SSAT Upper Level Verbal : SSAT Upper Level Verbal

Study concepts, example questions & explanations for SSAT Upper Level Verbal

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Example Questions

Example Question #5 : Location, Time, Or Context

Complete this analogy.

After is to guilt as before is to _________.

Possible Answers:

pride

complicit 

confounded

misgivings 

remorse 

Correct answer:

misgivings 

Explanation:

Guilt is something you might experience after an event, so to solve this analogy, you have to identify a negative feeling of concern before an event. This should lead you to the correct answer, “misgivings,” which describes concerns about not wanting to do something or participate in an approaching event. For clarification, "confounded" means puzzled, and "complicit" means involved in something bad.

Example Question #3 : Location, Time, Or Context

Bowl is to pin as dart is to __________.

Possible Answers:

board

aim

target

throw

rings

Correct answer:

board

Explanation:

When you go bowling, the pins are your target. When you play darts, the board is your target.

Example Question #6 : Location, Time, Or Context

Basketball is to free throw as __________.

Possible Answers:

chess is to chessboard

baseball is to inning

football is to touchdown

swimming is to pool

tennis is to racket

Correct answer:

football is to touchdown

Explanation:

One scores points in basketball by making successful free throws, so we need to pick out an answer choice in which the first word is a noun conveying a sport and the second word a noun conveying the way one might score points or win when playing that sport. While “baseball is to inning” and “football is to touchdown” might each look like a potentially correct answer, “inning” is defined as “a single turn at bat for a team until three outs are made” in the context of baseball, so a baseball game is divided into innings, but one does not necessarily score points by completing innings. So, “baseball is to inning” cannot be the correct answer. “Touchdown,” however, is a noun that means “a six-point score made by carrying or passing the ball into the end zone of the opposing side” in the context of football, so one scores points in football by completing touchdowns, just as one scores points in basketball by completing free throws, making “football is to touchdown” the correct answer.

Example Question #6 : Location, Time, Or Context

Complete this analogy.

Skyscraper is to city as wharf is to __________.

Possible Answers:

village

cave

forest

mountain

seaside

Correct answer:

seaside

Explanation:

A skyscraper is something that one would expect to find in a city, so we need to pick out an answer choice that describes a location in which one would expect to find a wharf. “Wharf” is a noun defined as “a dock; a level quayside area to which a ship may be moored,” so the correct answer is “seaside,” because it is the only answer choice which is located on the border between water and land.

Example Question #7 : Location, Time, Or Context

Complete this analogy.

Brochure is to museum as __________.

Possible Answers:

newspaper is to news

map is to vacation

money is to groceries

movie is to video

document is to law

Correct answer:

map is to vacation

Explanation:

A brochure is something you use to guide you when you go to a museum; similarly, a map is something you use to guide you when you go on a vacation.

Example Question #533 : Analogies: Determining Meaning From Type Of Relationship

Complete this analogy.

Nocturnal is to night as __________ is to day.

Possible Answers:

cosmopolitan

urban

rural

diurnal

eternal

Correct answer:

diurnal

Explanation:

"Nocturnal" means (of an animal) awake at night, asleep during the day. So, to solve this analogy you are looking for the answer choice that means (of an animal) awake during the day, asleep at night. The correct answer is therefore "diurnal." Additionally, "eternal" means lasting forever; "rural" means related to the countryside; "urban" means related to the city; "cosmopolitan" means worldly, sophisticated.

Example Question #534 : Analogies: Determining Meaning From Type Of Relationship

Complete this analogy.

Convict is to prison as __________ is to abbey.

Possible Answers:

essayist

pilot

student

monk

demigod

Correct answer:

monk

Explanation:

A "convict" is a prisoner. So, if a "convict" lives in a prison, which of these answer choices might live in an "abbey?" Well, an "abbey" is like a monastery, so the correct answer is a "monk." Additionally, an "essayist" is a writer of essay's; a "demigod" is a lower tier God.

Example Question #11 : Location, Time, Or Context

Complete this analogy.

Till is to __________ as study is to exam.

Possible Answers:

aesthetic

harvest

strut

sinecure

bereavement

Correct answer:

harvest

Explanation:

One generally "studies" to prepare for an "exam." So, which of these is something that one might "till" in preparation for? Well, to "till" is to cultivate the land, to plant crops that will one day need to be "harvested." The correct answer is thus, of course, "harvest." Additionally, a "strut" is an exaggerated and cocky walk; "bereavement" is a period of mourning after a loss; a "sinecure" is an easy job; "aesthetic" means related to beauty.

Example Question #12 : Location, Time, Or Context

Complete this analogy.

Barracks is to soldier as __________ is to baby.

Possible Answers:

commode

dormitory

university

nursery

monastery

Correct answer:

nursery

Explanation:

A "barracks" is a place where soldiers are housed. So, to solve this analogy you need to determine which of these answer choices is a place where "babies" might be found. The correct answer is a "nursery." Additionally, a "dormitory" is a place where people, usually students, sleep; a "commode" is a room, usually a bathroom; a "monastery" is a place where monks or other religious adherents live.

Example Question #537 : Analogies: Determining Meaning From Type Of Relationship

Complete this analogy.

Foresight is to future as __________ is to past.

Possible Answers:

insight

forethought

prudence

hindsight

descendant

Correct answer:

hindsight

Explanation:

"Foresight" is the ability to see or predict future developments. So, to solve this analogy you need to determine which of these words relates to the past in the same way that "foresight" relates to the future. The correct answer is therefore "hindsight" which means an understanding of something that emerges after it has happened. Additionally, "insight" means understanding about the present; "forethought" and "prudence" are synonyms of "foresight"; a "descendant" is someone in one's family who comes after oneself, like a grandson.

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