10 LSAT Logical Reasoning Questions in Layman's Terms

I remember doing my first night of CivPro homework as a 1L with zero lawyers in my family. I called my parents weeping: “I studied French, Latin, and ancient Greek, and I still have no idea what any of these phrases are supposed to mean!”

Many college students have a similar feeling when they first sidle up to the LSAT and get a glimpse at its strict and formal use of the English language. In light of this familiar struggle, I’m going to reword a few of these common LSAT logical reasoning questions to make it more readily apparent what they’re asking for.

• “X’s reasoning is most vulnerable to criticism on the grounds that X…”

“What, out of all the things that may be wrong with this argument, is the flaw that most damages the logical relationship between the premises and the conclusion?”

• “Which one of the following is an assumption on which the argument depends?”

“Which of these premises holds additional information that is necessary to arrive at this particular conclusion?” You could also ask yourself, “What aspect of this conclusion is not addressed by the premises in the passage?” 

• “Which one of the following, if true, most seriously weakens X's argument?”

“Which one of these premises, if added to the premises in the passage, most strains the relationship between the full set of premises and this particular conclusion?”

• “Which one of the following principles, if valid, most helps to justify the reasoning above?”

“If A is the input, B is the function, C is the output, and A times B equals C, what is B?” (For this reason, you can think of C as a “common multiple” of B—B & C will always use compatible logical terms.)

• “X and Y disagree with each other over whether…”

“What do X and Y both talk about, and, out of those topics, over which topic do they disagree?”

• “Which one of the following, if true, most helps to resolve the apparent discrepancy in the information above?”

“It seems like this passage contains a paradox (aka contradicts itself). Which premise would allow you to interpret this passage in a way that reveals there’s actually no contradiction here?”

• “Each of the following, if true, would weaken the economist's argument EXCEPT…”

“Only one of these premises would either strengthen or leave unharmed, the relationship between the premises in the passage and the conclusion. Which answer contains that premise?”

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