EQ13GVSC01

Enhancing Careers, Enabling
Success …..With FUN!
MODULE I
Verbal Ability

Introduction to Sentence
Completion - GRE

How Many Questions?
• In each Section (of 20 Qns) 6-7 Sentence
Completion Qns
• Total : 12-14 Questions
• ALSO,
– SC helps us master even “Sentence Equivalence(SE)”
– Both SC and SE take LESS TIME to answer!

Types of Sentence Completion in CAT
• Type I
– One Blank (with 4-5 options in Multiple choice format)
• Type II
– TWO Blanks (with 4 options for each blank)
• Type III
– THREE Blanks (with 4 options for each blank)
NO PARTIAL MARKING i.e. ALL the BLANKS MUST have
correct options chosen!

TYPE I: Example
1. In parts of the Arctic, the land grades into the land fast ice so _______ that you can
walk off the coast and not know you are over the hidden sea.
(A) permanently
(B) imperceptibly
(C) irregularly
(D) precariously
(E) slightly
b

TYPE II: ONE BLANK
2. Vain and prone to violence, Caravaggio could not handle success: the more his
(i)__________ as an artist increased, the more (ii)__________ his life became.
Sample Question 3 Answers.
a. temperance d. tumultuous
b. notoriety e. providential
c. eminence f. dispassionate
The correct answer is Choice C (eminence) and Choice D (tumultuous).

TYPE III
3. It is refreshing to read a book about our planet by an author who does not allow facts to
be (i)__________ by politics: well aware of the political disputes about the effects of human
activities on climate and biodiversity, this author does not permit them to (ii)__________ his
comprehensive description of what we know about our biosphere. He emphasizes the
enormous gaps in our knowledge, the sparseness of our observations, and the
(iii)__________, calling attention to the many aspects of planetary evolution that must be
better understood before we can accurately diagnose the condition of our planet.
Sample Question 1 Answers.
a. overshadowed d. enhance g. plausibility of hypothesis
b. invalidated e. obscure h. certainty of our entitlement
c. illuminated f. underscore i. superficiality of our theories
A,e,i

Pre-requisites and Learning Methodology
• Good Vocabulary (Foundation Module).
• Understanding Through :
– Indicators
– Logical Deduction
• CLASSROOM Learning
• Practice/Tests
• Review

Methodology
Step 1: Read the sentence completely (WITHOUT LOOKING
at OPTIONS!)
Step 2: Identify the “Broad Situation” and “Indicators”
Decide, IF it is POSITIVE/NEGATIVE word in the Blank!
Step 3: “FIX” a “IMAGINARY WORD/PHRASE” based on
your understanding
Step 4: Look at options and CHOOSE the Word which is
CLOSEST IN MEANING!

Understanding INDICATORS!
i). Contrast Indicators - To contrast two things is to point out
how they differ. In this type of sentence completion problem,
we look for a word that has the opposite meaning (an
antonym) of some key word or phrase in the sentence.
Following are some of the most common contrast indicators:
But
Yet
Despite
Although
However
Nevertheless

Example: Although the warring parties had settled a number of disputes, past
experience made them .......... to express optimism that the talks would be a success.
(A) rash
(B) ambivalent
(C) scornful
(D) overjoyed
(E) reticent
"Although" sets up a contrast between what has occurred--success on some issues--
and what can be expected to occur– NO success for the whole talks. Hence, the
parties are reluctant to express optimism. The common word "reluctant" is not
offered as an answer-choice, but a synonym--reticent--is. The answer is (E).

ii). Support Indicators - Supporting words support or further explain what has already been said.
These words often introduce synonyms for words elsewhere in the sentence.
Following are some common supporting words:
And
Also
Furthermore
Likewise
In Addition
Example: Davis is an opprobrious and .......... speaker, equally caustic toward friend or foe--a
true curmudgeon.
(A) lofty
(B) vituperative
(C) unstinting
(D) retiring
(E) laudatory
"And" in the sentence indicates that the missing adjective is similar in meaning to
"opprobrious," which is very negative. Now, vituperative--the only negative word--means
"abusive." Hence, the answer is (B).

Few Important Rules Tips
iii). Cause And Effect Indicators - These words indicate that one thing causes another to occur.
Some of the most common cause and effect indicators are
Because
For
Thus
Hence
Therefore
If , Then .
Example: Because the House has the votes to override a presidential veto, the President has no choice
but to ..........
(A) object
(B) abdicate
(C) abstain
(D) capitulate
(E) compromise
Since the House has the votes to pass the bill or motion, the President would be wise to compromise and make the best of the situation. The answer is
(E).

