GRE Verbal : GRE Verbal Reasoning
Study concepts, example questions & explanations for GRE Verbal
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Example Questions
Example Question #921 : Gre Verbal Reasoning
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
I do not know why the President rescinded my invitation; his decision making has always been __________ in mystery.
enshrouded
envisioned
tempered
exposed
cajoled
enshrouded
The word that fills in the blank must help characterize the President’s decision making in light of the writer’s ignorance regarding the President’s motivations. The President’s decision making, for the writer, has always been covered in mystery, so "enshrouded" is the correct answer.
Example Question #922 : Gre Verbal Reasoning
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
In the novel Frankenstein, the author clearly __________ the moral ambiguity of attempting to bring the dead to life.
repudiates
assuages
ingratiates
discerns
nettles
discerns
“Discerns” mean to perceive something, in this case, the moral ambiguity presented as a major theme of Frankenstein.
Example Question #923 : Gre Verbal Reasoning
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Harold finally worked up the courage to ask for a raise, but he was __________ by news that sales had declined precipitously in the previous quarter.
articulated
emboldened
thwarted
enamored
kindled
thwarted
The sentence says that Harold was going to ask for a raise, but then he found out that sales were down. This means the news prevented him from asking, so "thwarted" is correct. “Thwarted” means that he was hindered from carrying out his plan.
Example Question #924 : Gre Verbal Reasoning
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Her desire to watch the basketball game was surprising, as she usually __________ sporting events as unsophisticated.
denigrated
feted
anticipated
celebrated
extolled
denigrated
The word to pay attention to in this sentence is “surprising,” as it indicates that a negative word is necessary to complete the sentence. The only such word is “denigrated.”
Example Question #925 : Gre Verbal Reasoning
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Frequently, beginning pilots find themselves unable to trust their instruments, __________ them in the air and leaving them completely upside down.
reassuring
supplementing
invigorating
mystifying
inspiring
mystifying
The sentence is explaining that beginning pilots hurt themselves by not paying attention to the plane’s instruments. The word that best completes the sentence should mean "confusing." “Mystifying” is the closest synonym to "confusing" among the answer choices.
Example Question #926 : Gre Verbal Reasoning
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Political tensions mounted as raging protestors convulsed through the streets; one could not __________ the feeling of revolution in the air.
engender
abhor
contest
harangue
finagle
contest
You are looking for a verb that means "to deny," which is exactly what "contest" means. None of the other words make sense in the context of the sentence.
Example Question #927 : Gre Verbal Reasoning
While he may have expected some light ribbing, he was wholly unprepared for the hecklers who used his every word as an occasion to __________ him.
lampoon
obfuscate
abrogate
bolster
ogle
lampoon
The word that we are looking for comes in contrast to the light teasing that he had expected. So we are looking for either a much more intense or less intense contrast. We know it must be more intense since it is being done by "hecklers". Thus we are looking for a word that means, to heckle or ridicule, and that word is "lampoon."
Example Question #928 : Gre Verbal Reasoning
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Apprehensive about the commitment he was making, the groom tried to __________ his fears and go on with the ceremony.
gall
foment
quicken
quell
expatiate
quell
The groom needs to suppress his fears and carry on, the definition of "quell." "Foment" means to initiate/cause while "expatiate" means to speak/write at length.
Example Question #929 : Gre Verbal Reasoning
The conflagration was used to __________ invasive plant species and allow pioneering plants to reform a healthy ecoological system in the forest.
desiccate
bolster
enervate
stimulate
extirpate
extirpate
Since a fire was used in the forest, it is presumed that the fire was used to "extripate," or eradicate, invasive plants from harming native plants.
Example Question #930 : Gre Verbal Reasoning
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
The young woman _____________ at the suggestion she was at like her mother, who she rarely got along with growing up.
bristled
tittered
revered
fawned
swooned
bristled
The fact that the young woman did not get along with her mother provides a clue to the proper meaning of the sentence. When a comparison was made, the young woman would not have appreciated and even outright disliked. Of the answer choices, only "bristled," meaning to show annoyance and irritation, correctly completes the sentence.
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