11 Plus Verbal Reasoning Syllabus
Verbal Reasoning isn't taught in primary school, which is why it can feel unfamiliar at first. It tests your child's ability to think logically with words and letters. GL Assessment papers are built from 21 standard question types (the first 15 appear everywhere; the remaining 6 — sometimes called the HIKNOS types — appear in some regions). CEM blends verbal reasoning with English vocabulary in a more comprehension-led format, including cloze and shuffled-sentence tasks.
2
24
29
Typically 50 minutes (varies by board)
Format at a glance
Standard format (5-option multiple choice) or Multiple Choice. CEM mixes VR with English vocabulary.
GL Assessment — 21 Question Types
GL Assessment papers are built from 21 standard question types. Mastering each one is essential for Kent, Bexley, Lincolnshire and many other GL regions.
Familiarity with the alphabet (forwards and backwards)
Letter-to-number positions (A=1, B=2 ... Z=26)
Strong synonym/antonym vocabulary
Quick mental arithmetic
Logical deduction
Find a single letter that finishes the word on the left and starts the word on the right. Both new words must be real, and only one letter should work in both positions.
Find the letter that finishes the first word and starts the second: frien ( ? ) ay
Adding "d" gives "friend" and "day" — both real words. None of the other letters produce a real word from "frien_".
Find the letter: lan ( ? ) ame
Adding "d" gives "land" and "dame" — both real words. The other letters either fail on the left ("lan_" is not a word with c/g/s/n) or only work on the right.
A word has been encoded by shifting each letter forwards or backwards in the alphabet. Decode it.
If the code for CAT is FDW, what is the code for DOG?
Each letter shifts forward 3: C→F, A→D, T→W. Apply the same shift to DOG: D→G, O→R, G→J. Code = GRJ.
Continue a series of letter pairs by spotting the alphabetical pattern (forward jumps, backward jumps, or repeating gaps).
Find the next pair: AB CD EF GH ?
Each pair advances by 2 letters: A→C→E→G→I and B→D→F→H→J. So after GH the next pair is IJ.
Find the next pair: AZ, BY, CX, DW, ?
First letter goes A,B,C,D,E. Second letter goes backwards from Z: Z,Y,X,W,V. Next is EV.
AB is to CD as EF is to ? — apply the same alphabetical shift to the third pair.
BD is to FH as KM is to ?
B→F is +4 letters; D→H is +4 letters. Apply the same shift to KM: K+4 = O, M+4 = Q. Answer: OQ.
Take one letter from the first word and add it to the second word. Both new words must be real and the original letters must keep their order.
Move ONE letter from PLACE to HAT to make two new real words. Which letter should you move?
Remove L from PLACE → PACE (a real word). Add L to HAT in the right position → HALT (a real word). Both are valid English words.
Find a word that can follow the first word and precede the second to make two real compound words.
Find a word that goes AFTER the first and BEFORE the second to make two compound words: SUN ( ? ) LIGHT
SUN + spot = SUNSPOT (a dark patch on the sun). spot + LIGHT = SPOTLIGHT (a focused beam of light). Both are real compound words.
A three-letter word has been removed from a longer word in the sentence. Find the word that, when put back, makes a real word and a sensible sentence.
Find the three-letter word that fills the gap and makes a real word: "The B___HER prepared the meat carefully."
B + UTC + HER = BUTCHER, which makes the sentence sensible. None of the other three-letter inserts produce a real word that fits.
Find the three-letter word: "The G___DY child ate too much cake."
G + REE + DY = GREEDY, which fits the sentence perfectly. None of the other inserts produce a real word.
Three pairs of words follow the same rule (e.g. swap a letter, add a suffix). Find the missing word.
The first pair changes in the same way as the others. Find the missing word. (SAND → SANDS) (HAND → HANDS) (LAND → ?)
Each pair simply adds an -S to make the plural: SAND→SANDS, HAND→HANDS, so LAND→LANDS.
Letters represent numbers. Replace them, do the arithmetic and write the answer as a letter.
If A = 2, B = 5, C = 6, D = 3 and E = 10, what is (B + D) − A as a letter?
B + D = 5 + 3 = 8. Then 8 − A = 8 − 2 = 6. The letter that equals 6 is C → answer C.
If P = 4, Q = 9, R = 5, S = 2 and T = 18, what is Q × S as a letter?
