LSAT 109 | Section 4 | Logical Reasoning: Q18

LR Question 18 Explanation

QUESTION TEXT: Coach: Our team has often been criticized for our…

QUESTION TYPE: Flawed Reasoning

CONCLUSION: The team’s celebrations are not unprofessional.

REASONING: Professional athletes celebrate in the same way.

ANALYSIS: When the critics said “unprofessional”, they meant: rude, bad, not being a good sport, etc.

When the coach said “professional”, he meant: someone who plays a sport for a living.

Those are two different meanings of the word “professional”. One describes how you act, and the other describes your job.

Switching the meaning of a word often appears

as a wrong answer choice on flawed reasoning questions. But sometimes it is the correct answer.

___________

1. The word “unethical” is never used, and nothing that means “unethical” is ever used, either. This answer choice is trying to make you hallucinate.
2. CORRECT. The critics meant the team was being immature. The coach thought the critics meant the team wasn’t doing what pro athletes do.
3. Generalizations are fine, if they’re relevant. Something that’s true about pro sports may well be true of amateur sports, too.
4. The coach didn’t say that the pros caused his team’s behavior. He argument was: “If it’s fine for them, it’s fine for us.”
5. No one said how many team members were enthusiastic.

Recap: The question begins with “Coach: Our team has often been criticized for our”. It is a Flawed Reasoning question. Learn more about LSAT Flaw questions in our guide to LSAT Logical Reasoning question types.