Important Tips to Crack XAT 2026 Verbal Ability and Sample Questions

Is XAT Verbal Ability tough? Find out how to crack Verbal Ability section of XAT 2026 exam. Read key tips and tricks to solve XAT Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension questions.

XAT Preparation 2026: Highlights of Verbal Ability Section

• There will be 26 questions in this section of XAT.
• The difficulty level of Verbal Ability section of XAT has been invariably high over the years.
• In XAT VA section, the questions will be asked from Reading Comprehension, Fill in the Blanks, Critical Reasoning, Poem, Analogy, Antonym and Parajumbles.
• The RC sub-section of XAT exam will have four passage of more than 500 words having three questions each.
• There will be one short poem with two questions. The poem will be of moderate difficulty level.

Latest XAT VA sectional break-up

Presented below is the topic-wise break up of Verbal Ability section of XAT 2025. Candidates can expect the XAT 2026 question paper to have Verbal Ability questions on the same pattern.

Given the structure of the Verbal Ability section of XAT, it is amply clear that Reading Comprehension carries 50 per cent weightage of the total VA section, like CAT. Let’s see what are the other aspects to keep in mind:

• The XAT VARC section is a mix of reading comprehension, critical reasoning and grammar.
• It tests the candidate’s reading as well as reasoning skills.
• The Reading Comprehension section is challenging and requires in-depth reading.
• One is required to read and understand long passages within a minute.
• To score well in this section, focused preparation of Reading Comprehension is required.

Also Read:

• XAT exam syllabus 2026
• XAT exam pattern 2026
• XAT question papers PDFs Download
• XAT 2026 preparation tips and strategy

How to Crack XAT Verbal Ability: Preparation Tips

• During XAT 2026 preparation, candidates must do extensive reading. It will not only help them in Reading Comprehension but also in Verbal Ability questions based on Vocabulary, Para Jumbles, Grammar and Reasoning.
• Read on a variety of topics. XAT passages are normally based on philosophy, history, psychology, art and culture. They are inference based. Thus, one needs have enough experience and practice of reading such passages.
• In the XAT exam, don’t do speed-reading. Remember the XAT passages are not fact-based that you can go through only the data and guess the correct answer. Read the whole passage calmly with your normal speed to understand key arguments presented in the passage.
• Some students have the habit of reading the question first and the passage afterwards. In XAT, this trick will also not work. You won’t want to go back and forth on the questions and the passage. Time is key in XAT, so save it.
• XAT has negative marking, so don’t spend too much time on one question. If it is taking too much time or you can’t unravel a part of the given passage, skip it. You also need to keep in mind that 0.10 marks will be deducted if you skip 8 consecutive questions. 
• Total time duration of Part 1 of XAT is 170 minutes so, target completing VA section of XAT within 40 minutes. Sectional cut off is important in XAT so make sure to perform well in every section.

Also Read:

• XAT Preparation 2026: How to Crack QA-DI Section         
• XAT Preparation 2026: All About Decision Making – Tips and Tricks

Best Books for XAT Verbal Ability

For the preparation of Verbal Ability section of XAT 2026, candidates must study from the following books. These books contain topic wise explanations and practice exercises. 

Also Read:

• Best books for XAT preparation 2026
• How to prepare for XAT in 1 month
• How to prepare for XAT in 3 months

XAT Sample Questions for Practice: Verbal Ability

We have mentioned below two XAT Verbal Ability questions to provide you an idea of what type of Verbal Ability and Reading Comprehension questions may be asked in XAT 2026.

Question 1:

Please read the passage below and answer the questions that follow:

If history doesn’t follow any stable rules, and if we cannot predict its future course, why study it? It often seems that the chief aim of science is to predict the future – meteorologists are expected to forecast whether tomorrow will bring rain or sunshine; economists should know whether devaluing the currency will avert or precipitate an economic crisis; good doctors foresee whether chemotherapy or radiation therapy will be more successful in curing lung cancer. Similarly, historians are asked to examine the actions of our ancestors so that we can repeat their wise decisions and avoid their mistakes. But it never works like that because the present is just too different from the past. It is a waste of time to study Hannibal’s tactics in the Second Punic War so as to copy them in the Third World War. What worked well in cavalry battles will not necessarily be of much benefit in cyber warfare. Science is not just about predicting the future, though. Scholars in all fields often seek to broaden our horizons, thereby opening before us new and unknown futures. This is especially true of history. Though historians occasionally try their hand at prophecy (without notable success), the study of history aims above all to make us aware of possibilities we don’t normally consider. Historians study the past not in order to repeat it, but in order to be liberated from it.

Each and every one of us has been born into a given historical reality, ruled by particular norms and values, and managed by a unique economic and political system. We take this reality for granted, thinking it is natural, inevitable and immutable. We forget that our world was created by an accidental chain of events, and that history shaped not only our technology, politics and society, but also our thoughts, fears and dreams. The cold hand of the past emerges from the grave of our ancestors, grips us by the neck and directs our gaze towards a single future. We have felt that grip from the moment we were born, so we assume that it is a natural and inescapable part of who we are. Therefore we seldom try to shake ourselves free, and envision alternative futures. Studying history aims to loosen the grip of the past. It enables us to turn our head this way and that, and begin to notice possibilities that our ancestors could not imagine, or didn’t want us to imagine. By observing the accidental chain of events that led us here, we realise how our very thoughts and dreams took shape – and we can begin to think and dream differently. Studying history will not tell us what to choose, but at least it gives us more options.

Based on the passage which of the following options would be the most appropriate for citizens to learn history?

(A) British names of streets in India should not be changed.

(B) Every street in India should display a plaque that lists all its previous names.

(C) British names of streets in India should be changed to Indian names along with an explanation of their history.

(D) Names of Indian streets should be based on suggestions generated through an opinion poll.

(E) Names of Indian streets should be periodically changed.

Question 2:

Carefully read the following paragraphs: The Lannisters had ______ gold than the Tyrells until the Lannister army sacked Highgarden and took the Tyrell fortune to pay back the Iron Bank. On the other hand, the Northern army has ______ than 10,000 men and therefore, Jon needs to bend the knee to Daenerys. What happens in the story next is dependent on George R. Martin, the writer of the series. For ______, he has not written anything further and we hope George R. Martin will get around to finishing the book _______. But as it happens, ________, book releases are delayed.

Fill in the blanks meaningfully, in the above paragraph, from the following options.

(A) less, fewer, some time, sometime, sometimes

(B) fewer, less, sometime, some time, sometimes

(C) less, fewer, sometime, some time, sometimes

(D) fewer, less, sometimes, sometime, some time

(E) fewer, less, some time, sometime, sometimes

Free XAT mock test by Shiksha

You can take the free XAT mock test below to know the types of questions asked, difficulty level of questions and your exam preparation level.

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