Does "some" typically indicate an incorrect answer choice?

Tim Hortons

Hey everyone. I just finished the Strengthening Questions section in the CC and have a burning question: how often does "some" indicate an incorrect answer choice? Is it a word that can be attributed to a general rule (i.e. "Whenever y'all see 'some', it ain't right.")?

FixedDice

"Some" is not a word that can be attributed to a general rule. It really depends on the problem.

acsimon

Sometimes, yes. Sometimes, no.

Heart Shaped Box

Like everyone else said above, definitely not an indicator of any kind for ACs. Completely situation dependant. To give a counter example, I feel much better with weak wording like "some" for testing the 'correct' AC for NA.

BinghamtonDave

I agree with @"Heart Shaped Box"
In addition to the above, whatever is being modified by the "some" in the answer choice is the real key to whether or not the answer choice is relevant to our given task: this is where the elimination or selection really happens. "Some" in a necessary assumption AC negates to "none" and is often very powerful. I reviewed 58-4-21 this morning, this is a great example of the utility of the word "some" in an answer choice.

-David

toniafisher1

That hasn’t been my experience. I agree it is context specific. At one point I was trying to do something similar......trying to put words in a box for answers. I have found that is NOT the way to study. There is no substitute for actually understanding what each stimulus is saying, likewise what each answer choice is saying and seeing the relationship. It takes time, and a lot of effort but YOU CAN DO IT!!!!

_oshun1_

Nope

TheMikey

It just depends.

I've found that a lot of the times, if you see "some" or "many" in a strengthening/weakening question, it's usually a weak answer choice so it doesn't end up being right, but in some cases it can be. Idk, that's just my personal experience. Also, remember that the Q stem says "if true, most supports/strengthens", so if you are down to an AC that has "some" in it, and all of the other 4 don't strengthen at all but the "some" AC does, it could be right because it's the one that MOST strengthens.

And like HSB said, I usually feel comfortable choosing weaker sounding AC's (e.g. one that has the word "some") for NA questions, but like say for SA questions I probably wouldn't, of course if the stimulus didn't lead me to go for something with "some" in it, that is.

westcoastbestcoast

If anything, a weak answer choice with "some" is the correct answer for NA and Must be True questions

Tim Hortons

@toniafisher1 said:
That hasn’t been my experience. I agree it is context specific. At one point I was trying to do something similar......trying to put words in a box for answers. I have found that is NOT the way to study. There is no substitute for actually understanding what each stimulus is saying, likewise what each answer choice is saying and seeing the relationship. It takes time, and a lot of effort but YOU CAN DO IT!!!!

Thanks for the motivation, @toniafisher1!

Tim Hortons

Thanks for all of your replies, everyone. I definitely agree: understanding the stimulus is key to weeding out ACs, first and foremost. And duly noted on there not being a general rule for 'some' and that it's context dependent. Super helpful, fam. Bless.