gmat full key notes

8/10/2019 GMAT Full Key Notes

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NEWTON KNOTES

GMAT Quantitative

MEDIAN: The number in the middle of a set, when the terms are putin order. If there is an even number of terms in the set, the median isthe average of the two middle terms.

MODE: The number that appears most often in a set.

RANGE: The difference between the largest and smallest numbers in a set.

STANDARD DEVIATION: Measures how “spread out” the elements

in a set are. {51, 50, 51, 51, 52} has a lower standard deviation than{2, 6, 24, 25, 34}.

INTEREST FORMULAS: For initial investment of P dollars at an annualinterest rate of r percent.

• Simple interest: Amount of money in an account making simple

interest after t years: P + P rt

• Compound interest: Amount of money in an account where interest

is compounded n times per year, after t years: P (1 + ) nt

Common formulas• Distance = speed × time

• Work = work rate × time

Roots: If -1 < x < 1, x is farther from 0

than x 2 is, and closer to 0 than x is.

Even powers have both positive andnegative solutions ( x 2 = 4 x = ±2),

but √ x is defined to be positive ( √4 = 2).

xy -planeDistance formula: d = √( x 2 − x

1 )2 + ( y

2 − y

1 )2

Lines

• Slope formula:

• Perpendicular lines have negativereciprocal slopes.

• Parallel lines have the same slope.

• Equation of a line: y = mx + b, where m is slope and b is y -intercept.

Exponents and rootsExponent rules:

• ( ab ) n = ( a n )( b n )

• ( a m )( a n ) = a ( m+ n )

• ( a m ) n = a ( mn )

• ( a b ) = ( ac ) b = c

• = a ( b–c )

Negative exponents: a –n =

Roots:

Negative bases: Negative numbers raisedto odd powers stay negative ((-3)3 = -27),but negative numbers raised to evenpowers are positive ((-3)4 = 81).

Fractional exponents: =

Polynomials:

• Factoring: x 2 + Cx + D = ( x + a )( x +means ab = D and ( a + b ) = C

• FOIL: First, Outside, Inside, Last

• ( x + y )( x + y ) = x 2 + 2 xy + y 2

• ( x – y )( x – y ) = x 2 – 2 xy + y 2

• Difference of squares:( x + y )( x – y ) = x 2 – y 2

Systems with too few equations

• Look for ways to solve for the value

an expression, or of a single variab

• Keep an eye out for dependent eq

tions, especially on word problems

nequalities

• If you multiply or divide an inequality by

a negative number, you must flip the sign.

• NEVER multiply or divide an inequality

by a variable if you don’t know its sign.

Operation words

• “sum” is result of adding numbers

• “difference” is result of subtracting numbers

• “product” is result of multiplying numbers

• “quotient” is result of dividing numbers

1 a n

1

a n n

CommonSquares

12 = 1

22 = 4

32 = 9

42 = 16

52 = 25

62 = 36

72 = 49

82 = 64

92 = 81

102 = 100

112 = 121

122 = 144

132 = 169

142 = 196

152 = 225

162 = 256

172 = 289

182 = 324

192 = 361

202 = 400

252 = 625

302 = 900

a b

ac

MEAN: Average =

12

COMMON HIGHER

POWERS

STATISTICS AND FORMULAS

ALGEBRA

DECIMAL/PERCENTAGE/FRACTION

EQUIVALENCIES:

Powers of 2

21 = 2

22 = 4

23 = 8

24 = 16

25 = 32

26 = 64

27 = 128

28 = 256

29 = 512

210 = 1,024

Powers of 3

31 = 3

32 = 9

33 = 27

34 = 81

Common

Cubes

13 = 1

23 = 8

33 = 27

43 = 64

53 = 125

STRATEGIES AND APPROACHES

First stepsAlways be doing something! Once you’ve read the problem (20-25 seconds),

choose an approach and dive in! Some first steps that open up many questions are:

- Set up an equation

- Set up a system and solve

with substitution

- Test Cases

StrategiesPIN – If you see variables in the answerchoices and “in terms of” in the prompt,you can use PIN.

• Procedure:1. Choose number(s).2. Solve problem with chosen number(s).

Find numerical answer.3. Test all five answer choices. If multiple

answer choices return same value asprompt, plug in new number(s) and repeat.

Plugging in the Answer Choices – If theanswer choices are numbers that can be

substituted for a value in the question, andare steadily increasing or decreasing roundnumbers, you can plug them intothe prompt.

• Start with B or D, then try the other—

this method can allow you to solve by

testing only two answer choices instead

of all five.

Strategies• Testing Cases – This strategy is esp-

ecially useful on number properties/

inequalities/absolute value questions.

- When Testing Cases on Data

Sufficiency, use the constraints

to try to find conflicting answers

to the question in the prompt.

- Only test numbers that satisfy

the constraints in the prompt.

• Don’t Solve – Don’t solve equations

or do calculations if you don’t have to!

- A single-variable linear equation

is enough to find the value of the

variable.

- A system of independent linear

equations with as many equations

as variables is enough to find the

value of any variable.

Testing Cases – On any Number

Properties question, you can Test Cas

• Test any number that fits the cond

in the prompt!

• Look for clue phrases:

- “could be true”

- “must be true”

- “could be false”

- “must be false”

Choice-driven questions – If you mulook at the answer choices to solve(“Which of the following”-type questio

start with E and work upwards. Approaches

• Always be sure you know what yo

are solving for (don’t solve for x wh

the answer is 3x).

• Note that there is no extra informatio

Problem Solving questions—you will

to use every piece of information pro

NUMBERS AND ARITHMET

“Percent of” translations:

• 10% of x : ( ) x

• n% of x : ( ) x

Combinatorics:

• General method: Draw blanks, fill of possibilities, multiply together.

• Always begin with the blank with tmost restrictions.

• Combinations (order doesn’t matt - Number of ways to choose k item

from a set of n:

- Number of ways to choose 2 ite

from a set of n:

- Number of ways to choose 1 itefrom a set of n: n

• Permutations (order matters):- Number of ways to arrange k ite

from a set of n:

• Factorials: n! = n × ( n – 1) × ( n –× 3 × 2 × 1

Common factorials

- 0! = 1! = 1

- 2! = 2

- 3! = 6

n( n − 1)

2

Timing strategies• Aim to spend 2 minutes per question—less on easier questions, a little more

on harder ones.

• If you’ve spent 3 minutes on a question, re-evaluate: Are you within 30 seconds

of a solution?

- If you are, continue and solve quickly. - If you aren’t, use the work you’ve done to make an educated guess and move

• NEVER leave questions unanswered at the end of the exam.

Approaches• Always know what you need to

determine before turning to the

statements.

