Verbal reasoning test: Pre-employment screening assessment to hire top candidates

Use our Verbal reasoning test to hire the best

This verbal reasoning test evaluates candidates’ ability to recognize logical relationships between words and draw accurate conclusions from written information. This cognitive ability test helps you assess candidates’ analytical skills through language.

Covered skills

Finding analogies
Understanding premises & inference

Use the Verbal reasoning test to hire

Any role that requires a good use of language and reasoning

Type

Cognitive ability

Time

10 min

Languages

English, Spanish, French, Italian, Japanese, Dutch, Portuguese (Brazil)

Level

Intermediate

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About the Verbal reasoning test

Verbal reasoning is one of the top abilities professionals in all fields can have. From comprehending reports, case studies, and complex projects to writing blog posts, presentations, and pitch decks, words and clarity of expression play a huge role in the success of individuals and companies alike.

This verbal reasoning test evaluates candidates’ ability to reason from words to reach valid conclusions. The first part assesses candidates’ skills in identifying relationships between words (such as synonyms and antonyms) and replicating them by analogy, and the second assesses candidates’ ability to reach the correct conclusion by indicating the validity of a statement (true, false, or cannot be determined) based solely on information given in a piece of text.

Candidates who perform well on this test have a good grasp of language. They can use the written word to draw analogies, correctly communicate meaning, and reason from facts.

This verbal reasoning test can be used to assess candidates’ analytical skills through language.

The test is made by a subject-matter expert

Anirban C.

The global IT industry has benefited from Anirban’s talents for over two decades. With a flawless reputation that precedes him, Anirban has earned a status as a sought-after agile project manager and consultant. He’s worked internationally as a Senior Project Manager with companies such as Ericsson, IBM, and T-Mobile.

Anirban’s love for learning helps him keep his skills sharp. He holds an MBA and a degree in engineering, is a certified Scrum Master, and has certifications in Prince2 and ITIL.

Crafted with expert knowledge

TestGorilla’s tests are created by subject matter experts. We assess potential subject-matter experts based on their knowledge, ability, and reputation. Before being published, each test is peer-reviewed by another expert, then calibrated using hundreds of test takers with relevant experience in the subject. Our feedback mechanisms and unique algorithms allow our subject-matter experts to constantly improve their tests.

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The Verbal reasoning test will be included in a PDF report along with the other tests from your assessment. You can easily download and share this report with colleagues and candidates.

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Why verbal reasoning skills are important

Verbal reasoning skills enable candidates to comprehend and reason with words. When candidates have good verbal reasoning skills, they can understand and reason with concepts expressed in language. Candidates with these skills are adept at:

• Solving problems using words and language
• Thinking about, understanding, and gaining insights from text
• Following instructions and then figuring out a solution
• Decoding number-based code

Verbal reasoning skills are crucial in the workplace since candidates must use them to:

• Understand information: Many jobs require employees to analyze various information to gain insights and operate in the role successfully. Reading and understanding a business report or analyzing an important document are just some of the tasks that candidates will be able to perform if they have good verbal reasoning skills. On top of that, they will have the ability to listen to their peers, colleagues, managers, and supervisors and comprehend the information they tell them.

• Use reason to reach accurate conclusions: Once candidates understand the information, they need to use it to reach logical conclusions. This is an essential skill in today’s workplace – technologies change rapidly, so every employee must keep learning to keep their skills and knowledge up to date. For example, candidates may require good verbal reasoning skills to gain actionable insights from a report so that they can perform their job more effectively.

• Express their thoughts and ideas clearly: After candidates have gained insights from information, they must put what they have learned into action. Today’s workplaces are increasingly collaborative, so to implement solutions, candidates first need to communicate their insights to others and get them on board. Candidates with excellent verbal reasoning skills are more effective in the workplace because they know how to clearly express their thoughts and ideas so that others can easily understand them. This helps them to communicate and collaborate with others more effectively.

The Verbal Reasoning test will help you evaluate if your candidates can recognize logical relationships in written information and use them to draw accurate conclusions. This cognitive ability test will help you assess candidates’ analytical skills through language.

How the Verbal Reasoning test can help you find great candidates

If you want to hire a candidate with good verbal reasoning skills, you should give them a skills test like the Verbal Reasoning test.

This pre-employment test will help you figure out if your candidates know how to:

• Find analogies in text
• Understand premises and inferences

If you’re hiring for any role that requires good verbal reasoning skills, give candidates the Verbal Reasoning test to ensure that they’re qualified for the job. The test is perfect for roles such as customer support representatives, account managers, technical writers, and business analysts.

