All GRE Verbal Resources
Example Questions
Example Question #1 :Conjunctions And Text Logic In Two Blank Texts
Fill in the blanks with the best answers.
The judge, despite occupying a_________role, demonstrated her_________when she ruled in favor of the district lawyer.
disinterested . . . prejudice
prominent . . . animosity
disinterested . . . animosity
partisan . . . prejudice
prominent . . . prejudice
disinterested . . . prejudice
"Despite" is hint that the two blanks are opposites. Here "partisan" is an adjective that meansinclined to favor one side over the other—it's the opposite of what we want. The judge may be prominent, but that doesn't describe why she shouldn't be taking sides. "Disinterested" is the best choice, which meansfree from bias。"Prejudice" answers the second blank the best, as the opposite of neutrality and impartiality.
Example Question #1 :Two Blank Texts
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Sarah was__________and Jordan was__________, so they made a good couple: one talked while the other listened.
talkative . . . extroverted
meek . . . chary
garrulous . . . laconic
gregarious . . . introverted
flirtatious . . . forgiving
garrulous . . . laconic
The definitions of the words in the two blanks are given in the last phrase: “garrulous” meansoverly talkative, while “laconic” meansreserved and tight-lipped。
Example Question #1 :Two Blank Texts
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
The__________old woman was surprisingly__________in conversation.
desiccated . . . vivacious
affable . . . convivial
neurotic . . . fretful
cruel . . . malicious
decrepit . . . necrotic
desiccated . . . vivacious
“Desiccated” means干and can be used to indicate extreme age or frailty, while “vivacious” indicates liveliness and energy. Since the second blank is preceded by “surprisingly,” the two words in the correct choice must have dissimilar meanings.
Example Question #4 :Context Clues In Two Blank Texts
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
The famous story that H.G. Wells'War of the Worldscaused panic in the streets is__________; instead of running in fear, many listeners were simply__________by the storytelling, staying inside in order to not miss any part of the story.
unsubstantiated . . . perused
arcane . . . harrowed
apocryphal . . . riveted
mendacious . . . perused
salubrious . . . intrigued
apocryphal . . . riveted
In regard to the first blank, on the surface, "mendacious" (lying) and "apocryphal" (doubtful, though believed to be true) are fairly similar words. However, you can use context clues in the sentence to figure out which word to use. Here, you have the "famous" story about panic, where, instead, people did something else. Therefore, while the story may be a lie, it is thought of as a fact that needs to have a counterpoint ("instead . . ."). Thus, "apocryphal" is the better fit.
In regard to the second blank, the storytelling made the listeners want to stay inside, so you can conclude that the storytelling was interesting to the listeners. While perused meansread or paid attention to carefullyand it can be argued that "interest" means careful listening, it doesn't fit grammatically (a person cannot be "perused by" a story), nor does it fit as well as "riveted" (engrossed). Thus, "riveted" both fits and is the correct answer. This makes the correct answer "apocryphal . . . riveted."
Example Question #5 :Context Clues In Two Blank Texts
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Although the wine aficionado__________Tori for her love of rosé, he did appreciate her for her__________the opinions of a fellow wine critic, with whom he had always disagreed.
ameliorated . . . rejection of
rebuked . . . lambasting of
annoyed . . . support of
adored . . . vexation to
tested . . . fervor for
rebuked . . . lambasting of
In this sentence, "although" the wine aficionado performed the first blank's action towards Tori, he then "appreciated" her for other actions. In other words, he "appreciated" herin spite ofwhatever action he took towards her in the first blank. Therefore, "ameliorated," orsoothed, doesn't quite fit, as "soothed" and "appreciated" are not quite opposites. "Rebuked," however, meansreproved sharply; therefore, the later appreciation/approval that Tori receives makes "rebuked" fit the sentence.
