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CogAT Grades 9-12 study materials
CogAT Grades 9-12 study resources

CogAT Grades 9-12 practice questions

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Question 1Verbal reasoning

Choose the pair of words that best expresses a relationship similar to the one in the pair below. SCALPEL : SURGEON

  1. brush : canvas
  2. chisel : sculptor Correct answer.
  3. hammer : nail
  4. canvas : painter

Explanation

A scalpel is the specialized tool a surgeon uses to do the work. The relationship is tool to the professional who wields it, so chisel to sculptor matches exactly. The other pairs either reverse the roles or link a tool to the material it acts on.

Question 2Verbal reasoning

Choose the word that best completes the analogy. TEPID : SCALDING :: DRIZZLE : ______

  1. downpour Correct answer.
  2. mist
  3. umbrella
  4. cloud

Explanation

Tepid and scalding are two degrees of the same quality, water temperature, moving from mild to extreme. Drizzle and downpour follow the same pattern for rain intensity, going from light to heavy. The answer must be a stronger version of the same phenomenon.

Question 3Verbal reasoning

Which word does NOT belong with the others?

  1. aluminum
  2. iron
  3. copper
  4. granite Correct answer.

Explanation

Three of the words name metallic elements: copper, iron, and aluminum. Granite is a rock made of several minerals, so it is the only non-metal in the set. The shared category is metals rather than materials in general.

Question 4Verbal reasoning

Choose the word that best completes the sentence. The committee reached a ______ decision, so every member supported it without hesitation.

  1. unanimous Correct answer.
  2. tentative
  3. ambiguous
  4. contentious

Explanation

The clause after the comma says every member supported the decision without hesitation. That meaning requires a word for complete agreement, which is unanimous. The other options suggest disagreement or uncertainty.

Question 5Verbal reasoning

Choose the word that best completes the sentence. Her explanation was so ______ that even the newest members of the club understood the rule immediately.

  1. redundant
  2. verbose
  3. lucid Correct answer.
  4. obscure

Explanation

The result clause says beginners understood immediately, so the explanation must be clear. Lucid means clear and easy to follow, which fits. The other words describe speech that is wordy, unclear, or repetitive.

Question 6Verbal reasoning

Choose the pair of words that best expresses a relationship similar to the one in the pair below. AUTHOR : PLAGIARIZE

  1. musician : practice
  2. judge : acquit Correct answer.
  3. athlete : exercise
  4. chef : season

Explanation

Plagiarism is a serious ethical violation a person could commit within the role of author. The pair links a role to a wrongful act that betrays it, so judge to acquit fits only if acquit is treated as misconduct. Among the options, judge and acquit best mirror a role paired with an improper action.

Question 7Verbal reasoning

Choose the word that best completes the sentence. Because the witness gave a ______ account of the night, the detectives could not determine what had happened.

  1. candid
  2. meticulous
  3. garbled Correct answer.
  4. coherent

Explanation

The detectives could not determine what happened, so the account must have been confusing or distorted. Garbled means jumbled and unclear, which explains their difficulty. The other options describe accounts that are careful, logical, or honest.

Question 8Verbal reasoning

Choose the pair of words that best expresses a relationship similar to the one in the pair below. EPHEMERAL : PERMANENCE

  1. swift : speed
  2. bright : light
  3. warm : heat
  4. loud : silence Correct answer.

Explanation

Ephemeral means lasting only a very short time, so it is the opposite of permanence. The relationship is a word paired with the concept it negates. Loud is the direct opposite of silence, matching that opposition pattern. The other options pair a quality with a related concept rather than its opposite.

Question 9Verbal reasoning

Read the sentence and choose the meaning of the underlined word. After months of failed experiments, the researcher's once-optimistic outlook became decidedly ______. (Underlined word: decidedly)

  1. reluctantly
  2. unmistakably Correct answer.
  3. occasionally
  4. somewhat

Explanation

Decidedly comes from decide and carries the sense of something settled and clear. In this context it intensifies the change of outlook, meaning unmistakably or without doubt. The other adverbs suggest vagueness, unwillingness, or intermittent timing.

Question 10Verbal reasoning

Read the sentence and choose the meaning of the underlined word. The mayor's proposal was praised as a pragmatic solution, one that could actually be implemented within the budget. (Underlined word: pragmatic)

  1. controversial
  2. idealistic
  3. practical Correct answer.
  4. theoretical

Explanation

The appositive after the comma explains that the solution could actually be implemented within budget. That gloss defines pragmatic as practical and workable rather than abstract. The other options describe ideas that are visionary, disputed, or purely theoretical.

