Back to square one- did not get desired success

Alien did all he can to pomp up his business, but now it seems all his efforts have gone in vain. For him it is like back to square one.

In the bag- it is almost sure to get success

Jennie has put all her best efforts for the GRE exam. She has prepared thoroughly for the exam. Success seems in her bag.

Blow up in someone’s face – if execution of plan suddenly failed

Somehow we have planned a trip, but it blew up on our face when suddenly weather turned inclement owing to which all air lines were cancelled.

Dead duck – any plan or project which is certain to fail

Share market fluctuates in leaps and bounds. If you are planning to become millionaire by putting all your money here, then it would be like dead duck idea.

Dead loss- complete failure (someone or something)

He has spent thousands of bucks on his new project, and it has been a dead loss from the beginning because of his manger’s lackadaisical attitude for the project.

I am sure you must have comprehended aforementioned idioms thoroughly. Read them repeatedly to retain them in your memory.  Do share your views on aforementioned  idioms underneath this blog.

Shipra Srivastava

Reversion (noun)

Reversion means return to previous state (condition, belief, or interest). Eg. The girl’s reversion to old school was an indication of her exceptional dedication towards studies.

Untenable (adjective)

Untenable means unable to believe or maintain. Eg. Though, she is good natured person but today her behavior was untenable.

Dissent (noun)

Dissent means disagreement within an organization.  Eg. At the time of approving the proposal there were many voices of dissent.

Travesty (noun)

Travesty means comedy that makes mockery of something (parody). Eg. Their production of ‘Julius Caesar’ was the worst – it was a travesty.

Vocabulary Enhancing tips

A Research has proved that human mind retains faces better than anything else. So always try to associate a word with Picture/ face to store in your memory enduringly. Eg. If you are learning word ‘amicable’ (means friendly) you can associate amicable with some of your favorite friend. This way the face of your dear friend will remind you word amicable.

Discussing words with your peers is also an effective way of improving your vocabulary. All you require to do form a group but make sure all group members should be of fairly equal ability. So there will be no fear of one dominating other.

There are many vocabulary enhancing softwares available in market. Some are very effective but be careful before buying such software do not fall prey to any misleading advertisement. Always check the demo version before buying the actual software.

Taking test from time to time is also very an effective way of learning and enhancing your word power.

Kindly leave your comment beneath this article and feel free to ask any query related to this post.

Shipra Srivastava

Team Learnwordlist.com

• Duress: Duress is a forceful word indeed. It means intimidation, browbeating, coercion. To threat someone for something is duress. Well, a sentence like this helps. She made a confession under duress. It means she did not confess willingly but made a confession when someone forced her to do it. Hope that makes the meaning clear now.

• Stringency: Stringency is strictness, tightness, straightness. Stringency of school, stringency of poverty and stringency of the market are the sentences that help remember the word in context.
• Audacity: Audacity is being bold without paying heed to consequences. The girl’s audacity shocked the audience. A sentence like this would help us remember the word better. Hey can you all come up with a sentence like this and share here?
• Exigency: Exigency is an urgent requirement, it’s a pressing need. ‘The exigencies of metropolitan life’. This is how the word is used in regular conversation. I hope you will never forget a word when used in context like this.
• Zealots: A zealot is a person who shows zeal. Zeal is enthusiasm, fanaticism, passion, fervor. And to tell you the truth all the synonyms of the word mentioned here are equally important for GRE.
• Dudgeon: Dudgeon is a feeling of offense or resentment. A feeling of anger and bitterness. The judges left in high dudgeon. It means the judges left in anger. This makes the word easier to remember.
• Assiduity: Assiduity is diligence, effort and industry. It simply means hard work.
• Impetus: Impetus is a moving force, a stimulus that causes motion. It is something that incites. The approaching deadline gave impetus to the investigation (dictionary.com). Is that clear now?
• Rancor: Rancor is animosity, hatred. It is a deep seated ill will. A feeling of antipathy.