• Always consider the statements

separately before combining.

• Remember that “No” can be sufficient:

If you have enough information to

answer “No” to the question in the

prompt, that is sufficient information,

and the answer cannot be E.

• Memorize the answer choices!

- Statement 1 alone - Statement 2 alone

- Both statements combined

- Each statement alone

- Not even both combined

- Factor/FOIL

- Apply exponent rules

- Apply angle properties and look

for right triangles

Data Sufficiency Problem Solving

10100

- 4! = 24

- 5! = 120

- 6! = 720

n100

n!

k !( n − k )!

n!( n − k )!

r n

• Profit = revenue – cost

• Revenue = volume × unit cost

• Weighted averages:

- using # of terms in each set:

- using % of total in each set:

= 0.5 = 50% = 0.2 = 20%

≈ 0.33

≈ 33.3% = 0.4 = 40%

≈ 0.66 ≈ 66.6% = 0.6 = 60%

≈ 0.16 ≈ 16.6% = 0.8 = 80%

≈ 0.33 ≈ 33.3% = 0.125 = 12.5%

= 0.5 = 50% = 0.25 = 25%

≈ 0.66 ≈ 66.6% = 0.375 = 37.5%

≈ 0.83 ≈ 83.3% = 0.5 = 50%

= 0.25 = 25% = 0.625 = 62.5%

= 0.5 = 50% = 0.75 = 75%

= 0.75 = 75% = 0.875 = 87.5%

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NEWTON KNOTES

GMAT Quantitative

Geometry shortcuts• On xy -plane problems, if you have any one of these,

you can find any of the other 4:

- Any linear equation containing both x and y

- Slope-intercept form of a line

- 2 points on a line

- The intercepts of a line

- The slope and one point on a line

• On rectangle/right triangle geometry problems, if you

have any 2 of these, you can find any of the other 3:

- Length of rectangle ( a )

- Width of rectangle ( b )

- Length of diagonal ( c )

- Area of rectangle

- Perimeter of rectangle

Triangles• Area of a triangle =

• Angles in any triangle add to 180°.

quilateral triangle: All sides equal,ll angles equal to 60°.

sosceles triangles: Two equal angles,with sides opposite those angles also equal.

imilar triangles: If two triangles have all theame angles, their side lengths will all be inhe same ratio to one another, and vice versa.

riangle Inequality: Any side must be shorterhan the sum of the other two sides, and longerhan the difference of the other two sides.

Right triangle: One 90° angle, across fromhe longest side (hypotenuse).

• Pythagorean theorem: a2 + b2 = c2

• Special right triangles:

- 45-45-90 (with side lengths x , x , x √2 )

- 30-60-90 (with side lengths x , , 2 x )

- Pythagorean triples: 3-4-5, 6-8-10, 9-12-15,

30-40-50, 5-12-13, 10-24-26, 8-15-17

2

base × height

s

s

s s

RIGHT TRIANGLE

c

b

a

x ˚ x ˚

ISOSCELESEQUILATERAL

60 ˚

60 ˚60 ˚

x y

z

| x − y | < z < ( x + y )

TRIANGLE INEQUALITY

e° a°

b°

c°d °

FULL ROTATION a°+b°+ c°+d°+ e° = 360°

GEOMETRY

ac

b

NUMBER PROPERTIES

SPECIAL RIGHT TRIANGLES

45

45 ˚

x 2 x 60 ˚

30 ˚

x

x x

˚

w

w

RECTANGLE

y ˚

y ˚

y ˚

y ˚ x ˚

x ˚

x ˚

x ˚

PARALLEL LINES with TRANSV

CYLIN

BOX

s

s

s

CUBE

Factors, multiples, divisibility:

• In a list of n consecutive integers, exactly

one will be a multiple of n.

• The sum or difference of two multiples of

a number is also a multiple of that number.

• All of the following phrases are equivalent:

- a is evenly divisible by b

- b evenly divides a - b divides a with no remainder

- b is a factor of a

- a is a multiple of b

• Divisibility rules:

- 3: digits add to a multiple of

3 (87 is divisible by 3 because

8 + 7 = 15 and 15 = 5 × 3)

- 4: last 2 digits alone are divisible

by 4 (24 ÷ 4 = 6, so 124 and 3,524

are divisible by 4)

- 5: last digit is 5 or 0

- 6: divisible by 2 AND 3

- 9: digits add to a multiple of 9

- 12: divisible by 3 AND 4

• Use factor trees to find all the

prime factors of a number.

Properties of 0:

• = 0 × n = 0

• n + 0 = n – 0 = n

• n0 = 1

• 0 is even.

• 0 is neither positive nor negative.

Properties of 1:

• n × 1 = = n1 = n

• 1 n = 1

Odd and even integers:

• Addition/subtraction:

- Odd + Even = Odd

- Even + Even = Even

- Odd + Odd = Even

• Multiplication:

- Odd × Even = Even

- Even × Even = Even

- Odd × Odd = Odd

Positive and negative integers:

• Addition/subtraction:

- Pos + Pos = Pos

- Neg + Neg = Neg

- Pos − Neg = Pos - Neg − Pos = Neg

Prime numbers:

• A prime number is any number tha

only has 2 factors: itself and 1.

• 1 is not prime.

• 2 is the only even prime.

• Prime numbers to know: 2, 3, 5, 7,

13, 17, 19, 23, 29, 31, 37, 41, 43, 4

Integers:

• Integers are whole numbers, includ

negative whole numbers.

• 0 is an integer.

Use Venn diagrams to organize inforin sets problems.

The ratio of a to b can be written as

or a : b.

Direct and inverse proportions:

• If x and y are directly proportional,

then x = cy , where c is a constant.

• If x and y are inversely proportionathen xy = c, where c is a constant.

thousands

hundreds

tensones

1,234.567

tenths

hundredths

thousandths

A B

x y z

n1

0 n

• Multiplication/division:

- Pos (÷/ × ) Neg = Neg (÷/ × ) Pos = Neg

(different signs gives a negative result)

- Pos (÷/ × ) Pos = Pos (same sign gives

a positive result)

- Neg (÷/ × ) Neg = Pos (same sign gives

a positive result)

Absolute value:

• Absolute value of a number is alwaysgreater than or equal to zero.

• Equation with absolute value is really

two equations: |x| = n x = n or x = – n.

• Inequalities with absolute value:

|x| < n − n < x < n

|x | > n x < − n OR n < x

Place value: Know the names of thousandsthrough thousandths place.

60

512

62

32

A B = x

A B = y

QuadrilateralsSquares:

• All sides equal

• All angles 90°

• Area of a square = s2

Rectangles:

• Opposite sides equal

• All angles 90°

• Area of a rectangle = ℓw

Combined figures are always combinations of familiar shapes. Find their areasand perimeters by combining the areas and perimeters of these familiar shapes.

