Rank 9 by frequency | 101 questions in corpus (4.1% of all questions)
Asks the test-taker to identify which scenario, relationship, or situation from the answer choices is most structurally parallel to something described in the passage. The correct answer mirrors the passage's logic, relationship structure, or dynamic — not its topic. This is the RC equivalent of Logical Reasoning's Parallel Reasoning question.
Analogy has 5 distinct subtypes based on how the parallel is framed:
The dominant phrasing. Asks which answer choice is most structurally analogous. - "Which one of the following is most analogous to [passage element]?" - "The relationship between [X] and [Y] is most analogous to the relationship between..." - "Which one of the following is most closely analogous to [passage element]?" - "[Passage situation] is most analogous to which one of the following?"
What makes it distinct: The most explicit framing of the analogy task. The stem names the passage element to be paralleled, and the answer choices present new scenarios.
Uses "similar" instead of "analogous." - "Which one of the following is most similar to [X] as described in the passage?" - "Which one of the following strategies is most similar to [X]?"
What makes it distinct: "Similar" may allow for slightly more surface-level overlap than "analogous," but in practice the questions work the same way.
Uses "parallels" language. - "Which one of the following situations most closely parallels [X]?"
What makes it distinct: "Parallels" emphasizes structural correspondence most strongly.
Uses "like" or "likened to." - "The 'theory of everything' is most like which one of the following?" - "Plaintiffs can best be likened to..." - "[Person] is most like which one of the following?"
What makes it distinct: More informal phrasing. "Like" can signal a broader comparison that includes tone or situation, not just logical structure.
Various phrasings: - "Which one of the following quotations best exemplifies the attitude mentioned?" - "Which one of the following most clearly illustrates the phenomenon of [X]?" - "Which one of the following persons displays an approach that most strongly suggests sympathy with [X]?" - "Not taking [X] into account when figuring [Y] is most closely analogous to not taking into account..."
The question writer identifies a relationship or dynamic in the passage that can be abstracted to its structural form: - Causal relationship: A causes B despite C - Hierarchical relationship: X is a necessary component of Y, but Y can exist without Z - Functional relationship: X serves the same role in context A as Y serves in context B - Means-end relationship: Method M achieves goal G, but has side effect S - Part-whole relationship: Components relate to the whole in a specific way - Competitive relationship: X and Y compete for Z, and X has advantage due to W
Each answer choice describes a complete scenario from a different domain. The correct answer mirrors the abstract relationship; wrong answers share surface features but not the structural relationship.
Answer choices are typically self-contained mini-narratives — they must provide enough context for the test-taker to map the relationship without external knowledge.
The correct answer must match the passage relationship on every key structural element: - Same number of entities/components - Same directional relationships (A supports B, not A undermines B) - Same qualitative character (essential vs. optional, primary vs. secondary) - Same dynamic (competition, cooperation, dependency, independence)
Trap Type 1: Surface Match, Structure Mismatch The most common trap. Shares the same topic, field, or vocabulary as the passage but has a different structural relationship. If the passage is about art, a wrong answer might describe another art situation that involves different dynamics.
Trap Type 2: Partial Structure Match Gets one element of the analogy right but inverts or mismatches another. If the passage describes "essential component vs. optional component," a wrong answer might describe "two essential components" (matches the component structure but not the essential/optional distinction).
Average 25.4 words. Stems specify which passage element to find an analogy for, often with detailed context to ensure the test-taker knows exactly what relationship to match.
Average 22.0 words — the second longest after Main Point. Each choice describes an entirely new scenario, so they must be self-contained mini-narratives. The length reflects the need to establish a complete structural situation in each answer choice.
Key pattern: All five answer choices are from different domains. If the passage is about biology, the choices might describe situations in law, engineering, education, economics, and music. This forces structural rather than topical matching.
Source: PT68, Q12 > "Which one of the following describes a set of relationships that is most closely analogous to the relationships between plants and their primary and secondary substances?"
The test-taker must map the relationship between primary substances (essential for survival) and secondary substances (non-essential but beneficial) onto answer choices from different domains.
Source: PT9, Q13 > "Which one of the following situations most closely parallels that of the Oneida delegates in refusing to accept a lump-sum payment of $60,000?"
The test-taker must identify the structural parallel: refusing a short-term financial offer because accepting would undermine a more important ongoing claim.
Source: PT59, Q2 > "The large-scale climate trends discussed in passage A are most analogous to which one of the following elements in passage B?"
Correct Answer (C): "The highly complex behavior of a dense mass of thousands of ants"
Disproportionately common on comparative passages (21% vs. the 11.4% base rate), where it may ask for an analogy to the relationship between the two passages.