I am sure these words will bring force and pressure to your GRE preparation. I tell you time and again that your GRE preparation is incomplete without these words. So do spend some time trying to know their meanings thoroughly. You can try using them in some sentences to understand their application better.

Do not just read but work on these words. Use a notebook to jot them down and a dictionary to understand the meaning and the context better. A must do! Utter the words aloud- each word five times!!

Vocabulary enhancing techniques:

1. Work with the word.

2. Expand its meaning into a suitable context.

3. Relate it to the person or situation you know.

4. Share the word with your friends, colleagues

5. Try to pronounce the word aloud at least five times

Read this blog more than once to comprehend its essence. Do get back to us with queries in case you have any.

Wishing you all, success!!

Regards,

Anu Veluri

Manager- learnwordlist.com

What is the inspiration of your life? Why have you pursued a sixteen years of formal education, day and night? Have you undertaken all the academic projects of your life with some purpose or just like that to keep your parents happy? Do you have any idea/goal/objective to carve a niche for yourself in your chosen domain? If you have pertinent answers to all these questions, then I am sure you have a glorious future ahead.

We all know by now that the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) is taken by millions of students across the globe to join a University in the United States of America and pursue Higher Education (Usually a Master’s Program in the Subject that triggers their interest). We also know that GRE is a forerunner to all your academic ambitions.

A good score in GRE assures a good University in the University and an assiduous academic grill in the world’s noted educational edifices. All these efforts will embellish your future in a way that words cannot describe.

You would now love to see what is the essential gear (equipment) that you need to carry all through your GRE stint, until the day of your exam. Won’t you?

The GRE Gear:

1. Your interest: Half interest is poisonous! When you have decided to pursue a Master’s Program in the US and you know GRE helps land you in the University of your choice, you need to dedicate yourself to the exam unconditionally. You should not let your interest waver and flag.

On the contrary you should fortify your interest toward the exam, intensify it into passion and work with single minded devotion and dedication. Your interest will help you come out with flying colors in GRE. A half-interested approach will certainly yield negative and bitter results.

1. Motive behind taking GRE: Hey you all should ask yourself this question: Why should I take GRE? If you have gotten concrete answers to this question I know you have a goal that has to be realized. If not whatever you are doing becomes a wild goose chase!

Why should I take GRE?..Some possible answers to this question can be:

I want to take GRE, because

1. I want to pursue a Master’s Program in one of the best Universities of the world!
2. I want to have a compelling academic career
3. I want to be a part of some commendable academic projects of the world
4. I want to be a student in the University that molded diligent students into Nobel Laureates
5. I want to have a cross-cultural exposure in the US, that will equip me with confidence to take over life’s challenges
6. I am in love with the quality education offered in America

You can have your own answers though)

1. Self-assessment: Did you ever evaluate your own abilities? How important is this! Before aspiring for an exam like GRE, you need to do something called a thorough self-analysis.

This you need to do keeping in front of you a model GRE paper. What and how is the exam? Which segments am I comfortable answering and vice-versa. As I keep telling do not wait for ready-made packages. Such things do not exist. They never existed and will never. You have to plough the field thoroughly to sow the seeds. NO short cut to that!

1. Don’t take GRE: Yes this is some valuable advice. If you haven’t prepared adequately for the exam just do not take it. You can book a slot when you feel ‘Yes, I am prepared now!’ Why do you want to waste your time and money and also the examiners’? Be prudent and wise.

The GRE Day!

1. Stress Free State: The day you have been waiting for finally arrives. What I suggest all the diligent aspirants out there is to have some good sleep just the night before the exam. Don’t carry anxiety in your tummy and frustration in your eyes and brows. Just relax, think nothing about GRE. Give yourself to some pleasant and relaxing sleep.
2. A few minutes before GRE: Do something you like doing most. Well, it could be having a glassful of refreshing lemonade or listening to Celine Dion on your mobile. Do anything that gets you into a wonderful mood. A lovely and pleasant mood. Don’t think of any negative aspects then.
3. Belief: Finally have loads and tons of faith and belief in yourself. Love yourself for all the hard work you put in. Do not get depressed while taking the exam. Be confident and carry the tempo through out the exam. Success is yours!

