Test Prep GRE Test Bundle

What to know about Sentences Equivalence, Text Completion and Reading Comprehension for passing GRE

GRE (Graduate Record Examinations) is an important test that is required if you are seeking to enroll in a college or university in United States of America for a graduate program. Of course, you will have to pass the test with flying colors if you want to get admission in a good graduate college or university. There are 4 sections in a GRE test. Each of these sections will test a different aspect of your mind. It will also put your knowledge regarding English language and math in test. There are different questions in each section which are related to various topics and skills. Here we will be talking about three such questions that have a great hand in passing the GRE and getting good marks as well.

Let's start with the sentences equivalence. It is one of the most confusing questions that you will see in GRE test. Even people who have good English and have practiced GRE to great extent will be seen biting their nails. The sentence equivalence questions normally deal with: produce sentences that are alike in terms of meaning and select two words that will best complete the sentence. In this type of question you will always be very confused because all the options seem to be correct. But, there is a trick to tackle with the sentences equivalence test.

• Look for the synonyms in the answer
• If you know the meaning of the word in question and cannot find any synonyms in the answer then the correct answer is the non-synonym
• It is not necessary that only the synonym options are the correct ones
• The trick is to increase the chance of getting the right guess

Text completion is another giant question in the verbal section of GRE. Here you will be given two or three blanks and you will have to select the most appropriate option which will complete the sentence and give the best sense. Some of the options in the questions might contain words that you have never heard of. But, there is no reason to start panicking right now because there are some loopholes in the text completion questions which will help you to pass GRE.

• The first thing that you have to know is that there is always some clue in the question itself. If you find that clue, finding the right option can be done in a minute. So, be alert and reread the question, and you might be able to find the hidden clue.
• It is not necessary to fill the first blank first. You can start with any blanks and then move up or down. If the option does not sit in well with other blanks then jump to another option and see whether it fits in or not.
• The answer choices for each blank are independent of one another. The choice for one blank clearly does not affect the choice for another blank.

Another question that will appear in the verbal section of GRE is the reading comprehension. Now, you might think that this question would be a piece of cake because you have been doing these questions since you were child. Well, you might be a bit wrong there because the reading comprehension passage and questions that appear in GRE will test your analytical mind, vocabulary and understanding as well as writing capacity. Basically, you will be given around 10 passages that might be lengthy as one or two paragraphs. Then you will be asked around one or six questions for each passage. Let's know more about this type of question so that you can tackle it properly and get good marks.

• The main idea of the passage will be usually given in hidden form in the first paragraph. Sometimes, it will be given in the last paragraph as well
• Some words and phrases like 'mainly concerned with' or 'primary purpose', might point that the main idea of the passage is being discussed
• Start by eliminating wrong answers
• Reread the passage