GMAT Verbal Reasoning syllabus 2026

Sentence correction is gone. It was the largest single question type on the classic GMAT verbal section and it was removed entirely with the Focus Edition. Grammar is no longer tested as a question type, so time spent on idiom lists is wasted.

What remains is 23 questions in 45 minutes, split between reading comprehension and critical reasoning, both of which test reasoning rather than language. The section order and marking are on the GMAT syllabus.

Section structure

Reading comprehension

Passages run roughly 200 to 350 words, shorter than CAT passages. Usually three to four passages with three to four questions each. The passages are dense rather than long, and the questions reward structure over recall.

Passage subjects

• Business and management: strategy, labour, organisational behaviour, markets
• Natural science and biology: often a competing-hypotheses structure
• Social science, economics and history
• Law and public policy

Question types

• Main idea: what the passage as a whole is doing
• Supporting detail: what the passage states on a specific point
• Inference: what must be true given the passage
• Author tone and attitude
• Function: why a sentence or paragraph is there
• Application: extending the argument to a new case

GMAT passages are shorter and more tightly argued than CAT passages. CAT runs four passages carrying 16 of its 24 verbal questions, so the reading load there is heavier and the inference load here is higher.

Critical reasoning

Short arguments of 50 to 100 words followed by a single question. This is the question type that most closely predicts how you will handle Data Insights, since both reward structured reasoning under time pressure.

• Assumption: the unstated link the argument depends on
• Strengthen: which new fact makes the conclusion more likely
• Weaken: which new fact undermines it
• Inference and conclusion: what follows from the premises alone
• Flaw in the reasoning: where the argument breaks down
• Resolve the paradox: explaining two facts that appear to conflict
• Evaluate the argument: what you would need to know to judge it
• Boldface questions: the role two marked statements play in the argument
• Complete the argument: choosing the sentence that finishes the reasoning

How to work a critical reasoning question

• Read the question stem first, so you know what you are looking for before you read the argument
• Separate the conclusion from the premises, and mark which is which
• Identify the gap the argument leaps over, because most answers live in that gap
• Predict the answer before reading the options
• Eliminate options that are true but irrelevant to the conclusion

What is not in GMAT verbal

• No sentence correction
• No grammar or usage questions
• No vocabulary questions
• No essay or written response

Idioms, modifiers, parallelism and subject-verb agreement were all tested through sentence correction, and all of it went with that question type.

The three papers diverged at different times. CAT stopped testing grammar in 2014. The GMAT stopped in 2024. XAT still tests it directly, so if you are sitting more than one of these, keep the material separate.

Common mistakes

• Working through a sentence correction chapter that no longer applies
• Reading the argument before the question stem, which means reading it twice
• Choosing an option because it is true rather than because it affects the conclusion
• Treating reading comprehension as a memory exercise rather than returning to the passage
• Leaving the final questions blank when time runs short

Frequently asked questions

How many questions are in GMAT verbal?

23, in 45 minutes.

Is sentence correction still on the GMAT?

No. It was removed with the Focus Edition in January 2024.

Is grammar tested on the GMAT?

Not as a question type. Reading comprehension and critical reasoning both test reasoning rather than usage.

How long are GMAT reading passages?

Roughly 200 to 350 words, shorter than CAT passages.

Is there an essay on the GMAT?

No. The Analytical Writing Assessment was removed.

Does GMAT verbal need a strong vocabulary?

Less than the GRE does. The GMAT tests what an argument does, not what a word means.

How many critical reasoning questions are there?

GMAC does not publish the split between the two types, and it varies by test.

Is GMAT verbal harder for non-native speakers?

The removal of sentence correction narrowed that gap, since the section now tests reasoning rather than usage.

Can I use the bookmark feature in verbal?

Yes, and you can change up to three answers at the end of the section.

Is there negative marking in verbal?

No, but unanswered questions at the end of the section are penalised heavily.