40 Verbal Reasoning questions — Part 1: 20 synonym, Part 2: 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.
Which of the following words is a synonym for “pang”?
A — ache. “pang” means n. sharp pain. Study “pang” →
In the context of the story, the character“s actions were guided by a strong sense of moral responsibility. Which of the following words is a synonym for ”moral''?
A — ethical. “moral” means adj. ethical; n. lesson. Study “moral” →
Which of the following words is the best synonym for “whim”?
A — impulse. “whim” means n. sudden wish or idea. Study “whim” →
Which of the following is a synonym for “obtain”?
A — acquire. “obtain” means v. to get or acquire something. Study “obtain” →
Choose the synonym for the word “naive” as used in the sentence: “The young intern was naive, believing that every colleague would be as honest as he was.”
A — innocent. “naive” means adj. innocent, simple. Study “naive” →
Choose the word that is most similar in meaning to “congruent”.
A — Identical. “congruent” means adj. matching, in agreement. Study “congruent” →
What is the best synonym for the word “lucrative”?
A — Profitable. “lucrative” means adj. producing much profit. Study “lucrative” →
Select the word that is closest in meaning to “pedestrian”: The novel was criticized for its pedestrian narrative, lacking any excitement or innovation.
B — Dull. “pedestrian” means n. person walking. Study “pedestrian” →
Which word is the best synonym for “sequel”?
B — continuation. “sequel” means n. book or movie that continues. Study “sequel” →
What is the synonym of “deface” as used in the sentence: “The old building was defaced by graffiti artists”?
B — vandalize. “deface” means v. to ruin the appearance of something by damaging or vandalizing it. Study “deface” →
Choose the word that is most similar in meaning to: inspire.
A — motivate. “inspire” means v. encourage, motivate. Study “inspire” →
Select the best synonym for the word “rebuff”:
C — snub. “rebuff” means v./n. reject sharply. Study “rebuff” →
Choose the synonym for the word “estimate”:
A — guess. “estimate” means v./n. guess, approximate calculation. Study “estimate” →
Choose the word that is closest in meaning to “abode”:
B — Home. “abode” means n. home, residence. Study “abode” →
Select the word that is closest in meaning to “appropriate”:
A — Suitable. “appropriate” means adj. proper, suitable. Study “appropriate” →
Which of the following is a synonym for the word “animate”?
A — enliven. “animate” means v. to give life to or bring to life. Study “animate” →
In the sentence “She felt ambivalent about the decision to move to a new city, torn between excitement and fear of the unknown,” which word is closest in meaning to ambivalent?
B — undecided. “ambivalent” means adj. having mixed feelings. Study “ambivalent” →
Choose the word that is closest in meaning to “comprise”.
B — Contain. “comprise” means v. include, consist of. Study “comprise” →
Which of the following words is a synonym for “ban”?
A — prohibit. “ban” means v./n. officially forbid. Study “ban” →
Choose the word that is closest in meaning to “pivotal” as used in the sentence: The new discovery was pivotal in advancing the field of science.
A — important. “pivotal” means adj. very important, central. Study “pivotal” →
The frustrated customer began to ______ loudly about the terrible service.
D — rant. “rant” means v./n. speak loudly, angry speech. Study “rant” →
In that remote valley, the villagers speak a ______ that few outsiders understand.
D — dialect. “dialect” means n. local language. Study “dialect” →
The airline offered money to ______ passengers for the very long delay.
B — compensate. “compensate” means v. pay for, make up for loss. Study “compensate” →
The jealous man began to ______ his neighbor's shiny new car.
C — covet. “covet” means v. desire something belonging to others. Study “covet” →
The generous gift came from a secret, ______ donor who wished to stay unknown.
D — anonymous. “anonymous” means adj. unknown name, identity. Study “anonymous” →
The ______ of the situation became clear when the alarms began to ring.
D — gravity. “gravity” means n. force that pulls objects down; seriousness. Study “gravity” →
The talented young musician began to ______ her very first symphony.
B — compose. “compose” means v. create, make up. Study “compose” →
The scientist wrote a complex ______ across the entire chalkboard.
D — formula. “formula” means n. rule, set recipe. Study “formula” →
There was wild ______ in the streets when the long war finally ended.
A — jubilation. “jubilation” means n. great joy, celebration. Study “jubilation” →
Her love of puzzles is closely ______ to her talent for mathematics.
A — akin. “akin” means adj. related, similar. Study “akin” →
The teacher built a warm ______ with every student in her class.
A — rapport. “rapport” means n. harmonious relationship. Study “rapport” →
On a sudden ______, she decided to paint her whole bedroom bright purple.
C — whim. “whim” means n. sudden wish or idea. Study “whim” →
A cold draft crept in through the door left slightly ______.
D — ajar. “ajar” means adj. partly open. Study “ajar” →
Winning the national scholarship was her proudest ______.
B — achievement. “achievement” means n. something done successfully. Study “achievement” →
The clown created a clever ______ while the pickpocket slipped through the crowd.
C — diversion. “diversion” means n. distraction, amusement. Study “diversion” →
The driver pressed hard on the pedal to ______ onto the highway.
D — accelerate. “accelerate” means v. move faster. Study “accelerate” →
The two brothers had a loud ______ over whose turn it was.
C — argument. “argument” means n. disagreement; reason. Study “argument” →
All drivers must ______ with the clearly posted speed limits.
D — comply. “comply” means v. follow rules, obey. Study “comply” →
Congress passed an important ______ to improve the outdated law.
A — amendment. “amendment” means n. change to a law or document. Study “amendment” →
Gas prices tend to ______ sharply from one week to the next.
D — fluctuate. “fluctuate” means v. change up and down. Study “fluctuate” →
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.
40 — Part 1 is 20 synonym questions, Part 2 is 20 sentence-completion questions, the same roughly-even split the real ISEE Verbal Reasoning section uses.
No. Every Middle 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.