Must be true questions are a fundamental component of the LSAT (Law School Admission Test), designed to assess a test-taker’s ability to understand, analyze, and apply logical reasoning. These questions require test-takers to determine which statements must be true based on the information provided in a passage. This article will provide several must be true questions LSAT examples to illustrate the types of challenges test-takers can expect on the exam.
In the following examples, we will examine a passage and then present a must be true question based on the information contained within it.
Example 1:
Passage: “All members of the committee must be either lawyers or judges. Only two of the committee members are lawyers, and the remaining members are judges.”
Must be true question: “If the committee has a total of five members, then all members must be judges.”
Explanation: This must be true question requires the test-taker to deduce that, since there are only two lawyers and the total number of members is five, the remaining three members must be judges. Therefore, the statement “all members must be judges” is true based on the information provided.
Example 2:
Passage: “The library has a collection of 500 books. Half of the books are fiction, and the other half are non-fiction. The library has 200 biographies, which are a subset of the non-fiction books.”
Must be true question: “If the library has 300 novels, then there must be 200 non-fiction books.”
Explanation: This must be true question challenges the test-taker to understand the relationship between the different types of books in the library. Since half of the books are fiction and the other half are non-fiction, and there are 300 novels (which are fiction), the remaining 200 books must be non-fiction. Therefore, the statement “there must be 200 non-fiction books” is true based on the information provided.
Example 3:
Passage: “All students in the honors program must complete a research project. Students who do not complete the research project are not eligible for the honors program.”
Must be true question: “If a student is in the honors program, then the student must have completed the research project.”
Explanation: This must be true question requires the test-taker to understand the conditional relationship between being in the honors program and completing the research project. Since students who do not complete the project are not eligible for the program, it follows that if a student is in the program, they must have completed the project. Therefore, the statement “the student must have completed the research project” is true based on the information provided.
These must be true questions LSAT examples demonstrate the types of logical reasoning challenges test-takers will face on the LSAT. By practicing similar questions, test-takers can develop the skills necessary to succeed on the exam and ultimately gain admission to their desired law school.
