ISEE Upper Level Verbal : ISEE Upper Level (grades 9-12) Verbal Reasoning
Study concepts, example questions & explanations for ISEE Upper Level Verbal
All ISEE Upper Level Verbal Resources
Example Questions
Example Question #961 : Isee Upper Level (Grades 9 12) Verbal Reasoning
Select the answer choice that best completes the blank in the sentence.
The __________ coach was thrown out of the game by the referee.
contentious
captious
arcane
callous
arable
contentious
The choice that makes the most sense is contentious: quarrelsome; causing or likely to cause an argument.
Example Question #962 : Isee Upper Level (Grades 9 12) Verbal Reasoning
Select the answer choice that best completes the blank in the sentence.
The __________ leader’s shaky voice was a signal to the brave troops that they would be on their own for the remainder of the battle.
craven
cloying
cavalier
caustic
categorical
craven
The choice that makes the most sense is craven: contemptibly lacking in courage; cowardly.
Example Question #963 : Isee Upper Level (Grades 9 12) Verbal Reasoning
Select the answer choice that best completes the blank in the sentence.
You should be __________ of the perilous journey that lies ahead.
vicarious
wry
wistful
wary
vindictive
wary
The choice that makes the most sense is wary: feeling or showing caution about possible dangers or problems.
Example Question #964 : Isee Upper Level (Grades 9 12) Verbal Reasoning
Select the answer choice that best completes the blank in the sentence.
The inmate stopped the flattery and began to speak with a more __________ tone after he realized the guards would never be coaxed into releasing him.
venal
visceral
veritable
valedictory
vituperative
vituperative
The choice that makes the most sense is vituperative: bitter and abusive; scolding.
Example Question #965 : Isee Upper Level (Grades 9 12) Verbal Reasoning
Select the answer choice that best completes the blank in the sentence.
Although I enjoyed your essay, it would be better if it were more concise and not as __________.
venerable
veritable
venal
venial
verbose
verbose
The choice that makes the most sense is verbose: using more words than are needed.
Example Question #966 : Isee Upper Level (Grades 9 12) Verbal Reasoning
Pick the best word to complete the sentence.
Children of authoritarian parents are often anxious; they can become __________ easily.
underwhelmed
stressed
sensitive
difficult
antisocial
stressed
The clause that needs filling-in is simply a rephrasing of the first part of the setence—"stressed" is the closest synonym of anxious and therefore makes the most sense in the sentence.
Example Question #967 : Isee Upper Level (Grades 9 12) Verbal Reasoning
Pick the best word to complete the sentence.
The young boy offered her his hand, grinning __________, since he knew it was still covered in mud.
devilishly
famously
playfully
mistakenly
awkwardly
devilishly
The subject of the sentence knows that he is going to cause someone displeasure, therefore he is being mischeivous—"devilish," when used in this context, means the same thing; therefore "devilishly" is the correct answer.
Example Question #968 : Isee Upper Level (Grades 9 12) Verbal Reasoning
Fred's family only realized how __________ he was about failing the math quiz he had studied for when he shouted at the first person to ask him about it.
nimble
touchy
prepared
famous
charismatic
touchy
We can infer that because Fred "shouted at the first person to ask him about [the math quiz he failed]," we need to pick out an adjective to describe Fred that means something like "irritable." "Charismatic" might look like a potentially correct answer, but "charismatic" is an adjective that means "exercising a compelling charm that inspires devotion in others," so it wouldn't make sense in the sentence's context. "Touchy," however, is an adjective that means "oversensitive and irritable" when being used to refer to a person, and because "touchy" best describes Fred's irritable mood, "touchy" is the correct answer.
Example Question #969 : Isee Upper Level (Grades 9 12) Verbal Reasoning
Unfortunately, the brief period of sunshine and blue sky was __________ that day, as the clouds turned grey after only ten minutes of sunshine and let loose a drizzle that lasted the rest of the afternoon and into the evening.
lasting
evanescent
demonstrable
pardonable
far-fetched
evanescent
We can infer that because the period of sunny weather lasted "only ten minutes," we need to pick out an adjective to describe the sunny weather that means something like "fleeting" or "temporary." "Lasting," then, cannot be the correct answer, because "lasting," when used as an adjective, means "enduring or able to endure over a long period of time," making it an antonym of the word for which we're looking. "Evanescent," however, is an adjective that means "soon passing out of sight, memory, or existence; quickly fading or disappearing," and because "evanescent" best conveys the briefness of the sunny weather in the sentence, "evanescent" is the correct answer.
Example Question #970 : Isee Upper Level (Grades 9 12) Verbal Reasoning
Select the answer choice that best completes the blank.
Pam was so __________ from her fever that she was unable to go to work.
defaced
debauched
debilitated
deliberated
defamed
debilitated
The answer that makes the most sense is "debilitated," to weaken or enfeeble.
All ISEE Upper Level Verbal Resources