Considering the second blank, the wine aficionado "appreciated" Tori for her doing something in regard to the opinions of a rival, so we know that Tori does not agree with that particular critic's opinions. Both "lambasting" and "vexation" are negative, but "lambasting" (thoroughly criticizing) requires direct action by Tori that can act on the opinions of the wine critic, whereas "vexation" means that Tori directly vexes (annoys/irritates) the wine critic's opinions, which doesn't make much sense grammatically.
Therefore, "rebuked . . . lambasting of" is the correct answer.
Example Question #1 :Two Blank Texts
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Anna both__________and revered her father, though she did not fear to__________with him when she disagreed with him.
detested . . . quarrel
venerated . . . dispute
despised . . . argue
spoiled . . . contend
deified . . . worship
venerated . . . dispute
The first part of the sentenceis not对比空白的话“尊敬”。我们n tell this by looking at the portion of the sentence that is after the comma. The "though . . ." indicates that she did in fact disagree with her father—though this was a different affair from her reverence and affection. For this reason, the best answer is "venerated" and "dispute." To "venerate" someone or something is to hold it, him, or her in high esteem. This captures well the "both . . . and" relationship between the blank and "revered." Clearly, Anna could disagree with her father. Hence, she did not fear todispute(disagree and/or argue) with him.
Example Question #1 :Conjunctions And Text Logic In Two Blank Texts
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Kevin was one of the most__________people in his class. While others feared to__________, he would readily interrupt the teacher to ask questions.
argumentative . . . ponder
audacious . . . interject
sagacious . . . inquire
intelligent . . . question
intriguing . . . reflect
audacious . . . interject
The sentence hints that there is a contrast being made, as is indicated by the word "while" in the second sentence. The classmates are fearful, so Kevin must be brave. To be "audacious" is to bedaring。Clearly, the bravery is aimed at asking questions by interrupting the teacher. To "interject" is to is just to interrupt in this way. The word comes from literal roots meaningto throw in between(just as "eject" meansto throw out).
Example Question #2 :Two Blank Texts
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Patrick told Isidore that he was a(n)__________。In response, Isidore said, "Good, I do not want others to be able to__________my actions easily."
enigma . . . decipher
perplexity . . . condemn
sage . . . underrate
wretch . . . comprehend
fool . . . enjoy
enigma . . . decipher
The best way to work through this question is to notice how well certain combinations work well together. There is a general idea stated that Isidore does not want something to be done easily. To "decipher" something is to decode it from a cryptic code to an understandable language. This is often used in the sense of meaningto make clear or understandable。In order for someone to need to be deciphered, however, he or she must be a mystery. The word "enigma" fulfills this well.
Example Question #1 :Context Clues In Two Blank Texts
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Despite the importance of the topic, the audience treated it as a(n)__________matter, giving it__________attention.
ephemeral . . . negligible
questionable . . . abstract
ignorant . . . severe
detestable . . . profound
debatable . . . regular
ephemeral . . . negligible
The word "despite" hints that the audience did not believe that the topic actually was important. Although it was quite important, they thought it to treat passing and unimportant matters. The word "ephemeral" meanslasting only a brief time。在第一空白,提供的选项this is the best possible option. Since they believed it to be unimportant, they likely gave it little attention—that is, "negligible" attention. (This is related to the word "neglect.")
Example Question #2 :Conjunctions And Text Logic In Two Blank Texts
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Meredith was a markedly__________person, especially in contrast to her taciturn sister, who__________spoke in public.
reflective . . . partially
prolix . . . infrequently
imaginative . . . rarely
vexing . . . formerly
erudite . . . scarcely
prolix . . . infrequently
Several of the options for the second blank are likely tempting, for the words "infrequently," "rarely," and "scarcely" all work well for this sentence; however, everything hinges on the word "taciturn," which is contrasted to Meredith's personality. Someone who is "taciturn" issilent, just as "tacit consent" is unspoken consent to something. Thus, we are looking to describe Meredith as being "chatty" or talkative. The best option here is "prolix," which describes someone who is too wordy. It comes from roots from which we derive the word "liquid." To be "pro-lix" is to make words "pour forth" from our mouths.