I am sure you are now carrying the GRE Gear. Hold it until you enroll for your Master’s program in US. Share it with your friends and other aspirants. And if you want to add some more important aspects to this you can do it right away. (Either here by commenting or starting a new topic in the forum. Registration in forum is a matter of few seconds and absolutely free!)

Wishing you all, success!!

Regards,

Anu Veluri

Manager- learnwordlist.com

Start teaching GRE Vocabulary, you learned enough!

Hi this is an article that exclusively deals with learning GRE Vocabulary faster and better. After reading this blog you will not only be able to crack the exam like a tornado or tycoon but will also be able to train fellow aspirants. You will help them by sharing all these wonderful vocabulary learning techniques that will help you memorize a huge, huge, huge number of words effectively.

Are you ready for the challenge? Ok get, set, go!!

You better start reading! Reading maketh a man! We all need to remember and re-implement this proverb by making it a regular habit. A well read person has lot may words at his/her disposal. He not only knows the words but can effectively put them into context while writing and speaking. Does he not have an edge that way? Many of us do not read. Leave alone reading when we find a tough word we close the book/newspaper/window and walk away! That’s really bad!

When you find a tough word acquaint yourself with that then and there. Don’t wait for the most opportune moment to dawn upon you. Just get that dictionary lying in your closet and hunt for the meaning. Spend some time with the word, trying to establish a relation between the word and the context.

Mind-blowing results: Are you feckless about new words?? Hmmm what do you do when you hear a new word from your teacher/boss? Feel guilty that you do not know it? Or fall a prey to inferiority complex? Well, do not let those two things effect you. I mean guilt and inferiority complex.

If you do not know the meaning of a particular word you have not committed a sin. Just know the meaning right away and put it in different contexts at least 5 times. The word dares not leave your memory. Try it and see, the results will astonish you.

Pamper and pet the words you learned: Human memory is more volatile than any other chemical. You need to keep visiting and revisiting the new words you learned. Spend sometime with them, understand them, pamper them, and pet them. This you need to do in order to keep your relation with the word in tact.

Fall in love with the words you learned: What do you do to impress your beloved? Get gifts? Write poems? Do stunts? That’s what words want you to do for them. Use them in different contexts. Blast your imagination thinking where all you can use this word. Talk about the word with family and friends (you will hardly spend 5-10 seconds doing that) and the word becomes your faithful accompanist. I can already see you gasping there!!

You are a magician!! Hey did anyone tell you that you are a magician. There is a small world of magic within your brain. You can many a time create wonderful things in your brain to remember words. Words that actually trouble you; I mean words that are tough to remember.

Let me give an example: There’s a word hermetic which means airtight, sealed. You may have some difficulty remembering it. What you can do is relate the word to a word close to its spelling. You can think of ‘hermit’. A hermit is a saint an ascetic who abandons worldly pleasures and stays far away from mankind meditating and contemplating. Is he not closed away, shut away from the rest of the world? Is airtight just not that?

You can paint a cute little scenery of woods, a small wooden cottage and a hermit meditating, on the canvas of your mind. Just imagine that for a while. I swear you will never forget these two words.

Become an archeologist! Ahem! Well only then you will start exploring for words that you never knew so far. Tell yourself that you are going to learn 5 new words this week and use all the skills that are mentioned above this paragraph. I wish you success in your new endeavor as an archeologist (smiles!!)

Party with words! What you can do is organize some weekly get-togethers with your study groups and play games like word building, scrabble, etc. You can also organize word quizzes and share with your friends the words you learned and vice-versa.