Circles• A tangent and a radius make a 90° angle.

• Full angle of a circle is 360°.

• Radius: any line from the center

to the edge of the circle

• Diameter = 2 r

• Circumference = 2π r

• Area of a circle = π r 2

• Sector and arc: = =

• Inscribed angle has half the measure

of central angle with same endpoints.

Angles• Angles that make a full rotation around a point add to 360°.

• Supplementary angles add to 180º.

• Complementary angles add to 90°.

• Parallel lines with transversals:

- Big angles ( y ) all equal

- Small angles ( x ) all equal

- Big + Small = 180°

3D shapesCylinder: volume of cylinder = π r 2 h

• surface area of cylinder = Bases + Lateral Area = 2π r 2 + 2π rh .

Rectangular solid: volume of box = ℓwh

• surface area of box = 2 ℓw + 2wh + 2 ℓ h.

Cube: volume of cube = s3

• surface area of cube = 6 s2

x °

y °

y = x

2

INSCRIBED and CENTRAL A

secto r

CIRCLE

arc length

circumference

sector area

circle area

central angle

360°

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NEWTON KNOTES

GMAT Sentence Correction

f most or all of the sentence is underlined, there are probably several errors among the answer

choices. Likely, at least one answer choice contains a modifier or structure error.

SC APPROACH - MOST/ALL OF SENTENCE UNDERLINED

4) Repeat the process for choices C-E.

Continue to use differences between options

to spot potential errors.

5) If more than one choice still remains, plug

each underlined portion back into the originalsentence; choose the option that clearly and

unambiguously expresses the intended

meaning of the sentence.

6) In a 50/50 guessing situation, favor the

more concise option - the one without

extra pronouns or prepositional phrases.

1) Read through the entire sentence for meaning.

2) Use clues to determine which rule(s) may

have been violated. If you find an error in

the original, eliminate A.

Note: awkwardness alone is NOT ENOUGH to eliminate an answer choice. The choice

must violate a grammatical rule.

3) Read through choice B, and, by using the

clues you have already found and by noting

the differences between A and B, determine

the type of error you’re looking for. If you

spot an error, eliminate B.

SC APPROACH - ONLY A FEW WORDS UNDERLINED

If only a few words are underlined, the question is likely testing one very specific rule.

if one choice uses “as” but another uses

look for a correctly formed comparison.

3. Choose the option that uses the correct w

or phrase in the context of the sentence.

4. If you’re down to two options and one co

an extra pronoun or awkward prepositionphrase, opt for concision and clarity.

1. Read the entire sentence to determine what

role the underlined portion plays. The under-

lined portion may connect two clauses, be

part of an idiomatic expression, etc. Use

clues to determine what the error may be.

2. If you’re having trouble figuring out what isbeing tested, use the differences between the

answer choices to guide you; for example,


SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT

PRONOUNS

MODIFIERS

RULE: An adjective or a phrase or clause that acts as an adjective must describe a

Adjectival modifiers follow strict placement rules.

RULE: An adverb or a phrase or clause that acts as an adverb can describe a verb,

tive, or another adverb. The placement of adverbial modifiers is often somewhat flex

ELIMINATE OPTIONS in which adjectival modifiers DO NOT describe a specific no

ELIMINATE OPTIONS in which the placement of the modifier is incorrect.

Adjective Clauses begin with relative pronouns: “which,” “that,” “who,” “whose,” “w

RULE: An adjective clause must describe the noun or noun idea immediately be

When no new subject is introduced, the verb in the clause must agree with the noun

described by the clause. If a “noun + prepositional phrase” makes up a “noun idea

clause can describe either the noun before the prepositional phrase or the object of

preopositional phrase. The verb in the clause must agree with the logically modified9 RIGHT: The books on the desk, which was the most expensive item in the furni

store, are open. (“which” logically refers to the noun “desk.”)

9 RIGHT: The books on the desk, which include a history textbook and a fiction n

are open. (“which” logically refers to the noun idea “the books on the desk.”)

ELIMINATE OPTIONS in which the adjective clause refers to an abstract idea.

8 WRONG: Taylor broke her leg, which kept her from competing in the race.

ELIMINATE OPTIONS in which the adjective clause does not describe the noun or

idea immediately before it.

Participial Phrases begin with present participles (-ing words) or past participles (usually

words. They must describe a logical noun.

RULE: A participial phrases at the beginning of a sentence must modify the first noun after the

ELIMINATE OPTIONS in which the first noun after the comma is not the noun descby the phrase.

8 WRONG: Wanting to finish its project by Monday, the team’s meetings were on S

and Sunday. (The team wanted to finish the “project,” not the “meetings.”)

9

RIGHT: Wanting to finish its project by Monday, the team held meetings on Satand Sunday. (The “team” is correctly modified by the participial phrase.)

Note: A pronoun inside of a modifying phrase (seen above) must refer to the noun being mo

RULE: A participial phrase that is set off by a comma, but is not at the beginning of

tence, is more flexible with its placement, as long as it is clear what is being modified

participial phrase is not set off by a comma, it must describe the noun before it.

ELIMINATE OPTIONS in which the participial phrase within the sentence does not

describe the specific noun it should logically describe.

8 WRONG: The manager hired the new employee, excited for the future of the co

(Unclear as to who is excited, the “manager” or the “employee.”)

9 RIGHT: The manager hired the new employee, who was excited for the future o

company. (Relative clause clarifies that the “employee” is being modified.)

9 RIGHT: The manager hired the new employee, believing that the candidate’s pri

experiences were valuable. (Logically, the participle must describe the “manage

Summative modifiers begin with “a” or “an” and a noun that re-names or summar

the gist of the previous clause. Summative modifiers often fix other modifier errors b

they don’t need to describe a specific noun.

8 WRONG: The researchers hypothesized that the old method is flawed, which is

to cause a great deal of controversy.

9 RIGHT: The researchers hypothesized that the old method is flawed, a proposa

is likely to cause a great deal of controversy.

Prepositional Phrases begin with a preposition (of, to, for, in, with, etc.) and end w

noun. They can be adjectival or adverbial.

RULE: A prepositional phrase that describes a noun follows the same rules as a pa

phrase (see above).

RULE: When a prepositional phrase describes actions, its placement in the sentenc

is flexible, as long it is clear what it describes.

