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 the best synonym for “delicate” in the following sentence: The antique vase was so delicate that it needed to be handled with great care.
A — fragile. “delicate” means adj. easily broken, sensitive. Study “delicate” →
Choose the word that is closest in meaning to “distinct”:
A — Unique. “distinct” means adj. clearly different. Study “distinct” →
Choose the synonym for the word “mere” as used in the following sentence: “The team”s victory was due to a mere technicality, rather than superior skill.''
A — simple. “mere” means adj. only, nothing more. Study “mere” →
Select the synonym for the word “identify”:
B — Recognize. “identify” means v. recognize, name. Study “identify” →
Which of the following is a synonym for the word “excessive”?
D — Overwhelming. “excessive” means adj. too much. Study “excessive” →
Choose the word that is closest in meaning to “era”: During the Renaissance, Europeans experienced a new ___ in art and science.
B — epoch. “era” means n. period of time. Study “era” →
Choose the word that is most similar in meaning to “issue”:
B — distribute. “issue” means n./v. an important topic; to give out. Study “issue” →
Choose the word that is a synonym for accord.
B — harmony. “according” means prep. as stated by. Study “according” →
Choose the best synonym for the word “discipline” as used in the sentence: The school places a strong emphasis on discipline to ensure a respectful and orderly environment.
B — order. “discipline” means n. self-control; v. train. Study “discipline” →
Choose the word that is closest in meaning to “assorted”:
A — Mixed. “assorted” means adj. various types. Study “assorted” →
What is a synonym for the word “demand”?
A — Require. “demand” means v./n. require, need. Study “demand” →
Choose the synonym for the word “descent” as used in the sentence: “The hikers began their descent from the mountain at sunrise.”
B — decline. “descent” means n. downward movement. Study “descent” →
Choose the word that is a synonym for “economy”:
A — Finance. “economy” means n. system of money and production. Study “economy” →
Which of the following is a synonym for the word “maximum”?
B — Largest. “maximum” means n./adj. greatest possible amount. Study “maximum” →
Choose the word that is closest in meaning to “trance”.
A — Daydream. “trance” means n. dazed or hypnotized state. Study “trance” →
Choose the word that is the closest synonym to “hostile”:
B — Aggressive. “hostile” means adj. unfriendly, antagonistic. Study “hostile” →
Choose the word that is most similar in meaning to “incompetent”:
B — Inept. “incompetent” means adj. not skilled. Study “incompetent” →
The team's main ______ was to win the national championship.
B — objective. “objective” means n. goal; adj. unbiased. Study “objective” →
The principal will ______ the students who volunteered their time.
D — commend. “commend” means v. praise or congratulate. Study “commend” →
The ambassador's official ______ is a grand house near the park.
B — residence. “residence” means n. place where one lives. Study “residence” →
His very first ______ to the surprise party was one of pure shock.
D — reaction. “reaction” means n. response. Study “reaction” →
The concert will begin at eight, ______ to the printed schedule.
D — according. “according” means prep. as stated by. Study “according” →
The plane began its slow ______ toward the runway.
C — descent. “descent” means n. downward movement. Study “descent” →
Exhausted and hungry, the explorers were on the ______ of giving up.
A — verge. “verge” means n. edge, border. Study “verge” →
The charity director will ______ for donations at the fundraising event.
A — appeal. “appeal” means v./n. request earnestly, attract. Study “appeal” →
Greedy owners sometimes ______ their workers by paying them too little.
B — exploit. “exploit” means v. make use of; n. brave deed. Study “exploit” →
Being fluent in two languages gave her a real ______ in the job market.
D — advantage. “advantage” means n. a benefit. Study “advantage” →
Her ______ solution to the problem impressed all of the judges.
C — brilliant. “brilliant” means adj. very bright, clever. Study “brilliant” →
The old document clearly proves her ______ of the small farm.
B — ownership. “ownership” means n. state of owning. Study “ownership” →
Mystery is by far her favorite ______ of novel.
A — genre. “genre” means n. type, category. Study “genre” →
The children needed their parents' ______ to go on the field trip.
C — consent. “consent” means v., n. give permission. Study “consent” →
Each delicate snowflake has a completely ______ shape unlike any other.
B — unique. “unique” means adj. one of a kind, special. Study “unique” →
A careful ______ of the data revealed a surprising pattern.
D — analysis. “analysis” means n. detailed examination. Study “analysis” →
The warm room and soft music soon made her feel ______.
C — drowsy. “drowsy” means adj. sleepy. Study “drowsy” →
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.