PAF Aeronautical Engineering Initial Test key terms

A word that carries the same or nearly the same meaning as another word in a given context. These questions ask you to choose the option closest in sense to the given word.

A word whose meaning is opposite, or nearly opposite, to that of another word. The task is to pick the option that reverses the sense of the given word.

A fixed group of words whose overall meaning cannot be worked out from the separate words, such as 'break the ice' meaning to start a conversation.

A short connecting word placed before a noun or pronoun to show position, direction, or time, for example in, on, under, between, or after.

A sentence pattern in which the action is done to the subject rather than by it, usually built from a form of the verb 'be' plus a past participle.

A group of words that contains its own subject and verb and works either as part of a longer sentence or as a complete sentence by itself.

One of two or more words that sound the same when spoken but differ in spelling, meaning, or both, such as 'bare' and 'bear'.

The grammar rule that a verb must match its subject in number and person, so a singular subject takes a singular verb and a plural subject a plural verb.

A comparison of two quantities of the same kind, written in the form a : b, showing how many times one amount contains the other.

A fraction or ratio expressed out of one hundred, so twenty-five per cent means twenty-five parts in every hundred parts of the whole.

The sum of a set of values divided by the number of values in that set; it gives one representative figure for the whole group.

The smallest number that is a multiple of each of two or more given numbers. It is used, for instance, to add fractions with different denominators.

The largest whole number that divides each of two or more given numbers exactly, leaving no remainder. It is also called the greatest common divisor.

Interest worked out only on the original sum for the whole period, using principal multiplied by rate multiplied by time, then divided by one hundred.

The distance covered in unit time, found by dividing total distance by total time taken. Average speed uses the whole journey, not a single moment.

In a right-angled triangle, the square of the longest side equals the sum of the squares of the other two sides. It lets you find an unknown side.

A number between zero and one describing how likely an event is, found by dividing the number of favourable outcomes by the total number of equally likely outcomes.

A push or a pull that changes, or tends to change, an object's speed, direction, or shape. It is measured in newtons.

The rate at which velocity changes with time, covering speeding up, slowing down, and changes of direction. It is measured in metres per second squared.

The product of an object's mass and its velocity. It is a vector quantity that measures how difficult it is to bring the moving object to rest.

In physics, work is done when a force moves an object along the line of the force. It is measured in joules.

The rate at which work is done or energy is transferred, found by dividing work done by the time taken. It is measured in watts.

The mass of a substance per unit volume, calculated by dividing mass by volume. It is commonly expressed in kilograms per cubic metre.

The current through a conductor is directly proportional to the potential difference across it, provided the temperature stays constant. Resistance is the constant of proportionality.

The number of complete oscillations or wave cycles that pass a point in one second. It is measured in hertz.

The bending of light or another wave as it passes from one medium into another in which its speed is different. It explains why objects look bent in water.

A reasoning item that asks you to spot the relationship between one pair of words and then apply that same relationship to a second pair.

A reasoning item in which all but one of the given items share a common property, and you must identify the item that does not fit the pattern.

A reasoning task in which letters, words, or numbers are changed according to a fixed rule, and you must apply or reverse that rule to reach the answer.

A sequence of letters arranged by a rule, such as skipping a fixed number of places in the alphabet, where you must supply the missing or next term.

A logic problem giving two or more statements that are treated as true, from which you decide which of the offered conclusions must necessarily follow.

Reasoning puzzles that describe family ties in words, such as 'the son of my mother's brother', and ask how two people are related.

Problems about a person walking and turning through given directions, where you track the changing position to work out the final direction or distance.

The reflection of a figure across a vertical line, in which left and right are swapped while top and bottom stay exactly as they were.

The reflection of a figure across a horizontal line, in which top and bottom are swapped while left and right stay unchanged.

A non-verbal item in which a sheet is folded and holes are punched through it, and you decide how the hole pattern appears once the paper is opened out.

A task in which a simple shape is hidden inside a more complicated drawing, and you must locate where that shape appears.

A sequence of drawings that change by a consistent rule, such as rotating, shading, or adding an element, where you choose the figure that comes next.

Turning a shape about a fixed point through a given angle. The shape keeps its size and form, but the direction in which it faces changes.