Few Important Rules Tips
iii) Apposition - This rather advanced grammatical structure is very common on the GRE. (Don't
confuse "apposition" with "opposition": they have opposite meanings.)
Example: His novels are .......... ; he uses a long circumlocution when a direct coupling of a
simple subject and verb would be best.
(A) prolix
(B) pedestrian
(C) succinct
(D) vapid
(E) rouge
The sentence has no linking words (such as because, although, etc.). Hence, the phrase
following the semicolon is in apposition to the missing word--it defines or further clarifies the
missing word. Now, writing filled with circumlocutions is aptly described as prolix. The answer
is (A).

100 Words to Know for SC - I

Types of Power
• Military
• Political
• Economic
• Judicial
• Religious
• Social

Recreate/ Copy Things..
• Copy
• Emulate
• Rebuilt – Built Again from Start (due to fault)
• Revived – bring back old form (before destruction, from
semi-destroyed form)
• Reconstructed – Construct according to a
description (from Start)
• Reformulated – Change the Ingredients of a
substance

Types of Animals (Based on Food
habits)
• Herbivorous – Eating Plants
• Carnivorous – Eating Flesh
• Omnivorous – Eating either of Plants/ Animals
• Nomadic – Roaming like “Desert” people
• Primordial – Very Beginning / Primitive of its kind
• Meandering – Roaming Around (without purpose)/ like a
river
• Loitering – Wasting Time by Roaming

Confusing Words
• Compose – Create a Poem or Song
• Interspersed – Spread in-between an area
• Dotted – Borders Marked/ Highlighted
• Infiltrated – Forcefully Move-in
• Permeate – Come up from Gaps or Holes
• Imminent
• Eminent
• Ominous
• Meandering – Roaming Around
(without purpose)/ like a river
• Loitering – Wasting Time by
Roaming

Top “Hi-Freq” words in Todays Session
• Iconoclastic – “Icon” Criticism
• Reciprocally/ Reciprocate – Give as a reaction to
• Pretense – Enact to mislead
• Antagonism – Feeling of Enemies/ Hating GOOD People
• Rebel – Go Against / Physical Rebellion
• Fiction – Unreal/ Created
• Callous – Toughened/ Emotionally Tough/ Disregard for others
• Unassailable – Cannot be Defeated/ overcome

• Repugnance – Intense disgust/ Inconsistency
• Ascetic – Simple, Down to Earth
• Ecclesiastical – Relating to Christian Church
• opprobrious – Disgraceful/ Shameful
• Hermetic – Not open to Ideas/ New
• Intrigued – Involving in deep thought
• Indifferent – NOT effected/ Reacting, apathy
• Plausible – Seeming Reasonable/ believable

• Vituperative – Bitter and Abusive
• Scornful – Feeling or Expressing Contempt/ Against
• Precariously – Dangerously
• Imperceptibly – Cannot be easily “perceived”/ known

TYPE I - Examples

Type I Examples 1/2
1. Crestfallen by having done poorly on the GRE, Susan began to question her
abilities. Her self-confidence was ..........
(A) appeased
(B) destroyed
(C) placated
(D) elevated
(E) sustained
2. In parts of the Arctic, the land grades into the land fast ice so _______ that you
can walk off the coast and not know you are over the hidden sea.
(A) permanently
(B) imperceptibly
(C) irregularly
(D) precariously
(E) slightly

Class HO Questions
1) Although the overwhelming majority of people consider themselves Roman
Catholics, and many, especially the women, are devoutly faithful, the church has less
---------- influence than in most Latin American countries and practically no political
power.
a) military
b) economic
c) judicial
d) religious
e) social
2) If the city had been swallowed up in an earthquake and the playwright's
comedies recovered by some later age, the life of the capital could have been --------
from them.
a) rebuilt
b) revived
c) reconstructed
d) predicted
e) reformulated

Class HO Questions
3) Below the northern counties, the river passes through a succession of rapids and
shallows------------with rocks and sand banks, where it has cut a passage for itself
through a cross chain of hills.
a) composed
b) interspersed
c) dotted
d) infiltrated
e) permeated
4) The stories were----------suited to inspire endurance and hope in the midst of a
terrible persecution, while the visions created a keen expectation of the immediate
end of the foreign tyranny and the founding of an imperishable state.
a) imminently
b) nicely
c) ominously
d) eminently
e) terribly

Class HO Questions
6) Perhaps predictably, since an ability to communicate effectively is an important
trait of any great leader, it has been the ---------- Presidents who have delivered the
most notable inaugural addresses.
a) exceptional
b) famous
c) undeniably
d) reciprocally
e) impractically
11) Just as the astrology was for centuries-----------faith, countering the strength of
established churches, so today believing in astrology is an act of ------------- the
professional sciences.
a) an individual------------rebellion by
b) an accepted----------antagonism toward
c) an underground---------defiance against
d) a heretical------------support for
e) an unknown---------concern about

EQ13GVSC01

Recommended

Recommended

More Related Content

Viewers also liked

Viewers also liked (10)

Similar to EQ13GVSC01

Similar to EQ13GVSC01 (20)

Recently uploaded

Recently uploaded (20)

EQ13GVSC01

Editor's Notes