The LSAT Isn’t a Vocabulary Test

Unfamiliar words show up on the LSAT. That’s normal. What matters is how you handle them. You don’t need a perfect vocabulary to score well, but you do need to stay engaged. 

You Don’t Need to Know Every Word

Even strong readers run into unfamiliar words on the LSAT, especially in Reading Comprehension. That’s not a flaw in your prep and it’s not a sign you’re behind. The test isn’t measuring your vocabulary. It’s testing whether you can use context to understand the main idea.

Students often mistakenly assume that not knowing a word means they can’t understand the passage. Once that belief creeps in, effort drops. Reading gets sloppy. And bad answers start to look acceptable.

Unknown Words Still Mean Something

When you read an unfamiliar word, don’t freeze. Don’t skip it. And don’t assume it’s the reason you won’t understand the passage.

Instead, treat it like a placeholder. Literally insert “something” in its place. Ask yourself what role that “something” is playing in the sentence. Is it positive or negative? A cause or an effect? An adjective or a verb?

Most of the time, you can narrow it down to one or two reasonable interpretations just by paying attention to the surrounding text. And if you continue to engage with the passage as you read, it will usually become clear which interpretation makes the most sense. 

Vocabulary Isn’t the Reason You Miss Questions

If an unfamiliar word shows up in a wrong answer, great. That makes it easier to eliminate. If it shows up in the passage, it affects all five answer choices the same way. And it’s almost never what separates the right answer from the wrong one.

What does separate them is whether you actually understood what you read. In Reading Comprehension, that means knowing the main point the author wants to make. In Logical Reasoning, it means knowing why the conclusion does or doesn’t follow from the premises. Students don’t miss questions because of vocabulary. They miss them because they stop engaging when something feels unfamiliar.

Read More. Look Words Up. Keep Going.

Nevertheless, it’s still good to build your vocabulary. Lawyers are gladiators of the English language, after all. So read more. Take in different types of books and articles. Look up new words when you encounter them. That helps over time.

But on the LSAT, just stay engaged. Assume every word means something. Use context. Then solve the question in front of you.

You don’t need to know every word to do well. You just need to keep thinking.

Looking for more help with vocabulary? Check out our Word of the Week!