GRE Verbal : GRE Verbal Reasoning

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for GRE Verbal

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Example Questions

Example Question #959 : Parts Of Speech In One Blank Texts

All of the dust breathed in by coal miners has been shown to be quite __________ to their respiratory health. 

Possible Answers:

benign

detrimental

beneficial

maladroit

constructive

Correct answer:

detrimental

Explanation:

"Detrimental" is an adjective that means harmful or injurious.

Example Question #960 : Parts Of Speech In One Blank Texts

If the waitress was a bit more __________ she could probably make more tips. 

Possible Answers:

personable

churlish

bellicose

taciturn

brusque

Correct answer:

personable

Explanation:

"Personable" is an adjective that means being pleasing in appearance or personality.

Example Question #1271 : Gre Verbal Reasoning

Her typically __________ manner often made people unsure of her intent when she made a comment.

Possible Answers:

earnest

righteous

sincere

boisterous

droll

Correct answer:

droll

Explanation:

The sentence describes the subject as making "people unsure of her intent." This means her "manner," described by the missing word, should be hard to understand or confusing in some way. "Droll," meaning dry and sarcastic, is the best choice among the answers.

Example Question #1272 : Gre Verbal Reasoning

The character only appeared on the show __________ and was never a series regular.

Possible Answers:

intermittently

partially

unfailingly

interminably

recurrently

Correct answer:

intermittently

Explanation:

The sentence notes the character "was never a series regular," but was the missing word. The correct answer therefore needs to mean "not regular." "Intermittently," meaning sporadic or irregular, is the best choice among the answers.

Example Question #983 : One Blank Texts

The text message from her ex-boyfriend was quite __________: "We're done." 

Possible Answers:

verbose

bombastic

timid

garrulous

terse

Correct answer:

terse

Explanation:

A "terse" response is one that is brief, concise, or succinct.

Example Question #984 : One Blank Texts

Because of the ferocity of his attack, it was clear that the child's intentions were __________. 

Possible Answers:

amiable

benevolent

malevolent

banausic

benignant

Correct answer:

malevolent

Explanation:

"Malevolent" is an adjective that means having a vicious will or showing hatred. If the child's attack was ferocious, it is clear his intentions would be malevolent.

Example Question #985 : One Blank Texts

It was clear that the child's pain was  __________, since he was up and running around within moments of the injury. 

Possible Answers:

transient

invariable

enduring

perpetual

diurnal

Correct answer:

transient

Explanation:

"Transient" is an adjective that means fleeting or brief. If the child was up and running around soon after an injury, the pain would have been transient. 

Example Question #986 : One Blank Texts

Charlie earned consistent top marks, which made it clear to his professor that he one of her most __________ students. 

Possible Answers:

lackadaisical

lethargic

malingering

assiduous

apathetic

Correct answer:

assiduous

Explanation:

"Assiduous" is an adjective that means diligent, devoted, or hard-working.

Example Question #991 : One Blank Texts

Early screening tests are important because the sooner cancer is identified, the more __________ the situation.

Possible Answers:

incorrigible

frangible

futile

corrigible

vain

Correct answer:

corrigible

Explanation:

"Corrigible" is an adjective that means capable of being set right or corrected.

Example Question #1031 : Text Completion

Class often ran late, and it was difficult to take any sort of comprehensible or orderly notes with such a __________ professor.  

Possible Answers:

terse

laconic

discursive

pithy

defenestrated

Correct answer:

discursive

Explanation:

"Discursive" is an adjective that means passing from one topic to another, or rambling

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