Abstract reasoning test

An abstract reasoning test measures your ability or aptitude to reason logically. Generally, abstract
reasoning tests measure non-verbal abilities. You must, through logical and abstract reasoning, extract
rules, analogies and structures which you subsequently use to find a correct answer among a set of
possible options.
Abstract reasoning tests are almost always a part of any job assessment or intelligence testing setup. You
can use this test as part of an IQ test training to make sure you are maximally prepared.
So, improve your IQ score with this free online abstract reasoning test. Use your logical reasoning skills to
complete the grid. In the results you'll see your answers, all correct answers and full explanations.
Instructions abstract reasoning test
The test consists of ten questions. You must answer all of them but there is no time limit. Which figure
logically belongs on the spot of the question mark?
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Abstract Reasoning
What are abstract reasoning tests and why are they used?
Abstract reasoning tests (also known as inductive reasoning or diagrammatic reasoning tests)
are widely used within selection processes to assess a candidate's general intellect and ability to
work out new concepts and abstract ideas, rather than testing their prior knowledge. They are
closely correlated with IQ tests, and rely upon the candidate's ability to see the underlying logic
in a pattern of symbols or shapes (instead of relying on words or numbers).

This type of test is useful to employers because the ability to answer abstract reasoning questions
is independent of educational experience and cultural background, and can be used to provide an
objective indication of intellectual potential.They are particularly useful for jobs where problem-
solving and initiative are important, or where candidates will need to deal with complex data, or
perform non-routine tasks where initiative is required.

That said, abstract reasoning questions may be used by any employer as an assessment for any
position, as they are seen to be a good measure of general intelligence, and test your ability to
perceive spatial relationships and work out co-relationships, without any prior knowledge of
language or mathematics.

To successfully complete abstract reasoning tests, you need to be able to think creatively and use
lateral thinking (also known as fluid intelligence) to solve novel problems. You also need to see
the relationships between shapes and figures, identify rules and similarities, and quickly apply
these to identify the answer.

If you want to take practice abstract reasoning tests and improve your performance, click here.
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Success in abstract reasoning tests is all about spotting the patterns.

What to expect from your abstract reasoning test

Abstract reasoning tests are designed to be challenging, in order to differentiate between

candidates and to identify the maximum performance they are capable of. They usually have
tight time scales, and questions that rapidly increase in difficulty. This means that you will need
to identify more rules to solve the problems, and that the complexity of these rules is likely to
increase.

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While there are many permutations of question types and formats, there are some general
concepts which are common, and it can be useful to familiarise yourself with these.

Common question types in abstract reasoning tests

Question 1: Identify the missing square

This type of question requires you to look at the patterns in the squares and understand their
relationship to one another, so as to identify the missing square.

There are three rules to spot in this question. Firstly, there is a relative positional rule: the
position of the black square corresponds to the position its square holds within the diagram.
Secondly, there is a movement rule, in that the circle moves around the boxes in a clockwise
position. Finally, the arrows in the first and third columns are reflections of one another. The
correct answer is therefore C.

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Question 2: Complete the sequence

This requires you to identify and understand the pattern behind the order in which the dominoes
are presented. There are two patterns here. The first, third and fifth (and therefore seventh)
dominoes have the rule that the number of the top is six and the number on the bottom is
increasing by one each time. The second pattern includes the second, fourth and sixth dominoes,
and has the rule that the number on the bottom is four and the number at the top is decreasing by
one each time. The correct answer is therefore C.

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Question 3: Identify the odd one out

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This type of question requires you to look at some data, identify the pattern or rules, and then
spot which square does not meet those rules. Watch out for relative position, number of items,
relationship between items, colour, shape, and orientation of shapes: there are many different
variations on these rules and there may be some extraneous data in there that complicates the
rules.

For example, in this question some of the squares have three items in and some have four – you
need to work out whether or not that is important. In this particular case, there are two rules. The
first is that the largest shape must be grey, and the second is that the bottom shape must be black.
The odd one out is therefore C, as the bottom shape is stripey and not black.

