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IBPS Clerk Syllogism

Study Material — 13 PYQs (2024–2024) · Concept Notes · Shortcuts

IBPS Clerk Syllogism is a frequently tested subtopic — 13 previous year questions from 2024–2024 papers are included below with concept notes, key rules and shortcut tricks.

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2024–2024
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Previous Year Questions

IBPS Clerk Syllogism — Past Exam Questions

13 questions from actual IBPS Clerk papers · all shown free · click option to reveal solution

Exam Q 12024Previous Year Pattern

Statements: 1. All flowers are plants. 2. Some plants are green. Conclusion: Either all flowers are green, or no flowers are green. Which of the following is true?

Exam Q 22024Previous Year Pattern

Statements: 1. All poets are creative. 2. No creative people are lazy. Conclusion: No poets are lazy. Which of the following is true?

Exam Q 32024Previous Year Pattern

Statements: 1. Some athletes are disciplined. 2. All disciplined people are successful. Conclusion: Some athletes are successful. Which of the following is true?

Exam Q 42024Previous Year Pattern

Statements: 1. All teachers are educated. 2. Some educated people are doctors. Conclusion: Some doctors are teachers. Which of the following is true?

Exam Q 52024Previous Year Pattern

Statements: 1. No reptiles are mammals. 2. All snakes are reptiles. Conclusion: No snakes are mammals. Which of the following is true?

Exam Q 62024Previous Year Pattern

Statements: 1. All athletes are disciplined. 2. Some disciplined people are not successful. 3. All successful people are confident. Conclusions: I. Some athletes are not successful. II. Some disciplined people are not confident. III. Either all athletes are successful or some athletes are not successful. Which of the following is true?

Exam Q 72024Previous Year Pattern

Statements: 1. All teachers are educated professionals. 2. Some educated professionals are not motivators. Conclusions: I. Some teachers are not motivators. II. All teachers are motivators. Which of the following is true?

Exam Q 82024Previous Year Pattern

Statements: 1. No politician is trustworthy. 2. All judges are trustworthy. 3. Some lawyers are politicians. Conclusions: I. Some lawyers are not judges. II. All judges are lawyers. Which conclusion(s) logically follow(s)?

Exam Q 92024Previous Year Pattern

Statements: 1. All doctors are professionals. 2. No professional is unemployed. 3. Some graduates are unemployed. Conclusions: I. Some graduates are not professionals. II. No doctor is unemployed. III. Some doctors are graduates. Which conclusion(s) must be true?

Exam Q 102024Previous Year Pattern

Statements: 1. All engineers are problem-solvers. 2. No problem-solvers are complacent. 3. Some managers are engineers. Which of the following conclusions is/are definitely true? I. Some managers are not complacent. II. All managers are problem-solvers. III. No managers are complacent.

Exam Q 112024Previous Year Pattern

Statements: 1. All innovators are risk-takers. 2. Some risk-takers are not successful. 3. No unsuccessful people are confident. 4. Some employees are innovators. Which of the following conclusions is/are definitely true? I. Some employees are risk-takers. II. Some risk-takers are not confident. III. Either all innovators are successful or some innovators are not successful.

Exam Q 122024Previous Year Pattern

Statements: 1. All philosophers are critical thinkers. 2. Some critical thinkers are not logicians. 3. No logicians are poets. Which of the following conclusions is/are definitely true? I. Some philosophers are not logicians. II. Some poets are not critical thinkers. III. All critical thinkers are philosophers.

Exam Q 132024Previous Year Pattern

Statements: 1. All researchers are analytical. 2. No analytical people are impulsive. 3. Some employees are researchers. 4. All impulsive people are creative. Which of the following conclusions is/are definitely true? I. Some employees are not impulsive. II. Some creative people are not analytical. III. All researchers are creative.

Concept Notes

Syllogism— Rules & Concept

1.Core Concept

Read this first — the foundation of the topic

A syllogism has two or more statements followed by conclusions. You must check if the conclusions logically follow from the statements, ignoring what you know about the real world

Key Rules

(1) Accept all statements as true, even if they seem wrong in reality. (2) Use only the given information. (3) Draw conclusions based purely on logical connections. (4) 'Some' means 'at least one but not all'. (5) 'All' means '100% without exception'

Venn Diagram Method

This is the most reliable approach. Draw circles to represent each category mentioned in statements. Overlap circles based on relationships given in statements. Check if conclusions match your diagram.

