30 Verbal Reasoning questions — Part 1: 15 synonym, Part 2: 15 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.
Note: The real ISEE Primary Level (for applicants to grades 2–4) is Auditory Comprehension, Reading Comprehension, Mathematics and a writing sample — it has no Verbal Reasoning section, so the real Primary-level test never asks a synonym or sentence-completion question. This practice test borrows that question style from the Lower/Middle/Upper Verbal Reasoning format purely to help younger students build vocabulary early, ahead of the level where it is actually tested that way.
Select the best synonym for the word “critical”:
D — disapproving. “critical” means adj. expressing disapproval or finding fault. Study “critical” →
Choose the best synonym for the word “healing”:
C — recovery. “healing” means n. the process of making or becoming sound or healthy again. Study “healing” →
Select the best synonym for the word “greatly”:
A — considerably. “greatly” means adv. to a large extent or degree. Study “greatly” →
Choose the best synonym for the word “notorious”:
A — infamous. “notorious” means adj. famous for something bad. Study “notorious” →
Select the best synonym for the word “naturally”:
A — instinctively. “naturally” means adv. in a natural manner; as expected. Study “naturally” →
Select the best synonym for the word “double”:
B — twofold. “double” means adj. twice as much or as many. Study “double” →
Choose the best synonym for the word “kinship”:
A — family ties. “kinship” means n. the state of being related to others. Study “kinship” →
Select the best synonym for the word “history”:
B — chronicle. “history” means n. the study of past events. Study “history” →
Choose the best synonym for the word “sufferer”:
D — victim. “sufferer” means n. a person who experiences pain or hardship. Study “sufferer” →
Choose the best synonym for the word “tradition-breaker”:
B — nonconformist. “tradition-breaker” means n. a person who does not follow traditional practices. Study “tradition-breaker” →
Select the best synonym for the word “creepy”:
C — eerie. “creepy” means adj. causing an unpleasant feeling of fear or unease. Study “creepy” →
Choose the best synonym for the word “hero”:
D — champion. “hero” means n. a person admired for bravery or noble qualities. Study “hero” →
Select the best synonym for the word “influential”:
C — powerful. “influential” means adj. having great influence on someone or something. Study “influential” →
Choose the best synonym for the word “strong”:
D — powerful. “strong” means adj. having power or strength. Study “strong” →
Select the best synonym for the word “defense”:
A — protection. “defense” means n. the action of protecting from attack. Study “defense” →
A warm evening bath is her favorite form of ______ after a very long day.
B — relaxation. “relaxation” means n. the state of being free from tension and anxiety. Study “relaxation” →
The tired workers dug deep down into the ______ to search for gold.
A — mine. “mine” means n. a type of excavation in the earth for extracting coal or other minerals. Study “mine” →
The workers came early to ______ a new washing machine in the kitchen.
A — install. “install” means v. to put a piece of equipment somewhere and make it ready to use. Study “install” →
The calm, still lake began to ______ the tall mountains perfectly.
C — reflect. “reflect” means v. to show an image of something on a surface. Study “reflect” →
She was so very tired that she ______ fell asleep at her school desk.
C — nearly. “nearly” means adv. almost; not quite. Study “nearly” →
Be very careful not to ______ your ticket before the show begins.
D — lose. “lose” means v. to fail to keep or maintain something. Study “lose” →
The gentle old horse had a calm, patient ______ that the children loved.
B — temperament. “temperament” means n. a person''s nature or disposition. Study “temperament” →
She wisely packed one ______ pair of socks in case her feet got wet.
A — extra. “extra” means adj. more than what is usual or necessary. Study “extra” →
The constantly ringing phone was a real ______ during the long meeting.
A — distraction. “distraction” means n. something that takes your attention away from what you are doing. Study “distraction” →
By ______ the wild birds for many hours, the scientist learned their habits.
A — observing. “observing” means v. watching carefully. Study “observing” →
The ______ silver coins glittered brightly in the warm afternoon sunlight.
B — shining. “shining” means adj. giving off light. Study “shining” →
The strong horse galloped for hours in one long, ______ run.
D — unbroken. “unbroken” means adj. not interrupted or disturbed. Study “unbroken” →
The careless factory dumped ______ waste into the once-clean river.
A — toxic. “toxic” means adj. poisonous or harmful. Study “toxic” →
Her heart filled with pure ______ when she saw her whole family waiting.
B — joy. “joy” means n. a feeling of great happiness. Study “joy” →
Her sudden silence was a ______ sign that something was truly wrong.
A — telling. “telling” means adj. having a strong or important effect. Study “telling” →
Score:
Every question below is now marked up: the correct answer is highlighted in red, and any option you picked that was wrong is highlighted in blue.
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.
The real ISEE Primary Level (for applicants to grades 2–4) is Auditory Comprehension, Reading Comprehension, Mathematics and a writing sample — it has no Verbal Reasoning section, so the real Primary-level test never asks a synonym or sentence-completion question. This practice test borrows that question style from the Lower/Middle/Upper Verbal Reasoning format purely to help younger students build vocabulary early, ahead of the level where it is actually tested that way.
30 — Part 1 is 15 synonym questions, Part 2 is 15 sentence-completion questions, the same roughly-even split the real ISEE Verbal Reasoning section uses.
No. Every Primary 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.