HSPT Verbal : Synonyms, Antonyms, and Changes in Intensity

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for HSPT Verbal

varsity tutors app store varsity tutors android store

Example Questions

Example Question #282 : Hspt Verbal Skills

Answer the question by selecting the word that best completes the comparison.

Start is to commence as end is to __________.

Possible Answers:

begin

focus

conclude

amend

destroy

Correct answer:

conclude

Explanation:

"Start" and "commence" are synonyms, just as "end" and "conclude" mean similar things.

Example Question #283 : Hspt Verbal Skills

Answer the question by selecting the word that best completes the comparison.

Stranger is to outsider as familiar is to __________.

Possible Answers:

odd

bizarre

well-known

special

unfortunate

Correct answer:

well-known

Explanation:

"Stranger" and "outsider" are both synonyms, just as "familiar" and "well-known" have similar meanings.

Example Question #284 : Hspt Verbal Skills

Answer the question by selecting the word that best completes the comparison.

Mute is to silent as loud is to __________.

Possible Answers:

unhurried

quiet

placid

deafening

forlorn

Correct answer:

deafening

Explanation:

"Mute" and "silent" are both synonyms, just as "loud" and "deafening" have similar meanings.

Example Question #285 : Hspt Verbal Skills

Answer the question by selecting the word that best completes the analogy.

Decent is to polite as improper is to __________.

Possible Answers:

decorous

spotless

worthy

misbehaving

chaste

Correct answer:

misbehaving

Explanation:

"Decent" and "polite" are synonyms, just as "improper" and "misbehaving" are similar in meaning.

Example Question #286 : Hspt Verbal Skills

Answer the question by selecting the word that best completes the analogy.

Senile is to decrepit as juvenile is to __________.

Possible Answers:

youthful

joyous

unknown

forsaken

elderly

Correct answer:

youthful

Explanation:

"Senile" and "decrepit" are synonyms, just as "juvenile" and "youthful" have similar meanings. 

Example Question #287 : Hspt Verbal Skills

Answer the question by selecting the word that best completes the analogy.

Autonomous is to independent as dependent is to __________.

Possible Answers:

aloof

crushed

subservient

resptable

venerated

Correct answer:

subservient

Explanation:

"Autonomous" and "independent" are synonyms, just as "dependent" and "subservient" have similar meanings.

Example Question #288 : Hspt Verbal Skills

Answer the question by selecting the word that best completes the analogy.

Panic is to dismay as composure is to __________.

Possible Answers:

savvy

confusion

confidence

musical

bewilderment

Correct answer:

confidence

Explanation:

"Panic" and "dismay" are synonyms, just as "composure" and "confidence" have similar meanings. 

Example Question #51 : Synonyms, Antonyms, And Changes In Intensity

Fib is to lie as rivulet is to __________.

Possible Answers:

water

lake

stream

drizzle

trickle

Correct answer:

stream

Explanation:

A fib is generally a small, insignificant lie; therefore, the bridge sentence for this analogy would be, “Just as a fib is an insignificant or small type of lie, so to a rivulet is a small type of X.” While it might seem too tempting to think a “rivulet” is a small stream, this actually is the case. The “-let” suffix is used to alter its base and express the notion of being “small.” For instance, a “booklet” is literally a small book. (They aren’t just called that by happenstance!) None of the other options capture this relation of “small version to larger or more general type.”

Example Question #52 : Synonyms, Antonyms, And Changes In Intensity

Elated is to thrilled as grin is to __________.

Possible Answers:

beam

simper

frown

smirk

joy

Correct answer:

beam

Explanation:

When someone is “elated,” he or she is said to be so happy that he or she is “carried out of himself.” (This is somewhat like the word “ecstasy,” which literally means standing outside of oneself). Elation is thus a state of extreme joy—something at least relatively synonymous with being “thrilled.” Thus, we are looking for a synonym for the word “grin.” Among the options, the only word that is synonymous to “grin” is “beam.” This might seem strange at first, but consider “grin” taken as a verb—“to grin.” Although the word “beam” can also mean something completely different—e.g. the wooden beams in a house—as a verb, it can also mean to smile broadly and openly. Perhaps you have seen the present participle: “A beaming smile.”

Example Question #53 : Synonyms, Antonyms, And Changes In Intensity

Complete this analogy.

Deciduous is to arboreal as bodily is to __________.

Possible Answers:

vituperative

corporeal

volume

corpulent

vivacious

Correct answer:

corporeal

Explanation:

"Deciduous" plants are those which lose their leaves annually (as opposed to pine and other evergreen trees that retain their needles throughout the winter and into the spring). The word literally comes from Latin roots meaning to fall downward. The “de-” prefix means down from (as in “descend”) and the “-ciduous” is related to the same and similar forms found in “cadence” and “accident.” Etymology aside, the analogy is one of member-to-class. Something deciduous is a type of arboreal plant. ("Arboreal" meaning pertaining to trees). Thus, something “bodily” is best called something “corporeal.” None of the other options name the general class of bodily things. The word "corpulent," which is close (and clearly related in its roots) means fat—like having a lot of “body.”

Learning Tools by Varsity Tutors