All SSAT Elementary Level Verbal Resources
Example Questions
Example Question #1 : Tool To Use Or Use To Tool
Analogies: Complete this analogy.
Ear is to hearing as hand is to __________.
Touching
Smelling
Foot
Arm
Sensing
Touching
An "ear" is the part of the body used to hear, so to complete the analogy, you need to pick out an answer choice that describes what a hand is used to do. A hand is something you use for “touching" things, so "touching" is the correct answer.
Example Question #2 : Tool To Use Or Use To Tool
Analogies: Complete this analogy.
Clothes are to wear as food is to __________.
demolish
drink
eat
create
wash
eat
"Wear" is a verb that describes how you use clothes, so to solve this analogy you have to determine which of these answer choices is a verb that describes how you use food. The correct answer is “eat.” To help you, "demolish" means tear down or destroy.
Example Question #3 : Tool To Use Or Use To Tool
Complete this analogy.
Pen is to draw as __________.
wood is to saw
keyboard is to type
click is to mouse
thread is to needle
tail is to cat
keyboard is to type
One uses a pen to draw, so we need to pick out an answer choice in which the first word is an object and the second word a verb which one uses that object to do. While “keyboard is to type,” “click is to mouse,” and “wood is to saw” might each look like a potentially correct answer, one does not use a click to mouse or wood to saw, so neither “click is to mouse” nor “wood is to saw” can be the correct answer. One can use a keyboard to type, however, just as one can use a pen to draw, so “keyboard is to type.”
Example Question #4 : Tool To Use Or Use To Tool
Complete this analogy.
Cook is to stove as __________.
chill is to refrigerator
word is to sentence
washer is to wash
idea is to consider
saw is to wood
chill is to refrigerator
One uses a stove to cook things, so we need to pick out an answer choice in which the second word is an object or tool that is used to do the first verb to things. While “washer is to wash” might look like a potentially correct answer, its two words are in an incorrect order compared to our example (“wash” is not used to “washer” things), so it cannot be the correct answer. Refrigerators are used to chill things, though, just like stoves are used to cook things, so “chill is to refrigerator” is the correct answer.
Example Question #3 : Tool To Use Or Use To Tool
Book is to read as song is to . . .
sing
walk
run
paddle
dream
sing
Since you read a book, we need to pick out a verb that describes what you do to a song. Since one sings a song just as one reads a book, "sing" is the correct answer.
Example Question #5 : Tool To Use Or Use To Tool
Analogies: Complete this analogy.
Hunt is to gun as __________.
write is to pen
ball is to helmet
city is to state
wet is to water
cold is to ice
write is to pen
A gun is used to hunt, just as a pen is used to write, so "pen is to write" is the correct answer.
Example Question #6 : Tool To Use Or Use To Tool
Complete this analogy.
Phone is to call as book is to __________.
see
fly
read
clean
water
read
A "phone" is used for "calling" (making phone calls) just as a "book" is used for "reading," so "read" is the correct answer. Regarding incorrect answers, although you can "see" a book, this is not a description of its use, and "clean," "water," and "fly" have nothing to do with how books are used either.
Example Question #7 : Tool To Use Or Use To Tool
Complete this analogy.
Game is to play as __________.
fun is to boring
book is to read
clean is to burnish
wet is to dry
red is to pink
book is to read
A game is played just as a book is read.
Example Question #8 : Tool To Use Or Use To Tool
Complete this analogy.
Pen is to write as scissors are to __________.
mend
drop
dull
cut
sharpen
cut
You use scissors to cut things, just as you would use a pen to write.
Example Question #9 : Tool To Use Or Use To Tool
Complete this analogy.
Keyboard is to typing as __________.
hole is to cover
sock is to foot
brain is to head
typewriter is to paper
pencil is to writing
pencil is to writing
What does a computer have to do with typing? A keyboard can be used for typing, so look for an answer that represents the relationship something is to something you can do with it. "Pencil is to writing" is the best choice, because a pencil is used for writing. A hole can be covered, but it is not itself used to cover.