9 RIGHT: Until last week, the professor had never missed a day of work.

9 RIGHT: The professor had never missed a day of work until last week.

9 RIGHT: The professor had, until last week, never missed a day of work.

SUMMARY: When you see THESE CLUES, look for logical modification:

• The words “which” and “that” are at the beginnings of clauses

• A describing phrase is at the beginning of a sentence

• Sentences that have a lot underlined and jumble the order of phrases and clauses

ULE: Clauses must each contain a subject-verb pair. A verb must agree with its subject

number.

LIMINATE OPTIONS in which the main subject-verb pair does not agree.

LIMINATE OPTIONS in which a subject-verb pair in an adjective clause or other depend-nt clause does not agree.

ULE: The GMAT injects filler between a subject-verb pair. Ignore this filler.

• The subject of a sentence will never be inside of a prepositional phrase.

- If the subject is plural, the GMAT often puts a singular noun next to the verb to make

the error more difficult to identify. With singular subjects, the GMAT often puts a plural

noun next to the verb.

prep. phrase adjective clause “trick” plural noun 8 WRONG: The start of the races that will be run by the best athletes are at 6 pm.

9 RIGHT: The start of the races that will be run by the best athletes is at 6 pm.

ULE: The GMAT uses particularly tricky nouns as subjects. Unusual nouns rules:

• Collective nouns refer to a group as a unit, and, on the GMAT, they are almost always

singular. Ex: Team, jury, committee, company, cluster, group

• Indefinite Pronouns fall into three categories:

- Singular: each, every, anyone, everyone, nobody

- Plural: both, few

- Depends on the noun to which it refers: all, some, most, majority

• Compound Subjects connected by “and” are almost always plural.

• Noun Clauses beginning with “what” (“what the doctors have found is startling”)

are usually singular.

• Gerunds, nouns that end in –ing (“collecting cards is my favorite hobby”), are singular.• Inverted Sentences disguise agreement by placing the verb after the subject. When

a verb is preceded only by modifiers (prepositional phrase, participial phrase, etc.),

the subject must come after the verb, and the verb must agree with its subject.

prep. phrase relative clause 8 WRONG: In my closet, which is in the front hall, is all of my toys.

9 RIGHT: In my closet, which is in the front hall, are all of my toys.

UMMARY: When you see THESE CLUES, check for S-V agreement:

• Answer choices differ by the use of singular/plural verb.

• Sentences are full of adjective clauses and prepositional phrases.

• “Unusual nouns” are used as subjects.

ULE: Every pronoun must have a specific antecedent. The GMAT doesn’t often use

endered pronouns, so look specifically for it/its/they/them/their.

ULE: Every pronoun must agree in number with its antecedent.

LIMINATE OPTIONS that contain a pronoun but do not contain a noun that agrees in

umber for the pronoun to logically replace.

LIMINATE OPTIONS that do not CLEARLY use a pronoun to refer to one, specific noun.

ULE: When the subject of a dependent clause is a pronoun, this pronoun’s antecedent

hould be the subject of the main clause. When a sentence contains two independent

auses and the subject of the second clause is a pronoun, this pronoun’s antecedent

hould be the subject of the first clause.

8 WRONG: Because it was robbed last month, the door to the house is locked.

(“it” is the subject of the dependent clause, so it must be illogically referring to “door.”)

UMMARY: When you see THESE CLUES, look for pronoun-antecedent agreement:

• EVERY TIME you see a pronoun, find its antecedent

• Unusual nouns (especially collective nouns): the GMAT uses the same unusual nounsto test S-V and P-A agreement




RULE: Events that take place at the same time should be in the same verb tense. W

there is a time shift in a sentence, the verb tenses used should correctly reflect this

RULE: Use the past perfect and present perfect tenses correctly; the GMAT comm

tests these tenses.

The Past Perfect tense, or “had + past participle,” can only be used when the ver

this tense took place in the far past, before another event in the more recent past.

The Present Perfect tense, or “has/have + past participle,” describes an event thabegan at a point in the past and may continue. The word “since” is a great clue tha

a sentence may need the present perfect.

ELIMINATE OPTIONS that use different verb tenses to describe two events that ta

place during the same time period. The word “when” links events that take place a

same time, and verbs that are linked in lists or by correlative conjunctions must typ

be in the same tense.

ELIMINATE OPTIONS that use the past perfect when the event in this tense did no

come before another past tense event.

8 WRONG: By the time the movie had started, we were waiting in line for an hou

(Logically, we waited before the movie started.)

9 RIGHT: By the time the movie started, we had been waiting in line for an hour.

ELIMINATE OPTIONS that use the present perfect to describe an event that took

at a specific point in time; events in the present perfect span a non-specific period

that began in the past.

8 WRONG: In 1960, the family has moved to Canada. (The action happened at a

specific point in history.)

9 RIGHT: In 1960, the family moved to Canada.

SUMMARY: When you see THESE CLUES, look for tense agreement:

• Prepositional phrases that describe a time: “since 1960,” or “in 1960” for exam

• “Had/Has/Have + past participle”

RULE: When you’re choosing between options that do not contain concrete violati

of grammatical rules, choose options that do not contain the following:

8 Awkward: With the finishing of the construction of the building, the architects w

out to celebrate it.

9 Better: Because they finished the construction of the building, the architects w

out to celebrate.Check us out at www.knewton.com/gmat

VERB TENSE

ULE: Ideas within the same clause must be connected correctly. Connected items

clude those in lists, those linked by correlative conjunctions, and those in comparisons.

LIMINATE OPTIONS that do not form correlative conjunctions correctly. When items are

nked by correlative conjunctions, eliminate options that do not pair the first word in the

onstruction with the correct FANBOYS conjunction.

8 WRONG: In the final round, the judges had to choose between the smartest compet-

itor or the most attractive one.

9 RIGHT: In the final round the judges had to choose between the smartest competitor

and the most attractive one.

LIMINATE OPTIONS that do not properly separate items in a list using a conjunction.

8 WRONG: The new employee impressed the boss, a man named Jim, made an

impression on the CEO.

9 RIGHT: The new employee impressed the boss, a man named Jim, and made an

impression on the CEO.

ULE: Items connected by “and” must be the same part of speech. The word “and” is a

uge clue that items are in a list. Look to the word or phrase after the “and,” and match

to an earlier word or phrase that is the same part of speech. If no such word or phrasexists, then the option does not contain a parallel list. Make sure the list does in fact con-

ect items that play the same role in the sentence.

LIMINATE OPTIONS that do not link items that are the same part of speech when

sentence contains a list, a pair of correlative conjunctions, or a comparison.

8 WRONG: The exam testing natural intelligence and that one has work ethic will be

given tomorrow. (The item after “and” is a “that clause” – there must be another

“that clause” earlier)

ULE: An independent clause contains the main subject-verb pair; a sentence is incom-

ete without at least one independent clause.

