Loz Harper's blog : Sentence equivalence
A suffix is a part of a word added after the stem.In derailed, the suffix is ed. You can see from this example that if you had never heard the word derailed before, you would be able to guess what it means if you knew that one meaning of de is off, that rail refers to the metal constituents of railroad tracks, and that as a suffix ed indicates past tense.Thus, in some cases, you can guess the meaning of an unfamiliar word by means of what you know about its constituents.Along with each prefix you will see one of its meanings as well as two examples of words in which it appears.Most notably, new types of questions are used.And there are differences in cost, in the timing of score reporting, and in the scale used to report the scores.All of these changes are intended to make the test experience better for you.At the same time, the antonyms and analogies have been dropped from this section.The result is that there are now no questions that test vocabulary out of context.Reading Comprehension, Text Completion, and Sentence Equivalence.Below you will find a description of each question type, and then an example question corresponding to each.Examples of Question TypesReading comprehensionReading Comprehension questions are presented in sets.Most of the passages will consist of a single paragraph, although a few will range from three to five paragraphs.In order to receive credit, you must choose the correct option.You may select one, two, or three options as your answer.In order to receive credit, you must choose all and only the correct options.In other words, no partial credit is given.The Hermitage began as Catherine’s private collection, acquired over a period of three decades from prominent sources throughout Europe.Catherine was a brilliant, enlightened ruler with a deep appreciation for the art and artists she supported.Although the Hermitage was not open to the public until 1852, more than a half century after Catherine’s passing, her patronage was the foundation of this international treasure.The passage implies which of the following?Catherine’s influence on the arts in Russia was not limited to her private collections.Catherine never had any intention of opening her collections to the Russian public.Catherine’s patronage was motivated at least in part by a deep appreciation for art.Each passage contains one to three blanks.For a passage that contains one blank, you will choose from among five words to fill in the blank.For passages that contain two or three blanks, you will choose from among three words to fill in each blank.No partial credit is given.For each blank select one entry from the corresponding column of choices.Fill all blanks in the way that best completes the text.B and DSentence equivalenceSentence equivalence questions consist of a single sentence that contains a blank.You are asked to choose two words out of a set of six that best fill in the blank.Each word you choose should fit the meaning of the sentence as a whole and result in sentences that are comparable in meaning.Again, no partial credit is given.Select the two answer choices that, when used to complete the sentence, fit the meaning of the sentence as a whole and produce completed sentences that are alike in meaning.The teacher was startled by the hostile tone of the student’s question, because this particular student had always seemed to have an especially ___________ temperament.First, here is some general advice about preparing for the test.Here too you will find useful information and examples.Do some planning for the days leading up to the test.Try to get sufficient rest the night before the test, and allow enough travel time so that you don’t have to rush to get to the testing site.Plan carefully for test day.Familiarize yourself with the different types of questions you will see in each section of the test, including Verbal Reasoning.Reading Comprehension questions will represent many different disciplines, and so you should expect to encounter topics with which you have little or no familiarity.Keep in mind that all of the information you will need to answer the questions are contained in the passages.You should read each passage first before answering the questions, although in some cases glancing at the questions may provide some guidance.The Hermitage began as Catherine’s private collection, acquired over a period of three decades from prominent sources throughout Europe.Catherine was a brilliant, enlightened ruler with a deep appreciation for the art and artists she supported.