Verbal Reasoning : Similar Meanings (Type S)

The Similar Meanings question type requires you to select the correct word from 5 given options. Your selected word must in one way or another (through meaning) link back to 2 groups of words you will be given. Each group will have its own meaning that it shares, you have to find one word that can fit both groups.

It is fine for the meaning of the word you select to change depending on the group of words you are looking at – in some scenarios that is exactly what you should be looking for.

This is generally because some words have multiple meanings which change based on how you use them – for example if I say draft when I am talking about wind then I mean a current or push of wind.

If I say draft when I talk about essays then I mean an unfinished essay either being written or submitted for revision. So very quickly we can see that words do have multiple meanings even though they may look or sound the same.

You need to be ready to apply this understanding and this, first of all, requires a strong grasp of the English language as well as understanding of context. Context is the background or the other words being used in a sentence, which includes your target word, and how that affects its definition.

It is important to know that because context is the background to something, and background influences the use of the word which then changes the meaning – that background could be anything. Here are the most common contexts you’ll come across which will change meaning:

• Colour
• Environment
• Money
• Time
• Distance
• Size
• Clarity
• Opposites
• Creation / Activity
• Emotions
• Change
• Movement

The most practical way of getting exposure to words with the contextual background of the things mentioned above is by having it in your day to day conversation and build up your natural confidence.

To improve your English language, definitions and the use of words must not only be learnt, but practised and applied to make sure that it is easy for you to process, and help you understand the change in the use of words and their meanings.

This is a key skill required for this question type, but there are also other skills that this question type seeks to test these include:

• Knowledge of English vocabulary, definitions and uses
• Awareness of multiple meanings regardless of pronunciation
• Identification of themes and links based on definitions
• Review of existing themes and relationships – why are 2 words grouped together?
• Test and trialing words based on their suitability and their fit for each group
• Systematic and logical approach in order to find the word which fits the needs of both groups
• Filtering out words which aren’t relevant or similar

There are 3 main components in getting to the answer to this question, these are:

1. Being able to understand the theme / main meaning for each group of words given to you – ask what links them, what makes them similar?
2. Selecting a word which reflects the theme / main meaning for the group of words
3. Identifying a word with multiple meanings so it can fit within the context or theme / main meaning of 2 separate groups

What does the Similar Meanings Question Type Look Like?

As you can see from the Gaggle example below the Similar Meanings question type is in the following format:

• General example with instructions
• 2 groups of words
• 5 words to select from
• 1 mark per question
• Multiple choice options on the answer sheet

How do I answer this question?

It is absolutely vital that you regularly and, as thoroughly as you can, practise your English vocabulary. The key to being confident in this question type is knowing your English words, their definitions and their uses especially in different situations / contexts.

Very quickly you’ll begin to pick up how definitions and meanings change in different situations or next to different sets of words and you will also begin to group words based on their similarities.

These groupings and meanings will only ever become stronger for you so it is always good to start early. To build a theme you need to know the meanings of the words in each group to see how they are similar to each other.

This awareness of language both definitions, multiple meanings and groupings will all come together in this question type and help you quickly identify your answers. After you build a strong foundation in English vocabulary you can go on to apply a process which you can regularly practise, memorise and easily apply in order to help you get to your answer systematically.

REMEMBER : Words have multiple meanings. What this means for you is that the one word you select which fits into Group 1 and Group 2 can mean different things because of the other words it is grouped with.

Do not worry about making sure the word means the same for both Groups, it shouldn’t the word must mean different things for either group.

Now lets see what this process looks like:

1. Identify the 2 groups of words which your answer needs to match
2. Identify the 5 options that you have and read each word
3. Start by reading Group 1
   1. What does each word mean?
   2. In what way are they the same?
4. Now read Group 2
   1. What does each word mean?
   2. In what way are they the same?
5. You should now go through each word in the 5 options and do the following process of elimination:
   1. Read the word, does it fit the theme / meaning of Group 1
   2. If it doesn’t eliminate the word
   3. If it does fit the theme / meaning of Group 1, now check to see if it will fit the meaning of Group 2 (remember multiple meanings)
   4. If it doesn’t fit the meaning of Group 1 and Group 2, eliminate the word
   5. If it does fit the meaning of both Groups, that is your answer
6. Now sometimes you may find yourself in the position where you have:
   1. More than 1 word selected but the words don’t fit into both groups you need to pick one word that can fit into both groups
   2. More than 1 word that you think can fit into BOTH groups you need to choose the most relevant in meaning
   3. For any other issues really dig down into the meanings of the words and identify the word which you feels the same as Group 1 and Group 2

Working Example

Now we should have a strong grasp of English vocabulary and word definitions. As well as this, we understand that words can have multiple meanings and, when it comes to this question type, the word we choose must change in meaning somehow to fit the overall meaning or theme of each group.

We also have a thought-out process which will systematically eliminate words and get us to the correct answer, lets apply it to our working example.

Question 1

(SECOND, HOUR) (SMALL, TINY)

REGAL, WHOLE, TIMED, MINUTE, LITTLE

First of all there are 2 word groups, lets split them up.

Group 1 : SECOND, HOUR

Group 2 : SMALL, TINY

It is important to understand the similarities in each group of words so we can then match our options to those similarities and meanings so:

Group 1 : Is about time e.g. SECOND and HOUR

Group 2 : Is about size e.g. SMALL and TINY

There are 2 clear and distinct themes coming from each group.

Now I have established a meaning / theme for each group, let me walk through each of the 5 options and see if I can find one that fits Group 1.

First option : REGAL

REGAL is to do with the monarchy, queens and kings so it is not something that fits with the theme of Group 1 so I will eliminate it.

Second option : WHOLE

WHOLE is to do with completeness and Group 1 is about time so I will eliminate it.

Third option : TIMED

TIMED although isn’t a specific element of time or a clock is still to do with the Group 1 theme, which is time.

Now I have a potential answer let me see if TIMED fits with Group 2 – remember multiple meanings.

Group 2 is about size, I can quickly see that TIMED doesn’t have any other meanings which allow it to fit with the theme of Group 2, so I will have to eliminate it and move on.

Fourth option : MINUTE

MINUTE is an element of time just like SECOND and HOUR so it fits perfectly with the Group 1 theme of time.

Now I have to check whether it fits with the Group 2 theme of size.

So MINUTE can also be used with a different meaning as an adjective. This is to describe something as really small or smaller than small for example the minute toad.

Now that I have identified a word which fits into both Group 1 and Group 2 (through multiple meanings and my background vocab knowledge) and also eliminated the other words, I can confirm my answer on the answering sheet.

ANSWER : MINUTE