Logical ReasoningDifficulty: Hard

PT159 S1 Q18 Explanation

Putting a tap in a healthy maple that has a trunk

A free, expert breakdown of this official LSAT Logical Reasoning question.

TopicsMust be True

Keep going in LSAT Lab

  • Save & drill this skill — build targeted practice sets from questions like this one

  • Video walkthroughs — watch every question solved step by step

  • 81 official LSATs — as questions, timed sections & full-length tests

Start practicing free

Free to start

Full official LSAT questions are available through LawHub. This page provides LSAT Lab's explanation, strategy, and review tools without republishing the full official question.

Stimulus

Putting a tap in a healthy maple that has a trunk 12 or more inches in diameter will not harm the tree. Silver maples, red maples, and Manitoba maples can all be tapped for making maple syrup. The sugar maple, however, is best its sap has the highest concentration of sugar.

What this question is testing

Must be True

Your task

Break the argument into its conclusion and evidence, then do exactly what the question stem asks with that structure.

Common trap

Answers that sound relevant to the topic but don't connect to the argument's actual reasoning.

Winning move

Predict what a right answer must do, then test each choice against the conclusion-evidence gap.

Reading along? Open the full official question in LawHub — we show a fragment here and keep the reasoning in our own words.

The question
18.

If the statements above are true, which one of the following must

Answer choices

  1. Correct39% picked this

    A maple whose trunk is more than 12 inches in diameter is unhealthy if it

    Why this is right

    Answer A is correct.

    Skill tested: Must be True · how this choice captures the argument's function is the move to repeat next time.

  2. Trap4% picked this

    The healthiest maple trees are usually those with the

  3. Trap3% picked this

    A maple tree that has been harmed will produce very

  4. Trap43% picked this

    Putting a tap into an unhealthy maple tree that is less than 12 inches in

  5. Trap11% picked this

    The maple trees most commonly used for making syrup are

Continue the review in LSAT Lab

Save this question, watch the video walkthrough, and drill similar questions in your LSAT Lab account.

Save and practice this skill
LSAT Lab

Turn this review into a targeted study plan.

Save this question, drill more like it, watch the video walkthrough, and track your progress in your LSAT Lab account.

Start practicing free