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LIC AAO Reasoning Ability Syllabus
The Reasoning Ability syllabus for LIC AAO in full: 5 chapters, 24 topics and 11 sub-topics, every one listed below, plus 51 Reasoning Ability flashcards with answers.
Reasoning Ability syllabus: all 5 chapters
Expand any chapter to see its topics and sub-topics.
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Verbal and Analytical Reasoning
5 topics- Syllogism
- Possibility cases
- Reverse syllogism
- Statement and Conclusion / Assumption
- Statement and Course of Action
- Cause and Effect
- Logical Order of Words / Sentences
- Syllogism
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Seating Arrangement and Puzzles
6 topics- Linear Seating Arrangement
- Single row and double row
- Facing same and opposite directions
- Circular and Square Arrangement
- Inward and outward facing
- Floor and Flat Puzzles
- Scheduling Puzzles (Months, Days, Years)
- Box and Stack Puzzles
- Comparison and Ranking Based Puzzles
- Linear Seating Arrangement
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Coding-Decoding and Inequalities
4 topics- Coding-Decoding
- Letter and symbol coding
- Chinese / new pattern coding
- Mathematical Inequalities
- Direct and coded inequalities
- Either-or cases
- Blood Relations
- Family tree puzzles
- Coded blood relations
- Direction and Distance Sense
- Coding-Decoding
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Non-Verbal and Miscellaneous Reasoning
5 topics- Alphanumeric and Symbol Series
- Order and Ranking
- Machine Input-Output
- Data Sufficiency in Reasoning
- Analogy and Classification (Odd One Out)
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Critical Reasoning
4 topics- Passage and Conclusion Reasoning
- Strengthening and Weakening Arguments
- Inference and Assumption Identification
- Decision Making Based Problems
LIC AAO Reasoning Ability flashcards — 51 questions with answers
In syllogism, what is the standard procedure to determine whether a conclusion follows from given statements?
Draw Venn diagrams representing the statements, consider all possible cases (least overlap), and accept a conclusion only if it holds true in EVERY possible diagram.
In syllogism, when do two 'possibility' conclusions form a complementary pair (Either-Or case)?
When two conclusions are individually false but contradictory (one positive, one negative between the same terms, e.g., 'Some A are B' and 'No A is B'), and together they cover all cases — then 'Either...Or' follows.
What is the rule for the conclusion 'All' in syllogism when the premise is 'Some A are B'?
'Some A are B' never guarantees 'All A are B'; it only guarantees 'Some B are A' (conversion). 'All' cannot be concluded from a particular (Some) statement.
What conversion is always valid for the statement 'No A is B'?
'No A is B' converts to 'No B is A' (universal negative converts fully). Also 'Some A are not B' does NOT convert.
In 'Statement and Conclusion' questions, what is the basic rule for accepting a conclusion?
A conclusion must logically and definitely follow from the information stated; it should not rely on outside knowledge or assumptions and must be directly supported by the statement.
What is an 'assumption' in Statement-and-Assumption reasoning?
An assumption is something taken for granted or implied (an unstated supposition) that must be true for the statement to make sense; it is hidden, not explicitly stated.
How do you test whether an assumption is implicit in a statement?
Apply the negation test: negate the assumption; if negating it makes the statement absurd or invalid, the assumption is implicit. If the statement still holds, it is not implicit.
In 'Statement and Course of Action', what qualifies a valid course of action?
A course of action is a practical, administrative step to solve a problem or improve a situation. It must directly address the problem stated, be feasible, and not be extreme or assume facts.
What is the difference between a 'cause' and an 'effect' in Cause-and-Effect reasoning?
The cause is the event/factor that occurs first and produces a result; the effect is the outcome that follows from the cause. The cause precedes the effect in time.
In Cause-and-Effect questions, what does it mean if two events are 'independent causes'?
Both events are effects of some common/different cause but neither one causes the other; they occur due to separate independent reasons.
What is the goal in 'Logical Order of Words' questions?
Arrange given words in a meaningful sequence — typically by chronological order, size/dimension (small to large), process steps, or hierarchy (e.g., District > State > Country).