Practice makes perfect: This is the mantra to success. There is no shortcut to the kingdom of success. Once you reach, there is no returning either. You can learn from various resources. Books, online support, libraries and tests cater to your requirement eternally. The sources available for practice are just unlimited. You can keep chiseling and refining your skills perpetually, reasonably there is no end to a process like that.

What I suggest is read all these articles on our blog and keep updating your vocabulary running through our word lists (there are a dozens of them on the site). Icing on the cake is the tests segment. Take tests on a daily basis. These tests help you score your performance. Best thing is you can take these tests in complete isolation. No mortal soul will comment negatively on you performance. Great it sounds, doesn’t it?

‘I am unable to remember words’, ‘I can’t do this’, I can’t do that!’ well we are no agony aunts to pamper you and your weaknesses with some ineffective counseling.

We are globally recognized goal-oriented trainers and expect the same level of commitment from you. We don’t propound endless theories, we make you all learn effective methods and implement them even more effectively. If you have the stamina we desire then you have stopped at the right place. Let’s call it a mutual success then!

If you are aspiring for a perfect 800/800 in GRE Verbal, this article is for you. Implementing all the above said techniques will land you on your destination for sure.

Wishing you success as always!!

Regards,

Anu Veluri

Manager- learnwordlist.com

• Nonplussed: When I said I am going to make you all as powerful as He-Man weren’t you all nonplussed? Nonplussed is when you are taken aback, disconcerted and puzzled. In simpler words ‘a mental standstill’ condition is being nonplussed!

• Eulogized: Kings and warriors of yore were ‘eulogized’ by the court poets. Now into the world of imagination: Just imagine a King returns to his Kingdom after defeating his enemy. The minute he walks into the court you can see young girls run towards him and garlanding. All the senior courtesans stand in order to pay obeisance to the ruling warrior and then the court poets praise the king to the skies. This act of praising to the skies is called ‘eulogizing’. Hope you all got it right!

• Exorcised: I am sure no one out there missed the movie, ‘The Mummy’! It takes you into a haunting world of fantasy. Doesn’t it? Well remember what the heroine ‘Ivy’ does to repel the evil spirit of the Mummy. She chants a few incantations from the Book of the Dead! The evil force is ceased and finally the Mummy succumbs. To exorcise is to expel/eliminate an evil power by prayer/incantations. Hmm sounds interesting.

• Engrossed: Do you know the story of Narcissus engrossed with his own reflection in the pond? When you are completely occupied with anything and your mind gets fixed at a particular object, it means you are engrossed totally.

• Maundering: Some people keep babbling. When they talk it makes little sense. Meaning no sense at all. And what could be more disastrous, they spend a lifetime doing that. Sometimes it happens at very old age when people do not have company to communicate with. They start talking to themselves. Such an act is maundering.

• Spawned: Spawn is to reproduce in large numbers. Successful businesses spawn too. You can decide that when you see a branch of the business concern across the globe! Don’t you want to wish success to such businesses?

• Actuated: To actuate is to start something. For example, starting a machine is actuating it. I guess you got it right. You can use this word for some heavy machines. You do not actuate a grinder..LOL, you run it. Is that fine?

• Pillories: Well, well, well…When a candidate wants to win over his opponent in an election he mocks at the opponent publicly. At least such a thing happens in democratic countries. An open ridicule, insult, criticism like that against someone is called pillory. Now please do not ask me whether it is good or bad. I can’t be politically correct. Ahem! Disparage, Berate are some other words which also suggest a verbal insult against someone.

• Countermand: Counter….Now this word suggests a reversal of something. It can be remembered as a useful prefix. Countermand is reversal of a law. It also means to abrogate/nullify an existing law. You can think about some laws that were/are abrogated/countermanded in your respective countries. You can either share them here or discuss in the forums.

I suggest you all to spend a little time with these words to become more and more powerful. Start loving them rather. I bet they will certainly make you powerful. Try to recollect many visuals that relate to a specific word from the above list. Trigger your imagination. These are the words that keep appearing in GRE’s (Graduate Record Examination) Verbal Ability Section. (Antonyms, Analogies and Sentence Completion).

