LSAT, Graduate admissions

Reading Comprehension

Reading Comprehension contains four reading selections, each followed by five to eight questions, for roughly 27 questions in 35 minutes. Three selections are single passages of about 400 to 500 words drawn from the humanities, social sciences, natural sciences, and law; one is a comparative reading set of two shorter passages on a related topic. Questions ask about the main point, the author's attitude, the function of a specific sentence, what the passage supports, and how the paired passages relate, so the section rewards structural reading rather than memorizing details.

Position: 2 of 3 sections
Time: 35 minutes
Topics covered: 5 topics in this guide

What is covered

Topics inside this section.

These topics describe the scope students most often review for this part of LSAT. Treat them as a study checklist rather than an exhaustive list of what a single exam form can sample.

Main point and purpose: Stating the central claim of a passage and distinguishing the author's purpose from the topics the passage merely discusses.
Passage structure and function: Tracking how paragraphs build on one another and explaining why a particular sentence, example, or quotation appears where it does.
Author attitude and tone: Reading for evaluative language that reveals how the author regards a view, a study, or a group of scholars.
Inference from the passage: Identifying what the passage most strongly supports or what the author would most likely agree with, staying within the text.
Comparative reading: Relating two shorter passages by finding shared subject matter, points of agreement or disagreement, and differences in approach.

Study tips

How to practice RC.

Section-specific guidance that follows from how this material is usually tested.

Read for structure on the first pass: note the main point, each paragraph's job, and any viewpoint the author endorses or rejects.
Answer questions by returning to the text; an answer choice that cannot be supported by a specific line is wrong even if it sounds plausible.
Practice comparative reading sets separately so the relationship between the two passages is the first thing you look for.
Time each passage and its questions as a unit, aiming for roughly eight to nine minutes per selection.

Where this fits

Reading Comprehension is 2 of 3 sections in the LSAT guide. Use the full guide to balance it against everything else you have to review.

Back to the LSAT guide Official exam information

Sample RC questions

Practice questions, not yet expert-reviewed

Original practice questions written to the published framework for this section. No expert has reviewed them, and they are not taken from any official exam. Try each one before you open the answer.

Question 1Foundational
In an LSAT Reading Comprehension section, what is the name for the selection made up of two shorter passages on a related topic?
1. AComparative reading
2. BAnalytical reading
3. CSynthesis pairing
4. DDual argument set
Show answer
Answer: A. Comparative reading
One of the four selections in the section is a comparative reading set of two shorter passages, and its questions ask how the two relate. The other three selections are single passages of roughly 400 to 500 words.
Key insight: Read a comparative set for agreement, disagreement, and difference in approach before you answer.
Question 2Foundational
How many reading selections appear in one LSAT Reading Comprehension section?
1. AThree
2. BFour
3. CFive
4. DSix
Show answer
Answer: B. Four
The section contains four selections, three single passages and one comparative set, each followed by five to eight questions. With 35 minutes for the section, that allows roughly eight to nine minutes per selection including its questions.
Key insight: Four selections in 35 minutes means about eight and a half minutes each.
Question 3Intermediate
What distinguishes a passage's main point from its topic?
1. AThe main point is the claim the author defends, while the topic is only the subject discussed
2. BThe main point always appears in the first sentence
3. CThe topic is the author's opinion and the main point is the evidence for it
4. DThey are two names for the same thing
Show answer
Answer: A. The main point is the claim the author defends, while the topic is only the subject discussed
A topic can be named in a phrase, such as coastal erosion, but a main point asserts something arguable about that topic. Choices that merely name the subject are the standard trap on main point questions.
Key insight: If an answer choice could be a chapter title rather than a claim, it is the topic, not the main point.
Question 4Intermediate
An author writes: 'Hopkins's account, though undeniably ingenious, rests on a single ledger whose authorship remains disputed.' What is the author's attitude toward that account?
1. AImpressed by its ingenuity but doubtful of its evidence
2. BEntirely persuaded by it
3. CDismissive of it as unoriginal
4. DIndifferent to the question it addresses
Show answer
Answer: A. Impressed by its ingenuity but doubtful of its evidence
The concession 'undeniably ingenious' grants merit while the main clause raises a serious evidentiary doubt, so the attitude is mixed rather than one-sided. Calling the account unoriginal contradicts the concession, which explicitly credits its ingenuity.
Key insight: Mixed attitudes are common: look for a concession clause followed by the author's real reservation.
Question 5Advanced
When a Reading Comprehension question asks why the author mentions a particular study, what must the credited answer describe?
1. AThe role that reference plays in the author's argument
2. BWhether the study's findings are actually true
3. CThe historical importance of the study itself
4. DThe author's personal opinion of the researchers
Show answer
Answer: A. The role that reference plays in the author's argument
Function questions ask about purpose within the passage, so the answer names the job the reference does, such as illustrating a claim or answering an objection. Whether the study is true lies outside the passage and cannot be settled from the text.
Key insight: Function questions answer why this is here, not what this says.

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Reading Comprehension