Q × S = 9 × 2 = 18, which equals T.
Spot the pattern in a sequence of numbers and find the missing one.
Find the next number: 3, 7, 15, 31, 63, ?
Each term is the previous term × 2 + 1: 3×2+1=7, 7×2+1=15, 15×2+1=31, 31×2+1=63, 63×2+1=127.
Choose ONE word from each group whose meanings are closest to each other. Only one valid synonym pair exists across the two groups.
Find one word from each group that are closest in meaning: (happy, slow, blue, narrow) and (purple, joyful, hot, deep)
"Happy" and "joyful" are direct synonyms — both mean feeling great pleasure. The other pairings are either unrelated or only loosely connected.
Choose ONE word from each group whose meanings are most opposite. Only one valid antonym pair exists across the two groups.
Find one word from each group that are MOST OPPOSITE in meaning: (silent, kind, deep, narrow) and (loud, fast, gentle, dark)
"Silent" (no sound) and "loud" (lots of sound) are direct opposites. "Kind – gentle" are synonyms, not opposites; the other pairs are unrelated.
A word is missing from the sentence. Choose the word that completes the meaning best.
Despite the heavy rain, the determined hikers __________ to reach the summit.
"Managed" fits the context — they succeeded despite difficulty. The other options do not match the meaning of the sentence.
Pick the single word that has the closest meaning to a target word.
Pick the word that means most nearly the same as ENORMOUS:
"Huge" is the closest synonym for "enormous".
Pick the single word that means the OPPOSITE of a target word.
Pick the word that means the OPPOSITE of CRUEL:
"Kind" is the direct opposite of "cruel".
A simple arithmetic equation with one missing number.
24 ÷ 6 + ? = 11
24 ÷ 6 = 4. So 4 + ? = 11, meaning ? = 7.
Three groups of numbers follow the same rule. Find the missing number.
Three groups follow the same rule. Find the missing number: (5 [9] 4) (7 [12] 5) (8 [?] 6)
The middle number is the sum of the two outer numbers: 5+4=9, 7+5=12, 8+6=14.
Each letter in a word is given a number. Use the codes to encode or decode another word.
If the code for STARE is 1 2 3 4 5, what is the code for RATES?
S=1, T=2, A=3, R=4, E=5. RATES uses R-A-T-E-S → 4-3-2-5-1.
Use a set of clues to deduce a fact about people, objects or arrangements.
Three children — Amir, Beth and Cleo — sit in a row. Beth is not on either end. Amir does not sit next to Cleo. Who sits in the middle?
Beth is not on an end, so she is in the middle. (If Beth is in the middle, Amir and Cleo are on the ends and therefore not next to each other — consistent with the second clue.)
Five friends queue at a cafe in this order: Tara is in front of Liam. Liam is two places ahead of Mia. Sam is at the back. Eli is in front of Tara. Who is at the front of the queue?
From the clues: Eli → Tara → Liam → ? → Mia, with Sam at the back. Eli is at the front.
CEM-Style Verbal Reasoning
CEM blends VR with English vocabulary, with cloze passages, comprehension and shuffled-sentence questions appearing alongside synonyms and antonyms.
High-tier vocabulary breadth
Cloze (fill-in-the-blank) passages
Shuffled sentences
Comprehension under time pressure
A passage with several blanks. Choose the best word for each blank from a word bank.
Choose the best word for each blank: "The cat _______ silently across the garden, _______ towards the unsuspecting bird." Word bank: leapt, crept, shouted, edging, falling, sleeping.
The cat moves silently and stalks the bird — 'crept' fits silent movement and 'edging' fits cautious approach.
A sentence has been shuffled with one extra word added. Identify the word that does NOT belong in the original sentence.
Find the word that does NOT belong: "The bright sun shone happily warmly through the open window."
Reading the sentence with each word removed shows that "happily" is the redundant word — "The bright sun shone warmly through the open window" reads naturally.
Read a short passage and answer inference-based questions, often under tight time limits.
Read: "Olu glanced at his watch for the third time, drumming his fingers on the desk." What is most likely true about Olu?
Repeatedly checking the time and drumming fingers are classic signs of impatience or anxiety.
Put Verbal Reasoning into practice
Use these resources to turn the syllabus into exam-ready confidence.
11 plus Verbal Reasoning — frequently asked questions
Quick answers to the questions parents ask most about 11+ Verbal Reasoning.