← Verbal Reasoning
Syllogism
Verbal Reasoning · 7 Sections

Syllogism

Master deductive reasoning with Venn diagrams — All, No, Some statements, Either-Or pairs, Possibility conclusions and the new SSC/IBPS pattern.

1
Section 1 of 7

⭕ Introduction to Syllogism

A syllogism is a logical argument where a conclusion is drawn from two or more premises (statements). Every syllogism question in competitive exams gives you 2–3 statements and asks which conclusions definitely follow from those statements — regardless of real-world knowledge.

Golden RuleAlways treat statements as 100% true, even if they contradict common sense. "All cats are tables" must be accepted as a fact for the purpose of the question.

The most reliable method to solve syllogisms is the Venn Diagram Method. Draw circles for each term and represent the relationship between them visually. The four basic statement types are:

All A→B
A circle fully inside B circle
Every element of A is also in B. "All cats are animals."
No A/B
A and B circles completely separate
No element is in both sets. "No pen is a pencil."
Some A∩B
A and B circles partially overlapping
At least one element is in both. "Some cats are dogs."
Some A∉B
Part of A is outside B (overlap still present)
Some elements of A are not in B. "Some books are not pens."
⭕Venn Diagram Explorer
Statement 1: A and B
ABAll A are B
All A are B — A circle is fully inside B. Every element of A is also in B. Valid conclusion: "Some B are A."
Conversion Rule: "All A are B" converts to "Some B are A" (valid). "No A is B" converts to "No B is A" (valid). "Some A are B" converts to "Some B are A" (valid). "Some A are not B" has NO valid conversion.

In a syllogism, the conclusion must follow from the alone — not from general knowledge.

"All A are B" is represented by the Venn diagram where: since every element of A belongs to B.

"No A is B" converts to: — the only statement type where symmetric conversion holds exactly.

📝Practice Questions

Q1Statements: All cats are animals. All animals are living beings. Conclusion: All cats are living beings.

Q2Statements: All pens are books. All books are pencils. Conclusion I: All pens are pencils. Conclusion II: All pencils are pens.

Q3In the Venn diagram method, "All A are B" is represented as:

🔒
Section 2 of 7

🔵 "All" Statements

Complete section 1 above to unlock this section.

🔒
Section 3 of 7

🔴 "No" Statements

Complete section 2 above to unlock this section.

🔒
Section 4 of 7

🟡 "Some" Statements

Complete section 3 above to unlock this section.

🔒
Section 5 of 7

↔️ "Either…Or" Complementary Pairs

Complete section 4 above to unlock this section.

🔒
Section 6 of 7

💡 Possibility Conclusions

Complete section 5 above to unlock this section.

🔒
Section 7 of 7

🚀 New Pattern & Exam Strategy

Complete section 6 above to unlock this section.