LIMINATE OPTIONS that are f ragments because all clauses are dependent or because

ey contain a clause in which a subject’s verb is “stolen” by an adjective clause.

8 WRONG: The company’s business proposal is not ready because the manager, who

has not yet edited it.

9 RIGHT: The company’s business proposal is not ready because the manager hasnot yet edited it.

ULE: Clauses must be connected correctly. Two independent clauses must be connected

sing a semicolon or using a “comma + coordinating conjunction” (coordinating conjunc-

ons are FANBOYS words: For, And, Nor, But, Or, Yet, So).

LIMINATE OPTIONS that use a comma only or a coordinating conjunction only to con-

ect clauses that are independent.

8 WRONG: This winter has been unusually cold and last summer was unusually hot.

9 RIGHT: This winter has been unusually cold, and last summer was unusually hot.

LIMINATE OPTIONS that contain an incomplete clause on one side of a semicolon or a

comma + FANBOYS” construction.

8 WRONG: New computers have been purchased for the entire office; although most

employees can use only the old system.

9 RIGHT: New computers have been purchased for the entire office; however, most

employees can use only the old system.

UMMARY: When you see THESE CLUES, make sure that clauses are connected correctly:

• “Comma + FANBOYS” or (; )

• Some options contain adjective clauses while others do not

Ways to correctly connect clauses:

INDEPENDENT CLAUSE + COMMA + FANBOYS + INDEPENDENT CLAUSE

INDEPENDENT CLAUSE + SEMICOLON + INDEPENDENT CLAUSE

DEPENDENT CLAUSE + COMMA + INDEPENDENT CLAUSE

INDEPENDENT CLAUSE + COMMA + DEPENDENT CLAUSE

(Sometimes there is no comma when the dependent clause comes second)

MEMORIZE THE CORRELATIVE CONJUNCTIONS:

Either…or

Neither…nor

Both…and

Between…and

At once…and

Not…but

Not only…but also

Just as…so

Whether…or

MEMORIZE THE COMPARISON FORMATIONS:as…as

more/less/greater/higher…than

like/unlike (must compare two nouns)

NEWTON KNOTES

GMAT Sentence Correction

PARALLELISM/COMPARISONS

being

“preposition + the + -ing of”

having been

extra or unnecessary pronouns

9 RIGHT: The exam testing natural intelligence and work ethic will be given tomo

8 WRONG: The television program neither impressed viewers nor critics.

(“impressed” and “critics” are not the same part of speech)

9 RIGHT: The television program impressed neither viewers nor critics.

ELIMINATE OPTIONS that do not form comparisons correctly. Commonly used co

arison terms are:

8 WRONG: The new SUV uses gas more quickly as the small sedan does.

9 RIGHT: The new SUV uses gas more quickly than the small sedan does.

ELIMINATE OPTIONS that do not form logical comparisons.

RULE: In comparisons, “that” can be used to replace a singular item compared, an

“those”can replace a plural item. A possessive can be used if the item belonging to

possessive is the other item compared.

8 WRONG: The couches in the living room are smaller than that in the den. (“that

singular, but it refers to the plural noun “couches”)

9 RIGHT: The couches in the living room are smaller than those in the den.

8 WRONG: Unlike the head chef, whose dishes are always healthy, the assistant

are quite unhealthy. (the implied “assistant chef’s dishes” are being compared t

“head chef”)

9 RIGHT: Unlike the head chef’s dishes, which are always healthy, the assistant

are quite unhealthy.

SUMMARY: When you see THESE CLUES, check for parallelism:

• The word “and”

• Any correlative conjunction pair

• Comparison words: “as,” “than,” unlike,” “like”

SENTENCE STRUCTURE

WORDY AND AWKWARD CONSTRUCTIONS







READING COMPREHENSION QUESTION TYPES

assage Categories/Additional Reading

USINESS: Wall Street Journal, New York

mes, Economist, Businessweek, US Newsd World Report

CIENCE: New Scientist, Science, Popular

ience, Wired

UMANITIES: New Yorker, Atlantic Monthly,

ew Republic

se MAPS to Understand the Passage

AIN IDEA: What is being said. Often called

e “primary concern”

TITUDE: How it is said. The feeling orinion of the author, often called the “tone”

URPOSE: Why it’s being said. Purpose is

ually expressed as a verb on the GMAT,

“defend,” “compare,” or “illustrate”

RUCTURE: How the passage is organized.

efly note a description of each paragraph.

Write down as much or as little as is

needed in order to understand the main

ideas and structure of the passage.

The Ideas That Matter:

Take note of the “conventional wisdom” (“Many say…,” “most agree”). Note compar

or similarities between two ideas (“Unlike,” “Alternatively,” “Another proposed solutio

1. RC tests your ability to locate, under-

stand and paraphrase ideas in a passage.

2. Passages: 250-400 words. The passage

appears on the left; questions, one at

a time, on the right.

RC BASICS

3. Four passages appear on every test,

each with 3-4 questions.

4. Bring no prior knowledge to this section;

all the information that is needed to

answer the questions is contained in

or implied by the passage.

PAY ATTENTION TO: DON’T WORRY ABOUT:

Relative numbers or dates

(“before 1920…”)

Specific numbers or dates

(“On July 14, 1882…”)

Unknown words or terms that are

repeated or defined in the passage

Unknown words or terms that app

only once

Conflicting opinions, and why they conflict Determining which opinion is “righ

or which provides better reasoning

Problems and their proposed solutions Whether a given solution seems

effective or logical

Divisions between entities (“While all

corporations must… only industries

with strict hierarchies will profit from…”)

Lists of entities (“Corporations, pub

utilities, consumer agencies and po

cal organizations all…”)

Policies, theories or processes andthe author’s opinion about them

Complex details of an economic ptheory, or scientific process

Any proper names and what they

believe (“According to Harris,…”)

Committing names or theories

to memory.

Global Purpose Questions

• Refer to the entire passage; info shouldcome from your MAPS.

• Main Idea Questions: Choose the answerthat describes the entire passage. Avoid

choices that refer to one detail of the

passage and neglect bigger issues.

• Primary Purpose Questions: Use the lead

verb in the answer choices to eliminate

incorrect answer choices.

- e.g.: if purpose is positive, eliminate

answers that say “dispute” or “recom-

mend against.”

Detail Questions

• Ask you to locate, understand and para-

phrase a specific detail from the passage.

• Use your MAPS to locate the relevant

section, and then re-read.

• Take the time to understand context

when answering detail questions; readthe sentence before and after the sen-tence referred to in the question.

• Avoid answer choices that distort details

from the passage or create paraphrases

that exaggerate claims from the passage.

nference Questions

• Ask you to determine which answerchoice is most strongly implied, but

is not explicitly stated, by the passage.

