Word Knowledge
What is tested
Word Knowledge asks for the closest meaning, usually a synonym and occasionally an antonym. Words range from common to fairly advanced, so the winning strategy combines vocabulary with elimination.
How to attack an unknown word
- Cover the choices and predict a meaning from the sentence or the word itself.
- Break the word into parts. Prefixes and roots carry most of the meaning: bene- means good, mal- means bad, cred- means believe, dict- means say, ject- means throw, spec- means look. Endings signal part of speech: -ous and -ful are usually adjectives, -tion signals a noun, -ize signals a verb.
- Judge the charge. Is the word positive, negative, or neutral? Frugal is neutral-positive (careful with money); stingy is negative.
- Eliminate choices that are related but not equivalent, the wrong part of speech, or too extreme.
Traps
- Picking a word you have seen alongside the tested word rather than one with the same meaning.
- Choosing the antonym when the stem asks for the same meaning.
- Ignoring multiple meanings: grave can mean serious or a burial place; in isolation, pick the most common sense.
- Choosing a term that is noticeably narrower or broader than the original.
Rule of thumb
If two answers look right, choose the one that could replace the word in a sentence without changing the meaning, and prefer the less dramatic option. Distractors on this test are often more extreme than the correct answer.