Question 11Verbal reasoning

Choose the pair of words that best expresses a relationship similar to the one in the pair below. SCARCE : ABUNDANT :: ______

  1. rapid : sluggish Correct answer.
  2. tall : height
  3. rough : texture
  4. heavy : weight

Explanation

Scarce and abundant are antonyms describing how plentiful something is. The correct pair must also be a pair of opposites describing the same dimension. Rapid and sluggish are opposites about speed, matching the antonym pattern. The others pair a quality with the noun it measures.

Question 12Verbal reasoning

Choose the pair of words that best expresses a relationship similar to the one in the pair below. MIGRAINE : HEADACHE

  1. river : ocean
  2. novel : library
  3. storm : weather Correct answer.
  4. engine : car

Explanation

A migraine is one specific, severe type of headache, so the pair links a specific kind to its broader category. A storm is one specific type of weather, matching kind-to-category. The other pairs involve containment or part-to-whole physical relationships.

Question 13Verbal reasoning

Choose the word that best completes the sentence. Rather than offer a direct answer, the diplomat gave a ______ reply that could be read in several ways.

  1. blunt
  2. decisive
  3. equivocal Correct answer.
  4. forthright

Explanation

The clue is that the reply could be read in several ways, which points to deliberate ambiguity. Equivocal means open to more than one interpretation. The other options all describe speech that is direct and clear.

Question 14Verbal reasoning

Choose the pair of words that best expresses a relationship similar to the one in the pair below. CARTOGRAPHER : MAP

  1. librarian : shelf
  2. bricklayer : mortar
  3. pilot : runway
  4. architect : blueprint Correct answer.

Explanation

A cartographer is the professional who designs and creates maps. An architect is the professional who designs and creates blueprints, matching creator to created product. The other pairs link a worker to a material, a location, or a piece of equipment.

Question 15Verbal reasoning

Read the sentence and choose the meaning of the underlined word. Critics argued that the new policy would exacerbate the housing shortage rather than relieve it. (Underlined word: exacerbate)

  1. worsen Correct answer.
  2. measure
  3. alleviate
  4. postpone

Explanation

The phrase rather than relieve it signals that exacerbate is the opposite of relieve. Therefore exacerbate means to make a bad situation worse. The other options mean to ease, to delay, or to quantify.

Question 16Verbal reasoning

Choose the word or phrase that best completes the sentence. So ______ was the audience's response to the final act that the actors returned to the stage four times.

  1. subdued
  2. indifferent
  3. enthusiastic Correct answer.
  4. hostile

Explanation

The result clause shows the actors returned four times, which only happens when the audience is highly appreciative. The inverted so ... that structure requires a strong adjective, and enthusiastic fits. The other adjectives describe a cold or negative reaction.

Question 17Verbal reasoning

Choose the word that best completes the sentence. Although the two theories appear ______, closer study shows that they actually agree on every major point.

  1. parallel
  2. disparate Correct answer.
  3. consistent
  4. identical

Explanation

The contrast word although signals that the theories seem one way but are actually in agreement. The blank must mean different or opposed, which disparate conveys. The other options already mean similar, so they would remove the contrast.

Question 18Verbal reasoning

Choose the pair of words that best expresses a relationship similar to the one in the pair below. FRUGAL : MISERLY

  1. tired : exhausted
  2. brave : reckless Correct answer.
  3. confident : certain
  4. calm : tranquil

Explanation

Frugal is a neutral or positive quality, while miserly describes the same trait carried to an excessive, negative extreme. Brave and reckless follow that mild-to-excessive pattern about courage. The other pairs are near synonyms without a shift from positive to negative excess.

Question 19Verbal reasoning

Choose the pair of words that best expresses a relationship similar to the one in the pair below. INEPT : PROFICIENCY

  1. candid : deception Correct answer.
  2. hesitant : reluctance
  3. weary : fatigue
  4. hasty : speed

Explanation

Inept means lacking skill, so it names a deficiency of proficiency. Candid means frank and open, a deficiency of deception, so it mirrors the pattern of a word defined by the absence of the paired quality. The other options pair a quality with something it implies or increases.

Question 20Verbal reasoning

Choose the word that best completes the sentence. The senator's remarks were widely seen as ______: they seemed to support the bill while quietly undermining it.

