How to Build a Vocabulary for the GRE Exam
Trying to build vocabulary for the GRE exam? Follow these tips to find the best vocabulary building resources online, get a sneak peak into nitch words the GRE testmakers love, and find fun ways to keep learning and building your GRE vocabulary.
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Instructions
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KNOW THE VERBAL SECTION QUESTION FORMATS: The test will have sections on analogies, antonyms, sentence completion and reading comprehension. Visit http://www.ets.org/Media/Tests/GRE/pdf/011499.GRE.pdf for a comprehensive discussion of each question format and strategies for approaching them. You will need to identify words in isolation as well as within a textual context, be able to differentiate a word's definition from other words with similar meanings, and demonstrate an understanding of the relationships between different words and concepts.
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EMMERSE YOURSELF IN VOCABULARY LEARNING: Use the resources below to tackle vocabulary building through several different mediums, from word lists, to flashcards, to web-based vocabulary quizzes.
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FOCUS ON COMMONLY CONFUSED WORDS AND LESSER KNOWN DEFINITIONS: GRE test makers love to present words with common definitions --and use them in the context of a lesser known definition! Give some special attention to these words, as well as words that are commonly confused or misused. Wikipedia provides a great list to get you started (see resources below).
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INVEST IN ONE (OR MORE!) TEST PREP BOOKS. Test Prep guides are an affordable way to increase your knowledge of the GRE test and take a targeted look at each test section. While it may be tempting to snag up a friend's two year old copy, this is one area where it makes sense to get the latest edition. Incremental changes are made to the test each year. Test books will prepare you to anticipate exactly what kinds of questions you will encounter on the GRE verbal section, so you won't waste valuable test taking time trying to figure out a question's format. There are many good GRE guides out there, but the Princeton Review's Cracking the GRE has fared a cut above the rest in reviews (see link below).
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Resources
- Cracking the GRE with DVD, 2009 Edition on Amazon.com
- Printable Word Lists at Soundkeepers.com
- Free Rice Vocabulary Program
- www. Greguide.com (Comprehensive Word Lists and Fun Quizzes)
- www.ets.org Free GRE Practice Tests
- Commonly Misused English Words (From Wikipedia)
- How to Stay Current with Political Jargon Terms
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Comments
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Rhonda Browning White
Jan 15, 2009
An excellent article. Thanks for the links above! -
chava812
Dec 18, 2008
Good stuff - you might want to doublecheck the spelling of a few words and some punctuation - things spell check would not have caught got through (e.g., "since" instead of "sense") Word to the students - don't rely on Microsoft to know best. Consult a REAL dictionary.
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Rob McKelvie
Dec 18, 2008
This is good stuff. Vocabulary is of critical importance, whether going to grad school or not. Anyone can benefit from your resources. Thanks and 5*!
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Rob McKelvie
Dec 18, 2008
This is good stuff. Vocabulary is of critical importance, whether going to grad school or not. Anyone can benefit from your resources. Thanks and 5*!
