All ISEE Upper Level Verbal Resources
Example Questions
Example Question #276 : Sentence Completion Questions
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Jeremy was an unabashed __________, and this disposition led him both to search obsessively for many texts and to purchase such a great quantity that he was nearly placed in utter poverty.
controversialist
raconteur
academic
scholastic
bibliophile
bibliophile
The key is that Jeremy buys many texts and likewise searches for them; therefore, the best word is “bibliophile” which captures this compulsion. It is derived from two Greek roots that are very familiar to us in other contexts. “Biblio-” is derived from Greek for book and is reflected in English words like “bibliography” and “bible.” The second half comes from the Greek words for love of friendship or merely friendship. The city of Philadelphia is named from Greek brotherly love. (The “brotherly” portion comes from "adelphos," brother).
Example Question #277 : Sentence Completion Questions
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
In the sad case of __________, the young man took out his frustration for his abandonment by his father by assaulting the only parent he had left.
matricide
iniquity
vengeance
vexation
revenge
matricide
This sentence is not very difficult and only slightly hides the correct answer. Had it said that he assaulted “his mother,” it would have been extremely easy. The correct answer is “matricide.”
The first half comes from the Latin for mother. (Think of related words like “maternal”). The second half comes from Latin for “to kill.” (Think of related words like sui + cide—to kill oneself—or homo + cide—to kill a human being).
Example Question #161 : Parts Of Speech In One Blank Sentences
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Explaining each and every step in excruciating detail, the man was less an instructor than he was a tiresome __________.
scholiast
pedant
lecturer
fogey
pedagogue
pedant
A pedant displays knowledge excessively (and hence is really tiresome for a student, who might not need to have such shows of details all the time). The word is related to “pedagogue,” which is derived from the Greek for teacher, but it has taken on these additional shades of meaning.
Example Question #146 : Parts Of Speech In One Blank Sentences
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
After many years of living as a monk, the man found that he needed to return to __________ in order to regain peace of mind in his regular interactions with friends and family.
solitude
sanctity
adoration
cloister
monasticism
solitude
The man needs time that is not as interactive with others after he has had his social contact; therefore, he needs “solitude,” a word derived from Latin bases meaning “alone,” “single,” and “only.”
Example Question #278 : Sentence Completion Questions
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Although many think of revolts as destructive to public life, the core political issue is the prevention of the complete __________ of governmental functions. No matter what the cause, a time of total inactivity will destroy the social fabric.
usurpation
implosion
upending
derailing
stasis
stasis
The opposition implied in this sentence is between our blank and "revolts." The opposite of a situation of turmoil would be one that is wholly at standstill. (This is likewise indicated by “a time of total inactivity” in the second sentence). The best option is "stasis," which is directly derived from a Greek word with a similar meaning. It is reflected in words that likewise have “stat-” in their root, such as “static” and “statue.”
Example Question #281 : Sentence Completion Questions
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
For many years, the rabbi and the priest had been regular __________, having long, friendly discussions over coffee every Wednesday.
naysayers
disputants
antagonists
preachers
interlocutors
interlocutors
Clearly, we want no negative connotations in our answer, so this helps to eliminate everything other than “interlocutors” and “preachers.” The latter is rather bland and does not fit anywhere nearly as well as “interlocutor,” which means “a person in a conversation.”
The prefix “inter-” indicates that the word involves “between” (such as intervarsity or interstitial)—NOT to be confused with “intra,” which means “within” (such as “intramural,” which literally means within the walls). The second half, “-locutors,” is derived from the Latin for to speak or talk, which has many derivatives in English not only including those with the “c” that we see in “interlocutors” (e.g. locution, allocution) but also the more common (and phonetically related) “q” (e.g. eloquence, loquacious, colloquium, colloquial).
Example Question #282 : Sentence Completion Questions
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Clearly, the student’s theory interpreted reality in a manner that eliminated almost all variability by insisting that all aspects of reality ultimately were reducible to one key factor. Such simplistic __________ often distorts much, even if it does indeed provide some insights onto reality.
deconstruction
musing
reduction
philosophizing
monism
monism
The key is that the student’s theory reduces everything to one. Such a theory is “monistic,” a word derived from the Greek monos, meaning “single,” which we see in words like “monocle,” “monogamy,” and “monotonous.”
Example Question #251 : Sentence Completions
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
The politician regularly must be the people’s __________ as well as their representative. Citizens often need to be roused into having an opinion on political matters.
executive
demagogue
legislator
orator
publican
orator
Since the sense of the clues is not negative in this sentence, it would not be appropriate to choose “demagogue,” for such a person would merely appeal to popular sentiment to make specious “arguments.” An “orator” would be a better case here, for such a person’s eloquence could fit the bill for inspiring the people. The word is derived from Latin roots that likewise give us the word “oratory” and “oration;” however, it is also related to the word for mouth, os, which often has forms with the base “or-;” therefore, other related words are orifice, oral, and osculum.
Example Question #251 : One Blank Sentences
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
The abstract statue of the former president was barely a __________ of his appearance. If it had not included his name on a plaque, nobody would likely have realized that it was made in his honor.
replication
redundancy
similitude
declaration
clone
similitude
The word “similitude” means “being similar to something else.” This is better than several of the tempting options, such as “replication,” “redundancy,” and “clone,” all of which imply likeness too strongly. The sentence’s “barely” needs a weaker word, for being “barely” a replication really would mean that something is almost identical—which clearly does not seem to be the case, given that few would have recognized the man thus honored. The word “similitude” is related to English words like “similar” and “similarity.”
Example Question #252 : One Blank Sentences
Choose the word or set of words that best completes the following sentence.
Overwhelming acts of __________ are not always as important as the giving of small gifts in the regular course of life.
publicity
consideration
munificence
kindness
donation
munificence
One who is “munificent” is extremely generous. The word is derived from the Latin “munus,” which means gift but also office. Hence, it has derived English words like “municipality” as well as “remuneration.” The ending “-ficent” comes from the same root as ending like “-fy” and “-ficate,” meaning to do or make and found in many English words.