Vocabulary: Synonyms, Antonyms, Idioms, One-Word Substitution
Vocabulary items are objective marks earned through recall plus elimination. Four sub-types appear: synonyms, antonyms, idioms and phrases, and one-word substitution for a whole phrase.
Synonyms and antonyms
Choose the option closest in meaning within the given sentence, not in the abstract. For antonyms, watch for distractors that merely sound negative or carry an in-, un- or dis- prefix but are not the true opposite. When two options both look plausible, eliminate the one whose register or part of speech does not fit the sentence.
Idioms must be learnt as units
Never translate an idiom word by word. Learn each as a fixed block with one example: to let the cat out of the bag = to reveal a secret; a bolt from the blue = a sudden shock; to turn a deaf ear = to refuse to listen; by leaps and bounds = very rapidly; to be in hot water = to be in trouble.
One-word substitution by groups
Learn these in families: people - misanthrope, philanthropist, optimist, pessimist, extrovert; qualities - inevitable, incorrigible, illegible, inaudible, indispensable; places - a place where birds are kept is an aviary, where bees are kept an apiary. Grouping makes recall far faster than a random list.
Worked example
"The teacher's remarks were so ambiguous that nobody understood them." Synonym of ambiguous: unclear. The clause "that nobody understood them" proves the meaning, "doubtful" is only partly right, and "secret" is wrong because ambiguity is not concealment. The sentence, not the dictionary, decides.
Traps that cost marks
Picking a word that looks or sounds similar but means something else; reading an idiom literally; confusing near-misses such as illegible (handwriting) with inaudible (sound) and inexplicable (a reason); and ignoring the part of speech required by the blank.