A verbal reasoning test measures how well you understand and reason with written information. Most hiring tests use one of two styles. Passage tests, like SHL's, give you a short text and ask whether each statement is true, false or cannot be said from the text alone. Word tests, like the verbal parts of the CCAT and Wonderlic, ask about word meaning: synonyms, opposites, analogies and filling the gap in a sentence. Both are timed, multiple choice, and scored as a percentile against other test takers.
How the main hiring tests handle verbal reasoning, from each publisher's own pages, checked November 3, 2026. Your invitation names the exact test.
| SHL | A passage followed by statements you mark true, false or cannot say. SHL lists no interactive (drag-and-drop) verbal test. |
|---|---|
| CCAT (Criteria) | Verbal ability is one of three areas in 50 questions in 15 minutes: word meaning, sentence completion and word comparison, with its own percentile. |
| Criteria UCAT | No verbal section: it is Criteria's language-independent test. |
| Wonderlic | Vocabulary, analogies and word meaning mixed into 50 questions in 12 minutes, no dictionary. |
| PI Cognitive Assessment | Up to 16 of its 50 questions in 12 minutes are verbal. |
| TestGorilla | A stand-alone Verbal Reasoning test (intermediate, about 10 minutes) and a Reading Comprehension test. |
| HireQuotient | A Verbal Reasoning test in its aptitude library, inside cognitive batteries of 15-25 minutes. |
| Scoring | Usually a percentile against a comparison group; no universal pass mark |
These are the formats you are most likely to meet. The examples are our own, written to show the logic, not copied from any test.
Example passage: "Every store in the chain is in Texas." Statement: "The chain has a store in Ohio." Answer: false, the passage rules it out. Statement: "The chain's newest store is in Austin." Answer: cannot say.
Tip: False means the passage says the opposite. Cannot say means it does not settle it either way. Never use outside knowledge.
Pick the word closest in meaning to, or most opposite to, a given word, sometimes shown inside a sentence.
Tip: Make a sentence with the word first. Meaning in context beats a dictionary guess.
Example: PEN is to WRITE as SCISSORS is to: (a) paper (b) cut (c) sharp (d) office. Answer: cut, because each tool is matched with what it does.
Tip: Say the relationship as a full sentence, then test each option against that sentence.
Choose the word, or pair of words, that best fills the blanks so the sentence makes sense and keeps its tone.
Tip: Look for signal words like "although," "because" and "despite." They tell you whether the blank agrees or contrasts.
A longer passage with questions on the main idea, a detail, or what the author implies.
Tip: Read the question first, then the passage, so you know what you are looking for.
Example: "All analysts use Excel. Some Excel users are managers." Statement: "Some analysts are managers." Answer: cannot say, since the managers may not be analysts.
Tip: Draw the groups as overlapping circles. It turns wording traps into a picture.
Most hiring tests turn your number of correct answers into a percentile: how you did against a comparison group of people who took the same test. SHL, Criteria and TestGorilla all report scores this way, and none of them publishes a universal pass mark. Each employer decides what it needs for the role.
Where verbal reasoning is one part of a wider test, it may get its own score. The CCAT gives a separate verbal percentile next to math and logic and spatial reasoning. The PI Cognitive Assessment also has a verbal subscore, but PI says subscores are not reliable enough for hiring decisions.
Your invitation names the test. An SHL invite means passage questions with true, false or cannot say; a CCAT or Wonderlic invite means word meaning, analogies and sentence completion.
A common slip is marking "false" when the passage simply does not say. Practice until you ask "does the text prove it, disprove it, or neither?" every time.
SHL Direct has free verbal example questions and practice tests, Criteria has a free practice test with CCAT-style verbal items, and Wonderlic's Test Taker Hub has free timed questions.
Ten minutes of news or business articles a day, with a quick summary of each, builds the speed and vocabulary these tests reward.
It depends on the platform, not the question type. SHL tests are adaptive and employers can switch on webcam and audio proctoring. Criteria limits copy and paste and can lock you out for leaving the test window. TestGorilla takes webcam snapshots and requires full screen. Wonderlic flags unusual answer patterns and may ask for a supervised retest.
In passage tests the answer depends only on what the passage says, so outside knowledge does not help and can lead you to the wrong answer.
Only for practice questions. Real tests from SHL, Criteria, Wonderlic and others draw from large banks or rotating versions, so there is no answer key for your test. OphyAI Aptitude Test reads the verbal question on your screen and shows the answer and the reason.
Yes. Analogies, fill in the blank, synonyms and true, false or cannot say statements are core OphyAI Aptitude Test question types, and it answers them strictly from what the passage says, the way the test is scored.
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Aptitude Test mode in the OphyAI desktop app reads each multiple-choice question on your screen and shows the answer, with a one-line reason, in a small popup only you can see.
Use OphyAI Aptitude Test on your real verbal reasoning test, not just for practice. Start a test in the desktop app, open the verbal reasoning test and turn on Auto: each question is answered as it loads, with the option to pick and a one-line reason, in a popup that macOS and Windows leave out of screen sharing and recording. Or press Cmd/Ctrl + Shift + A on any question.
Analogies, fill in the blank, synonyms and true, false or cannot say statements are core question types, answered strictly from what is written, with the reason shown.
Which number comes next? 3, 6, 12, 24, ...
Which number comes next? 3, 6, 12, 24, ...
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Each term doubles the one before it.
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Hiding the popup from screen share does not hide it from a webcam, a person in the room, or proctoring and lockdown software that lists running apps or blocks screen capture.
A timed multiple-choice test of how well you understand and reason with written information. Employers use it to see how you handle reports, emails and instructions. It is usually one part of a wider aptitude test.
False means the passage says the opposite of the statement. Cannot say means the passage does not give enough information to decide. If you need any outside knowledge to answer, the answer is usually cannot say.
It depends on the test. TestGorilla's Verbal Reasoning test takes about 10 minutes. On the CCAT and Wonderlic, verbal questions are mixed into 50 questions in 15 and 12 minutes. On the PI Cognitive Assessment, up to 16 of 50 questions are verbal.
For word tests like the CCAT and Wonderlic, it helps: they ask about synonyms, opposites and analogies. For passage tests like SHL's, careful reading matters more than vocabulary.
There is no universal good score. Most tests give a percentile against a comparison group, and each employer sets its own target for the role.
Use the publishers' own material: SHL Direct's verbal example questions and practice tests, Criteria's free practice test, Wonderlic's Test Taker Hub, and PI's free 20-question sample.
They overlap. Reading comprehension asks what a text says or implies. Verbal reasoning also includes judging statements against a passage, word meaning, analogies and verbal logic.
Read on November 3, 2026. OphyAI is not affiliated with any test publisher named on this page.
Download OphyAI Desktop, start Aptitude Test before your Verbal Reasoning Test begins, and see each answer and its reason in a popup only you can see.
