← Reasoning

Statement and Assumptions

Reasoning · Logical & Analytical Reasoning

6 Part1 worked examples6 practice questions

When someone says “I am leaving with an umbrella”, he has not mentioned rain, yet two things hide behind his words: it may rain, and the umbrella will protect him. These are assumptions — things the speaker took as true without saying so, and without which his statement would be pointless.

In the exam a statement is given (an advertisement, advice, announcement, warning …) with two or three assumptions. You are asked which is implicit. You must find what is hidden in the statement — not a new conclusion drawn from it, and not something that is true but which the statement does not need.

An honest note: in this topic each statement is judged by thought, not by calculation. That is why every question here comes with a one-line reason — why an assumption is implicit or not. Reading those reasons is the real preparation for this topic.

PartWhat you learn
Part 1What an assumption is, the negation test, three checks
Part 2Kinds of statements: advertisement, appeal, advice, order, warning, comparison, cause-effect, announcement and traps
Part 3Questions with three assumptions

How to use this chapter

  1. Ask the purpose — why is the speaker saying this?
  2. Solved example — against each assumption there is “implicit ✔ / not ✘” and a one-line reason.
  3. Try it yourself — apply the negation test to each assumption first, then choose.
  4. The four options are always only I, only II, both or neither. (Different in the three-assumption questions.)
NoteAll statements and situations here are our own. In the exam you reason only from the statement given; do not lean on outside facts, only on common sense.
1

Foundation — the assumption and how to test it

The foundation buried under the statement

The difference between assumption, conclusion and fact, the negation test and three checks.

Assumption, conclusion and fact

Three things that are often mixed up

What an assumption is and how it differs from a conclusion and an outside fact.

Around every statement three kinds of things can stand. Keeping them apart is the first art of this topic:

ThingRelation to the statementExample: “I am leaving with an umbrella”
Assumptiona belief before the statement; without it the statement is pointless“It may rain; the umbrella will protect me.”
Conclusiona point after the statement; it comes out of it“The speaker is going out.”
Outside factmay be true, but the statement does not need it“An umbrella is made of cloth.”

A simple way to spot it: an assumption was already in the speaker’s mind, while a conclusion is drawn afterwards by the listener.

  • The statement is not judged true or false — we only see what is taken for granted behind it.
  • An assumption is not judged true or false either; the test is whether it is necessary.
  • A very common, natural belief (like “people want their own benefit”) is often implicit, but only when the statement rests on it.
TrickThe very first question: what is the speaker’s purpose? An ad aims to sell, advice aims to help, a warning to protect, an order to keep arrangement. Once the purpose is clear, most implicit assumptions show themselves.

The negation test and three checks

Assume it false: does the statement break?

The main method of testing an assumption and three checks; with easy questions.

The most reliable way to test an assumption is the negation test: suppose that assumption false and see whether the statement keeps its sense or purpose.

The negation test
Reverse the assumptionRead the statement againSense broken? → implicit ✔Sense survives? → not implicit ✘

Example: statement “Switch to SolarGlow lamps and halve your electricity bill.” Assumption “People want to reduce the bill.” Reverse it: “People do not want to reduce the bill.” The ad becomes useless — implicit ✔. Second assumption “SolarGlow is the cheapest lamp.” Reverse: “SolarGlow is not the cheapest.” The ad is still fine — implicit ✘.

Three checks

  1. Need — does the statement rest on it? (negation test)
  2. Link — is it directly tied to the statement or a far-off extra?
  3. Words — does it contain extreme words like “only / all / always / never / best”? Such words often make an assumption wrong.
NoteCaution: an assumption with an extreme word is not always wrong — a statement like “all the prisoners were charged with a crime” can apply to all. So the third check is a hint, not a rule; the final word belongs to the negation test.
Example 1 · Basic
Statement: “Switch to SolarGlow lamps and halve your electricity bill.” — an advertisement — Assumptions: I. SolarGlow lamps are available to buy ; II. People want to reduce their electricity bills
Solution, step by step
  1. 1I. SolarGlow lamps are available to buy → implicit ✔. Negation test: if false, the statement would lose its ground — An invitation to switch is made only if the lamps can be bought.
  2. 2II. People want to reduce their electricity bills → implicit ✔. Negation test: if false, the statement would lose its ground — The appeal works only if people wish to cut the bill.
  3. 3So the answer: Both assumptions are implicit.
Answer Both assumptions are implicit
The negation test on both assumptions.
BasicTry it yourself first
Statement: “Get Anand Dairy milk at your door every morning before 6 a.m.” — Assumptions: I. The dairy is able to deliver milk to homes before 6 a.m ; II. Many people like to have milk delivered home early in the morning
BasicTry it yourself first
Statement: “For a safe journey ride our buses — every bus has GPS.” — Assumptions: I. Travellers value safety ; II. Buses with GPS never meet with accidents
BasicTry it yourself first
Statement: Please donate old books to the village library. — Assumptions: I. The library can make use of donated books ; II. People have old books they no longer need
BasicTry it yourself first
Statement: “Citizens are requested to switch off unnecessary lights in the evening peak hours.” — electricity department — Assumptions: I. Switching off unnecessary lights saves electricity ; II. All citizens will certainly obey the request
BasicTry it yourself first
Statement: “Please plant saplings and water them till they grow.” — municipal corporation — Assumptions: I. Only the municipal corporation can plant saplings ; II. Planting and tending saplings is good for the environment
BasicTry it yourself first
Statement: “Please stand in the queue.” — a notice at a counter — Assumptions: I. The queue will end in five minutes ; II. Those who break the queue will be fined
2

Kinds of statements and their usual assumptions

Each kind has its own pattern

Advertisements, appeals, advice, orders, warnings, comparisons, cause and effect, announcements and the “only / always” traps.

Advertisements and appeals

Selling or asking — resting on another’s wish

The usual assumptions and traps of advertisements and appeals.

🔒

Advice, orders and warnings

“Do / do not” statements

Statements of advice, rules and warnings: the reason, the possibility and the traps.

🔒

Comparisons, cause-effect and statements of fact

“More than”, “because”, “yet”

The assumptions when a statement compares, gives a cause or reports something surprising.

🔒

“Only / always / never” and announcements

The traps of extreme words and the base of announcements

How to find the assumption when the statement has extreme words or is an official announcement.

🔒
3

Three assumptions

One statement, three assumptions, many combinations

The bank-exam style: which of three assumptions are implicit.

Questions with three assumptions

A separate negation test for each assumption

The method of choosing the right combination from three assumptions, with practice.

🔒
4

Strategy guide

Purpose → three checks → verdict

The order for each question, a table of statement types and the common mistakes.

The order of solving and the table of types

Spot the type of the statement, then apply its pattern

What is usually implicit and what is a trap in each kind of statement.

🔒

Common mistakes

The mistakes that keep happening

The commonest reasons for losing marks in assumption questions.

🔒
5

Mixed practice

All kinds mixed

Statements of different kinds in three levels.

Basic practice

Plain reasons and plain traps

Simple statements; think of the purpose first, then the negation test.

🔒

Standard practice

Two assumptions that look alike

Where both assumptions look alike but only one is the base.

🔒

Advanced practice

Subtle traps and three assumptions

The finest statements and three-assumption questions.

🔒
6

Revision — cards

Flip each card and test yourself

Think of the answer yourself first, then flip.

🔒