How to answer it
- List what the text establishes, especially any contrast or change.
- Ask what must follow from those facts alone.
- Reject choices that need an extra assumption.
Worked example
An original question in the SAT format, already answered.
Tomato plants grown beside a row of basil had fewer aphids than tomato plants grown alone. When the basil was trimmed so it could not flower, aphid numbers on the nearby tomatoes rose to the same level as on plants grown alone. This suggests that
Which choice most logically completes the text?
- Abasil leaves are toxic to aphids.
- Baphids prefer basil to tomatoes.
- Csomething about basil flowers helps reduce aphids on nearby tomatoes.
- Dtomato plants grow faster near basil.
Answer: C. The only change was removing the flowers, and the benefit disappeared, so the flowers matter. A ignores that the leaves were still there, and B and D aren’t supported.
The most common trap
Answers that go further than the evidence. If you have to add an assumption to make it work, it’s wrong.
Practice it
Hourly Prep’s daily sets mix inferences with the rest of SAT Reading and Writing, and send more of it your way when it’s a weak spot. See how the SAT prep plan works, or browse the other SAT skill guides.