• Do not stray from passage logic; an

inference must be true according to

the passage.

• Avoid extreme answer choices or answer

choices that could be true according to

the passage but are not definitely true.

• Some ask why the author included

a certain detail; these questions are

almost always used either to exemplify

one of the author’s points or to providea counterargument.

• Re-read the entire paragraph in which

the detail is included.

• Difficult inference questions combine

several details; you may need to re-

read all relevant sections that refer to

the topic at hand.

Argument/Application Questions

• Ask you to understand an argument

and to strengthen, weaken, or apply

it to a specific case.

• Ask you to apply passage ideas to

hypothetical situations not describedin the passage.

• Do not overextend the analogy; the

correct answer will not require a largelogical leap.

• Often require you to determine a rule,

restriction or category described in the

passage.

- e.g. If a passage states that “Sung’s

1972 study claims that when invest-

ments surpass personal savings, eco-

nomic recessions are likely,” a question

might ask for a situation most likely to

engender an economic recession; the

correct answer would provide these

exact required conditions.

Note: On EXCEPT questions, begin with the

answer choices and find the corresponding

section of the passage, one by one, eliminating

them as you go. Watch out for distorted details

and extreme answer choices.

READING IN REGULAR LIFE READING ON THE GMAT

Every sentence is important. Many sentences are unimportant.

We stop to look up unknown words. Gather the meaning of words through

context.

We compare what we’re learning while

reading to what we already know.

Bring NO outside information to bear

the passage.

We take time to stop, reread, and

unravel complex details.

Skim complex details and description

and only return to them if they are as

about.

We know who wrote what we’re reading

and can take that into account while

reading.

Determine the author’s purpose, tone

and perspective without knowing wh

he or she is.

We trust the author to present pointsclearly, because it is his or her respon-

sibility to be understood.

Actively MAP the purpose and structof the passage to understand the ove

ideas.

Too Broad

in Scope

Goes beyond subject

of passage

Too Narrow

in Scope

Addresses overly

specific subject

Opposite States reversal

of correct fact

Extreme Overshoots answer/

extreme language

Irrelevant Topic Addresses new

subject erroneously

Incorrect

Comparisons

Erroneously com

two entities

Distorted Detail Uses passage

wording incorrec

Could be True Possibly true bu

not inferable

WRONG ANSWER CHOICESSome types of incorrect answer choices appear many times on the Reading Comprehension

Many answer choices pull eye-catcdetails from the wrong section of th

sage; use your MAPS to eliminate th

answers immediately.

STANDARD WACs DIFFICULT WACs

• Spend 2-3 minutes actively reading andMAPping the passage, and 4 to 5 minutes

answering the questions. An entire passage

should take 6-8 minutes.

• Read the entire passage only once, and

then re-visit sections of the passage as

the questions dictate.

• Read actively: focus on the main idea

and structure, not on complex details.

• Don’t spend time re-reading a com

idea or sentence; most details in a psage will not be tested, and if a con

ing detail is tested, revisit and deci

as needed.

• Passages often include lists, long

sentences, complex and convolutephrasing, or scientific or academic

jargon. Take note of where these

Points of View

• Passages with more than one POV: keep

track of who agrees with which theory.

• Keep in mind: the author may have a differ-

ent POV than do the sources in the passage.

• Passages rarely use the first-person; POVmust be spotted through context.

Use TONE words:

- Negative Words: unfortunately, prob-

lematic, failure, complicating, short-

comings, unrealistic, unresolved, etc.

- Positive Words: practical, fortunately,thoughtful, clever, set a new standard,

useful, effective, successful, etc.

- Words of Emphasis: Important, Signifi-

cant, Best, etc.

- Words of Continuity or Causation:

Moreover, Because, Therefore, Thus, etc.

- Words of Contrast: However, Although,

Despite, etc.

KNEWTON STRATEGIES

NEWTON KNOTES

GMAT Reading Comprehension

http://http//www.knewton.com/gmat/



Common wisdom in finance for the last three decades states that small commercial banks have little

influence on the status of a national economy. Fiscal policy is usually written to favor large com-

mercial banks, based on the assumption that large banks play a critical role in most aspects of national

economic health, including consumer lending rates, government interest rates, home mortgage rates,

and the extension of credit. However, evidence has recently emerged suggesting that some small

commercial banks outperform their larger counterparts, especially during unusual economic periods.Perhaps the best example of this is during recessions, when some small commercial banks,

which have limited assets and thus more stringent credit requirements, incur a far smaller debt burden

than do dangerously over-leveraged large banks. Although no research has proven definitively that

small commercial banks are more active providers of loans and credit during recessions than are large

commercial banks, some economists are claiming that small banks step into leading roles when

necessary to keep national economies afloat.

Thus, an alternative view has emerged, claiming that small commercial banks are a necessary hedge

against depressions. First, small banks tend to be restricted to a single locale; bankers are more

likely to know their clientele personally and to provide emergency small-business assistance without

bureaucratic delays. Small banks also pump money back into local communities at times when their

residents face high levels of unemployment and malaise. Lastly, small banks must always ensure ad-

equate reserves of capital in preparation for a bank run, which inherently limits their ability to acquire

heavy risk.

However, such claims about the role played by small banks are based primarily on economic

theory sometimes lacking solid empirical support. The issue is complicated by the fact that policy

makers utilize conflicting definitions of a “small bank.” The US Federal Reserve, for example, states

that any domestically chartered bank not among the 25 largest nationwide can be considered a “smallbank”- this group includes federal banks that are far larger than the local, personal banks cited by

economists.

It can be inferred from the passage that proponents of the “alternative view” about small

commercial banks would be most likely to agree with which of the following statements?

The conflicting definitions of “small bank” disguise the limited economic role played by

such institutions.

Small, local banks are more likely than are large commercial banks to support legislation

that offers aid to small businesses.

Some geographic and financial limitations on small commercial banks become advantageou

during economic recessions.

Fiscal policy should be overhauled to favor the economic needs of small commercial ba

Economic recessions would be avoided if only a larger number of commercial bank

employees knew their clientele personally .


1

10

2

3 4

5

6 7

8

9

The “common wisdom” is almost always going to be contradicted at some point

in the passage.

Lists of entities are rarely important on their own; skim them and go back only if asked.

The word of contrast at the beginning of this sentence indicates a reversal of

the conventional wisdom.

Take note of examples that support certain points in the passage. Some will be

explicitly highlighted with the word “example” or “exemplify.”

This sentence starts with a contrast word, and states the notable point of view

of “some economists.” This sentence plays the role of the “thesis” of this passage.

The word of continuity in this sentence indicates that the second paragraph is

a continuation and extension of the first.