Give the logical sequence for: Seed, Plant, Flower, Fruit, Tree.
Seed → Plant → Tree → Flower → Fruit (the natural growth/life cycle order).
In linear seating arrangement, what does 'facing north' imply about the directions of left and right?
When facing north, a person's right hand points east and left hand points west — so for the observer, the person's left is to your right and their right is to your left.
In linear arrangement with two parallel rows facing each other, how are members positioned?
One row faces north, the other faces south; members of opposite rows face each other, so the leftmost of one row is opposite the rightmost of the other.
In circular arrangement, how do left/right relate when persons face the CENTRE versus face OUTWARD?
Facing centre: clockwise = each person's LEFT, anticlockwise = RIGHT. Facing outward: clockwise = RIGHT, anticlockwise = LEFT (directions reverse).
In a square/rectangular arrangement, where do people sit and which way may they face?
People sit at the four corners and/or the middle of each side; they may face the centre or face outward, and corner/middle positions affect adjacency.
In floor puzzles, if there are 7 floors numbered 1 (bottom) to 7 (top), how is 'above' and 'below' interpreted?
Higher floor number = higher up. 'A lives above B' means A's floor number is greater than B's; the topmost is floor 7 and the lowest is floor 1.
In a floor-and-flat puzzle, what two-dimensional structure must you track?
Both the vertical floor number AND the horizontal flat position (e.g., Flat 1/Flat 2 on each floor), often with flats on one side facing a particular direction.
In scheduling puzzles based on months, how many months separate events 'in the same half of the year'?
First half = Jan–Jun, second half = Jul–Dec; events in the same half lie within those 6 months. Track the number of months gap between events carefully (inclusive vs exclusive).
In day-based scheduling puzzles, what is the typical assumed week order?
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday — unless specified otherwise; gaps wrap around within the same week only if stated.
Show the other 31 Reasoning Ability flashcards
In box/stack puzzles, what is meant by 'box X is immediately above box Y'?
Box X is placed directly on top of box Y with no box in between them in the vertical stack.
In a stack of boxes, if 'only two boxes are above X', what is X's position from the top?
X is the third box from the top (two boxes occupy positions 1 and 2 above it).
In comparison/ranking puzzles, how do you interpret 'A is taller than B but shorter than C'?
The order from tallest is C > A > B; A lies between C and B in height.
In comparison puzzles, what does 'as many as'/'only one is shorter than A' indicate about A's rank?
'Only one is shorter than A' means A is second from the bottom (second-shortest) in the ranking.
In Coding-Decoding, what is 'letter-shifting' coding?
Each letter is replaced by a letter a fixed number of places forward or backward in the alphabet (e.g., +1: CAT → DBU).
In Coding-Decoding, describe the EJOTY shortcut for alphabet positions.
E=5, J=10, O=15, T=20, Y=25 are evenly spaced markers; use them to quickly find any letter's position (A=1 to Z=26) for coding calculations.
What is the opposite-letter (mirror) value of a letter, and what is the key relationship?
The mirror of a letter is found by 27 minus its position (A↔Z, B↔Y, ...). Position + mirror position = 27.
In symbol/number coding ('substitution coding'), how do you decode a sentence?
Each word maps to a code symbol/number; compare sentences with common words to deduce the code for each word, then identify the unknown by elimination.
In mathematical inequalities, what is the result of combining A > B and B > C?
A > C (transitivity). The combined symbol takes the common direction; '>' and '>' give a definite '>'.
In coded inequalities, what happens when you combine A > B and B = C?
A > C. An equality preserves the strict inequality; the result is the stronger relation (>).
In inequalities, when does NO definite conclusion follow between two end terms?
When the connecting signs point in opposite directions (e.g., A > B < C) — the relation between A and C cannot be determined.
In inequalities, when do the conclusions A ≥ C and A < C form an 'Either-Or' pair?
When neither is individually true but they are complementary (together cover all possibilities, ≥ and <) for the same pair — then 'Either A ≥ C or A < C' is true.
In blood relations, who is your 'father's brother's son' to you?
Your cousin (paternal cousin).
