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Civil Service Verbal Reasoning Test: 32 Hardest Questions

Audio from the Open Exam Hub video of the same name; the video shows the numbers and practice questions on screen.

Hardest Civil Service Verbal Test questions: 32 original passage questions built around the traps that make close calls go wrong, each explanation naming the tempting wrong answer. Trap 1, Combining Sentences (6: panel rules, certificate routes, caps). Trap 2, Exceptions and Unless (5: carried-over leave, internal candidates, sale items). Trap 3, Negatives (5: 'not none', 'not without', 'neither... nor'). Trap 4, Numbers in Words (6: a third of the rest, rate changes, averages, rises on rises, ratios). Trap 5, Claims and Opinions (5: quotes, 'probably', record sales vs profit). Trap 6, Chains and Orderings (5: joining order, cost chains, stage sign-offs, timetables). As of October 2026, per the gov.uk guidance: the Civil Service Verbal Test shows a text passage followed by a statement, and you decide whether the statement is true, false or cannot say based on the information given; it measures the ability to identify relevant information and draw logical conclusions from written information. It is untimed (most people take 15 to 45 minutes; allow at least an hour), adaptive (length varies, every question must be answered, no skipping or going back) and includes unscored trial items. Your score is a percentile against a representative group; each job level has a minimum standard, the recruiter may raise the pass mark after the deadline, and a pass is banked for six months for jobs in the same grade group. No fixed pass mark is published. Real items have three answer choices; every question here has four options, so you practise the same judgements in a different format. The six groups are ours. Our 24-of-32 target is a planning estimate, not an official pass mark. Questions are original, not real test questions. Not affiliated with the Civil Service or the Cabinet Office.

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Chapters
0:00 The hardest verbal questions
1:28 Trap 1: Combining Sentences: Questions 1 to 6
6:06 Trap 2: Exceptions and Unless: Questions 7 to 11
10:22 Trap 3: Negatives: Questions 12 to 16
13:46 Trap 4: Numbers in Words: Questions 17 to 22
18:27 Trap 5: Claims and Opinions: Questions 23 to 27
22:00 Trap 6: Chains and Orderings: Questions 28 to 32
25:27 Score yourself

Exam facts are from the official UK Civil Service (Cabinet Office), Civil Service Verbal Test pages as of 2026-10-26. Fees and rules can change, so confirm on the official site before you enroll. Open Exam Hub is an independent study resource, not affiliated with UK Civil Service (Cabinet Office), Civil Service Verbal Test. Practice questions are not from a real exam. Narration is an AI-generated voice.

Music
"Fresh Air" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

"Carefree" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

"Reminiscing" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

"Almost Bliss" Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

Sound effects: Kenney (kenney.nl), CC0.

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