Verbal reasoning
Verbal Reasoning Tests at US Firms: Formats and Practice
There is no single verbal reasoning test in US recruiting. The verbal part you meet depends on the vendor your firm uses: a passage with True, False or Cannot Say at UBS, word meaning against the clock on a CCAT-style test at Lazard, a verbal share of PI's 12-minute test at KKR and Bain Capital, or Wonderlic's mixed items at Point72. Here is what each one looks like and how to practice it.
In short
A verbal reasoning test checks how well you read and draw conclusions from written information under time pressure. In US recruiting for summer 2028 it usually arrives inside a wider aptitude test: Aon's verbal test at UBS (49 tasks in 12 minutes, each statement True, False or Cannot Say), the CCAT style test at Lazard (50 questions in 15 minutes, with vocabulary, sentence completion and word comparison items), the PI Cognitive Assessment at KKR and Bain Capital (50 questions in 12 minutes, up to 16 of them verbal) and Wonderlic's 50-question, 12-minute test at Point72. Answer only from what is on the screen, and learn your vendor's rule on guessing.
The basics
What it is
Verbal reasoning is the reading part of an aptitude test. Some vendors give you a short passage and a statement and ask whether the statement is true, false or cannot be told from the passage. Others test words directly: the opposite of a word, the word that completes a sentence, or an analogy. Either way you have seconds, not minutes, per item.
UBS is the clearest US example. Its early careers page lists four online assessments, verbal reasoning, numerical reasoning, inductive-logical reasoning and UBS Culture Match, assigned by business area, to be done within seven days of the invitation and with no retakes. It points candidates to Aon's practice tests, and Aon's verbal test is 49 tasks in 12 minutes, each a statement to judge against a data sheet.
Elsewhere the verbal part sits inside a general cognitive test. Lazard's aptitude test is very similar to Criteria's CCAT, whose Verbal Ability score covers sentence completion, vocabulary and word comparison. Bain Capital and KKR use the Predictive Index Cognitive Assessment, where up to 16 of the 50 items are verbal. Point72's online assessment is a Wonderlic test plus a behavioral one, and Wonderlic's sample includes analogies and opposites.
Not every test with a vendor name has a verbal section. On our US pages, Barclays' SHL test covers numerical reasoning, logical reasoning and situational judgment, BCG's SHL-built Consulting Career Assessment has a logic portion, and PwC's SHL assessment is a work-style questionnaire. Suited, which Moelis requires and several other boutiques and law firms name (see the firm-to-test matrix), tests attention to detail, critical reasoning and logical reasoning rather than a section called verbal.
Try it now
Try the Verbal Reasoning Test format
An app-identical practice test and report. Free to start, no card required.
What it measures
The dimensions under test
Reading for exactly what is stated
Aon's verbal test asks you to judge each statement against a data sheet. You need to tell what the text says from what it only suggests.
Word meaning
Criteria says the CCAT's verbal questions test a word's precise meaning, how words relate, and the role context plays in word choice. Opposites and sentence completion are typical.
Relationships between words
Analogies such as LOW is to HIGH as EASY is to what appear in Wonderlic's official sample, and a prep site lists them for PI as well.
Speed with accuracy
Every one of these tests has more items than most people finish. Criteria says the average CCAT taker gets 24 right out of 50.
The format
What to expect
See it in action
A worked example
Our own items, written in the style of each format. Passage for the first three: "Northfield Bank opened 12 branches in Texas in 2025. Deposits at the new branches grew faster than at its older branches, and the bank plans to open more branches in the state in 2026."
- 01
Statement: "Northfield opened 12 branches in Texas in 2025."
True. The passage says it directly. A paraphrase also counts as True if it means exactly the same thing.
- 02
Statement: "The new branches were more profitable than the older ones."
Cannot Say. Faster deposit growth is not profit; the passage says nothing about costs or earnings. This is the most common trap: a plausible step beyond the text.
- 03
Statement: "Northfield has no plans to grow in Texas."
False. The passage says the bank plans to open more branches in the state in 2026, which contradicts the statement.
- 04
Opposite: choose the word most nearly opposite to EXPAND
Options: enlarge, contract, release, extend, inform. Answer: contract. Enlarge and extend are synonyms placed as traps; reading too fast picks them.
- 05
Analogy: SPARSE is to DENSE as BRIEF is to what?
Options: short, lengthy, quick, rare, clear. Answer: lengthy. Name the relationship first (opposites), then find the word that matches it.
The takeaway
Cannot Say is where most points go. If you need to add a fact from outside the passage to get to True or False, the answer is Cannot Say.
The scoring
How it is marked
Each vendor reports against other test takers, but the rules that change your tactics differ.
CCAT
The employer sees your raw score (the number right) and a percentile. There is no penalty for a wrong answer, so Criteria advises guessing and moving on when stuck.
PI Cognitive
The score is based on the number of correct answers, scaled from 100 to 450. Questions attempted do not matter, so a wrong answer costs nothing beyond the time spent.
Wonderlic
Wonderlic says guessing is not likely to improve your score: mark your best choice when you think you know, and do not spend too long on any one item.
Aon
In performance tests Aon usually adds a point for each correct answer and deducts one for each incorrect answer, so blind guessing can hurt.
The variants
Versions you might be sent
Aon scales verbal
The UBS format: 49 tasks in 12 minutes, statements judged True, False or Cannot Say against data sheets. Aon publishes free practice tasks with worked answers.
Criteria CCAT verbal
Sentence completion, vocabulary and word comparison inside a 50-question, 15-minute test with a separate Verbal Ability percentile.