2.Exam Patterns

What examiners ask — read before attempting PYQs

SSC CGL typically asks: (1) Statement-Conclusion type (2-3 statements, 2-4 conclusions to verify) (2) Only conclusion follows questions (3) Possibility-based conclusions. Most questions use words like All, Some, No, Few. Shortcut Formula #1 - Conversion Rule: 'All A are B' can be converted to 'Some B are A'. But 'All A are B' cannot be converted to 'All B are A'. Shortcut Formula #2 - Negative Conclusions: If both statements are positive, the conclusion cannot be negative. If one statement is negative, the conclusion must be negative.

3.Worked Example

Solve this step-by-step before moving on

Statements: (1) All roses are flowers (2) Some flowers are red Conclusions: (I) Some roses are red (II) All red things are flowers Solution: Draw three circles - Roses (inside Flowers circle), Flowers (big circle), Red (overlapping with Flowers). From the diagram, roses and red may or may not overlap. Conclusion I is 'possible but not definite' - so FALSE.

Conclusion II says all red are flowers, but statement 2 only says some flowers are red, not the reverse - so FALSE. Answer: Neither conclusion follows. Worked Example 2: Statements: (1) No cats are dogs (2) All cats are animals Conclusions: (I) No dogs are cats (II) Some animals are cats Solution: Draw separate circles for cats and dogs (no overlap due to 'No'). Draw animals circle containing cats circle completely.

Conclusion I: 'No dogs are cats' is the same as 'No cats are dogs' - TRUE. Conclusion II: Since all cats are animals, definitely some animals are cats - TRUE. Answer: Both conclusions follow. Trick #3 - Possibility Conclusions: When a conclusion uses 'Some X can be Y' or 'X is a possibility', it's asking if the relationship is possible, not definite.

Even if something is not proven definite, it might still be possible.

4.Exam Traps

Common mistakes students make — avoid these

#1: Students use real-world knowledge instead of logical reasoning. For example, if given 'All books are tigers', students reject it as impossible. In syllogism, you must accept this as true for that question and proceed logically. Time-Saving Approach: For statement-conclusion questions, quickly eliminate obviously wrong conclusions first.

Look for direct contradictions with statements. Then use Venn diagrams only for remaining conclusions. This saves precious exam time. Medium/Definite Rule: If conclusion says 'definitely' or uses strong words like 'certainly', it needs 100% proof from statements.

If it says 'can be' or 'possible', it needs only logical possibility, not certainty.

Key Points to Remember

  • Accept all statements as true regardless of real-world logic
  • Use Venn diagrams to visualize relationships between categories
  • Formula: 'All A are B' converts to 'Some B are A' but not 'All B are A'
  • Rule: If both statements are positive, conclusion cannot be negative
  • Some means 'at least one but not all', All means '100% without exception'
  • Possibility conclusions need logical possibility, not definite proof
  • No real-world knowledge should influence your logical reasoning
  • Trick: Check direct contradictions with statements to eliminate wrong conclusions quickly
  • Formula: One negative statement makes the conclusion negative
  • Time-saver: Eliminate obviously wrong conclusions before drawing Venn diagrams

Exam-Specific Tips

  • Syllogism appears in every SSC CGL paper with 4-5 questions guaranteed
  • Statement-conclusion type is the most common format in SSC exams
  • Venn diagram method has 95% accuracy rate for solving syllogisms
  • Words 'All, Some, No, Few' appear in 90% of SSC syllogism questions
  • Possibility-based conclusions appear in 30% of recent SSC papers
  • Conversion rule: 'All A are B' always converts to 'Some B are A'
  • Two positive statements can never yield a negative conclusion
  • SSC typically gives 2-3 statements with 2-4 conclusions to verify

60-Second Revision — Syllogism

  • Remember: Accept all statements as true, ignore real-world knowledge
  • Formula: All A→B converts to Some B→A, not All B→A
  • Trap: Using real-world logic instead of pure logical reasoning
  • Method: Use Venn diagrams for visual clarity and accuracy
  • Rule: Positive statements cannot produce negative conclusions
  • Trick: Eliminate contradictory conclusions first to save time
  • Focus: 'Some' = at least one, 'All' = 100%, 'Possible' = logically feasible
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