Learn to Solve Syllogism For Bank Exam

Syllogism for Bank Exam is an important topic in the Reasoning Exam to be prepared for competitive exams be it for IBPS Clerk, PO, RRB, SO, or SBI Clerk or PO Exams. The number of questions and the complexity of questions vary from exam to exam every year.

Syllogism for Bank Exam is simple to understand but it can be made complex using multiple statements. Examples and Practice questions on Syllogism for Bank Exam are also given in this article.

Nowadays, questions in exams are mixed with multiple concepts and it requires practice and a deep understanding of basic concepts along with quickly identifying patterns.

What is Syllogism?

Syllogism word is derived from the Greek word “syllogismos” which means “conclusion” or “inference”. Greek Philosopher Aristotle has a major contribution to the field of syllogism.

Syllogisms are the logical conclusions of statements using deductive reasoning and simplifying the arguments given. There are many ways to solve questions on syllogisms. The most simple and effective method for solving these questions is by using a Venn diagram.

How to solve Syllogism for Bank Exam?

The Syllogism question contains two or more statements and these statements are followed by two or more conclusions. Prepare a Venn diagram for all the statements.

Draw all the possible diagrams and then arrive at the solution from each of these diagrams separately. Finally, look for the overlapping in diagrams and the answer common to all the diagrams is taken as the correct one.

Main Parts of Syllogism

The syllogism consists of 3 main parts. Below are the three main parts of Syllogism:

1. Major Part of Statement
2. Minor Part of Statement
3. Conclusion Part

A major part of the statement is considered true by the author. For Example: All Cars are good.

The minor part of the statement is a portion of the Major Statement. For Example: BMW is a Car.

The conclusion is the final understanding by joining both statements. For Example: BMW is good.

Let’s understand above all three examples with the help of the Venn Diagram. Below is Venn Diagram. In which outer Circle is for 1st Statement which says: “All Cars are good”. Inner Circle is for the 2nd Statement which says: “BMW is a Car”.

Final Conclusion says: “BMW is good”. As per the two statements and Venn Diagram, we can say that All BMW is Car. Hence we can conclude that BMW is good.

Examples of Syllogism for Bank Exam

Below is the example of Syllogism for Bank Exam:

Example 1: Below is the statements:
1. All dogs are cats.
2. All cats are cows.
Conclusion: Dogs are cows.

Solution 1: From the Venn diagram it’s clear that Dog is Inner Circle, Cats are the Outer Circle and Cows are the outermost circle. Hence the Conclusion is correct.

Example 2: Below is the statements:
1. All dogs are cats.
2. All cats are cows.
Conclusion: Some Cows are dogs.

Solution 2: From the Venn diagram it’s clear that Dog is Inner Circle, Cats are the Outer Circle and Cows are the outermost circle. As per the Venn diagram, it’s not clear that the conclusion is talking about which Cows. Hence the conclusion is not correct.

Example 3: Below is the statements:
1. All dogs are cats.
2. Some cats are cows.
Conclusion: Some dogs are cows.

Solution 3: From the Venn diagram it’s clear that Dog is Inner Circle, Cats are the outer Circle and Cows are another circle that has some overlapping with Cats circle. As per the Venn diagram, it’s not clear whether the Dogs circle have overlapping with the Cows circle or not. Hence the conclusion is not correct.

Example 4: Below is the statements:
1. Some dogs are cats.
2. Some cats are cows.
Conclusion: Some dogs are cows.

Solution 4: From the Venn diagram it’s clear that Dog is a Circle, and Cats are another Circle having some overlapping with Dog’s circle.

Cows are another circle that has some overlapping with Cats circle. As per the Venn diagram, it’s not clear whether the Dogs circle have overlapping with the Cows circle or not. Hence the conclusion is not correct.

Example 5: Below is the statements:
1. Some dogs are cats.
2. Some cats are cows.
3. Some Bulls are Horse.
Conclusion: No Horse are Cows.

Solution 4: From the Venn diagram it’s clear that Dog is a Circle, and Cats are another Circle having some overlapping with Dog’s circle. Cows are another circle that has some overlapping with Cats circle.

Bulls is another circle that has some overlapping with the Horse circle and these two circles are not having any connection with the above circles. As per the Venn diagram, it’s clear that the Horse circle is not having any overlapping with the Cows circle. Hence the conclusion is correct.

Practice Questions on Syllogism for Bank Exam

Below are the practice questions on Syllogism for Bank Exam:

1. Consider statements and check if the conclusion is correct or not: a) No pen is hanky. b) No Cap is a pen. Conclusion: All caps are hanky.
2. Consider statements and check if the conclusion is correct or not: a) All engineers are innovative. b) All students are engineers. Conclusion: All innovative are students.
3. Consider statements and check if the conclusion is correct or not: a) Some Bull are Cows b) No Cow is Horse. Conclusion: Some bulls are horses.
4. Consider statements and check if the conclusion is correct or not: a) All Bull is Cow b) All Cows are horses Conclusion: Some bulls are horses.
5. Consider statements and check if the conclusion is correct or not: a) Some pens are pencils. b) Some Rubber is Pen Conclusion: Some Rubber is pencils.
6. Consider statements and check if the conclusion is correct or not: a) Some people are students. b) Some women are doctors. Conclusion: Some doctors are people.
7. Consider statements and check if the conclusion is correct or not: a) All students are lawyers. b) Some lawyers are great. Conclusion: Some Students are great.
8. Consider statements and check if the conclusion is correct or not: a) All men are engineers b) All women are doctors. Conclusion: Some doctors are men.
9. Consider statements and check if the conclusion is correct or not: a) All men are engineers b) Some women are doctors. c) Some women are engineers. Conclusion: Some engineers are doctors.
10. Consider statements and check if the conclusion is correct or not: a) No pen is hanky. b) No Cap is a pen. c) Some pens are books. Conclusion: Some books are hanky.

Final Words

Practicing the above Syllogism for Bank Exam practice questions is not the end of your practice, but it’s the start of a new journey to apply logic to Syllogism for Bank Exams Questions with multiple approaches in a right and faster way.

For cracking competitive exams one must practice more and more Syllogism for Bank Exams questions. At last, during the exam, if a solution for the Syllogism Questions cannot be found easily then mark that question to revisit and move ahead instead of wasting time and energy.