I keep telling:

Do not just read but work on these words. Use a notebook to jot them down and a dictionary to understand the meaning and the context better. As I always tell: Utter the words aloud- each word five times!!

Some techniques to memorize words faster and better:

1. Work with the word.

2. Expand its meaning into a suitable context.

3. Relate it to the person or situation you know.

4. Share the word with your friends, colleagues

5. Try to pronounce the word aloud at least five times

Empower yourself reading this blog more than once to understand its essence thoroughly. And get back to us with queries in case you have any.

Wishing you all success in anything/everything you undertake!!

Regards,

Anu Veluri

Manager- learnwordlist.com

• Lacerate: Did you ever see a barbed wire or a sharp object tear the skin of a person? Rip it apart? Oh, I am sorry to hurt you psychologically. But you did see such a thing. Lacerate is just that. To lacerate is to wound deeply. It also means to distress somebody deeply, emotionally. You can usually find this word in the ‘Analogy’ segment of GRE.

• Ravage: How it looks the second day on a battle field? You see warriors/soldiers walking around, introspecting the damages incurred. Hmm a very bad visual indeed! Ravage as a noun means ‘havoc’, ‘damage’. As a verb it means to do ruinous damage. Is that now clear?

• Decimate: Did you hear about epidemics like swine flu, bird flu, and plague. These horrendous epidemics are the diseases that are not permanent, neither specific to a place. Nevertheless they have a potential to wipe away a substantial part of the population. Gruesome! Aren’t they? The verb decimates means to destroy a substantial part. If you look at the word closely you have the root ‘deci’ which means the tenth part. So to decimate is to kill the tenth person. Can you now imagine the loss?

• Subvert: To subvert is to corrupt, to overthrow, to destroy, to ruin. History offers rich examples for a verb like this. Can you think of ‘fall of Roman, Mughal dynasties’ owing to subverters (noun)?

An illustration explains better:

“Schemes to subvert the liberties of a great community” (Alexander Hamilton)

(dictionary.com)

• Extort: Now I will take you all into the wonderful world of imagination. Visualize a rich heiress being surrounded by perpetrators holding guns and asking her to sign on documents against her will. Did you visualize a scene like that? And now when the heiress rejects signing, the perpetrators hold the gun against her head and thrust it even more violently. Well, well, well this is extortion (noun). To extort is to force a person to do something against his/her wish.

• Sabotage: Well some people want to foil the plans of others in an intelligent way. Ahem, at the same time they do not want to become unpopular. Sabotage is any underhand interference with work/production. Hmm let me think of some candid illustration. How many of you watched the movie Gladiator?? Russell Crowe as General Maximus stole the show didn’t he? Just recollect the last scene; the surreptitious and immoral Caesar injects poison into General Maximus just before the deadly duel. The craven Caesar wants to win the duel. I am sure you all understood. An act like that is nothing but sabotage.

• Jeopardize: How many of us seriously watch birds and animals. We hardly do that, do we? Most of the time we are bothered with thoughts on carving a niche for ourselves either in the academic or the professional world. But when we read journals pertaining to Zoology we realize that there are numerous species already extinct or at the verge of extinction. How sad?! Now jeopardize is this, when something is at the verge of extinction. It also means when the existence of some thing, could be anything, is endangered, means at risk. Could you now research for a day or two on some animals/birds that are jeopardized, i.e. animals/birds that are at the brink of extinction? You can spend a Sunday doing this, some interesting project work to all my students here. Well, do not forget sharing the names of ‘jeopardized’ species with us here.

I suggest you all to spend a little time with these words. Date them rather. They are really extraordinary and interesting. Try to recollect many visuals that relate to a specific word from the above list. Believe me, these are the words that keep appearing in GRE’s (Graduate Record Examination) Verbal Ability Section. (Antonyms, Analogies and Sentence Completion).

