Home Subjects Reasoning Ability Syllogism

Reasoning Ability
Syllogism

Critical thinking and logical reasoning questions

21 Q 8 Topics Take Mock Test
Advertisement
Difficulty: All Easy Medium Hard 11–20 of 21
Topics in Reasoning Ability
Q.11 Medium Syllogism
All innovations are risky. Some risky ventures fail. Can we conclude that some innovations fail?
A Yes, definitely
B No, we cannot
C Only if stated explicitly
D Partially true
Correct Answer:  B. No, we cannot
EXPLANATION

All innovations are risky, but we only know some risky ventures fail. We cannot establish that the innovations which are risky are necessarily among those risky ventures that fail.

Test
Q.12 Medium Syllogism
All flowers are plants. All plants require sunlight. Some things requiring sunlight are expensive. Which is possibly true?
A All flowers are expensive
B Some flowers may be expensive
C No flower is expensive
D All expensive things are flowers
Correct Answer:  B. Some flowers may be expensive
EXPLANATION

All flowers are plants, all plants require sunlight. Since some things requiring sunlight are expensive, it's possible that some flowers (being things requiring sunlight) are expensive.

Test
Q.13 Medium Syllogism
All doctors are educated. Some educated people are rich. No rich person is unhappy. What can be concluded?
A All doctors are rich
B All doctors are unhappy
C Some doctors may be happy
D No doctor is happy
Correct Answer:  C. Some doctors may be happy
EXPLANATION

We know some educated people are rich and no rich person is unhappy. Since some doctors are educated (subset), some doctors could be among those rich people, making them not unhappy.

Test
Q.14 Medium Syllogism
All software engineers are problem solvers. Some problem solvers are not creative. Based on this, which conclusion is possibly true but not definitely true?
A Some software engineers are creative
B All software engineers are creative
C No software engineer is creative
D Software engineers are not problem solvers
Correct Answer:  A. Some software engineers are creative
EXPLANATION

While some problem solvers are not creative, some software engineers might still be creative - this is possible but not definite.

Test
Q.15 Medium Syllogism
All X are Y. No Y is Z. Some Z are W. What is the relationship between X and Z?
A All X are Z
B No X is Z
C Some X are Z
D X and Z are related through W
Correct Answer:  B. No X is Z
EXPLANATION

Since all X are Y and no Y is Z, by logical deduction, no X can be Z.

Test
Q.16 Medium Syllogism
No student is lazy. All lazy people are unsuccessful. What can be concluded?
A No student is unsuccessful
B All students are successful
C Some students are unsuccessful
D The conclusion cannot be determined
Correct Answer:  D. The conclusion cannot be determined
EXPLANATION

While no student is lazy, and lazy people are unsuccessful, this doesn't tell us about unsuccessful students who might be lazy or for other reasons.

Test
Q.17 Medium Syllogism
All leaders are decision makers. Some decision makers are not politicians. Which conclusion is valid?
A Some leaders are not politicians
B All leaders are politicians
C Some politicians are decision makers
D All decision makers are leaders
Correct Answer:  A. Some leaders are not politicians
EXPLANATION

Since some decision makers are not politicians, and all leaders are decision makers, some leaders must not be politicians.

Test
Q.18 Medium Syllogism
No criminal is honest. Some dishonest people are criminals. What follows?
A All dishonest people are criminals
B Some dishonest people are not criminals
C All criminals are dishonest
D No dishonest person is honest
Correct Answer:  C. All criminals are dishonest
EXPLANATION

Since no criminal is honest, it means all criminals must be dishonest (contrapositive of the first statement).

Test
Q.19 Medium Syllogism
All gold is precious. Some precious things are expensive. Can we say 'Some gold is expensive'?
A Yes, definitely
B No, it's uncertain
C No, it's impossible
D Only some gold is precious
Correct Answer:  B. No, it's uncertain
EXPLANATION

Although all gold is precious, only some precious things are expensive, so we cannot definitively conclude gold is expensive.

Test
Q.20 Medium Syllogism
Some singers are dancers. Some dancers are actors. Which conclusion is definitely correct?
A Some singers are actors
B All singers are actors
C Some singers may or may not be actors
D No singer is an actor
Correct Answer:  C. Some singers may or may not be actors
EXPLANATION

From two 'some' statements, we cannot draw a definite conclusion about the relationship between singers and actors.

Test
IGET
IGET AI
Online · Exam prep assistant
Hi! 👋 I'm your iget AI assistant.

Ask me anything about exam prep, MCQ solutions, study tips, or strategies! 🎯
UPSC strategy SSC CGL syllabus Improve aptitude NEET Biology tips