The words “first” and “lastly” indicate an enumerated list of reasons; thus, the second

paragraph provides evidentiary examples to illustrate and expand upon claim made in

the first sentence.

The third paragraph has a final reversal, indicated by a word of contrast.

A “complication” is likely to introduce a new fact not yet described.

This is an implicit comparison, as opposed to many explicit comparisons made in this

passage (small vs. big banks, common wisdom vs. new theory). The Federal Reserve

uses one definition, and those that subscribe to the “alternative view” use another.

1

10

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

MENTAL NOTES PHYSICAL NOTES

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

The word “inferred” means that the correct answer will not be explicitly stated,

but must be true according to the passage.

The proponents of the “alternative view” are discussed in the second paragraph,

as per the MAP.

This choice states the opposite of what the proponents of the “alternative view”

believe: that the economic role played by small banks is large, not “limited.”

“Legislation that offers aid to small businesses” is an irrelevant topic. It is similar, but

not equivalent to emergency small-business assistance without bureaucratic delays.

This choice paraphrases the second paragraph and is correct. Small banks are “loca

(a geographical limitation) and “must keep adequate reserves” (a financial limitation) a

these qualities help in a recession economy .

This choice is extreme; the words “overhauled” and “favor” are unsupported by the p

The word “avoided” is extreme here; although small banks may be a necessary hedg

against depression, the personal connection may not, in itself, help economies avoid

recessions.

This use of direct passage wording is intended to trap test-takers. Notice that the

correct answer primarily paraphrases the passage and does not quote directly.

HOW TO READ A QUESTION

M: Small banks- important for an economy?

A: Even-handed, sees both sides

P: Present “alternative view”about small c. banks

S: P 1-Big banks more important?Maybe not

P2-Small banks might be better, esp. in recession

P3-Not enough evidence,

definition problems

NEWTON KNOTES

GMAT Reading Comprehension

(Inner monologue while reading the passage) (Sample scratch work of notes about the passage)

(Question stems and wrong answer choices contain valuable clues)



1. Read the question stem to determine

question type. Doing so tells you what

you’ll be asked to do.

Argument – Two to five sentences that

ay out a set of logical premises and

usually draw a conclusion based on

these premises.

Premises – The claims upon which a

conclusion is based; these consist of

evidence and assumptions.

2. Identify the conclusion of the argument

and the evidence presented in the

argument.

3. Identify any assumptions clearly present

in the argument.

4. Make a categorical pre-phrase to d

mine the qualities of a correct answ

CRITICAL REASONING APPROACH

Assumption – Unstated, but necessary,

premises of an argument. Assumptions

often bridge a gap in reasoning between

evidence and conclusions. Every GMAT

argument contains multiple assumptions.

Inference – A logical conclusion that

must be true based on the premises of

an argument but is not explicitly stated

in an argument.

Conclusions – Opinions, predictions,

recommendations, or general principles

that are drawn based on the premises of

an argument. Conclusions can be found

anywhere in an argument. Conclusion key-words: thus, therefore, so, due to this,

for this reason, will result in, should, this

change will/would, apparently, clearly.

Entity – A noun used in an argument; a

person, place, group, rate, rise in profit,

Evidence – Statements that are explic

stated in an argument. Evidence is us

to draw a conclusion in an argument.Evidence keywords: because, given t

since, due to the fact that, in the past

year, last month.

DEFINITION OF TERM

• DETERMINING RELEVANT INFORMATION (~8%)

- Some questions ask test-takers to determine which answer choice provides rele

information with which to evaluate the conclusion of an argument.

- The answer choices in this question type sometimes assume unusual forms;

for example, they may be questions or may begin with the word “whether,”

as in “Whether the new strategy will cost more than the previous one did.”

- Locate the key feature that connects the evidence and the conclusion of an argu

to locate the correct answer.

• EXPLAINING OBSERVED EVENTS/PARADOX (~8%)

Some CR questions present an observation and then ask test-takers to identify the

piece of evidence that would best explain it. In a Paradox question, the observed e

seems to conflict with the evidence. That is, the evidence leads away from the concl

To resolve a paradox, the answer will be either a connecting piece of evidence or

a piece of evidence that explains both evidence and conclusion.

• ROLE OF STATEMENT (~5%)

At times, a CR question will include two boldfaced statements and ask test-takers

identify the role that the statements play in the argument. Identify the conclusion of

the argument and any evidence provided to support it, as well as any counterargum

In most cases, the statements are either evidence or conclusions.

• FLAW (<5%)

Flaw questions ask test-takers to identify a logical flaw. Common Flaws include:

- Unrepresentative samples

- Confusing correlation and causation

- Overlooked possibilities

- Confusing sets and their members

- Confusing necessity and sufficiency

• METHOD OF REASONING/PARALLEL REASONING (<5%)

On rare occasions, test-takers will be asked to explicitly describe how an argumen

constructed, or to find an analogous situation that uses the same logical construct

as the original.

IF YOU GET STUCK...

1) Take Your Time

Critical Reasoning prompts contain logical traps and demand close reading. CR q

tions often take far longer than SC or RC questions do - two and half minutes or m

is not too long for a tough CR question.

2) Draw a Diagram

Some students find it helpful to draw diagrams of the argument, using letters or

pictures to represent entities and their relationships. Doing so can help untanglecomplicated arguments.

3) Eliminate Wrong Answers for a Reason

When stuck between two answer choices, identify the exact reason why either ans

choice is incorrect. Look for distortions and shifts in terms, irrelevant comparisonsextreme language, and other common traps.

CRITICAL REASONING QUESTION TYPES

• WEAKEN (~30% of all CR questions)

Many CR questions ask test-takers to weaken an argument, or to find evidence that

undermines a prediction or recommendation made in the argument. Weaken questionsare the most common CR question type. Test-takers can weaken an argument by:

- Invalidating an assumption on which the conclusion depends.

- Identifying an additional piece of evidence that makes the conclusion itself less

likely to be valid.

- Remembering that the correct answer does not have to invalidate or disprove the

argument to be an effective weakener.

- Keeping in mind that there are several ways to weaken a causal argument (an argumentwhich concludes that a certain cause has a certain effect. (X Y):

• Identify an alternative cause for the observed effect (Z Y)

• Suggest reverse causation; that the effect in fact caused the proposed

cause (Y X)

• Strengthen the chance that the cause and effect are correlated but not causally

related (X and Y, not X Y)• Negate the existence of the cause or effect (~X, ~Y)

• STRENGTHEN (~20%)

Many CR questions ask test-takers to strengthen an argument, or to find evidence

that supports a prediction or recommendation made in the argument. A strengthener

does not have to prove the argument; it simply must make the conclusion more

likely to be valid. A strengthener may provide a detail that is directly relevant to thesituation described in the argument or a general principle that applies to the argument.

