The real problem when you are down to two
You cut three answer choices without much trouble, and then you stop. Two choices are left. Both sound right. Both use words from the argument. You reread them three times, pick one, and find out later that you picked the wrong one.
This is a common place to lose points, and it is fixable. The fix is not better guessing. It is changing what you look for.
Start with this idea: Don't switch the answer, understand the idea that 4 are very wrong and one is very right. When you are down to two, one of those two is still very wrong. It is just wrong in a quieter way. Your job is to find the one detail that makes it wrong, not to decide which one feels a little better.
Why the last wrong answer is so tempting
The final wrong answer is built to survive your first pass. It usually does at least one of these things well:
- It matches the topic. It talks about the same people, place, or thing as the argument, so it feels on track.
- It matches part of the job. If the question asks you to weaken an argument, it may point to a real problem, just not the problem in this argument.
- It says something true. A choice can be true in the real world and still not answer the question you were asked.
- It goes too far or not far enough. It uses a word like all, never, only, most, or some in a way that changes the meaning.
Rereading the two choices rarely helps. You are comparing how they sound. Compare instead how each lines up, word by word, with the conclusion and evidence.
A four step tiebreaker that works
1. Say the conclusion back in plain words
Say what the author is actually claiming, in simple terms. Is it about one store, every store, a cause, a recommendation, or a prediction? A choice that proves too much, or something nearby but different, is wrong.
2. Name the exact job
What must the right answer do? Weaken this conclusion. Support this conclusion. Explain this odd result. Describe this flaw. If a choice does a nearby job, it is wrong even if it does that job well.
3. Hunt for the deal breaker difference
Put the two choices side by side and ask where they actually differ. Often the difference comes down to one word or one idea:
- Scope: one choice covers some cases, the other covers all cases.
- Strength: one choice says something might help, the other says it must help.
- Subject: one choice is about the group in the argument, the other is about a similar but different group.
- Time: one choice is about what already happened, the other is about what will happen.
Once you find the difference, go back to the argument and ask which version the argument actually needs. That check usually settles it.
4. Test each choice against the words on the page only
Do not bring in what you know from real life, and do not add a story to make a choice work. If a choice only works after you add an extra idea like "well, probably those people are typical," that is a warning sign. The right answer earns its place from the words given. The wrong one often needs your help to get there.
Worked example: a fresh argument
Here is a short original example. It is not a real LSAT question.
A bakery owner says: "Last month we started opening an hour earlier on weekdays, and weekday sales rose. So opening earlier caused the rise in weekday sales, and we should open an hour earlier on weekends too."
Say you have cut this down to two choices for a question asking you to weaken the argument:
- Choice A: A popular office building next to the bakery opened last month, bringing many new weekday customers to the area.
- Choice B: The bakery's weekend customers mostly visit in the afternoon, not in the morning.
Both choices sound useful. Choice B is even about weekends, which is where the recommendation points. But run the steps. The conclusion has two parts: opening earlier caused the weekday rise, and the bakery should extend the change to weekends. Choice A attacks the cause directly. It gives another reason for the weekday rise, which cuts the link between the early opening and the sales. Choice B sounds practical, but it does not touch the claimed cause, and it needs you to add a story about why weekend mornings would work the same way. Choice A is very right. Choice B is very wrong once you test it against the exact conclusion.
Worked example: a detail that changes groups
One more original example, closer to a Reading Comprehension trap.
A passage says that a town's volunteer cleanup crew removed litter from the riverbank every Saturday in spring. It also says the town council praised the crew in June.
- Choice A: The cleanup crew removed litter from the riverbank on Saturdays in spring.
- Choice B: The town council removed litter from the riverbank on Saturdays in spring.
The topic, the place, and the timing are the same in both. The only difference is who did the work. That one difference is the whole question. Reading for the general idea gets you down to two. Reading for the exact subject gets you to the right one.
What to do when you still cannot split them
- Pick the choice that matches the conclusion and the evidence with the fewest added ideas.
- Mark the question, choose one, and move on. Spending three extra minutes here costs you time on later questions you could get right.
- Write it down for review. The point of the question is not finished when the section ends.
How to practice this in review
The real learning happens after the timer stops. For every question where you were down to two, do this:
- Write, in one sentence, why the right answer is right.
- Write, in one sentence, why the other answer is wrong. Name the exact word, group, time, or job that makes it wrong.
- Note the pattern. Did you pick the choice that matched the topic over the choice that matched the logic? Did you miss a word like only or most? Did you add a story to help a choice work?
After a few weeks, you will see your own pattern. Most students miss these for two or three reasons, over and over. Fix one pattern and a whole group of questions gets easier.
Work this way: one question at a time, understand exactly why you were wrong, and do the next one differently. When you are down to two, slow down on the difference, not on the rereading. Find the detail that proves one is very wrong, and trust it.
Ready to see where you stand? Take a free diagnostic at LSATPathway and build your study plan from there.