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The second set of 17 questions in the Verbal Reasoning section will be Sentence Completion. These will require you to know words in context, as opposed to simply knowing the definition of various words. For Sentence Completion questions, you must understand the structure of the sentence, know the definition of each answer choice, and decide whether or not each answer choice will fit within the context of the sentence’s structure. Here are two examples of what a Sentence Completion question can look like: 1. Always -------- , the journalist actively questioned the relevant viewpoints on both sides of the issue. (A) enigmatic (B) ignoble (C) impartial (D) partisan 2. The company president hoped the board of directors would ------- to her proposal, but they rejected it because of the cost. (A) assent (B) entrust (C) pretend (D) react While Synonym questions focus on your knowledge of words and your ability to decipher the meaning of new words, Sentence Completion questions require you to pair your vocabulary knowledge with the use of context clues to identify each correct answer. Each question will contain a complete sentence with one blank. For each question, you must choose which word or pair of words best matches the context of the sentence. Students who read slowly need to allot themselves more time for this portion of the Verbal Reasoning section. For example, 5 minutes for Synonyms questions and 15 minutes for Sentence Completion questions. Systematic Approach to Sentence Completion Questions The good thing about the way Sentence Completion questions are designed is that, unlike with Synonym questions, they always have clues built in. If you can identify and interpret these clues, you’ll be well-equipped to let your vocabulary knowledge do the rest of the work in reaching the correct answer. You’ll need to be able to: Identify the “relationship words” that indicate how the different parts of the sentence relate to one another. Identify the specific details in the sentence and use them in conjunction with the relationship words to determine the meaning that the correct answer choice must convey. Identifying Relationship Words The first step in answering any Sentence Completion question is to identify the “relationship words” found in the sentence. For the most part, these include what you have probably referred to in the past as “transition” words, but there are several different roles they can play in a sentence to help you make sense of context clues: Type Examples Function Contrast although, but, despite, even though, however, instead of, nonetheless, not, on the contrary, rather, yet Indicates that two ideas should contrast with or oppose one another Similarity additionally, also, and, because, besides, consequently, for, furthermore, likewise, moreover, similarly Indicates that two ideas should be completement or agree with one another Cause and Effect accordingly, because, for, hence, in order to, since, so, therefore, thus Indicates that two ideas have a cause-and-effect relationship Definition or Explanation comma ( , ) semicolon ( ; ) colon ( : ) (only when the mark is not followed by a relationship word) Indicates that a phrase in the sentence defines or elaborates upon another word or phrase Let’s identify the relationship words in the two example questions included above: 1. Always -------- , the journalist actively questioned the relevant viewpoints on both sides of the issue. (A) enigmatic (B) ignoble (C) impartial (D) partisan In the first example, we see a comma that is not followed by a relationship word. This comma suggests that the information that follows will elaborate upon what comes before it. 2. The company president hoped the board of directors would ------- to her proposal, but they rejected it because of the cost. (A) assent (B) entrust (C) pretend (D) react In the second example, we see the word “but,” which suggests contrast. The information that follows “but” will oppose or contrast with what came before it. Identifying Specific Details In order for these relationship words to actually help us, we need to identify what specific details they modify, or refer to. Contrast, Similarity, and Cause and Effect relationship words define the relationship between two specific details, while punctuation marks indicate that a specific phrase defines or explains what comes before it. In either case, then, the next step is to identify the information that each relationship word modifies: 1. Always -------- , the journalist actively questioned the relevant viewpoints on both sides of the issue. (A) enigmatic (B) ignoble (C) impartial (D) partisan Because of the comma in the first example, we can infer that the information that follows it explains why “the journalist” is “-------”. That explanation will help us figure out which word belongs in the blank. 2. The company president hoped the board of directors would ------- to her proposal, but they rejected it because of the cost. (A) assent (B) entrust (C) pretend (D) react In the second example, we know that the phrase in green and the phrase in orange contrast because of the relationship word, “but.” Interpreting Relationship Words and Specific Details to Predict the Answer The final step before we assess our answer choices and pick the best answer is to use our understanding of the sentence’s relationship words along with the specific details they modify to interpret the meaning of the sentence: Given that “the journalist actively questioned the relevant viewpoints on both sides of the issue,” we can infer that the journalist is “unbiased” or “open-minded.” Given that “they rejected it” contrasts with what the company president “hoped” the board of directors would do, we can infer that the word in the blank should mean “approve” or “agree with.” Choosing an Answer Now that we’ve predicted our answers, the rest of the process is very similar to the finals steps of the Systematic Approach to Synonym questions: Do I know the definition of the capitalized word? If not: Do you recognize any word parts? If so, mark them and make your best guess at the definition. Does the word have a positive or negative connotation to you? If so, make a note by writing "+" or "-" Can I eliminate any of the answer choices? If a word has the opposite connotation of the capitalized word, eliminate it. If there are two answer choices that mean the same thing, eliminate them – they can’t both be the answer! Use your own estimated definitions to make a best guess! Reminders If you are very uncertain about your choice, circle or mark the question so you can come back to it if you have extra time. Do NOT spend too much time on any one question! You only get 30 seconds per question on average for Verbal Reasoning.	Show	Edit	Destroy

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