SSAT Elementary Level Verbal › Tool to Use or Use to Tool
Complete this analogy.
Brick is to build as flashlight is to __________.
see
heavy
light
eyes
torch
You use "bricks" to "build" things, so to solve this analogy you need to determine what it is that you use a "flashlight" for. The correct answer is to "see" things. Additionally, "torch" is another word for "flashlight."
Complete this analogy.
Castle is to defend as telephone is to __________.
communicate
barter
irritate
cook
elevate
The purpose of a "castle" is to "defend" people from attacks. So, to solve this analogy you need to figure out which of these answer choices describes the purpose of a "telephone." The correct answer is "communicate" which means to talk to, share information. Additionally, "elevate" means rise up, lift up; "barter" means trade, exchange, argue about the price of something; "irritate" means annoy.
Book is to read as song is to . . .
sing
dream
run
walk
paddle
Since you read a book, we need to pick out a verb that describes what you do to a song. Since one sings a song just as one reads a book, "sing" is the correct answer.
Complete this analogy.
Pen is to draw as __________.
keyboard is to type
click is to mouse
wood is to saw
tail is to cat
thread is to needle
One uses a pen to draw, so we need to pick out an answer choice in which the first word is an object and the second word a verb which one uses that object to do. While “keyboard is to type,” “click is to mouse,” and “wood is to saw” might each look like a potentially correct answer, one does not use a click to mouse or wood to saw, so neither “click is to mouse” nor “wood is to saw” can be the correct answer. One can use a keyboard to type, however, just as one can use a pen to draw, so “keyboard is to type.”
Complete this analogy.
Piano is to __________ as microwave is to food.
music
play
instrument
cook
guitar
You use a "microwave" to make "food," so to solve this analogy you need to determine what it is that you use a "piano" for. The correct answer, of course, is to make "music."
Complete this analogy.
Broth is to __________ as champagne is to drink.
eat
borrow
destroy
complete
lie
"Champagne" is sparkling wine, it is something one "drinks." So, to solve this analogy you need to figure out what one does with a "broth." Well, a "broth" is much like a soup. So, the correct answer is that you "eat" it. Additionally, "complete" means finish.
Complete this analogy.
Fork is to eating as pen is to __________.
writing
book
cooking
meal
bored
A "fork" is something that is used in "eating." So, to solve this analogy you need to determine what it is that a "pen" is used for. The correct answer is that a "pen" is used for "writing."
Complete this analogy.
Grill is to cooking as __________ is to climbing.
ladder
shower
oven
plane
carpet
A "grill" is something that is used for "cooking." So, which of these is something that is used for "climbing?" The correct answer is a "ladder."
Complete this analogy.
Cook is to stove as __________.
chill is to refrigerator
washer is to wash
saw is to wood
idea is to consider
word is to sentence
One uses a stove to cook things, so we need to pick out an answer choice in which the second word is an object or tool that is used to do the first verb to things. While “washer is to wash” might look like a potentially correct answer, its two words are in an incorrect order compared to our example (“wash” is not used to “washer” things), so it cannot be the correct answer. Refrigerators are used to chill things, though, just like stoves are used to cook things, so “chill is to refrigerator” is the correct answer.
Complete this analogy.
Pen is to write as scissors are to __________.
cut
mend
drop
dull
sharpen
You use scissors to cut things, just as you would use a pen to write.