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Free 11+ Verbal Reasoning Practice Questions

UK 11+ style Verbal Reasoning questions — word analogies, letter/number coding and sequences — with worked answers, so your child can practise the way it's actually tested.

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What does 11+ Verbal Reasoning actually test?

Verbal Reasoning trips a lot of children up not because it's hard maths or hard English, but because it's an unfamiliar type of question — spotting a hidden pattern in words, letters or numbers, often under time pressure. The good news is it's a very learnable skill: once a child has seen a handful of each question type and knows the trick behind it, most of the "reasoning" becomes quick pattern-matching.

Try the four questions below — they're genuine 11+ style examples covering the most common question types. Tap a question to reveal the answer and a plain-English explanation of the reasoning.

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1. Word analogy — CUP is to COFFEE as BOWL is to ___?
  • A) Spoon
  • B) Soup
  • C) Table
  • D) Plate
Answer: B) Soup. A cup is a container you drink coffee from — so the relationship is "container is to what it typically holds." A bowl typically holds soup, in the same way a cup holds coffee. The trick with analogies is to say the relationship out loud in a full sentence first, then look for the option that keeps that exact same sentence true.
2. Letter coding — If CAT is coded as DBU, how is DOG coded?
  • A) EPH
  • B) CNF
  • C) EOH
  • D) DPH
Answer: A) EPH. Each letter in CAT has been moved forward one place in the alphabet: C→D, A→B, T→U, giving DBU. Apply the same "+1" shift to DOG: D→E, O→P, G→H, giving EPH. Coding questions almost always come down to one consistent shift or swap — find it on the first word, then apply it mechanically.
3. Odd one out — Which word does not belong: apple, banana, carrot, orange, grape?
  • A) Apple
  • B) Carrot
  • C) Orange
  • D) Grape
Answer: B) Carrot. Apple, banana, orange and grape are all fruits; a carrot is a vegetable. These questions reward children who check EVERY option against the group rule rather than stopping at the first one that "feels" different.
4. Number sequence — What comes next: 3, 6, 11, 18, 27, ___?
  • A) 36
  • B) 38
  • C) 34
  • D) 40
Answer: B) 38. Look at the gap between each number: +3, +5, +7, +9 — the gap itself increases by 2 each time. The next gap should be +11, so 27 + 11 = 38. For any sequence question, always write the differences between the numbers underneath them first; the pattern is almost always hiding there.

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