Inference Questions in CAT RC: How to Solve Them

Inference questions are the most common question type in CAT RC and the one where most marks are lost. The difficulty is not in understanding the passage: it is in understanding what inference means in the context of a formal reading comprehension question.

What an inference actually is

An inference, in the context of CAT RC, is a conclusion that follows necessarily from information stated in the passage. It is not something you believe is probably true, or something that makes sense given what you know about the world. It is something that must be true if what the passage says is true. This is a stricter definition than the word inference carries in everyday conversation.

Must be true versus could be true

The single most important distinction in inference questions is between must be true and could be true. The correct inference option must be true: if the passage's statements are accepted as true, the inference cannot be false. A could-be-true option is merely consistent with the passage but does not necessarily follow from it. When evaluating inference options, ask: if the passage is true, could this option possibly be false? If yes, it is wrong.

Inference versus assumption

An inference follows from what is stated. An assumption is an unstated premise the argument depends on. CAT sometimes presents assumption options as answer choices for inference questions. These are wrong because they are not derived from stated information: they are conditions that make the argument work.

The most common inference question traps

Too broad: the option generalises beyond what the passage establishes in a specific context.

Reversal: the option states the converse of what the passage implies. The passage says if A then B. The reversal says if B then A: a logical error.

Extreme: the option uses absolute language when the passage uses qualified language.

Outside knowledge: the option is something you know to be true from outside the passage but cannot derive from the passage itself.

A step-by-step approach to inference questions

Step one: identify the specific part of the passage the question references. Step two: state in your own words what those sentences establish: precisely, including direction and qualification. Step three: evaluate each option with the must-be-true test. Step four: for the surviving option, verify it does not require unstated information beyond the passage.

How to practise inference questions effectively

After identifying what you think is the correct inference, write one sentence explaining why this option must be true given the passage. If you cannot write this explanation clearly, you have not identified a genuine inference. For wrong options, write one sentence explaining why each is not a necessary inference. This explicit practice builds the precision of thinking that inference questions require.