Question 4: 1 is to 2, as 3 is to 4

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This type of question is all about relationships between data: being able to recognise what links
two boxes together and then apply this rule to a new shape to solve the problem.
There are two rules here. First, the shape in box 2 has one more side that the shape in box 1. As
the shape in box 3 has six sides, the correct shape for box 4 must have seven sides. The second
rule is around the arrow and the rule is that for shapes with an even number of sides, the arrow
points up. For shapes with an odd number of sides the arrow points down. The correct answer is
therefore A.

Tips on how to prepare for your abstract reasoning test

Abstract reasoning ability is closely correlated with general intelligence. However, familiarity

with the types of questions you are likely to encounter and some strategies for solving the
questions will certainly help you perform at your best. Here are our five top tips:

1. Many people find that they enjoy the mental challenge of solving abstract reasoning tests!
There is a range of puzzle books and apps available that you can use to practise with.
Similarly, many test publishers provide practice teststhat you can access, such
as Graduate Monkey and JobTestPrep; this is certainly worth doing.
2. It can be useful to develop a mental checklist of strategies to solve abstract
reasoning questions, such as a list of different rules that govern data like size, shape,
number etc. This gives you a starting point to think about questions and can help you
work methodically in the test.
3. Look at one rule at a time. There may be extraneous data within the question, which is
designed to confuse you. Looking at only one aspect of the question at a time can help
you work out what is important and what isn’t.
4. Manage your time. Sometimes you will come up against a question where you just
cannot see the answer. On these occasions, don’t spend too much time on it, move on and
if you have time at the end, go back and check it.
5. If you’re struggling to find a pattern, sometimes there are clues in the answers. Look
for any patterns or themes in the possible answers; that might help you spot what is
important within the question. For example, if you have a sequence of shapes and all of
the answers are squares or triangles, you know that the next shape in the sequence must
be either a square or a triangle and that can help you work out why.

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Further information on aptitude tests

You may also want to check out these articles:

 Numerical reasoning tests. These tests require you to answer questions based on
statistics, figures and charts.
 Verbal reasoning tests. A means of assessing your verbal logic and capacity to quickly
digest information from passages of text.
 Intray exercises. A business-related scenario that assesses how well you can prioritise
tasks.
 Diagrammatic tests. Tests that measure your logical reasoning, usually under strict time
conditions.
  Situational judgement tests. Psychological tests that assess your judgement in resolving
work-based problems.
 Inductive reasoning tests. Tests that identify how well a candidate can see the
underlying logic in patterns, rather than words or numbers.
 Non-Verbal Reasoning Tests. A way to tests candidates' 'raw' cognitive ability outside
of their language skills.
 Cognitive ability tests. A measurement of general intelligence, covering many categories
of aptitude test.
 Mechanical reasoning tests. These assess your ability to apply mechanical or
engineering principles to problems; they are often used for technical roles.
 Watson Glaser tests. Designed to assess a candidate's ability to critically consider
arguments; often used by law firms.
 Spatial awareness tests. These tests assess your capacity to mentally manipulate images,
and are often used in applications for jobs in design, engineering and architecture.
 Error checking tests. An unusual type of aptitude test that focuses on your ability to
identify errors in complex data sets.
 Predictive Index tests. A cognitive and personality assessment used by (mainly US)
recruiters.

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Non-Verbal Reasoning
What is a Non-Verbal Reasoning Test?
Non-verbal reasoning is an umbrella term that covers a wide range of psychometric ability tests
such as inductive, logical, abstract, diagrammatic and spatial reasoning. The term is used to
indicate that verbal competency is not necessary for, or assessed by, the test. Because of this the
tests are seen as particularly effective for international assessment, as candidates speaking a wide
range of languages are able to access the same test material.

What are Non-Verbal Reasoning Tests used for?

Non-verbal reasoning tests are used extensively in selection and assessment processes. As they
don’t rely on specific language skills, they are seen as a useful way of assessing candidates ‘raw
ability’ rather than learned skills (i.e. language).

