All ISEE Upper Level Verbal Resources
Example Questions
Example Question #2151 : Isee Upper Level (Grades 9 12) Verbal Reasoning
Select the answer choice that is closest in meaning to the word in capital letters.
DISCERN
Doubt
Predict
Recognize
Comply
Overlook
Recognize
A good example of discerning something is when you discern the difference between your perceived financial situation (which may be higher in your mind) and the reality of your situation.
Example Question #2152 : Isee Upper Level (Grades 9 12) Verbal Reasoning
Select the answer choice that is closest in meaning to the word in capital letters.
DEFY
Venerate
Dispute
Disobey
Worship
Argue
Disobey
When someone is “defiant,” he or she stubbornly refuses to obey someone or something else to the point of open resistance. Here, do not confuse “defy” with “deify,” which means “to make into a god.” While options like “argue” and “dispute” are related to someone who is defying another person. The best option is “disobey,” which most closely captures the action of a defiant individual.
Example Question #2153 : Isee Upper Level (Grades 9 12) Verbal Reasoning
Select the answer choice that is closest in meaning to the word in capital letters.
EXTOL
Congratulate
Rejoice
Adulate
Coral
Praise
Adulate
The word “extol” means “to praise someone to a great degree.” For this reason, it is best to choose “adulate,” which implies such high praise. The words “praise” and “congratulate” would be options if this stronger option (adulate) was not given.
Example Question #2154 : Isee Upper Level (Grades 9 12) Verbal Reasoning
Select the answer choice that is closest in meaning to the word in capital letters.
IMITATE
Mimic
Tempt
Detest
Foster
Covet
Mimic
Since "imitate" means to take or follow as a model, the answer choice that is its closest synonym is "mimic," which means to imitate, typically to entertain or ridicule.
Example Question #2155 : Isee Upper Level (Grades 9 12) Verbal Reasoning
Select the answer choice that is closest in meaning to the word in capital letters.
BELIE
Contradict
Emphasize
Tolerate
Foreshadow
Prohibit
Contradict
Since "belie" is a verb that means "give a false idea of something," "show something to be false or wrong," we need to pick out a word that means something like "misrepresent." Since "contradict" means "deny the truth of a statement, especially by asserting the opposite," it is the best answer choice and the correct answer.
Example Question #2156 : Isee Upper Level (Grades 9 12) Verbal Reasoning
Each synonyms question is made up of a word in capital letters followed by five choices. Choose the one word that is closest in meaning to the word in capital letters.
ASCERTAIN
Induce
Decipher
Deduce
Probe
Encode
Deduce
If something is ascertained such as a fact, it means that it is deduced or surmised.
Example Question #2157 : Isee Upper Level (Grades 9 12) Verbal Reasoning
Select the answer choice that is closest in meaning to the word in capital letters.
OBFUSCATE
Explicate
Occlude
Thwart
Perplex
Conceal
Perplex
The word obfuscate means to confuse. Thus, the best fit answer choice is perplex.
Example Question #2158 : Isee Upper Level (Grades 9 12) Verbal Reasoning
Select the answer choice that is closest in meaning to the word in capital letters.
ABIDE
Accept
Retain
Await
Remain
Injure
Accept
In its older usage, “abide,” meant “to live or dwell.” It generally means “to accept” (often as a rule for action). It is often used in conjunction with the word “with” as in, “He decided that it was better to abide with the judge’s decision than to contest it.” Also, negatively, it can mean that someone does not tolerate something or someone. In this case, it would be used in a sentence like, “I cannot abide the way that she rudely eats with her mouth open and think I will leave the room.”
Example Question #2159 : Isee Upper Level (Grades 9 12) Verbal Reasoning
Select the answer choice that is closest in meaning to the word in capital letters.
DECIPHER
Unearth
Decode
Recover
Discover
Display
Decode
A “cipher” is a way of encoding or scrambling a message so as to hide its meaning. This would be used, for instance, in war when people are trying to hide the contents of messages between allies. When someone “deciphers” something, he or she “takes away the code.” In other words, he or she “breaks” the code and can read the message.
Example Question #2160 : Isee Upper Level (Grades 9 12) Verbal Reasoning
Select the answer choice that is closest in meaning to the word in capital letters.
DEIFY
Statue
Myth
Violate
Venerate
Disobey
Venerate
The word “deify” literally means “to make into a God.” The “-fy” prefix is used in many places in English to mean “to make or do” as in “falsify” and “nullify.” The “dei-” portion of the word is derived from a large cluster of “god-related” words such as “deity” and “deism,” as well as “theology” and “atheist.” (The “d” and “th” are related sounds.) When someone deifies someone else, they are likely to worship that person as a god. Therefore, the best option here is “venerate,” which means “to revere someone or something.”
All ISEE Upper Level Verbal Resources
