Critical Reasoning
Verbal
7 min readConclusion questions ask you to identify the main point of an argument. The answer is the claim the author wants you to accept, not the evidence used to support it. These questions look simple, but the GMAT uses complex passages with several claims, and only one of them is the main conclusion.
A conclusion is a claim supported by reasons. It is the author's point. Evidence is the support. An argument can have several claims, but the main conclusion is the one that depends on the others and does not support a larger claim in the passage.
For example: "The company's profits fell last quarter. Its main factory was closed for two weeks. Therefore, the closure caused the decline." The first two sentences are evidence. The third is the conclusion. The conclusion is the claim that the author wants you to accept on the basis of the factory closure.
The main conclusion is the final point of the argument. If a statement supports another statement, it is evidence. If it is supported by the other statements and supports nothing else in the passage, it is the main conclusion.
Certain words often introduce a conclusion:
Premise indicators include "because," "since," "given that," "for," and "as shown by." These words are helpful, but they are not decisive. An author may state a conclusion without an indicator, and a word such as "therefore" can introduce an intermediate conclusion rather than the main one.
An intermediate conclusion is a claim supported by evidence and then used to support the main conclusion. It sits between the evidence and the final point. For example: "The new policy reduced accidents. Fewer accidents mean lower insurance costs. So the policy will save the company money." The claim about insurance costs is an intermediate conclusion. It is supported by the accident data and it supports the final claim about saving money.
To find the main conclusion, ask what the author is ultimately trying to establish. The intermediate conclusion answers "what does the evidence show?" The main conclusion answers "why does that matter?"
Test the direction of support. If statement A supports statement B, then A is evidence and B is a conclusion. If the relationship runs both ways, the passage may be describing a correlation rather than an argument.
Example. "Sales of electric cars rose sharply after the new tax credit was introduced. The credit made electric cars cheaper than comparable gasoline cars. Consumers respond to price. The tax credit therefore increased electric car sales."
The first three sentences are evidence and general principle. The final sentence is the main conclusion. The claim that the credit made cars cheaper is an intermediate claim that supports the conclusion.
A factual description is not a conclusion unless the author uses it to make a point. "The report was published on Monday" is a fact. "The report was published on Monday, so the findings are now public" contains a conclusion about the findings being public. Look for the claim that the author intends to establish, not just the statement that contains an opinion.
Opinion words such as "should," "must," "will," and "clearly" often signal a conclusion, but they can also appear in evidence. The structure matters more than the vocabulary.
Some questions ask you to infer the author's main point. In that case, look for the claim that the evidence is designed to support. The conclusion may be implied by the overall direction of the passage. If the author presents several facts that all point to one explanation, that explanation is the conclusion.
Be careful not to choose a statement that is merely a summary of the evidence. A summary restates what was said. A conclusion draws a claim from it.
A recommendation is a claim about what should be done. A conclusion is a claim the author supports with evidence. Many arguments end with a recommendation, and the recommendation is the main conclusion. For example: "The current policy has failed to reduce traffic. The city should therefore invest in public transit." The recommendation is the conclusion because the evidence about the policy supports the proposed action.
Other arguments end with a prediction rather than a recommendation. A prediction states what will happen, while a recommendation states what should happen. Both can be conclusions. Identify the claim the author wants you to accept, then decide whether it is descriptive or prescriptive.
Some passages contain two claims that are both supported by evidence. One may support the other, or they may be independent. If one claim supports the other, the supported claim is the main conclusion. If the claims are independent, the passage may have two conclusions, and the question will specify which one it asks about.
Example. "The new library increased visits by 20 percent. The increase shows that residents want longer hours. The library should therefore extend its schedule."
The first sentence is evidence. The second sentence is an intermediate conclusion. The third sentence is the main conclusion because it is supported by the second.
If the question asks for the main conclusion, choose the claim that depends on the other claims and does not support a larger claim. If the question asks for a conclusion the author draws, the intermediate conclusion may be the answer. Read the exact wording of the question stem.
A conclusion can be descriptive or prescriptive. Do not eliminate a recommendation simply because it says "should." The key question is whether the rest of the passage supports it.
| Question | What to look for |
|---|---|
| What is the author trying to prove? | The final claim supported by the rest |
| Which statement supports another? | The supporting statement is evidence |
| Which statement supports nothing else? | The main conclusion |
| Which statement is supported and also supports? | An intermediate conclusion |
The main conclusion is not always the last sentence, and it is not always introduced by a signal word. Ask what the author wants you to believe after reading the whole passage. That claim is the conclusion.
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