Premise
LSAT glossary · Reading Comprehension
Definition
A statement offered as evidence or support for a conclusion in an LSAT argument. Premises are the reasons, evidence, or facts the author presents as established in order to justify the main point; they are signaled by indicator words such as "because," "since," "for," "after all," and "given that." On the LSAT, the test-taker accepts every premise as true and evaluates only whether the premises logically support the conclusion — never whether the premises themselves are factually correct.
Premise in plain English
A premise is a reason — a piece of support the author gives you to make you believe their main point. If someone says 'You should bring an umbrella because the sky is dark and the forecast says rain,' the two 'because' parts are the premises: the evidence backing up the advice. Little signal words like 'because,' 'since,' 'for,' 'after all,' and 'given that' almost always introduce a premise. Here's the twist that trips people up: on the LSAT you must ASSUME every premise is true, even if it sounds silly — your only job is to judge whether those reasons actually lead to the conclusion, not whether the reasons themselves are correct.
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