  1. disingenuous Correct answer.
  2. candid
  3. transparent
  4. forthcoming

Explanation

The colon explains that the remarks appeared supportive while actually working against the bill, a deliberately misleading stance. Disingenuous means insincere or not candid, which captures that gap between appearance and intent. The other words describe openness and honesty.

Question 21Verbal reasoning

Choose the word that best completes the sentence. Far from being ______, the committee's report was a model of evenhandedness, weighing every perspective before reaching a conclusion.

  1. partisan Correct answer.
  2. objective
  3. balanced
  4. impartial

Explanation

The phrase far from being signals that the blank must contradict the praise that follows. The report is evenhanded and balanced, so the blank must mean biased or one-sided, which partisan conveys. The other options mean fair and neutral, which would reverse the logic.

Question 22Verbal reasoning

Choose the pair of words that best expresses a relationship similar to the one in the pair below. PLACATE : ANGER

  1. quench : thirst Correct answer.
  2. obscure : clarity
  3. amplify : sound
  4. kindle : fire

Explanation

To placate is to reduce or eliminate anger, so the pattern is a verb that removes the paired condition. To quench is to eliminate thirst, which matches. The other verbs increase or diminish the paired condition without removing it, or work in the wrong direction.

Question 23Verbal reasoning

Choose the pair of words that best expresses a relationship similar to the one in the pair below. ORATOR : SPEECH

  1. audience : applause
  2. stage : curtain
  3. sculptor : statue Correct answer.
  4. critic : review

Explanation

An orator is a person who creates or delivers a speech, so the pair links a maker to the thing that person produces. The correct choice must likewise pair a creator with the created work.

Question 24Verbal reasoning

Choose the pair of words that best expresses a relationship similar to the one in the pair below. DROUGHT : RAINFALL

  1. famine : food Correct answer.
  2. wealth : luxury
  3. silence : noise
  4. harvest : grain

Explanation

A drought is a prolonged shortage caused by the absence of rainfall, so the pair links a condition of severe lack to the thing that is missing. The matching pair must show a scarcity condition and its absent resource.

Question 25Verbal reasoning

Choose the word that best completes the sentence. The editor's annotations were so ______ that readers could not tell which passages were the author's and which were hers.

  1. illegible
  2. copious
  3. tentative
  4. seamless Correct answer.

Explanation

The clue is that readers cannot distinguish the editor's writing from the author's, which means the annotations blended in without visible boundaries. A word meaning smoothly integrated fits that blended quality.

Question 26Verbal reasoning

Choose the pair of words that best expresses a relationship similar to the one in the pair below. SKEPTICAL : CONVICTION

  1. weary : energy Correct answer.
  2. curious : interest
  3. hostile : conflict
  4. cautious : danger

Explanation

A skeptical person lacks conviction, so the pair links a state of mind to the quality it is deficient in. The matching pair must show a person characterized by a shortage of the second term.

Question 27Verbal reasoning

Read the sentence and choose the meaning of the underlined word. Rather than resolve the dispute, the chair's vague summary served only to *obfuscate* the central issue.

  1. clarify
  2. exaggerate
  3. postpone
  4. conceal Correct answer.

Explanation

The contrast with 'rather than resolve' signals that the summary made the issue harder to understand. To obfuscate is to darken or obscure meaning, so it means to conceal or muddle.

Question 28Verbal reasoning

Choose the pair of words that best expresses a relationship similar to the one in the pair below. METICULOUS : CARELESS

  1. punctual : prompt
  2. stingy : generous Correct answer.
  3. verbose : wordy
  4. candid : frank

Explanation

Meticulous and careless are opposites in degree of attention, so the pair is one of antonymy. The matching pair must also be opposites in meaning.

Question 29Verbal reasoning

Choose the word that best completes the sentence. Although the plan looked reckless to outsiders, its designers had weighed every risk, and the strategy was in fact highly ______.

  1. impulsive
  2. speculative
  3. haphazard
  4. calculated Correct answer.

Explanation

The contrast with 'looked reckless' and the detail that designers 'weighed every risk' point to careful, deliberate planning. Calculated means done with careful forethought, matching that idea.

Question 30Verbal reasoning

Read the sentence and choose the meaning of the underlined word. Her *cursory* glance at the contract missed several clauses that a careful reading would have caught.

