40 Verbal Reasoning questions — 20 synonym, 20 sentence completion — in the ISEE's own four-option format. Every answer is explained, and every question links to its word's full study page.
Choose the best synonym for the word “unfriendly”:
D — hostile. “unfriendly” means adj. not kind or pleasant. Study “unfriendly” →
As a bold ______, she flatly refused to dress like everyone else.
B — nonconformist. “nonconformist” means n. a person who does not follow established customs or norms. Study “nonconformist” →
Select the best synonym for the word “financially”:
C — monetarily. “financially” means adv. in a way that relates to money. Study “financially” →
She tied the red balloon to a chair with a long piece of ______.
B — string. “string” means n. a thin piece of cord or thread. Study “string” →
Select the best synonym for the word “premiere”:
B — debut. “premiere” means n. the first public performance of a play or movie. Study “premiere” →
She watched the entire ______ of exciting shows in a single weekend.
B — series. “series” means n. a number of things or events that are arranged or happen one after the other. Study “series” →
Select the best synonym for the word “dark”:
C — dim. “dark” means adj. having little or no light. Study “dark” →
She hoped hard to finally be ______ of her painful fear of the dark.
D — rid. “rid” means v. to make someone or something free of something unwanted. Study “rid” →
Select the best synonym for the word “circumstances”:
D — conditions. “circumstances” means n. the conditions or facts affecting a situation. Study “circumstances” →
The old wooden bridge was ______ damaged by the powerful spring flood.
C — severely. “severely” means adv. in a very bad or serious way. Study “severely” →
Select the best synonym for the word “personal”:
A — private. “personal” means adj. relating to a particular person. Study “personal” →
A sudden cold ______ gripped her heart as all the lights went out.
D — fear. “fear” means n. an unpleasant emotion caused by the threat of danger. Study “fear” →
Select the best synonym for the word “value”:
C — worth. “value” means n. the worth of something in money or usefulness. Study “value” →
The deep-sea diver felt the great ______ of the cold water all around her.
B — pressure. “pressure” means n. the force applied to a surface. Study “pressure” →
Choose the best synonym for the word “misfortune”:
A — adversity. “misfortune” means n. bad luck; an unfortunate condition or event. Study “misfortune” →
Tall old trees completely ______ the quiet little cottage in the woods.
C — surround. “surround” means v. to be all around something. Study “surround” →
Select the best synonym for the word “mentality”:
A — mindset. “mentality” means n. a way of thinking or the ability to think. Study “mentality” →
The quiet stone temple was a place of deep ______ peace for the pilgrims.
D — spiritual. “spiritual” means adj. relating to the spirit or soul. Study “spiritual” →
Select the best synonym for the word “illustrate”:
A — demonstrate. “illustrate” means v. to explain or make something clear by using examples or pictures. Study “illustrate” →
Cell phones, once quite rare, are now completely ______ everywhere.
A — commonplace. “commonplace” means adj. ordinary; not unusual. Study “commonplace” →
Choose the best synonym for the word “indispensable”:
B — essential. “indispensable” means adj. absolutely necessary. Study “indispensable” →
She entered the school spelling ______ and won first place quite easily.
C — contest. “contest” means n. a competition or struggle. Study “contest” →
Select the best synonym for the word “annoy”:
D — irritate. “annoy” means v. to make someone slightly angry. Study “annoy” →
Bright, sweet-smelling flowers ______ busy bees searching for nectar.
C — attract. “attract” means v. to draw or pull something towards oneself. Study “attract” →
Choose the best synonym for the word “secretive”:
D — reticent. “secretive” means adj. keeping one''s thoughts, actions, or intentions hidden. Study “secretive” →
The exciting circus acts were sure to ______ the wide-eyed young audience.
A — enthrall. “enthrall” means v. to capture the fascinated attention of. Study “enthrall” →
Select the best synonym for the word “capture”:
D — seize. “capture” means v. to catch and hold someone or something. Study “capture” →
The ______ shopkeeper always greeted every customer with a warm smile.
C — friendly. “friendly” means adj. kind and pleasant. Study “friendly” →
Select the best synonym for the word “mind”:
A — intellect. “mind” means n. the part of a person that thinks, reasons, feels, and remembers. Study “mind” →
Her strong ______ about fairness guided every choice she ever made.
C — beliefs. “beliefs” means n. things that are accepted as true. Study “beliefs” →
Choose the best synonym for the word “mess”:
A — clutter. “mess” means n. a state of disorder or untidiness. Study “mess” →
The lawyers argued the difficult case in one of the city's busy ______.
C — courts. “courts” means n. plural of court; places where legal cases are heard. Study “courts” →
Choose the best synonym for the word “test”:
D — examination. “test” means n. an examination or trial. Study “test” →
A dark, ______ shape suddenly appeared through the thick evening fog.
B — looming. “looming” means adj. appearing as a large and indistinct shape, often in a threatening way. Study “looming” →
Choose the best synonym for the word “responsive”:
C — receptive. “responsive” means adj. reacting quickly and positively. Study “responsive” →
It was only a ______ walk from the house to the little corner shop.
D — short. “short” means adj. not long in distance or time. Study “short” →
Select the best synonym for the word “shorten”:
A — abbreviate. “shorten” means v. to make something shorter. Study “shorten” →
The doctor gave the patient some very ______ news about his health.
C — serious. “serious” means adj. important and needing careful thought or attention. Study “serious” →
Select the best synonym for the word “counter-argument”:
B — rebuttal. “counter-argument” means n. an argument made to oppose another argument. Study “counter-argument” →
The ______ library was the perfect place to study hard for the exam.
A — quiet. “quiet” means adj. making little or no noise. Study “quiet” →
No. These are original synonym and sentence-completion questions written from the iSEE Vocab word bank, in the ISEE's own four-option Verbal Reasoning format. No retired or copyrighted ISEE/SSAT questions appear anywhere on this site.
40 — 20 synonym questions and 20 sentence-completion questions, the same roughly-even split the real ISEE Verbal Reasoning section uses.
No. Every Basic Level practice test on this site draws from a disjoint slice of the word bank, so Test 1, Test 2 and every other numbered test at this level use entirely different questions.
Yes. The ISEE gives no penalty for a wrong answer — a blank scores the same as a wrong guess, which is zero — so answer every question even when you have to guess.