These positions require candidates to use verbal reasoning skills to make sense of many different written works, such as case studies, reports, and blog posts. On top of that, verbal reasoning skills will help them create pitch decks and presentations to show others.

Candidates who score well on the Verbal Reasoning test have solid verbal reasoning skills and are more likely to succeed in your open role.

What are the benefits of giving candidates a Verbal Reasoning test?

There are four main benefits of using the Verbal Reasoning test:

It’s objective. When you use our Verbal Reasoning test, you will receive objective, quantifiable results. Giving applicants this test enables you to skip CV screening entirely and eliminate bias from the hiring process by grading candidates only on the basis of their skills.

• It’s informative: It’s almost impossible to tell if a candidate has logical skills, decision-making skills, or the ability to comprehend information just by looking at their CVs. However, the Verbal Reasoning test assesses the core competencies candidates need to operate successfully in your organization. That’s why a pre-employment test like the Verbal Reasoning test will provide you with much more relevant information that will help you find the right candidate.

• It’s efficient: Candidates can sometimes embellish their skills in their resumes and state that they have more experience with certain skill sets than they actually do. But a pre-employment test like the Verbal Reasoning test will verify the skills candidates claim to have and eliminate less skilled applicants early on in the hiring process. This way, you can avoid wasting time on unqualified candidates and focus only on the most qualified and experienced candidates for the rest of the recruitment process.

• It’s effective: This test can help improve the quality of hire for roles that require good verbal reasoning skills. Who wouldn’t want to use a test to easily find a candidate who can communicate professionally, think analytically, and express themselves clearly? On top of that, you can send the test to all of your candidates with just a single click, so it makes no difference how many applicants you receive for the position.

In summary

When you’re hiring for the role of a business analyst, technical writer, account manager, customer support rep, or customer success manager, you should find a candidate with good verbal reasoning skills.
To accomplish this, give your applicants a pre-employment test like the Verbal Reasoning test. The test is bias-free, objective, and simple to use. See the results for yourself – add this pre-employment test to your recruitment process today.

FAQs

What is the difference between an assessment and a test?

An assessment is the total package of tests and custom questions that you put together to evaluate your candidates. Each individual test within an assessment is designed to test something specific, such as a job skill or language. An assessment can consist of up to 5 tests and 20 custom questions. You can have candidates respond to your custom questions in several ways, such as with a personalized video.

Can I add my own questions to an assessment?

Yes! Custom questions are great for testing candidates in your own unique way. We support the following question types: video, multiple-choice, coding, file upload, and essay. Besides adding your own custom questions, you can also create your own tests.

How do video questions work?

A video question is a specific type of custom question you can add to your assessment. Video questions let you create a question and have your candidates use their webcam to record a video response. This is an excellent way to see how a candidate would conduct themselves in a live interview, and is especially useful for sales and hospitality roles. Some good examples of things to ask for video questions would be "Why do you want to work for our company?" or "Try to sell me an item you have on your desk right now." You can learn more about video questions here.

Can you explain how the other custom question types work?

Besides video questions, you can also add the following types of custom questions: multiple-choice, coding, file upload, and essay. Multiple-choice lets your candidates choose from a list of answers that you provide, coding lets you create a coding problem for them to solve, file upload allows your candidates to upload a file that you request (such as a resume or portfolio), and essay allows an open-ended text response to your question. You can learn more about different custom question types here.

Can I customize an assessment with my company logo and color theme?

Yes! You can add your own logo and company color theme to your assessments. This is a great way to leave a positive and lasting brand impression on your candidates.

What type of support do you offer?

Our team is always here to help. After you sign up, we’ll reach out to guide you through the first steps of setting up your TestGorilla account. If you have any further questions, you can contact our support team via email, chat or call. We also offer detailed guides in our extensive Help & Inspiration Center.

What is the cost for using the Verbal reasoning test?

You can find our pricing packages here. Sign up here to try TestGorilla today.

Can I combine the Verbal reasoning test with other tests?

Yes. You can add up to five tests to each assessment.

Where in my recruitment process should I use the Verbal reasoning test?

We recommend using our assessment software as a pre-screening tool at the beginning of your recruitment process. You can add a link to the assessment in your job post or directly invite candidates by email. TestGorilla replaces traditional CV screening with a much more reliable and efficient process, designed to find the most skilled candidates earlier and faster.

What are the main cognitive ability tests?

We offer the following cognitive ability tests: Numerical Reasoning, Problem Solving, Attention to Detail, Reading Comprehension, and Critical Thinking.

Which cognitive ability test should I add to my assessment?

Our cognitive ability tests allow you to test for skills that are difficult to evaluate in an interview. Check out our blog on why these tests are so useful and how to choose the best one for your assessment.

Verbal reasoning