In blood relations, what relation is 'mother's brother' called?
Maternal uncle.
In coded blood relations using +, −, ×, ÷, how should each symbol be read in a chain like 'A + B − C'?
Resolve symbols pairwise from the defined meanings, identifying gender and generation at each step; build the relationship outward from one person to the next.
In direction and distance, if you face North and turn 90° clockwise, which direction do you face?
East. (Clockwise from North: North → East → South → West.)
What formula gives the shortest (straight-line) distance between start and end points in a direction puzzle forming a right angle?
Pythagoras theorem: shortest distance = √(horizontal displacement² + vertical displacement²).
In direction sense, what are the four ordinal directions and their positions?
NE (between N and E), SE (between S and E), SW (between S and W), NW (between N and W) — each 45° between two main directions.
In alphanumeric series, how do you handle a question asking which element is 'third to the left of the seventh from the left'?
Find the 7th from left, then count 3 positions further left → net the (7−3)=4th element from the left.
In a symbol/number/letter series, what is the typical task in 'how many letters are immediately followed by a number'?
Scan the series and count each letter whose very next element is a digit; only the immediate right neighbor counts.
In Order and Ranking, what is the formula relating positions from top and bottom in a row of n people?
Position from top + Position from bottom = Total (n) + 1. So Total = (rank from top) + (rank from bottom) − 1.
In Order/Ranking, if A is 7th from top and 11th from bottom, how many people are there in total?
7 + 11 − 1 = 17 people.
In Machine Input-Output, what defines the 'arrangement' a machine performs each step?
A fixed logical rule applied per step (e.g., shifting the smallest/largest word or number to one end), repeated until the final arrangement is reached; each step processes one element.
In Machine Input-Output, how do you find an intermediate step without knowing the original input?
You cannot work backward to the input from a later step, but you can move forward by applying the deduced rule from the given step onward to reach subsequent steps.
In Data Sufficiency, what does it mean if 'Statement I alone is sufficient but II alone is not'?
The question can be answered using only Statement I's information, while Statement II alone does not provide enough to answer.
In Data Sufficiency, what is the correct response when each statement alone is sufficient?
'Either statement alone is sufficient' — both I and II independently answer the question.
In Data Sufficiency, when do you choose 'both statements together are sufficient (but neither alone)'?
When neither statement individually answers the question, but combining the information from both yields a definite answer.
In Analogy, how do you solve 'A : B :: C : ?'?
Identify the relationship between A and B (e.g., synonym, cause-effect, part-whole, quantity), then apply the same relationship to C to find the missing term.
What is the basic approach to 'Classification / Odd One Out' problems?
Find the common property shared by most items; the one item that does NOT share that property (different category, type, or pattern) is the odd one out.
In Strengthening/Weakening arguments, what is the difference between strengthening and weakening evidence?
Strengthening evidence supports the conclusion or makes it more likely true; weakening evidence undermines, contradicts, or provides an alternative explanation to the conclusion.
In Inference vs Assumption identification, what distinguishes an inference from an assumption?
An inference is a conclusion DERIVED from (follows after) the stated facts; an assumption is a precondition taken for granted BEFORE/within the statement that the argument depends on.
LIC AAO Reasoning Ability FAQ
What is in the LIC AAO Reasoning Ability syllabus?
LIC AAO Reasoning Ability is split into 5 chapters: Verbal and Analytical Reasoning, Seating Arrangement and Puzzles, Coding-Decoding and Inequalities, Non-Verbal and Miscellaneous Reasoning and Critical Reasoning. Together they contain 24 topics and 11 sub-topics.
How many chapters are in LIC AAO Reasoning Ability?
5 chapters, containing 24 topics and 11 sub-topics. The largest chapter is Seating Arrangement and Puzzles, with 6 topics.
Are there flashcards for LIC AAO Reasoning Ability?
Yes — a 51-card Reasoning Ability deck, printed in full in the flashcards section of this page and available in the Examius app with spaced repetition. The free plan covers one exam of your choice, including its flashcards; Examius Pro, a one-time purchase, unlocks every other exam and deck.