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 “benefit”?
A — Advantage. “benefit” means n./v. advantage, help. Study “benefit” →
In order to secure her position, the new manager found herself obliged to address the concerns of her team. Which word is a synonym for “obliged”?
A — compelled. “obliged” means adj. grateful; required. Study “obliged” →
Choose the word that is closest in meaning to “dictate”.
A — command. “dictate” means v. give orders, command; say aloud. Study “dictate” →
Choose the word that is closest in meaning to “lull”.
C — pause. “lull” means n. a temporary interval of quiet or lack of activity. Study “lull” →
Select the best synonym for the word “cautious”:
A — wary. “cautious” means adj. careful to avoid potential problems or dangers.. Study “cautious” →
Choose the word that is closest in meaning to “valid”:
A — authentic. “valid” means adj. acceptable, well-grounded. Study “valid” →
Choose the synonym for the word “notify”.
A — inform. “notify” means v. inform, tell. Study “notify” →
Which of the following words is the best synonym for “sluggish” as used in the sentence: “After the large meal, John felt too sluggish to move from the couch”?
B — drowsy. “sluggish” means adj. slow, lacking energy. Study “sluggish” →
Choose the best synonym for the word “shackle”:
D — restrain. “shackle” means n./v. chain, restrict freedom. Study “shackle” →
Choose the word that is most similar in meaning to “compel”.
A — force. “compel” means v. force, require. Study “compel” →
Which word is closest in meaning to “antagonize”?
B — Provoke. “antagonize” means v. make someone an enemy. Study “antagonize” →
Choose the word that is closest in meaning to: emphasize
A — highlight. “emphasize” means v. give importance to. Study “emphasize” →
Choose the synonym for the following word: During the excitement, the water began to spurt from the fountain.
C — burst. “spurt” means v./n. gush out, burst. Study “spurt” →
Choose the best synonym for the word “mull” as used in the sentence: After hearing the advice from his mentor, Tom decided to mull over his next steps carefully.
B — ponder. “mull” means v. think about carefully. Study “mull” →
Which word is the best synonym for “cautiously”?
B — Carefully. “cautiously” means adv. carefully to avoid danger. Study “cautiously” →
Choose the best synonym for the word “gigantic” as used in the sentence: The skyscraper was described as gigantic, towering over all the other buildings in the city.
B — enormous. “gigantic” means adj. very big. Study “gigantic” →
Choose the word that is closest in meaning to: novice.
C — Beginner. “novice” means n. beginner. Study “novice” →
Which of the following is the best synonym for the word “wilderness”?
C — frontier. “wilderness” means n. wild, uninhabited area. Study “wilderness” →
Choose the word that is a synonym for: familiar.
C — Recognizable. “familiar” means adj. well known; n. close friend. Study “familiar” →
Which of the following is a synonym for “irrelevant”?
A — unrelated. “irrelevant” means adj. not related, not important. Study “irrelevant” →
Fans eagerly awaited the ______ to their favorite adventure movie.
D — sequel. “sequel” means n. book or movie that continues. Study “sequel” →
A shared common language can ______ trade between distant countries.
A — facilitate. “facilitate” means v. make easier; help. Study “facilitate” →
A responsible worker should never ______ his most important duties.
B — shirk. “shirk” means v. avoid work or responsibility. Study “shirk” →
The brand-new software is simply not ______ with such an old computer.
D — compatible. “compatible” means adj. able to exist or work together without conflict. Study “compatible” →
Injuries can be ____, preventing athletes from performing at their best.
A — debilitating. “debilitating” means adj. weakening. Study “debilitating” →
Clean water is not a luxury but a basic ______ for all human life.
D — necessity. “necessity” means n. something essential. Study “necessity” →
She produced a ______ ticket and was allowed straight into the concert.
C — legitimate. “legitimate” means adj. lawful, real. Study “legitimate” →
The scientist did ______ research, reading hundreds of books on the topic.
B — extensive. “extensive” means adj. covering a large area. Study “extensive” →
The old watchmaker studied the ______ gears inside the tiny clock.
C — intricate. “intricate” means adj. complex, detailed. Study “intricate” →
The scientists continued to ______ with the difficult problem for years.
B — grapple. “grapple” means v. struggle, wrestle. Study “grapple” →
The wise ______ ruled the vast kingdom peacefully for over forty years.
C — monarch. “monarch” means n. king or queen. Study “monarch” →
After the announcement, thousands of emails began to ______ the small office.
D — inundate. “inundate” means v. flood, overwhelm. Study “inundate” →
A mule is a well-known ______, born from a horse and a donkey.
D — hybrid. “hybrid” means n./adj. animal or thing made from two types. Study “hybrid” →
The steep, endless climb did not ______ the determined young hikers.
A — daunt. “daunt” means v. to make someone feel intimidated or apprehensive. Study “daunt” →
The ______ customers loudly demanded a full refund for the broken product.
D — disgruntled. “disgruntled” means adj. dissatisfied, unhappy. Study “disgruntled” →
The pond water was so ______ that we could not see the bottom at all.
B — murky. “murky” means adj. dark, unclear. Study “murky” →
I missed a few words, but I still caught the ______ of the whole speech.
C — gist. “gist” means n. main idea. Study “gist” →
The ______ students finished their project days ahead of the deadline.
D — industrious. “industrious” means adj. hardworking, diligent. Study “industrious” →
The idea of a fish riding a bicycle is completely ______.
B — absurd. “absurd” means adj. ridiculous, unreasonable. Study “absurd” →
The goalkeeper leaped high to ______ the powerful shot at the goal.
C — intercept. “intercept” means v. stop or seize before arrival. Study “intercept” →
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.