GMAT critical reasoning Strengthen the Argument questions offer a passage with a premise, a conclusion, and a noticeable gap between them, which we call the missing-link. You are presented with five answer choices, and the correct strengthening statement is the option that fills this missing-link and makes the conclusion more convincing. CR strengthening questions train you to see what kind of information would add support to a line of reasoning and make it feel clearer and more reliable. Steady practice with this question type is an essential part of any reliable GMAT preparation course. This page offers an organized subtopic wise playlist, along with a few worked examples, for efficient preparation of this concept.
Approach for GMAT CR Strengthen the Argument Questions
Strengthening statements make an argument more convincing by adding relevant details that link the premise to the conclusion, even though they are not logically essential. This overview explains how such statements differ from assumptions, which must hold true for the argument to survive. The video and article present common strengthening patterns, including establishing causal connections, using benchmark comparisons, making uniqueness claims, and eliminating competing explanations. In the following short video, you will see the approach explained and demonstrated, then linked to GMAT drills, sectional tests, and full-length GMAT practice tests.
GMAT CR: Approach for Strengthen the Argument Questions
How Strengthening and Assumption Statements Differ
Strengthening statements and assumptions both connect an argument’s premises to its conclusion, but they are different in how vital they are to the reasoning. A strengthen statement adds persuasive force to the argument, while an assumption is compulsory; if you remove it, the logic collapses. Both assumption and strengthening statements fill the missing link and support the conclusion, but an assumption must be true for the argument to hold whereas a strengthening statement need not be. Therefore, in simple terms, assumption statements form a subset of strengthening statements. This overview shows you how to distinguish the two by using clear examples that center on the idea of necessity. Understanding this difference improves accuracy in GMAT preparation and develops sharper evaluation skills that carry directly into your business management journey. The short video below gives a focused look at this idea and shows how the GMAT may test it.
GMAT CR: Strengthening vs Assumption
GMAT-style CR Strengthen the Argument Questions with Explanations
In this section, you will work with a focused set of GMAT-style Critical Reasoning Strengthen the Argument questions, each one followed by a carefully developed explanation. Give yourself enough time on every argument and consciously apply the strengthening approach and ideas that you have just studied on this page for such questions on the GMAT. At this point, your priority is to use the framework accurately rather than to merely arrive at the credited option. After you finalize your answer to a question, open the explanation panel to see the correct choice and to review the reasoning in detail.
Practice Question 1
Written Explanation
Mind-map: Restaurant chain opens five locations in city → receives favorable reviews and has excellent ambiance → revenue from new locations is below two-thirds of conservative estimates → chain should scrap plans to add two more locations (conclusion)
Missing-link: Between the revenue from new locations being below two-thirds of conservative estimates and the conclusion that the chain should scrap plans to add two more locations
Expectation from the correct answer choice: To strengthen the conclusion that the chain should scrap plans to add two more locations
A. The argument is concerned with the success of the restaurants to be opened and not with the city’s sales tax revenue; so, this answer choice is out of scope. Because this answer choice does not strengthen the conclusion, this answer choice is incorrect.
B. The argument provides no information about the affordability of Bangor Eats restaurants; so, this answer choice, suggesting that affordability is preferred over ambiance, simply adds information, which, although relevant to the broad context of the argument, does not strengthen the conclusion. Because this answer choice does not strengthen the conclusion, this answer choice is incorrect.
C. Trap. This answer choice, suggesting that there are complaints about the traffic caused by the restaurants, indicates that the restaurants are likely receiving many visitors and, if anything, weakens, rather than strengthens, the conclusion. Because this answer choice does not strengthen the conclusion, this answer choice is incorrect.
D. Correct. By suggesting that the residents’ income and frequency of restaurant visits are decreasing, this answer choice indicates a possible reason for the lack of sales in the current five restaurants and casts doubt on whether the two new restaurants will generate revenue as expected; thus, this answer choice strengthens the conclusion that the chain should scrap plans to add two more locations. Because this answer choice strengthens the conclusion, this answer choice is correct.
E. Trap. This answer choice, suggesting that the cuisine may attract potential customers, indicates that the restaurants may likely have many customers and, if anything, weakens, rather than strengthens, the conclusion. Because this answer choice does not strengthen the conclusion, this answer choice is incorrect.
D is the best choice.
Practice Question 2
Written Explanation
Mind-map: Cash-on-cash (COC) return is the ratio of money earned in first year and total investment → higher COC attracts investors → estimating higher return or allowing lower investment will increase the chances that investors select an investment (conclusion)
Missing-link: Between higher COC attracting investors and the conclusion that estimating higher return or allowing lower investment will increase the chances that investors select an investment
Expectation from the correct answer choice: To strengthen the conclusion that estimating higher return or allowing lower investment will increase the chances that investors select an investment
A. Trap. The argument mentions that cash-on-cash return is the ratio of money earned in first year and total investment and that a high cash-on-cash return attracts investors, thus suggesting that the ratio affects the competitive position of an investment; increasing both the factors in the ratio by the same proportion will not change the ratio and competitive position; so, this answer choice, highlighting this possibility, adds no new information and does not strengthen the conclusion. Because this answer choice does not strengthen the conclusion, this answer choice is incorrect.
