What cognitive skill involves quick thinking and reasoning to solve problems based on patterns?

Inductive reasoning is a cognitive skill that involves the ability to identify patterns and make generalizations from specific observations. This form of reasoning allows individuals to draw conclusions or make predictions based on the information available, enabling quick thinking and problem-solving. For example, if someone observes that the sun rises in the east and sets in the west every day, they can inductively reason that this will continue to happen based on past experiences.

This skill is crucial in various real-life situations where recognizing trends and patterns can lead to effective decision-making. In contrast, the other options relate to different cognitive abilities; verbal meaning focuses on understanding language and vocabulary, number ability involves computational and mathematical skills, and word fluency refers to the ability to produce language efficiently. Each of these plays a significant role in cognitive development but does not specifically address the essence of recognizing patterns for quick reasoning and problem-solving like inductive reasoning does.