  1. thorough
  2. hostile
  3. hurried Correct answer.
  4. repeated

Explanation

The sentence contrasts the glance with 'a careful reading' that would have caught the clauses, so the glance must have been quick and superficial. Cursory means hasty and lacking attention to detail.

Question 31Verbal reasoning

Choose the pair of words that best expresses a relationship similar to the one in the pair below. THERMOMETER : TEMPERATURE

  1. microscope : specimen
  2. telescope : astronomer
  3. compass : direction Correct answer.
  4. calendar : holiday

Explanation

A thermometer is an instrument used to measure temperature, so the pair links a measuring tool to the quantity it measures. The matching pair must show a device and the measurable quantity it gauges.

Question 32Verbal reasoning

Choose the word that best completes the sentence. Because the two proposals were mutually ______, the board could not adopt both; approving one automatically ruled out the other.

  1. ambiguous
  2. redundant
  3. exclusive Correct answer.
  4. beneficial

Explanation

The clause after the semicolon explains that approving one rules out the other, which defines a relationship in which the two cannot coexist. Mutually exclusive means each prevents the other.

Question 33Verbal reasoning

Read the sentence and choose the meaning of the underlined word. The scientist's *tenacious* pursuit of the anomaly, continuing for eleven years despite repeated failure, finally produced a breakthrough.

  1. reluctant
  2. cautious
  3. persistent Correct answer.
  4. sporadic

Explanation

The sentence stresses continuing for eleven years despite repeated failure, which describes dogged persistence. Tenacious means holding firmly and refusing to give up.

Question 34Verbal reasoning

Choose the word that best completes the sentence. The review was surprisingly ______: it praised the novel's prose in one paragraph and condemned the same prose in the next.

  1. incoherent
  2. ambivalent Correct answer.
  3. laudatory
  4. consistent

Explanation

The colon introduces a contradiction in which the review both praises and condemns the same prose, which shows mixed feelings. Ambivalent means holding conflicting attitudes at once.

Question 35Verbal reasoning

Read the sentence and choose the meaning of the underlined word. The committee's report was *candid* about the project's failures, listing every missed deadline without softening the language.

  1. frank Correct answer.
  2. hostile
  3. evasive
  4. uncertain

Explanation

The detail that the report listed every missed deadline without softening language shows direct honesty. Candid means straightforward and open in expression.

Question 36Verbal reasoning

Choose the pair of words that best expresses a relationship similar to the one in the pair below. INEPT : SKILL

  1. insolvent : money
  2. anonymous : name
  3. oblivious : awareness
  4. impeccable : flaw Correct answer.

Explanation

Inept describes someone lacking skill, so the pair links a quality to the thing it lacks. The matching pair must likewise express a deficiency or absence of the second term; impeccable means free of flaw, so it lacks flaw.

Question 37Verbal reasoning

Choose the word that best completes the sentence. So ______ was the witness's testimony that the jury disregarded it entirely, finding it impossible to believe.

  1. credible
  2. detailed
  3. impassioned
  4. implausible Correct answer.

Explanation

The result clause says the jury disregarded the testimony because it was impossible to believe, so the missing word must mean hard to believe. Implausible fits that meaning.

Question 38Verbal reasoning

Read the sentence and choose the meaning of the underlined word. Critics charged that the new tax was *regressive*, taking a larger share of income from poor families than from wealthy ones.

  1. retroactive
  2. temporary
  3. illegally enacted
  4. unfairly burdensome to those with less Correct answer.

Explanation

The clause after the comma defines the term: the tax takes a larger share from poor families than from wealthy ones. A regressive tax is one that weighs more heavily on lower incomes.

Question 39Verbal reasoning

Choose the word that best completes the sentence. The negotiator's proposal was deliberately ______, phrased so that either side could read its own terms into it and neither would walk away.

  1. transparent
  2. equivocal Correct answer.
  3. blunt
  4. binding

Explanation

The phrase 'either side could read its own terms into it' describes language that is intentionally open to more than one interpretation. Equivocal means deliberately ambiguous.

Question 40Verbal reasoning

Choose the word that best completes the sentence. Far from being ______, the historian's account of the war gave equal weight to captured letters from both sides and openly noted evidence that undercut her own thesis.

  1. partisan Correct answer.
  2. tentative
  3. exhaustive
  4. eloquent

Explanation

The 'far from' construction signals that the missing word is the opposite of the balanced, self-critical behavior described. Partisan means one-sidedly biased, so it fits as the quality the account avoids.

