34 Verbal Reasoning questions — Part 1: 17 synonym, Part 2: 17 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 word that is closest in meaning to “distance”:
B — length. “distance” means n. space between two points. Study “distance” →
Which of the following words is a synonym for “convince”?
A — Persuade. “convince” means v. make someone believe. Study “convince” →
Choose the word that is a synonym for “strive”: Despite numerous obstacles, she continued to strive toward her goal.
C — struggle. “strive” means v. try hard. Study “strive” →
Which of the following is a synonym for the word “portray”?
A — Depict. “portray” means v. describe, show in art or words. Study “portray” →
Which of the following is a synonym for the word “narrator”?
A — Storyteller. “narrator” means n. person telling the story. Study “narrator” →
Choose the word that is the best synonym for “generate”:
A — Create. “generate” means v. create, produce. Study “generate” →
Select the word that is closest in meaning to “beacon” as used in the sentence: “The lighthouse served as a beacon for ships navigating the treacherous waters.”
A — Guide. “beacon” means n. signal light, guide. Study “beacon” →
Which of the following is a synonym for the word “tragic”?
B — Mournful. “tragic” means adj. very sad, disastrous. Study “tragic” →
In the following context, choose the best synonym for the word “maternal”: Though she was not related to them by blood, the caretaker’s ______ instincts were evident in her nurturing behavior towards the children.
B — maternal. “maternal” means adj. motherly. Study “maternal” →
Which word is the best synonym for “provoke”?
B — Incite. “provoke” means v. trigger, make angry. Study “provoke” →
Select the word that is most similar in meaning to “admission”:
B — acknowledgment. “admission” means n. permission to enter; confession. Study “admission” →
Which of the following words is a synonym for “corporate”?
A — Collective. “corporate” means adj. relating to a large company. Study “corporate” →
Which of the following is a synonym for the word symbol?
A — Icon. “symbol” means n. sign, representation. Study “symbol” →
Choose the word that best matches the meaning of “mutter”:
B — Whisper. “mutter” means v. speak quietly, mumble. Study “mutter” →
What is a synonym for the word “arid” in the following sentence? The landscape was so arid that even the cacti struggled to survive.
A — Dry. “arid” means adj. very dry. Study “arid” →
Choose the word that is a synonym for “impress” as used in the context: “The young artist managed to impress the critics with his innovative work.”
A — Amaze. “impress” means v. make someone admire or respect. Study “impress” →
Which of the following is a synonym for the word “independent”?
B — Autonomous. “independent” means adj. free, not controlled by others. Study “independent” →
The powerful ______ tore the roofs right off several houses.
A — gale. “gale” means n. strong wind. Study “gale” →
The new ______ made it illegal to text while driving.
D — legislation. “legislation” means n. law, the making of laws. Study “legislation” →
The antique piano keys were made of smooth, polished ______.
D — ivory. “ivory” means n. hard white material from elephant tusks. Study “ivory” →
The enormous ______ slowly carved a deep valley over thousands of years.
A — glacier. “glacier” means n. large mass of ice. Study “glacier” →
The old song can ______ happy memories of childhood.
B — evoke. “evoke” means v. call up, bring to mind. Study “evoke” →
The ancient Greek ______ explains how the seasons came to be.
B — myth. “myth” means n. traditional story, widely held false belief. Study “myth” →
She made a ______ search for her lost keys before the flight.
B — frantic. “frantic” means adj. wild or very excited. Study “frantic” →
After the examination, the doctors agreed that the patient was perfectly ______.
C — sane. “sane” means adj. mentally healthy. Study “sane” →
Young children ______ on their parents for food and shelter.
D — depend. “depend” means v. rely on. Study “depend” →
The new hotel was large enough to ______ hundreds of guests at once.
C — accommodate. “accommodate” means v. to house or provide for. Study “accommodate” →
Large trucks ______ fresh vegetables from the farm to the busy city.
D — transport. “transport” means v./n. move people/things. Study “transport” →
It took two strong people to ______ the excited, jumping dog.
C — restrain. “restrain” means v. control, hold back. Study “restrain” →
During the solar ______, the moon completely hid the sun.
D — eclipse. “eclipse” means n./v. blocking of light. Study “eclipse” →
The huge factory can ______ thousands of cars each week.
B — manufacture. “manufacture” means v./n. make products. Study “manufacture” →
The store kindly let me ______ the shirt for a larger size.
D — exchange. “exchange” means v./n. give one thing for another. Study “exchange” →
The sudden disappearance of the ship remains a complete ______.
A — mystery. “mystery” means n. something unknown or secret. Study “mystery” →
Once the light turns green, the cars may ______ through the intersection.
C — proceed. “proceed” means v. go forward, continue. Study “proceed” →
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.
34 — Part 1 is 17 synonym questions, Part 2 is 17 sentence-completion questions, the same roughly-even split the real ISEE Verbal Reasoning section uses.
No. Every Lower 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.