PI Cognitive verbal
Up to 16 verbal items in a 50-item, 12-minute test. PI describes the verbal part as understanding and analyzing written information.
Wonderlic cognitive
A 50-question, 12-minute test mixing language items such as analogies and opposites with math, logic and pattern items.
SHL Verify Verbal
Passage-based True, False or Cannot Say, up to 30 questions in 19 minutes. Sent when a firm assigns SHL's verbal test.
Who uses it
Firms that screen with this test
Each links to that firm's US page for the stage, or to the firm overview, which covers every stage of its process.
Other tests named on this page
These firms send online tests without a section called verbal. Their US pages cover what each one contains.
The prep
How to prepare
Find your firm's vendor first
An Aon passage test and a CCAT word test need different practice. Check the firm-to-test matrix or the firm's page, then practice that format.
Use the vendor's own practice
Aon publishes verbal practice tasks with worked answers, Criteria publishes CCAT sample questions, and Wonderlic publishes a sample test. They show the real item style.
Drill Cannot Say
For passage tests, practice spotting the step that goes beyond the text. Aon's advice is to ask what the data can tell you and what it cannot.
Build vocabulary in context
For CCAT, PI and Wonderlic, practice opposites, analogies and sentence completion in short timed sets. Reading quality financial press daily helps too.
Practice at real speed
At 14 to 18 seconds an item, hesitation is the main cost. Do full timed sets so the pace feels normal before the real one.
How not to fail
Common failure modes
The specific ways candidates lose marks on this test. None of these need talent to avoid, only awareness.
- 01Using outside knowledge. If the passage does not say it, it does not count. Suited's own guidance is not to apply outside knowledge; every answer is in the question.
- 02Confusing False with Cannot Say. False needs the passage to contradict the statement. If the passage is silent, the answer is Cannot Say.
- 03Guessing on the wrong test. Guessing is free on the CCAT but can cost points on Aon. Learn your vendor's rule before you start.
- 04Picking the synonym on an opposite item. Word tests put a synonym among the options as a trap. Read the instruction word (opposite, similar) on every item.
- 05Trying to finish. These tests are built so most people do not finish. Rushing to the end at the cost of accuracy lowers the score.
On the day
What strong candidates do
The habits that separate high scorers, most of them decided before the timer even starts.
Read the statement first
On passage tests, read the statement, then hunt for the part of the passage it depends on. It saves rereading the whole passage.
Name the relationship
On analogies, say the relationship to yourself (opposite, part of, type of) before looking at the options.
Watch qualifiers
All, some, only, most and usually change whether a statement holds. Small words decide many items.
Keep a pace check
Know your target seconds per item and glance at the clock every ten items, not every item.
Practice on the real format
Reading about the test is not practicing it.
Intervyo recreates Verbal Reasoning Test in its real format, timed and scored, with instant feedback so the structure is familiar before it counts. Start free, no card required.
FAQ
Common questions
A timed test of how well you read and draw conclusions from written information. Some versions give a passage and a statement to judge as True, False or Cannot Say; others test word meaning with opposites, analogies and sentence completion.
Keep exploring
Keep going
More assessments
Practice on Intervyo
Verbal Reasoning Test
Know the test.
Now practice it on the real format.
Intervyo recreates the timed pressure of these assessments and scores every run, so the format is second nature before the real one.
Free to start, no card required
Sources
Firm pages first, then dated reports. Last checked Nov 5, 2026.
- 1Criteria Corp: What to Expect on the Criteria Cognitive Aptitude Test (CCAT)
- 2Criteria Corp: Criteria Cognitive Aptitude Test (CCAT) Score Report Guide
- 3The Predictive Index: Introduction to the PI Cognitive Assessment
- 4The Predictive Index: Cognitive Assessment scoring
- 5The Predictive Index: Cognitive Assessment Test For Employment
- 6Psychometric Success: PI Cognitive Assessment: Examples and Tips 2026 · prep site
- 7Wonderlic: Sample Assessment: Wonderlic Select
- 8Wonderlic: Cognitive Ability Assessment
- 9Aon: Prepare for your Online Assessment
- 10Aon: Practice Tasks: Verbal Reasoning
- 11SHL: SHL Verify Verbal Reasoning Test: Assessment Fact Sheet (2018)
- 12Suited: How to prepare for and respond to the Cognitive Skills Assessment
- 13UBS, via the Wayback Machine: Early careers (archived Oct 7, 2026)
- 14Lazard: Global Notice on the Use of AI-Enabled Interview Tools in Recruitment
- 15Candidate report on a public forum: Lazard hirevue (Oct 2026)
- 16Candidate discussion on a public forum: KKR SA 2024 (Jan 2023)
- 17Bain Capital, via Built In Boston: 2027 Summer Analyst, Path into Private Equity (posting)
- 18Point72 (Greenhouse): 2028 Point72 Academy Investment Analyst Summer Internship Program, US
- 19Candidate report on a public forum: Academy intern interview, New York (Dec 2025)
- 20Candidate report on a public forum: Summer Analyst interview, New York (Feb 2026)
- 21BCG: Consulting Career Assessment (CCA) FAQs, Applicants to US offices (Jul 2024)
- 22PwC: Entry Level Assessment FAQs
- 23Suited: For law students
- 24Moelis & Company: Explore Opportunities (Suited assessment)
- 25JobTestPrep: Verbal Reasoning Test Practice · prep site
Intervyo is an independent preparation platform. Our practice tests simulate the style and format of Aon, Criteria, PI, Wonderlic and SHL assessments and are not affiliated with, or endorsed by, the test publisher.