Question 41Verbal reasoning

Read the sentence and choose the meaning of the underlined word. The mayor's plan was criticized as *quixotic*, aiming at a perfectly clean harbor within a single year at a cost no city could bear.

  1. idealistic to the point of impracticality Correct answer.
  2. economically sound
  3. secretive
  4. corrupt

Explanation

The plan aims at an ideal goal within an impossible timeframe and cost, which points to noble but unrealistic ambition. Quixotic means extravagantly idealistic and impractical.

Question 42Verbal reasoning

Choose the word that best completes the sentence. Rather than address the question directly, the spokesperson gave a ______ answer that circled the issue without ever touching it.

  1. succinct
  2. decisive
  3. forthright
  4. circuitous Correct answer.

Explanation

The answer circles the issue without touching it, which describes an indirect, roundabout route. Circuitous means winding and indirect.

Question 43Verbal reasoning

Choose the word that best completes the sentence. Her argument was ______: each claim rested on the previous one, and the first claim was supported by solid evidence.

  1. dogmatic
  2. coherent Correct answer.
  3. sporadic
  4. tenuous

Explanation

The description of claims resting on one another with solid support at the base shows a logically connected, well-reasoned structure. Coherent means logically consistent and well connected.

Question 44Verbal reasoning

Choose the pair of words that best expresses a relationship similar to the one in the pair below. CENSURE : APPROVAL

  1. condone : condemnation Correct answer.
  2. rebuke : scolding
  3. commend : praise
  4. endorse : support

Explanation

Censure is strong disapproval, so it is the opposite of approval. The matching pair must also be opposites, with the first term expressing disapproval and the second expressing acceptance.

Question 45Verbal reasoning

Read the sentence and choose the meaning of the underlined word. The senator's remarks were widely seen as *disingenuous*, since he claimed to support the bill while privately working to defeat it.

  1. confused
  2. lengthy
  3. insincere Correct answer.
  4. courageous

Explanation

The gap between public support and private opposition shows a lack of honesty in the senator's stated position. Disingenuous means not candid or sincere, especially by pretending to know less or feel differently than one does.

Question 46Verbal reasoning

Choose the pair of words that best expresses a relationship similar to the one in the pair below. FRUGAL : EXTRAVAGANCE

  1. timid : boldness Correct answer.
  2. generous : charity
  3. weary : rest
  4. honest : deception

Explanation

Someone frugal avoids extravagance, just as someone timid avoids or lacks boldness; in each pair the first word names a trait defined by resisting the quality named second. The relationship is one of habitual avoidance, not mere contrast in spelling or sound.

Question 47Verbal reasoning

Read the sentence and choose the meaning of the underlined word. The editor found the manuscript's prose *florid*, bristling with ornate metaphors that buried the plain argument beneath layers of decoration.

  1. elaborately ornate Correct answer.
  2. harshly critical
  3. brief and compact
  4. factually accurate

Explanation

The sentence supplies its own context: the prose bristles with ornate metaphors and buries the argument under decoration. Florid therefore means heavily ornamented or showy in style, which matches elaborately ornate.

Question 48Verbal reasoning

Choose the word that best completes the sentence. Although the intern had only a ______ role in the project, answering phones and filing reports, she observed every meeting and later proposed the redesign that saved the company millions.

  1. lucrative
  2. pivotal
  3. hazardous
  4. menial Correct answer.

Explanation

The clause after the blank specifies answering phones and filing reports, low-status routine tasks, so the missing adjective must describe humble or lowly work. Menial fits that description and sets up the contrast with her later major contribution.

Question 49Verbal reasoning

Choose the pair of words that best expresses a relationship similar to the one in the pair below. ARCHIPELAGO : ISLANDS

  1. constellation : stars Correct answer.
  2. orchestra : conductor
  3. library : librarian
  4. peninsula : water

Explanation

An archipelago is a group or chain of islands, so the first term names a collection and the second names the units that compose it. A constellation is likewise a grouping of stars, preserving the same collection-to-member relationship.

Question 50Verbal reasoning

Read the sentence and choose the meaning of the underlined word. The board praised the treasurer for her *judicious* handling of the endowment, noting that she had balanced risk and caution in every allocation she approved.

  1. delayed and hesitant
  2. secretive about details
  3. overly cautious
  4. showing sound judgment Correct answer.

Explanation

The sentence defines the word through its result: she balanced risk and caution in every allocation, which is exactly what sound judgment looks like. Judicious therefore means showing good sense or wise discernment.