Logical Reasoning Test Practice: Questions and Method

Logical reasoning test practice with two worked questions, the deductive and inductive formats employers use, typical timings, and the rule-first method that saves time.

Useful logical reasoning test practice starts by splitting the term into its parts. “Logical reasoning” is an umbrella label. Employers use it for deductive tests (premises are given, you decide what must be true), inductive and abstract tests (a sequence of shapes is given, you find the rule), and diagrammatic tests (symbols act on an input, you predict the output). The three need different techniques, so practising the wrong one wastes your time. Timing is tight across all of them, usually around 60 to 75 seconds per question, and tests are built so that few candidates finish comfortably. This guide shows you which format you are facing, gives you two full worked questions with solutions, and sets out the rule-first method that stops you guessing from the answer options.

TL;DR

Deductive questions ask what must be true from the premises. Anything merely plausible is wrong.
Inductive and abstract questions ask you to find the rule that generates a sequence, then apply it once more.
Write the rule down before you look at the options. Reading options first pulls you toward attractive wrong answers.
Typical timing is around 60 to 75 seconds per question. Ravens Advanced Progressive Matrices runs 23 questions in 42 minutes.
Track more than one feature at a time: count, rotation, shading and position often change independently.
A competitive score is usually reported as a percentile, not a raw mark.

Which logical reasoning format will you actually sit?

Check the invitation email for the test name, then match it to the family below. The name tells you what to practise.

Format	What you are given	What you must do	Typical timing
Deductive	Written premises or rules	State what necessarily follows	15 to 40 minutes depending on employer
Inductive	A sequence of abstract figures	Identify the rule, pick the next figure	About 60 to 75 seconds per question
Abstract	Figure series, odd one out, or a matrix	Find the pattern, complete it	Around 75 seconds per question
Diagrammatic	Inputs plus symbol operators	Trace the input through the operators	Around 60 seconds per question
Critical thinking	An argument in prose	Judge assumptions, inferences, conclusions	Varies by publisher

Publisher formats differ in feel. Talent Q Elements Logical Ability is adaptive and typically runs 12 questions at 75 seconds each. Kenexa logical reasoning asks you to pick the diagram that fits a series from five options, commonly 24 questions in 20 minutes. Ravens Standard Progressive Matrices runs 28 questions in 47 minutes.

If you want a timed warm-up before working through the examples below, try five free timed numerical questions to get used to answering against a clock.

Worked example 1: a deductive question

Premises.

Every item dispatched from Depot B carries a blue label.
No item carrying a blue label is scanned at Gate 3.
Item 47 was scanned at Gate 3.

Question. Which conclusion must be true?

A) Item 47 was dispatched from Depot B. B) Item 47 was not dispatched from Depot B. C) Item 47 carries a blue label. D) Item 47 was dispatched from a depot other than Depot B, but we cannot say which.

Worked solution.

Step 1. Chain the rules forward. Depot B leads to blue label. Blue label leads to not scanned at Gate 3. So Depot B leads to not scanned at Gate 3.

Step 2. Premise 3 says item 47 was scanned at Gate 3. That is the denial of the end of the chain.

Step 3. When the consequence is false, the condition must be false. So item 47 was not dispatched from Depot B. The answer is B.

Why the others fail. A reverses the logic. C contradicts premise 2 combined with premise 3, because a blue label would have kept the item away from Gate 3. D adds a claim the premises never make: nothing here says the item came from any depot at all. That is the single most common deductive error. “Not from B” is proven. “From somewhere else” is an assumption.

The habit to build. Convert each premise into an if-then arrow on paper. Then look for a fact that denies the far end of an arrow. Formal syllogism vocabulary is not required. The arrows are.

Worked example 2: an inductive sequence

The sequence. Five square tiles. Each tile contains a number of dots and one arrow.

Tile 1: 2 dots, arrow pointing north.
Tile 2: 5 dots, arrow pointing east.
Tile 3: 10 dots, arrow pointing south.
Tile 4: 17 dots, arrow pointing west.
Tile 5: ?

