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.
Select the best synonym for the word “fascinate”:
C — captivate. “fascinate” means v. to attract and hold the attention of someone. Study “fascinate” →
The ______ little puppy chewed up all of dad's best leather shoes.
D — naughty. “naughty” means adj. behaving badly or disobediently. Study “naughty” →
Choose the best synonym for the word “carve”:
C — sculpt. “carve” means v. to cut something into a shape. Study “carve” →
As a longtime ______ of the small town, she knew almost everyone there.
A — resident. “resident” means n. people who live in a particular place. Study “resident” →
Select the best synonym for the word “extremely”:
B — exceedingly. “extremely” means adv. to a very great degree. Study “extremely” →
After finishing high school, she went to ______ to study biology.
D — college. “college” means n. a school for higher education. Study “college” →
Choose the best synonym for the word “deed”:
B — act. “deed” means n. an action that is performed intentionally. Study “deed” →
Through the thick fog, the ship appeared only ______ in the far distance.
C — indistinctly. “indistinctly” means adv. not clearly or sharply defined. Study “indistinctly” →
Select the best synonym for the word “gift”:
B — present. “gift” means n. something given willingly to someone without payment; a present. Study “gift” →
His ______ answer completely ignored all the hard parts of the problem.
D — simplistic. “simplistic” means adj. treating complex issues as if they were simple. Study “simplistic” →
Select the best synonym for the word “tactful”:
C — diplomatic. “tactful” means adj. having or showing sensitivity in dealing with others or with difficult issues. Study “tactful” →
A bright flash of lightning was quickly followed by a loud clap of ______.
B — thunder. “thunder” means n. the loud noise that follows a flash of lightning. Study “thunder” →
Choose the best synonym for the word “nomadic”:
A — wandering. “nomadic” means adj. moving from place to place without a permanent home. Study “nomadic” →
No one yet knew the full ______ of the damage caused by the storm.
B — extent. “extent” means n. the size or scale of something. Study “extent” →
Select the best synonym for the word “toil”:
A — labor. “toil” means v. to work very hard for a long time. Study “toil” →
The whole team happily shared the ______ for the great success of the show.
C — credit. “credit” means n. praise or recognition for something done. Study “credit” →
Select the best synonym for the word “dependable”:
C — reliable. “dependable” means adj. trustworthy and reliable. Study “dependable” →
The hot afternoon sun burned the ______ on the back of his neck.
D — skin. “skin” means n. the outer covering of the body. Study “skin” →
Select the best synonym for the word “copy”:
A — duplicate. “copy” means v. to make something that is exactly like another thing; n. a thing made to be similar or identical to another. Study “copy” →
The tiny careless mistake had a ______ effect on the whole experiment.
A — disastrous. “disastrous” means adj. causing great harm or damage. Study “disastrous” →
Select the best synonym for the word “miserable”:
A — wretched. “miserable” means adj. very unhappy or uncomfortable. Study “miserable” →
The guard grew ______ of the man who kept nervously looking over his shoulder.
A — suspicious. “suspicious” means adj. having or showing a cautious distrust. Study “suspicious” →
Select the best synonym for the word “unrealistic”:
C — impractical. “unrealistic” means adj. not seeing things as they are; impractical. Study “unrealistic” →
It is very hard to cross the wide desert ______ enough water to drink.
A — without. “without” means prep. not having or including something. Study “without” →
Select the best synonym for the word “instance”:
A — example. “instance” means n. an example or single occurrence of something. Study “instance” →
The ______ math problem took even the smartest students a whole hour.
D — tricky. “tricky” means adj. difficult to deal with or do. Study “tricky” →
Choose the best synonym for the word “forceful”:
D — assertive. “forceful” means adj. strong and assertive. Study “forceful” →
The ______ meeting dragged on for nearly four long, boring hours.
D — lengthy. “lengthy” means adj. very long in time or size. Study “lengthy” →
Select the best synonym for the word “promise”:
D — vow. “promise” means v. to tell someone you will definitely do something. Study “promise” →
The people marched in the streets demanding ______ for the wronged workers.
B — justice. “justice” means n. the quality of being fair and reasonable. Study “justice” →
Select the best synonym for the word “education”:
D — schooling. “education” means n. the process of teaching and learning. Study “education” →
The ______ vase lay in a hundred sharp pieces all over the floor.
C — broken. “broken” means adj. damaged or in pieces. Study “broken” →
Select the best synonym for the word “stickler”:
A — perfectionist. “stickler” means n. a person who insists on a certain quality or type of behavior. Study “stickler” →
It took all of his strength to ______ the heavy cart up the steep hill.
B — pull. “pull” means v. to exert force on something to move it towards oneself. Study “pull” →
Select the best synonym for the word “engrossing”:
A — captivating. “engrossing” means adj. absorbing all one''s attention or interest. Study “engrossing” →
If you do not study at all, you may ______ the very important test.
D — fail. “fail” means v. to not succeed in achieving something. Study “fail” →
Choose the best synonym for the word “fantasy”:
A — daydream. “fantasy” means n. an imagined situation or story. Study “fantasy” →
A distant ______ she had never even met left her a small fortune.
A — relative. “relative” means n. members of your family. Study “relative” →
Select the best synonym for the word “down-to-earth”:
D — practical. “down-to-earth” means adj. practical and realistic. Study “down-to-earth” →
The high, thick stone walls were built for the whole town's ______.
D — defense. “defense” means n. the action of protecting from attack. Study “defense” →
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.