OLSAT Level E key terms

A word that has the same or nearly the same meaning as another word, such as happy and glad; synonym questions ask you to pick the word with the closest meaning.

A word that means the opposite of another word, such as hot and cold; antonym questions ask you to choose the word that reverses the meaning of the given word.

Information in the words or sentences around an unfamiliar word that helps you figure out its meaning, such as examples, definitions, or contrasts.

The most important point that a short passage or paragraph is about; the other sentences give details or examples that support this central point.

A reasonable conclusion you draw from evidence in a passage even though the passage does not state it directly; you use clues plus your own knowledge.

A task in which you choose the word or phrase that best fills a blank in a sentence so that the sentence makes sense and is grammatically correct.

A task in which you put a set of scrambled sentences into a logical order so that the paragraph tells a clear, connected story or explanation.

The meaning a word takes on in a particular sentence or passage, which may differ from its most common dictionary meaning; you use surrounding clues to decide it.

A comparison that shows a relationship between two pairs of words, such as bird is to nest as bee is to hive; you must find the pair with the same relationship.

A task in which you identify the word that belongs to the same category as a group of words, or the word that does not fit the category.

The item in a group that does not share the common feature or category of the others; also called the exception, it tests your ability to spot the rule.

Reaching a conclusion that must be true if the given statements are true, by applying rules of reasoning rather than guessing or using outside opinions.

A form of reasoning with two statements, called premises, that leads to a conclusion; for example, all cats are mammals and all mammals are animals, so all cats are animals.

The connection between words or ideas, such as part-to-whole, cause and effect, category membership, or opposites; recognizing it is the key to solving analogies.

The order in which events, steps, or ideas happen; questions ask you to arrange items from first to last or to choose what comes next.

A picture-based comparison that shows a relationship between two pairs of images; you choose the picture that completes the second pair in the same way.

A task in which you look at a group of pictures and choose another picture that belongs with them because it shares a common category, use, or feature.

A set of pictures that shows steps in a process or events in time; you choose the picture that comes next or put the pictures in the correct order.

A repeating or growing arrangement of shapes, colors, or pictures; you identify the rule and predict what comes next in the arrangement.

The purpose or use of an object, such as scissors for cutting; some picture questions group items by what they do rather than by what they look like.

A relationship in which one picture shows a piece or component of another, such as a wheel and a car; you match pairs that have this same connection.

A comparison between two pairs of geometric figures; you find the rule that changes the first figure into the second and apply it to a new figure.

A task in which you study a group of shapes and choose the shape that belongs with them because it shares the same defining features or follows the same rule.

A sequence of shapes that changes step by step according to a rule, such as rotating or adding a side; you choose the shape that comes next.

A grid of shapes arranged in rows and columns that follow a rule across and down; you find the missing shape that completes the pattern.

Turning a shape around a fixed point, like the hands of a clock, without flipping it over; the shape keeps its same size and handedness.

Flipping a shape over a line to make a mirror image; the shape is reversed as if seen in a mirror, and left and right are swapped.

A property of a shape that can be divided by a line into two halves that are mirror images of each other; the line is called a line of symmetry.

A change made to a shape, such as sliding, turning, flipping, or resizing it; understanding transformations helps you track how figures change in a series.

The ability to picture objects in your mind and understand how they relate in space, including position, direction, and how parts fit together.

A list of numbers that follows a rule, such as adding three each time or multiplying by two; you find the rule and use it to choose the next number.

A comparison between two pairs of numbers that shows the same mathematical relationship, such as two is to four as three is to six; you find the missing number.

A grid of numbers in which the rows and columns follow a mathematical rule; you find the missing number that makes the pattern work both across and down.

Solving word problems by deciding which operations to use, such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, or division, and then computing the answer.

A math question written in sentences that describes a real-life situation; you must translate the words into numbers and operations before solving.

A rule that governs how a set of numbers changes, such as increasing by a constant amount or alternating between two operations; recognizing it lets you predict missing values.

A mathematical statement that two expressions are equal, shown with an equals sign; solving it means finding the value of the unknown that makes it true.