Question. What does tile 5 contain?

A) 24 dots, arrow north B) 26 dots, arrow north C) 26 dots, arrow east D) 25 dots, arrow west

Worked solution.

Step 1. Handle the two features separately. Never mix them.

Step 2. Dots. The differences are 5 minus 2 equals 3, then 10 minus 5 equals 5, then 17 minus 10 equals 7. The differences rise by 2 each time, so the next difference is 9. Tile 5 has 17 plus 9, which is 26 dots. As a check, the counts fit n squared plus 1: 2, 5, 10, 17, 26.

Step 3. Arrow. North, east, south, west is a 90 degree clockwise rotation each step. After west comes north. Tile 5 has an arrow pointing north.

Step 4. Combine: 26 dots, arrow north. The answer is B.

Why the others fail. Option A keeps the difference at 7 and gives 24. Option C gets the count right and continues the rotation one step short. Option D uses a simple squares pattern and freezes the arrow. Each distractor is one feature solved correctly and one feature solved lazily, which is exactly how these tests are built.

What is the fastest reliable method?

Use the rule-first method.

Cover the options. Look only at the stimulus.
Name the features. Count, shape, shading, size, rotation, position. Most inductive items move two or three of them independently.
Write the rule in words. “Dots go up by an increasing odd number. Arrow turns 90 degrees clockwise.”
Predict the answer before you uncover the options.
Match, then eliminate. If two options survive, find the one feature that separates them and check only that feature.

For deductive items, the equivalent of step 3 is the if-then arrow. For diagrammatic items, it is a small table of what each symbol does, built from the worked examples the test gives you at the start.

How should you structure your practice?

Practice pays off in pattern vocabulary, not in general cleverness. After about 40 inductive items, most people have seen every common transformation at least twice, and recognition becomes automatic.

Do sets under a strict clock. Untimed practice teaches habits you cannot use on the day.
Review harder than you practise. For every item you missed, write the rule you failed to spot in one sentence.
Keep a running list of transformations you have met. Reread it before the test.
Practise the specific publisher if you know it. Our SHL inductive reasoning guide covers the SHL style, and the Watson Glaser test guide covers the critical thinking variant used for law and graduate schemes.
If the employer bundles logical reasoning with numerical and verbal sections, prepare the whole battery. See how to pass online assessment tests and the CCAT test guide for mixed-format sittings.

What do employers do with the score?

Raw marks are converted into a percentile against a norm group of comparable candidates, so your result is a rank rather than a pass mark. Published guidance for graduate roles commonly puts a competitive band around the 70th to 90th percentile, though the cut-off is set by the employer and the role. Adaptive tests such as Talent Q adjust item difficulty as you answer, so a lower number of correct answers on harder items can outscore more correct answers on easy ones.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between logical, inductive and abstract reasoning?

Logical reasoning is the umbrella term. Inductive reasoning means finding the rule behind a sequence. Abstract reasoning is the same skill tested with figure series, odd one out, or matrix items. Deductive reasoning is the separate branch where you draw certain conclusions from given premises.

How long do logical reasoning tests take?

It depends on the publisher. Deductive tests commonly run 15 to 40 minutes. Kenexa logical reasoning is around 24 questions in 20 minutes, and Ravens Advanced Progressive Matrices is 23 questions in 42 minutes.

Should I guess if I run out of time?

Check the instruction screen. Where there is no penalty for a wrong answer, always guess rather than leave a blank. Eliminate one option first if you can, because that alone lifts the odds.

Can you prepare for an abstract reasoning test?

Yes, but the gain comes from recognising recurring transformations quickly, not from learning content. Building a written list of transformations you have already met is the most efficient form of preparation.

Are calculators allowed?

Logical reasoning tests rarely involve arithmetic, so a calculator is normally irrelevant. Scrap paper is more useful, and the invitation email will say whether it is permitted.

Do these tests measure intelligence?

They measure a narrow slice of reasoning under time pressure. Employers use them because scores relate moderately to job performance, not because they are a complete picture of ability.