Analogies

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SSAT Elementary Level Verbal › Analogies

Questions 1 - 10
1

Which word can replace the underlined word?

It was so awful how sick he became.

terrible

wonderful

excellent

impressive

None of the above

Explanation

"Terrible" can replace "awful" in the sentence to maintain the correct meaning.

2

Synonyms: Select the one word or phrase whose meaning is closest to the word in capital letters.

AMBITIOUS

Determined

Excellent

Immaculate

Stubborn

Aimless

Explanation

Someone who is "ambitious" is determined and sets difficult goals for themselves to achieve. So, "determined" is the correct answer. None of the other answer choices are close in meaning to "ambitious": "excellent" means very good; "immaculate" means very clean; and "aimless" means without direction or focus.

3

Select the answer choice that is closest in meaning to the word in capital letters.

CHANGE

Alteration

Leftovers

Scraps

Excess

Remnant

Explanation

The noun "change" is closest in meaning to "alteration." These words are synonymous. All of the other answer choices are a) not related to the word "change" and b) closely related to each other. If you recognize all of the answer choices that mean nearly the same thing to each other, you can easily find the answer choice that stands out as being unrelated to the other incorrect choices.

4

Analogies: Complete this analogy.

Monosyllabic is to one as polysyllabic is to ___________.

many

two

none

all

some

Explanation

The prefix "mono­_-_" means related to the number one, and the prefix "poly-" means related to more than one or related to many. In this instance, that information would be enough for you to solve this problem. However, further clarification will be helpful for other problems. A “monosyllabic” word is a word that has one syllable, and a "polysyllabic" word is a word that has more than one syllable. So, "red" and "blue" are each monosyllabic words, and "yellow" and "color" are each polysyllabic words.

5

Select the answer choice that is closest in meaning to the word in capital letters.

DEPICT

Represent

Abnormal

Confirm

Restore

Normal

Explanation

"Depict" means show or represent something, so "represent" is the correct answer. To help you, "abnormal" means not normal or weird, and "restore" means return to an earlier, better condition.

6

Complete this analogy.

Storm is to lightning as blizzard is to __________.

snow

rain

heat

fog

fire

Explanation

A storm produces lightning, so we need to pick out an answer choice that describes what a blizzard produces. “Blizzard,” when used as a noun, means “a severe snowstorm with high winds and low visibility,” so blizzards produce snow like storms produce lightning, making “snow” the correct answer.

7

Complete this analogy.

Blue is to green as __________.

red is to orange

purple is to blue

red is to yellow

brown is to black

gray is to white

Explanation

Blue is a component color of green. (Green is created with a combination of blue and yellow.) Thus, the correct answer would be one in which the first word is a color that when combined with the color yellow, results in the second color.

When red is combined with yellow, the resulting color is orange. Therefore, "red is to orange"is the correct answer.

8

Analogies: Complete this analogy.

Dysfunctional is to working as endorse is to __________.

undermine

support

demonstrate

pretend

harangue

Explanation

The prefix "dys_-_" is a negation prefix; this means it takes the original meaning of the word “functional” (working) and causes it to mean the opposite, so “dysfunctional” means not working. To solve this analogy, then, you need to determine which of the answer choices means the opposite of “endorse.” “Endorse” means give support to, so the best available antonym is “undermine,” a word that means work to prevent someone from succeeding or something from occurring or working. None of the other answer choices work as antonyms of "endorse": "support" is a synonym of "endorse"; “demonstrate” means show someone or a group how to do something by example; “pretend” means fake; and “harangue” means rebuke, scold, or tell-off.

9

Each of the following questions consists of one word followed by five words or phrases. You are to select the one word or phrase whose meaning is closest to the word in capital letters.

EQUITABLE

fair

ambiguous

unique

level

uniform

Explanation

"Equitable" means equal and fair.

10

Complete this analogy.

Uncommon is to rare as __________.

unplanned is to spontaneous

under is to over

undiscovered is to bleak

ungrateful is to appreciative

underhanded is to deliberate

Explanation

Here, the prefix "un-" applied to the word "common"results in the word "uncommon,"which means the opposite of common. Something that is uncommon is therefore "rare."

Given that "uncommon" and "rare" mean the same thing, the correct answer choice will be one in which the two words also mean the same thing. Something that is "spontaneous"is not planned. Therefore, the answer choice "unplanned is to spontaneous" is the correct answer.

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