B. This answer choice, suggesting that low initial investment options are not preferred by certain investors, indicates that allowing lower initial investment requirement may not attract certain investors, thus, if anything, marginally weakening, rather than strengthening, the conclusion. Further, please note, a hint here is in the term “certain”, which refers to only a part of all the investors and is thus limited in scope. Because this answer choice does not strengthen the conclusion, this answer choice is incorrect.
C. Correct. This answer choice, suggesting that estimates of an investment’s first year return affect investors’ perception of the first year return, indicates that changing the estimates of the first year return will likely change investors’ perception of the investment; in other words, increasing the estimates of the first year return is likely to make the investment more attractive to investors, thus strengthening the conclusion. Because this answer choice strengthens the conclusion, this answer choice is correct.
D. This answer choice, suggesting that factors other than the first year return and initial investment requirement can affect the competitive position of an investment, indicates the influence of other factors regardless of the first year return and initial investment requirement and makes no suggestion regarding whether estimating higher return or allowing lower investment will increase the chances that investors select an investment; so, this answer choice is just additional information and does not strengthen the conclusion. Because this answer choice does not strengthen the conclusion, this answer choice is incorrect.
E. Trap. This answer choice, suggesting that competing real estate investments target different customer segments, makes no suggestion regarding whether, within the targeted customer segments, estimating higher first year return or allowing lower initial investment requirement increases the chances that investors select an investment over other options available to those investors; so, this answer choice is just additional detail and does not strengthen the conclusion. Because this answer choice does not strengthen the conclusion, this answer choice is incorrect.
C is the best choice.
Practice Question 3
Written Explanation
Mind-map: Edisonville suburbs expanded to the edge of a forest → after twenty years, species of native birds stopped reproducing in the forest near the suburbs → expansion of suburbs reduced range of nighttime luminescence → sharply increasing luminosity of the night sky signals the native birds to begin the reproductive cycle (conclusion)
Missing-link: Between the expansion of suburbs reducing the range of nighttime luminescence and the conclusion that sharply increasing luminosity of the night sky signals the native birds to begin the reproductive cycle
Expectation from the correct answer choice: To strengthen the conclusion that sharply increasing luminosity of the night sky signals the native birds to begin the reproductive cycle
Note: Please be extra careful when you see numbers/percentages/proportions in CR questions; often, the key lies in the numbers.
A. The argument is concerned with the cause of the reduced reproduction ability of native bird species and not with what takes place after the ability is reduced; so, this answer choice, suggesting competition by nonnative bird species after the native birds’ population began declining, is just a statement of fact and has no bearing on the argument. Because this answer choice does not strengthen the conclusion, this answer choice is incorrect.
B. This answer choice, suggesting the loss of coniferous fir trees suitable for the native birds’ nesting, indicates the possibility of the loss of suitable habitat, rather than the reduced range of nighttime luminescence, affecting the reproduction ability of the native bird species; such a possibility, if anything, weakens, rather than strengthens, the conclusion. Because this answer choice does not strengthen the conclusion, this answer choice is incorrect.
C. Trap. This answer choice, providing information about the “lowest” nighttime luminescence before and after the expansion of suburbs, makes no suggestion regarding the “average range” of nighttime luminescence that is conducive for the native birds’ reproductive cycle; so, this answer choice is just additional information and does not strengthen the argument. Because this answer choice does not strengthen the conclusion, this answer choice is incorrect.
D. Correct. By suggesting that the native bird species could reproduce in areas of the forest away from the suburbs and where the nighttime luminescence is relatively unaffected, this answer choice establishes a correlation between the expansion of suburbs as well as the associated reduction in the range of nighttime luminescence and the reproduction ability of native bird species; thus, this answer choice fills the missing link and strengthens the conclusion. Because this answer choice strengthens the conclusion, this answer choice is correct.
E. The argument is concerned with reduced reproduction ability of seven native bird species to Pine March Forest; whether some of these bird species are also native to other forests is just additional information and has no bearing on the argument. Because this answer choice does not strengthen the conclusion, this answer choice is incorrect.
D is the best choice.
How and Where to Practice GMAT CR Strengthen the Argument Questions
Among the limited, genuinely strong sources for high quality CR Strengthen the Argument questions are the official practice materials released by GMAC and the Experts’ Global GMAT course. Within the Experts’ Global GMAT online preparation course, every CR Strengthen the Argument question appears on an exact GMAT like user interface that includes all the real exam tools and features. You work through more than 50 CR Strengthen the Argument questions in quizzes and also take 15 full-length GMAT mock tests that include several CR Strengthen the Argument questions in roughly the same spread and proportion in which they appear on the actual GMAT.
All the best!
