.
(E) Libraries in Region R lend fewer books than they did a decade ago.

Explanation. A good explanation lets both facts be true together. If more print books are sold through supermarkets and online, sales can rise while bookstores close. (A) is about e-books; (B) concerns prices, not the number of books sold; (D) describes which stores closed without explaining rising sales; (E) does not connect the two facts.

Answer: (C).

Question 6: Evaluate the argument

A university found that students who used its free tutoring centre earned higher grades than students who did not. It concludes that the tutoring centre improves students’ grades.

Which of the following would be most useful to know in evaluating the university’s conclusion?

(A) How many tutors the centre employs.
(B) Whether students who chose to use the centre already had higher grades before they started.
(C) Whether other universities offer free tutoring.
(D) Which subjects students most often seek tutoring in.
(E) Whether students rate the tutors highly.

Explanation. The argument could be a case of self-selection: stronger, more motivated students may be the ones who seek tutoring. The answer to (B) would either support or undermine the conclusion, which is exactly what an evaluate question asks for. The others do not decide whether tutoring caused the higher grades.

Answer: (B).

Question 7: Identify the flaw

Most of the reviews posted on PhoneCo’s website give its new smartphone five stars. Therefore, most people who bought the new smartphone are highly satisfied with it.

The reasoning above is most vulnerable to criticism on the grounds that it

(A) assumes what it sets out to prove.
(B) draws a conclusion about all buyers from a group that may not be representative of them.
(C) confuses a cause with its effect.
(D) attacks critics of the smartphone rather than their arguments.
(E) treats the absence of evidence as evidence.

Explanation. People who choose to post reviews on the manufacturer’s own website may be more enthusiastic than buyers in general, so they are not a reliable sample. That is (B). The argument is not circular, does not involve cause and effect, does not attack anyone and does not rely on missing evidence.

Answer: (B).

GMAT Critical Reasoning time management

You have just under two minutes per Verbal question. Critical Reasoning arguments are short, so a common target is about 1 minute 45 seconds per question, which leaves extra time for Reading Comprehension passages.

• Spend roughly the first 30–40 seconds on the stem and the argument, and the rest on the choices.
• If you cannot identify the gap after about a minute, eliminate clearly wrong choices, select your best answer, bookmark the question and continue. The GMAT does not let you skip a question without answering it.
• Once you have answered every question in the section, you can review any question — bookmarked or not — and change up to three answers, provided time remains.
• Never leave questions unanswered: unanswered questions lower your score significantly.

How to improve your Critical Reasoning score

• Start untimed, by type. Work through one question type at a time until spotting the conclusion and the gap feels automatic.
• Predict before you look. Write a one-line prediction of the answer before reading the choices. It is the habit that most reduces trap answers.
• Review every miss by cause. Misread the conclusion, missed the gap, fell for a trap type or ran out of time? Each needs a different fix — see how to measure your GMAT prep progress.
• Switch to mixed, timed sets. Once each type is familiar, mix them so you must recognise the type yourself.
• Use official questions. GMAC’s free Official Starter Kit includes official practice questions and two full-length practice exams.

Frequently asked questions

How many Critical Reasoning questions are on the GMAT?

There is no fixed number. The 23 Verbal Reasoning questions are split between Critical Reasoning and Reading Comprehension, and GMAC does not publish the exact mix, which can vary between exams.

What is the difference between strengthen and assumption questions?

A strengthen answer only has to make the conclusion more likely. An assumption answer must be true for the argument to work at all: if you negate it, the argument falls apart. Both depend on the same skill — finding the gap between the evidence and the conclusion.

Do I need outside knowledge for Critical Reasoning?

No. Everything you need is in the argument. Bringing in outside knowledge is a common way to choose an out-of-scope answer.

Is Critical Reasoning harder for non-native English speakers?

It can feel harder at first because of careful reading under time pressure, but it tests logic rather than vocabulary or grammar. Practising paraphrasing the conclusion in simple words helps most.

Key takeaways

• Most Critical Reasoning questions come down to the conclusion, the evidence and the gap between them.
• Read the question stem first, predict the answer, then eliminate out-of-scope, wrong-direction and extreme choices.
• Use the negation test for assumption questions and look for alternative causes in causal arguments.
• Aim for about 1 minute 45 seconds per question and never leave questions unanswered.

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