To successfully complete non-verbal reasoning tests, candidates must use logic, be able

to recognize patterns in material and understand and assimilate novel information.
Therefore these tests are often used by companies recruiting to positions where problem-
solving or technical ability are important, such as engineering or project management.

They are also often used in leadership assessment processes (such as graduate scheme
recruitment), as they assess candidates’ ability to respond to novel situations and are correlated
with generalised intelligence. So the better a candidate performs on a non-verbal reasoning test,
the more likely they are to be able to logically and creatively solve novel problems in the
workplace.

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The theory goes that high performance in a non-verbal reasoning test should correlate with
excellent problem-solving ability.

Non-Verbal Reasoning Practice Questions

There are a number of different types of test that fall within the category of non-verbal
reasoning. To make it easier for you, all of the key question types are covered below. Should you
need further practice, you can take more tests here.
Inductive/Logical/Abstract Reasoning Tests

Inductive reasoning tests (sometimes also called logical or abstract reasoning tests) assess a

candidate’s ability to understand patterns, relationships between different elements and
inconsistencies in data.

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To successfully complete these tests, you need to be able to work out what the question is asking
for, then find the solution. While every question is unique, there are a number of common
themes in these tests and it can be useful to ensure that you are familiar with these. Each question
will be based around a number of rules, so you need to identify what these rules are to find the
answer. Here are some examples of common rules:

Question 1: Things that move around

Which box completes the set?

These types of question are some of the more straightforward rules to identify: items move
around, or have a particular location within a box. There are two rules to look out for in this
example. Firstly, the black square occupies the same relative position within the box, as the
box’s location within the question. This tells us that B cannot be the correct answer.

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The second rule governs the location of the arrow. There are two ways of looking at this rule.
The first is to say that the position of the arrow is determined by which column it is in, with the
all of the arrows in the first column in the middle of the box, those in the middle column are on
the right, and those on the right column are on the left, with the arrow always at the same level as
the square (or relative box position).

An alternative way of looking at this rule is to say that the arrow always occupies the position
immediately to the right of the square (and when the square is on the right, the sequence restarts
on the left). Either way, the correct answer is C.

Question 2: Relationships between items

Which box comes next in the sequence?

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To solve this question, there are three rules you need to identify. Firstly, the circle is moving
clockwise around the box, meaning it will be in the top-right-hand corner in the correct answer.

Secondly, the circle is always white. Thirdly, and this is trickier, there is a relationship between
the circle and the square: when the circle is on the right-hand-side of the box the square is black,
and when the circle is on the left-hand-side of the box, the square is white. The correct answer
is therefore A.

Question 3: Incremental numbers of things

What box is next in the sequence?

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Once again, there are three rules you need to identify to solve this question. Firstly, the number
of shapes the box increases by one each time, so the answer box needs to include 5 shapes, and is
therefore not box D.

The second rule is that the colours alternate, so that when there are an odd number of boxes the
outermost shape is black, and when there are an even number of boxes the outermost shape is
white. Answer A therefore cannot be correct. The third rule is that the shapes are alternating
circles and squares/diamonds, Answer C is therefore incorrect. The correct answer must be B.

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Question 4: The odd one out

Which of these boxes does not form part of this group?

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This is an example of a question where you have to work out what the rule is that makes these
eight boxes a group.

In this case, the rule is that there must be the same number of shapes as the sides of the black
shape. So where the black shape is a square, there must be four black squares. Where the black
shape is a pentagon, there must be five black pentagons.

The odd one out is therefore answer H, as there are only five hexagons and there should be six.
Watch out for the extraneous information in questions like this, as it is added to make the rules
harder to spot.

Diagrammatic Reasoning Tests

Diagrammatic reasoning tests can be a bit different. Instead of presenting purely abstract

problems to the candidates, they can also require you to understand a flow chart (or similar
diagram), work out the rules it uses, and then use these to solve the question. For example:

Question 5: Flow Chart

Which diagram is next in each sequence?