Some important advice:

Do not just read but work on these words. Use a notebook to jot them down and a dictionary to understand the meaning and the context better. As I always tell: Utter the words aloud- each word five times!!

Things you should never forget:

1. Work with the word.

2. Expand its meaning into a suitable context.

3. Relate it to the person or situation you know.

4. Share the word with your friends, colleagues

5. Try to pronounce the word aloud at least five times

Read this blog on extraordinary words more than once to comprehend its essence thoroughly. Do get back to us with queries in case you have any.

Wishing you all, success!!

Regards,

Anu Veluri

Manager- learnwordlist.com

• Devastate: The verb ‘devastate’ can be both physical and psychological in its effect. Physically an earthquake destroys or devastates everything. The victims of earthquake are psychologically destroyed, dismayed or devastated. Aren’t they? Devastate means to destroy, to demolish, to ruin etc.

• Enjoin: The verb ‘enjoin’ means to command. Usually the prefix ‘en’ puts some emphasis on the latter part of the word. Look at the words enhance, encourage, entail, encumber all these words suggest some kind of emphasis taking place. Similarly the verb ‘enjoin’ means to command. When a doctor enjoins something it means he commands you to follow it inevitably.

· Instigate: To instigate is to stir up, make people revolt. An opposition party leader usually instigates people   to go against the ruling party.

• Effectuate: Effectuate is the verb that’s derived from the noun effect. To effectuate is to bring about a change, to effect something or someone etc.

• Expedite: When your pace becomes really slow and you are not meeting the slated deadlines your boss gets irritated. He suggests you to expedite your pace. To expedite is to accelerate, to speed up etc.

• Preempt: To preempt is to appropriate, to substitute. I will tell you how it works. Imagine a situation wherein you are anxiously seated in front of your television set waiting for the live telecast of One Day International (a cricket match). There’s an unanticipated downpour in the stadium and the match timings are rescheduled. The Television Station airs another program instead of the live telecast; say a Sitar recital or some disease awareness program. This is to preempt. I am sure you will now never forget this word.

• Coerce: To coerce is to pressurize someone, to intimidate, to make people do things by force. For example a traitor coercing (forcing) a person to sign on a document holding a gun against his head! Can you now visualize a situation like that? If yes then you will never forget this word too.

• Extirpate: To extirpate is to destroy something totally. It also means to remove something permanently.

• Commandeer: To commandeer is to order or force into active military service. Just imagine a police officer ordering a relaxed cab driver reading a newspaper to follow the bunch of robbers fleeing right in front of them. He just sits beside the cab driver and tells him ‘follow them!’ The cab driver has nothing better to do than to follow. Such an action is commandeering.

• Embroil: To embroil is to bring into a discord, a conflict. It also means to throw into confusion or complicate things.

**{Example: “Avoid . . . any step that may embroil us with Great Britain” (Alexander Hamilton).}

I suggest you all to act on these words. Imagine many more situations than the words and situations I suggested to implement these words. Think at least five more situations for each word. But please do remember whether you like it or not these are the words that keep appearing in GRE’s (Graduate Record Examination) Verbal Ability Section.

Some important advice as always:

Do not just read but work on these words. Use a notebook to jot them down and a dictionary to understand the meaning and the context better. As I always tell: Utter the words aloud- each word five times!!

Things you should never forget:

1. Work with the word.

2. Expand its meaning into a suitable context.

3. Relate it to the person or situation you know.

4. Share the word with your friends, colleagues

5. Try to pronounce the word aloud at least five times

Read this blog on action verbs more than once to imbibe its essence. Do get back to us with queries in case you have any.

Wishing you success!!

