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CAT4 lessonsVerbal reasoning

CAT4 verbal classification

Three words that are alike in some way. Your child picks the word that belongs with them.

What your child sees

Level C, Year 6, a question like this one

titanium   zinc   steel

These three words are alike in some way. Which word goes with them?

  1. Ateacher
  2. Bstone
  3. Cglass
  4. Ddoctor
  5. Eiron

Worked example

The same question, one step at a time.

  1. 1Ask what the three words have in common. Titanium, zinc and steel are all metals.
  2. 2Be exact about the group. A word that is only linked to the group, like a thing used with it, does not belong in it.
  3. 3Final answer: iron, because it is also one of the metals.
Answer: choice E(iron)

Common traps

Every wrong choice is built from a mistake children really make.

  • Linked, but not the same kind of thing

    The word is connected to the group, but it is not one of them. Say what the three words are, then ask whether the choice is one too.

    In the example: choices B (stone) and C (glass).

  • A word from a different group

    The word belongs somewhere else entirely. Name the group before you look at the choices.

    In the example: choices A (teacher) and D (doctor).

Where it is on the test

Verbal classification is one of the two tests in the verbal reasoning battery. Each test has its own time limit.

LevelQuestionsTime
Level X (Year 2)1210 minutes
Level Pre-A (Year 3)1510 minutes
Level A (Year 4)248 minutes
Level B (Year 5)248 minutes
Level C (Year 6)248 minutes
Level D (Year 7)248 minutes
Level E (Year 8)248 minutes
Level F (Years 9 and 10)248 minutes
Level G (Year 11 and above)248 minutes

Times are GL Assessment's published figures; question counts are ours where GL publishes none.

Try it

Practise this test online, new every time with the score at the end, or print the free worksheets.

The other test in this battery

CAT4 is a registered trademark of GL Assessment Limited, a Renaissance company. Scholar Tests is not affiliated with or endorsed by GL Assessment, Renaissance or any school. Our practice questions are written by us in the style of CAT4's published question types; they are not real CAT4 questions, and a practice score is not a CAT4 score.