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 best synonym for the word “factor” as used in the sentence: The team realized that a key factor in their success was effective communication.
A — element. “factor” means n. something that influences result. Study “factor” →
Choose the best synonym for the word “terrain” as used in the sentence: “The hikers carefully studied the terrain before setting out on their journey.”
A — landscape. “terrain” means n. land, ground. Study “terrain” →
Choose the word that is closest in meaning to: Opinion.
B — View. “opinion” means n. personal belief or view. Study “opinion” →
Choose the word that is closest in meaning to “adapt”.
A — Adjust. “adapt” means v. adjust, modify. Study “adapt” →
Choose the word that is closest in meaning to “ancient”.
A — Old. “ancient” means adj. very old. Study “ancient” →
Choose the word that is closest in meaning to “frontier”:
A — Boundary. “frontier” means n. border between countries, limits. Study “frontier” →
Choose the word that is closest in meaning to “ferocious” as used in the following sentence: The ferocious storm caused widespread damage across the coastal towns.
B — Fierce. “ferocious” means adj. fierce, violent. Study “ferocious” →
Choose the word that is a synonym for “excel”:
A — Surpass. “excel” means v. be very good at. Study “excel” →
Select the word that is closest in meaning to “jumble”:
B — Tangle. “jumble” means v./n. mix up in confusion. Study “jumble” →
Select the word that is most similar in meaning to “appeal”.
A — entreaty. “appeal” means v./n. request earnestly, attract. Study “appeal” →
Which of the following words is a synonym for “mimic”?
A — imitate. “mimic” means v. imitate. Study “mimic” →
Which word is the best synonym for “university”?
A — Institution. “university” means n. college for higher education. Study “university” →
Select the word that is closest in meaning to “deluge” as used in this sentence: After the week-long storms, the city faced a deluge of water causing widespread flooding.
A — flood. “deluge” means n. a great flood, v. overwhelm. Study “deluge” →
Choose the synonym for the word capacity:
A — ability. “capacity” means n. ability, volume. Study “capacity” →
Select the best synonym for the following word: Invincible.
A — Unbeatable. “invincible” means adj. unable to be defeated. Study “invincible” →
Choose the best synonym for the word “unify”: The project required the team to unify their efforts to achieve a common goal.
C — Unite. “unify” means v. bring together as one. Study “unify” →
Choose the best synonym for the word “apprehensive”.
B — nervous. “apprehensive” means adj. anxious, fearful. Study “apprehensive” →
The garden was full of ______ plants grown only for their beauty.
C — ornamental. “ornamental” means adj. for decoration. Study “ornamental” →
The election result will not be ______ until the judges sign the form.
B — official. “official” means adj./n. authorized, person with authority. Study “official” →
The explorers carefully prepared their ship for the long ______ across the ocean.
A — voyage. “voyage” means n. long journey by sea or space. Study “voyage” →
The sailors had to ______ the sinking ship and swim to shore.
B — abandon. “abandon” means v. to leave behind. Study “abandon” →
The cave dwellers used ______ tools made of stone and bone.
A — primitive. “primitive” means adj. simple, early stage. Study “primitive” →
The kind old doctor was held in high ______ by the whole town.
C — esteem. “esteem” means n./v. high respect. Study “esteem” →
The cheerful band played a lively ______ of popular songs.
C — medley. “medley” means n. mixture, musical composition. Study “medley” →
Every autumn, these birds ______ south to warmer lands.
D — migrate. “migrate” means v. move from one place to another. Study “migrate” →
Every night she wrote her secret thoughts in her ______.
D — diary. “diary” means n. a daily written record. Study “diary” →
The ______ balloon floated gently up toward the ceiling.
D — inflated. “inflated” means adj. filled with air; exaggerated. Study “inflated” →
A ______ boulder rolled down the mountain and blocked the road.
A — massive. “massive” means adj. very big and heavy. Study “massive” →
The nation's ______ guarantees freedom of speech to all citizens.
A — constitution. “constitution” means n. basic laws of a country. Study “constitution” →
The sudden sharp rise in prices caused great ______ among the workers.
A — unrest. “unrest” means n. troubled, disturbed state. Study “unrest” →
Heavy rain can ______ rivers to overflow and flood nearby towns.
C — cause. “cause” means n./v. reason, make happen. Study “cause” →
Locked out of the house in the rain, she found herself in a real ______.
B — predicament. “predicament” means n. difficult situation. Study “predicament” →
The steep ______ made the long bicycle ride very tiring.
C — incline. “incline” means v./n. lean, tend to. Study “incline” →
The enemy's sudden ______ caught the sleeping city by surprise.
B — invasion. “invasion” means n. entering by force. Study “invasion” →
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.