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The candidate must work out what rule each of the different elements contributes, and then use
this to answer the questions below.
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Here are the rules that the different elements contribute:
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This symbol reverses the colour, turning black shapes white, and vice versa

This symbol introduces a line along the vertical axis of the shape

This symbol introduces a small black circle into the centre of the shape

This symbol rotates the shape by 90 degrees

This symbol duplicates the shape

Therefore, the correct answer to question 1 is B, question 2 is B and question 3 is A.

Spatial awareness

Spatial awareness questions test your ability to understand shapes in different dimensions and
configurations. Questions often include reflection, rotation or images of flat shapes, which the
candidate has to imagine in 3D.

Question 6: Spatial awareness

Which of these shapes cannot be created using the individual shapes below?
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To answer this question, you need to be able to mentally move and rotate the shapes in order to
imagine them within each of the answer shapes.

The correct answer is C, which uses two small squares and does not include the rectangle.

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If you want to take more non-verbal reasoning tests to improve your performance, click here.

Tips and Techniques for Non-Verbal Reasoning

To maximize your chances of being successful on non-verbal reasoning tests, it’s important to
prepare properly. Some preparation activities that can be useful include:

 Practice, practice, practice! While non-verbal reasoning tests are closely associated

with generalized intelligence, you will always perform better if you are familiar with the
types of questions you are likely to encounter, and have some strategies for solving them.
Many test providers, such as JobTestPrepand Graduate Monkey, sell practice
test packages, and it is worth completing as many of these as possible.
  Problem-solving puzzles are a great way of honing your skills in this area and many
people find them fun. Look for puzzle books or apps that contain a range of different
puzzle types.
 Familiarise yourself with a number of common rules (such as those explained above) so
that you have a mental checklist of options to run through. This can help you find the
answers more quickly, and stop you from panicking/going blank because you know you
have some strategies to work with.
 Focus on solving one rule at a time. Look at each of the different elements of a puzzle as
well as the overall configuration, and try to work out what is happening and whether it’s
important.
 Manage your time well. Make sure you know how many questions you need to
complete and how long you’ve got to do that in. You can then allocate yourself a time
limit for each question. If you’re struggling with a question, move on and come back to it
if you have time at the end.

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Further Information on Aptitude Tests
You may also want to check out these articles:

 Diagrammatic tests. Tests that measure your logical reasoning, usually under strict time
conditions.
 Inductive reasoning tests. Tests that identify how well a candidate can see the
underlying logic in patterns, rather than words or numbers.
 Cognitive ability tests. A measurement of general intelligence, covering many categories
of aptitude test.
 Logical reasoning tests. Designed to test a candidate’s ability to interpret patterns,
number sequences or relationships between shapes.
 Analytical reasoning tests. These evaluate a candidate's ability to use logic to find
patterns or make inferences.
 Abstract reasoning tests. These tests assess your general intellect and ability to work out
new concepts and abstract ideas.
 Spatial awareness tests. These tests assess your capacity to mentally manipulate images,
and are often used in applications for jobs in design, engineering and architecture.
 Numerical reasoning tests. These tests require you to answer questions based on
statistics, figures and charts.
 Verbal reasoning tests. A means of assessing your verbal logic and capacity to quickly
digest information from passages of text.
 Intray exercises. A business-related scenario that assesses how well you can prioritise
tasks.
 Situational judgement tests. Psychological tests that assess your judgement in resolving
work-based problems.
 Mechanical reasoning tests. These assess your ability to apply mechanical or
engineering principles to problems; they are often used for technical roles.
  Watson Glaser tests. Designed to assess a candidate's ability to critically consider
arguments; often used by law firms.
 Error checking tests. An unusual type of aptitude test that focuses on your ability to
identify errors in complex data sets.
 How To Solve Questions About Ratios. Find out how best to tackle ratio questions.
 How To Solve Percentage Questions. Learn the best methods for finding percentages.

Related Content
Numerical Reasoning Tests Verbal Reasoning TestSituational Judgement
TestTypes of Aptitude TestEEI Tests
Report this ad
Improve Interview Performance
Numerical Reasoning Verbal ReasoningLogical ReasoningSHL Practice
TestsWatson GlaserPersonality Tests