Regards,

Anu Veluri

Manager- learnwordlist.com

** The example has been quoted from dictionary.com.

]]> http://learnwordlist.com/blog/high-frequency-gre-action-words-verbs/2009/10/gre-word-list-test-blog-barrons-vocabulary/feed 121 http://learnwordlist.com/blog/gre-analogy-questions/2009/09/gre-word-list-test-blog-barrons-vocabulary http://learnwordlist.com/blog/gre-analogy-questions/2009/09/gre-word-list-test-blog-barrons-vocabulary#comments Sat, 26 Sep 2009 14:40:50 +0000 Admin http://learnwordlist.com/blog/?p=129 “The key to analogy success is being able to express the relationship between the words in a pair.”

An Introduction:

The Analogies Segment of GRE is one very challenging. Unlike the antonyms segment this segment doesn’t allow the student do some intelligent guessing. The student has to perfectly establish the relationship between the word pair given as the question, and select an answer that confirms a similar relationship.

You will have around 7 analogy questions on the CAT. The more questions you answer correctly, the harder the questions become.

What’s an Analogy?

Many types of relationships are possible in GRE analogies. The stem words may be related as above.

Analogy is the study of similarity existing between a word pair. For example there exists a similarity between a human hand and a whale’s flipper, a pump and a heart. A study of such similarity is Analogy.

Once you establish the similarity or understand the relationship between the word pair, identifying an answer choice showing an identical relationship is not a tough task at all. The only impediment for the student is to establish and understand an authentic relationship of the word pair given as the question. As any other GRE segment, the Analogy segment too has nine questions and each question is followed by five answer options.

Let us deal with the GRE Analogy questions and learn the way to crack them effectively in the subsequent blog. Let us for now comprehend a few very important Analogy types.

Types of Analogies and their relationships

As I already suggested that there are a few established word pair relations that will help us navigate through and succeed in the Analogy segment effortlessly. The only challenge for you is to commit these Analogy types to your memory infallibly. Once you do this, the Analogy segment no longer remains a tough nut to crack.

Definition

An Analogy type like this focuses on the definition of a particular word. Mostly a word that you are aware of or you at least came across once in your sixteen years of academic sojourn. For example:

Metamorphosis: Transforms

By definition, Metamorphosis is a scientific process that transforms the shape of an organism. This is how we establish a relationship between a word pair.

Defining the Character

An Analogy type like this focuses on the personality trait of an animal/man. For example

Lamb: Herbivorous

The character of Lamb is that it is mild and herbivorous (plant-eating). So now your challenge lies in identifying the option, a word pair that establishes a similar relationship. An ideal answer choice could be Tiger: Carnivorous (flesh-eating).

Class and Member

This is an easier relationship to identify. For example:

Amphibia: Frog

A frog (member) belongs to the phylum Amphibia (class)

You have to select a word pair confirming similar relationship. It could be

Aves: Bird

Antonym Relationship

The easiest of all Analogy types is the Antonym relationship

The question pair appears like this:

Loquacious: Taciturn

Obviously the opposite of the word loquacious (talkative) is taciturn (reserved). You need to identify a similar antonymous pair from the given options. It could be

Extravagant: Parsimonious

Synonym Relationship:

Once again it is the simplest of Analogy types. In this Analogy type there exists a synonymous relationship between the words. It means the second word in the word pair is the meaning of the first word. An illustration will make the explanation simpler:

Loquacious: Talkative

Talkative is the meaning of the word loquacious. You just need to identify an option that also has a synonymous relationship of words. Something like:

Opulent: Wealthy

Degree of intensity

This Analogy type has a word pair showing relationship between a more intense and less intense word or vice versa

For example:

Plead: Request

‘Plead’ is a more intense form of ‘Request’.

Part to Whole:

This is an Analogy type that shows a relationship between a part of a thing and its relation with the whole.

Stanza: Poem

Stanza is just a part of the whole Poem.

Function

An Analogy type like this shows the relationship between a person and a process/place. For example:

Rehabilitation: Addict

Asylum: Refugee

(An addict undergoes rehabilitation; a refugee seeks shelter in an asylum)

Manner

An Analogy type such as this suggests on the manner of speech, gait or any other thing.

