Preparing for the GRE Verbal Section October 2008

Geography of the Verbal Section 30 minutes n 30 questions (in no particular order) n – – 6 -8 analogies 5 -7 sentence completions 8 -10 antonyms 2 -4 reading comprehension passages (6 -8 questions) – 0 -1 text completion questions (starting Nov 2007) n Typically starts with a few antonyms

Analogies n What is an analogy? – light : dark : : pleasure : pain Looking for a clear and necessary relationship between the word pairs n Create a sentence to describe the relationship n Examples: n – stone : sculptor – aviary : birds

Analogy Tips n Clear and necessary relationship n Form a simple sentence between the stem words n Plug in all of the choices n Eliminate answers with: – Triangular relationships – Words that don’t have C & N relationship n Work backward

Analogies – common relationships n Type of – elation : emotion (i. e. elation is a “type of” emotion) n Used to – ultimatum : coerce n Degree – abhorrence : dislike (i. e. abhorrence is a strong degree of dislike) n Characterized by – bigot : intolerance n Without / Lacking – courageous : fear

Analogy question n Tile : mosaic Form a basic sentence with the two words

Analogy question (with the 5 choices) n tile : mosaic : : “A tile is a basic unit of a mosaic. ” wood : totem stitch : sampler ink : scroll pedestal : column tapestry : rug

Reading Comprehension Tips Read quickly; main ideas, topic sentence n Locate trigger words (although, but, however, yet) n Use general knowledge & common sense n Avoid answers that have: n – Disputable choices – Direct quotes and repetitions

Antonyms – “opposites” n When you can define the stem word: – Make your own opposite – Use POE – Down to two? Make opposites and work backward – Read all choices to avoid careless errors

Antonyms n When you “sort of” know the word – Use positive/negative – Work backward on choices – Guess? Choose the most extreme choice remaining n Don’t know the stem word – Make opposites for all choices – eliminate those that don’t have an opposite – Avoid words that “sound like” the stem word – Guess? Choose the most extreme choice remaining

Antonyms – no clear opposites n Exhume – Breathe – Inter – Approve – Assess – Facilitate

Antonyms – when you “sort of” know the stem word Positive/Negative connotation n What is the “stem”? n Debilitate n – – – n discharge strengthen undermine squelch Delete Example (de – away, off, down, reversal)

Sentence completions (“fill in the blanks”) n Anticipate the word(s) in the blank(s) n Find the clue that restricts the meaning n Look for trigger words (although, but) – A fair AND ______ judge – A fair BUT ______ judge n Positive or negative? n Two blanks: solve one and eliminate

Text Completions with 2 or 3 Blanks n New Verbal Question (added in Nov 07) n Passage of 1 to 5 sentences n Questions have 2 or 3 blanks n Three answer choices per blank

Text Completion example n Of course anyone who has ever perused an Blank (i) unmodernized text of fastidious Captain Clark’s journals knows that the Captain was one of the most _____(i)___ indefatigable spellers ever to write in defiant English, but despite this ____(ii)____ orthographical rules, Clark is never unclear. Blank (ii) disregard for partiality for unpretentiousness about