• ASSUMPTION (~15%)

Some CR questions ask test-takers to identify an assumption upon which an argu-

ment depends. Assumptions either:

1. Fill a logical gap in the argument: If you have trouble coming up with assumptions,

try creating a sentence that links the evidence with the conclusion.

2. Negate a potential argument weakener: An answer choice may introduce and

immediately refute a piece of additional evidence that, if true, would weaken the

argument. Refuting a weakener shows that the original argument continues to

be valid.

The Negation Test can be used to identify or check the answer on Assumption questions

(see next page for Negation Test strategy).

• INFERENCE (~10%)

- Some CR questions ask test-takers to infer a statement based on a series of pieces

of evidence in an argument.

- On Inference questions, the correct answer must be true. Wrong answers are either

entirely false or could be, but are not necessarily, true according to the argument.

- There are two ways to form a valid inference:

• Paraphrase: In a long, complicated inference question, the correct answer

will often paraphrase one idea in the prompt.

• Logical Bridge: Most inference questions ask test-takers to connect twopieces of evidence in the argument.

The three most common CR question types (constituting over 60% of all test questions, on average) require test-takers to identify the evidence,

conclusion, and assumptions provided in an argument.


NEWTON KNOTES

GMAT Critical Reasoning







KNEWTON CR STRATEGIES

SAMPLE QUESTION STEMS


WEAKEN

‘Which of the following, if true, most seriously weakens (undermines, calls into question)

the argument presented above?

STRENGTHEN

Which of the following, if true, would provide the most support for (strengthen, provides

the strongest grounds for, etc.) the lawmaker’s prediction?

INFER CONCLUSION

Which of the following must be true on the basis of the statements presented above?

Which of the following can properly be inferred regarding tax rates from the statement

above?

DETERMINING RELEVANT INFO

In evaluating the argument, it would be most useful to determine (or “most important

to know”)

ASSUMPTION

Which of the following is an assumption made in drawing the conclusion above?

EXPLAINING OBSERVED EVENTS

Which of the following hypotheses best accounts for the finding of the experiment?

• PARADOX

Which of the following, if true, most helps to explain this surprising finding?

• ROLE OF STATEMENT

In the argument given, the two portions in boldface play which of the following role

• FLAW

The economist’s argument is flawed because it fails to consider

This argument is most vulnerable to the objection that it fails to

• METHOD OF ARGUMENT

The researcher replies to the CEO’s argument by

• BLANK STEMS (~5%)

Some arguments have no question stem, but end with a blank. These tend to be e

“explain events/paradox” questions (“However, these facts do not prove that the vi

causes infection, because ______” ) or “infer conclusion” questions (“Thus, it can b

expected that __________”).

• EXCEPT STEMS

Any of the following, if true, would strengthen the manager’s conclusion EXCEPT

Use the Negation Test

• Negating a valid assumption will

invalidate an argument. Negate

each answer choice in turn: if

negating an answer choice invali-dates the argument, that answer

choice is correct.

• The Negation Test can be used on

Assumption questions, but not on

Strengthen questions.

Paraphrase

• Critical reasoning questions often use

overly complex or convoluted language

just to confuse test-takers.

• Translate complicated arguments intosimpler language as much as possible,

and make mental abbreviations of long

entities.

• Many arguments and answer choices

contain double and triple negatives.

Translate these into simpler sentences.

Create a Categorical Prephrase

• A categorical prephrase is a general

expectation of the logical features a

correct answer must contain.

• Some prephrases can be specific (“If thealarm didn’t deter criminals, it would not

make the neighborhood safer.”) but most

are abstract definitions of the missing

piece of the argument (“I need something

that would lead to a safer neighborhood.”)

• Categorical prephrases are useful for

weaken, strengthen and assumption

question types.

Notice Multiple Points of Vie

• Some CR arguments express a poi

of view other than that of the autho

Take notice of who is citing each pi

of evidence or drawing the conclusin an argument.

• Role of Statement questions often

express two opposing arguments

simultaneously in one CR stem.

KNEWTON KNOTES

GMAT Critical Reasoning

WRONG ANSWER CHOICES COMMON CR LOGICAL PATTERNS

Opposite - Answer choices that have

the opposite effect of the correct

answer, including “strengthen” answers

on “weaken” questions and vice versa.

- if one answer is the opposite of another,

chances are good that one of them is

correct.

Scope Errors - Answer choices that

are too specific or too broad to address

the issue at hand, or that slightly shift

the focus of the question away from

what is being asked

Extreme Errors - Answer choices that

overstate claims, often through the use

of extreme language (only, never, must,

cannot, all) when there are no matchingclaims in the argument.

- Extreme answer choices are almostnever correct on Assumption Ques-

tions, but extreme terms can be found

in the correct answer of many “Whichof the following, if true...” questions.

• Comparisons

- Many critical reasoning arguments

and answer choices use complex

comparisons.- Make sure that both the entities and

the criterion on which the entitiesare being compared are clear and

consistent.

• Causation or Correlation

- CR arguments often cite one or two

pieces of correlated factual evidence

and draw a causal conclusion.

- Test-takers are often asked to either

strengthen or weaken this causalconclusion with additional evidence.

• Similar Conditions do not imply Similar

Results

- Many CR arguments draw conclusions

about one situation based on the results

of another situation.

- In these cases, never assume th

the similar conditions necessaril

imply similar results; the correct

answer often explains how the s

uations are less similar than is imp

in the argument.

- The citation of a similar situation

an answer choice is usually incor

• Absolute vs. Relative Quantities/

Groups vs. Members of Groups

- Some arguments confuse absolu

and relative quantities, or confuse

percentages with real numbers.

- Arguments may state that beca

a number of groups is rising, the

number of total members within

groups is also rising. This is notessarily true, and the correct an

may point out the fact that this

occurs if the num ber of membe

group decreases.

• Distorted Details - Answer choices

that repeat argument wording, but

introduce errors, including false or

irrelevant comparisons, chronological

errors, or references to the wrong

group or idea

• Could be true - Answer choices that

could possibly be true according to the

argument but, that cannot be inferred

as definitely true.

- Some wrong answer choices are

factually accurate, but if an answer

choice is not directly supported by

the prompt, it is wrong.

• Irrelevant Topic - Answer choices that

refer to subjects that are tangentially

related to the topic of the argument but

are irrelevant to the question at hand.

• Irrelevant Comparisons and Distinctions -

Answer choices that compare entities in

a way that does not address the argumentcorrectly. (this includes comparing a quantity

to “the average” when such a comparison

does not have an effect on the argument.)





gmat full key notes

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