Stammer: Talk

Fumble: Walk

Action and its importance

This is an interesting Analogy type. The first word in the word pair shows the effect caused by the second word. For example

Grimace: Pain (Grimace is facial distortion caused due to extreme pain)

Worker and Article Created

This is an Analogy type that shows the relationship between the worker and his/her creation.

Example: Ode: Poet (An Ode is the creation of a Poet)

Worker and Tool

Sculptor: Chisel

A sculptor (worker) uses a chisel (tool)

Worker and Workplace

Actor: Theater

An actor (worker) performs in a theater (workplace)

Tool and its Action

Drill: Bore

A drill is a tool used to bore holes.

These are the major Analogy types that you encounter in GRE (Graduate Record Examination). Besides these, there are some miscellaneous word pair relations too. I quickly enumerate them underneath.

Cause and Effect

Eg: Rain (cause): Dampness (effect)

Gender

Eg: Horse (male): Mare (female)

Age

Eg: Calf (the little one): Cow (the adult form)

Symbol and its meaning

Eg: Mace (symbol): Authority (meaning)

Read this blog pertaining to Analogies more than once. One reading will not help! Jot down all the Analogy types and try to comprehend them, imbibe their essence thoroughly. Underneath each Analogy type, try framing at least five word pairs having a similar relationship. You are suggested to share your Analogy types with us and all the other students who follow this blog. We all will be benefited immensely.

We are awaiting meaningful responses from you.

Wishing you Success!!

Anu Veluri
Manager- learnwordlist.com

Hi everybody!! First and foremost let me thank you all for the very good support you have been offering. Your participation in the earlier tests was amazing! I stand motivated. Owing to that I come up with another small exercise for you. The exercise is similar to the earlier one that you had taken and performed convincingly. You will now find a set of 25 words. You need to suggest the ‘opposite’ of the word beginning with ‘G’ The only difference is, you have to now begin your word (opposite) with ‘G’. Earlier it was a synonym or meaning beginning with ‘P’. All you need to do is ‘think’ for a while and I am sure you will find the right answer. Besides thinking, I also suggest you having a scribbling pad, a dictionary (Oxford Advanced Learner’s preferably), and an Oxford Thesaurus (A thesaurus helps you find out the synonyms and antonyms of a given word!!).

Vocabulary learning tips

Many students keep asking me whether it is better to learn words by heart or to write, scribble and then put it in contextual usage and memorize it. I always suggest them the latter method. Words are like relatives, a mere Hi! Hello! will not bring them closer to you. When you spend substantial time with them, remember they will never betray you. A mere ‘mug up’ business will land you nowhere. On the contrary you will find yourself exactly at the point you started your journey of vocabulary learning. Is that not a sheer waste of time and resources?! So please bear in mind that there is no shortcut to success. You need to slog and put in all your mental and physical energy to see yourself reaching the coveted goal!!

The test

Dear aspirants, here goes the list. I want you to give me the opposites of these words beginning with the letter ‘G’. I display the answers of the first two words to make you understand how it works. I wish you all the best!

Important: Every answer (opposite) must start with the letter G.

1. lose ( answer: gain, get, garner, grab, grasp)
2. midget ( answer: giant)
3. special
4. lady
5. take
6. moron
7. sad
8. boy
9. happy
10. plain
11. hello
12. here
13. bad
14. ugly
15. stingy
16. awkward
17. little
18. rough
19. bride
20. ripe
21. generous
22. unprotected
23. experienced
24. scarcity
25. unappreciative

Please do not rush to answer. As I suggested ‘think’ and work on a particular word, savor its beauty and treasure it in your memory forever. I am sure you will come up with ‘all right answers’ this time around.

Remember- you can increase your vocabulary faster and more easily than you may realize.

Wishing you success!

Regards,

Anu Veluri

Learnwordlist.com

Answer Keys of the Test