All ISEE Upper Level Verbal Resources
Example Questions
Example Question #591 : Identifying Synonyms
Select the answer choice that is closest in meaning to the word in capital letters.
PROFANE
Considerate
Potential
Manageable
Holy
Secular
Secular
"Profane" is a word that when used as an adjective, can mean either "relating or devoted to that which is not sacred or biblical; secular rather than religious" or "not respectful of orthodox religious practice; irreverent" when describing a person or his or her behavior. As a verb, "profane" means "treat something sacred with irreverence or disrespect." However, all of our potential answer choices are adjectives, so we will need to consider "profane" as an adjective. So, "religious" cannot be the correct answer, because "religious" is an antonym of "profane," not a synonym. "Secular," however, is an adjective that means "denoting attitudes, activities, or other things that have no religious or spiritual basis." So, because "secular" is the answer choice closest in meaning to "profane," it is the correct answer.
Example Question #592 : Identifying Synonyms
Select the answer choice that is closest in meaning to the word in capital letters.
INCONGROUS
Cacophonous
Anomalous
Divisive
Apathetic
Ambiguous
Anomalous
Because "incongrous" means out of the ordinary or not in harmony or keeping with the surroundings or other aspects of something, the answer choice that is its closest synonym is "anomalous," or deviating from what is standard, normal, or expected.
Example Question #593 : Identifying Synonyms
Select the answer choice that is closest in meaning to the word in capital letters.
COMMENSURATE
Ambiguous
Correspondent
Burgeoning
Critical
Redundant
Correspondent
"Commensurate" is an adjective that means "equal or similar to something in size, amount, or degree; in proportion to," so we need to pick out a word that means "proportionate." While "redundant" may sound like a good answer choice because it also deals with relationships between things, "redundant" actually means "repeating something else and therefore unnecessary," so it is not the word we're looking for. "Correspondent," however, besides meaning "a person who writes letters to a person or a newspaper, especially on a regular basis" as a noun, can also function as an adjective meaning "having a close similarity; matching or agreeing almost exactly." Of the available answer choices, "correspondent" is closest in meaning to "commensurate," so it is the correct answer.
Example Question #591 : Identifying Synonyms
Select the answer choice that is closest in meaning to the word in capital letters.
ANOMALOUS
Intransigent
Garrulous
Conforming
Incongruous
Floundering
Incongruous
"Anomalous" and "incongruous" both mean deviating from normal or unusual. "Conforming" means agreeing or harmonious. "Garrulous" means talkative. "Floundering" means struggling or stumbling. "Intransigent" means adamant or stubborn.
Example Question #592 : Identifying Synonyms
Select the answer choice that is closest in meaning to the word in capital letters.
INSIPID
Sedulous
Banal
Homogenous
Avant-garde
Appetizing
Banal
"Insipid" and "banal" both mean dull or uninteresting. "Appetizing" means delicious or appealing. "Sedulous" means busy or determined. "Avant-garde" means unconventional or forward-thinking. "Homogenous" means similar or comparable.
Example Question #593 : Identifying Synonyms
Select the answer choice that is closest in meaning to the word in capital letters.
PRETERNATURAL
Germane
Stupefying
Voluminous
Anomalous
Munificent
Anomalous
"Preternatural" and "anomalous" both mean unusual or abnormal. "Germane" means appropriate or applicable. "Munificent" means giving or generous. "Stupefying" means stunning or amazing. "Voluminous" means ample or vast.
Example Question #814 : Synonyms
Select the answer choice that is closest in meaning to the word in capital letters.
POTENT
Drinkable
Stewing
Poisonous
Forceful
Untainted
Forceful
The “pot-” portion of this word is derived from the Latin for able and also power. It is found in many English words like “impotent,” “potency,” “omnipotence,” and “potential.” Someone might say, “The speech was extremely potent in stirring the emotions of the crowd; soon, everyone was marching according to the instructions of the speaker.” Among the options provided, “forceful” best conveys this sense of “power.”
Example Question #2531 : Isee Upper Level (Grades 9 12) Verbal Reasoning
Select the answer choice that is closest in meaning to the word in capital letters.
FUTILE
Ineffectual
Useful
Annoying
Bothersome
Feeble
Ineffectual
When something is futile, it accomplishes nothing. For example, one could say, “No matter how long Thomas spent in the gym, it felt futile, for he was always unable to lift his goal amount of weights.” When something is “ineffectual,” it is “unable to have an effect.” The word is thus somewhat like “ineffective.”
Example Question #221 : Synonyms: Adjectives And Adverbs
Select the answer choice that is closest in meaning to the word in capital letters.
INEXORABLE
Preventable
Persuadable
Imaginative
Limited
Unstoppable
Unstoppable
"Inexorable" is an adjective that means "impossible to stop or prevent," or when describing a person, "impossible to persuade by request or entreaty." So, neither "preventable" nor "persuadable" can be the correct answer because each of those words is an antonym of "inexorable," not a synonym. The correct answer is "unstoppable," an adjective that like "inexorable" means "impossible to stop or prevent."
Example Question #222 : Synonyms: Adjectives And Adverbs
Select the word that is most nearly the same in meaning as the word in capital letters.
HUGE
gargantuan
hedonist
modicum
lucid
miniscule
gargantuan
Both "miniscule" and "modicum" mean a small amount so they are not correct. "Lucid" means clear, and a "hedonist" is someone who lives for pleasure. "Gargantuan" is a synonym for huge.
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All ISEE Upper Level Verbal Resources
