Word-Based Sentence Completions - ISEE Lower Level Verbal Reasoning

We can infer from the sentence that the child really liked her security blanket, because she "took it wherever she went" and "snuggl\[ed\] it every so often to convey how much she treasured it." So, we need to pick out an answer choice that is a verb that means something like "treasured." "Despised" cannot be the correct answer, then, because despised means "felt contempt or a deep repugnance for," making it an antonym of "treasured." "Cherished," however, is a verb that can mean "hold something dear," and because "cherished" is the answer choice that best describes the child's attachment to her security blanket, it is the correct answer.

We need to pick out a word that means something like "coax," because we know that the spy used flattery to get the governor to tell him the secrets. "Wheedle" is a verb that means "employ endearments or flattery to persuade someone to do something or give one something," and when used with an object ("wheedle something out of") like in the sentence, "coax or persuade someone to say or give something." Of the possible answer choices, "wheedle" best describes how the spy used flattery to obtain the secrets from the governor, so "wheedle" is the correct answer.

We can infer from the sentence that we need to pick out an answer choice that describes movement and means something like "flew" or "took," because the stuntman's jetpack takes him "high into the sky, and straight into a cloud." So, "sank" cannot be the correct answer, because while it describes movement, "sank" specifically describes downward movement, which wouldn't make sense in the sentence's context. "Propelled," however, is a verb that means "drove, pushed, or caused to move in a particular direction, typically forward," and because "propelled" best describes the how the stuntman's jetpack caused him to move into the sky, "propelled" is the correct answer.

We know that the janitor's job involves "tasks like watering the flowers, mowing the front lawn, and removing weeds from the stone path," so we can infer that he keeps the building in good condition. So, we need to pick out a verb that means something like "keep in good condition." That means that "ruin" cannot be the correct answer, because "ruin" is an antonym of "keep in good condition." "Maintain," however, is a verb that means "keep (a building, machine, or road) in good condition or in working order by checking or repairing it regularly," and because "maintain" best describes the janitor's job, "maintain" is the correct answer.

We can infer that the race car driver's car paused for ten seconds at the starting line, so we need to pick out an answer choice that means something like "paused." "Drove" and "zoomed" may each be words associated with racing and cars, but neither can be the correct answer because they are each an antonym of "paused." "Stalled," however, is a verb that when used of a motor vehicle or its engine, means "stop running, typically because of an overload on the engine." So, "stalled" is the correct answer because it best fits the context of the sentence.

Because of the phrase "during the conversation," we can infer that we need to pick out an answer choice that means something like "have a conversation with." "Ignore," then, cannot be the correct answer, because "ignore" is an antonym of "have a conversation with." "Interact," however, is a verb that means "act in such a way as to have an effect on another; act reciprocally," or in other words, "to talk or do things with other people," so "interact" is the correct answer because it best describes how the robots can converse with humans and best fits the context of the sentence.

We can infer that Jaime thought that his cat had eaten all of his Halloween candy, because "it turned out that it was his sister, not his cat, who had eaten it." So, we need to pick out an answer choice that means something like "ate." "Coughed up," then, cannot be the correct answer because "coughed up" is an antonym of "ate." "Ingested," however, means "took (food, drink, or another substance) into the body by swallowing or absorbing it," and because "ingested" best describe how Jaime thought his cat ate his Halloween candy, "ingested" is the correct answer.

We know that the party Lauren was excited about was canceled until the next week because of the weather, so we need to pick out a verb that means "reschedule for a later date." "Held," then, cannot be the correct answer, because if the party had been held, it would not have been canceled, and we know it was canceled. "Postponed," however, is a verb that means "caused or arranged for (something) to take place at a time later than that first scheduled," and because "postponed" best describes how the party was rescheduled, "postponed" is the correct answer.

We can infer from the sentence that we need to pick out a verb that means something like "cough up something that has been eaten." So, "imbibe" cannot be the correct answer because "imbibe" means "drink," and the sentence is talking about food, and specifically a bird coughing food back up after it has eaten it. "Regurgitate," a verb that means "bring (swallowed food) up again to the mouth," best describes how the birds cough up food they have eaten to feed their young, so "regurgitate" is the correct answer.

"Tenacity" means the quality of sticking to doing something, no matter what happens. A gymnast completing her routine while injured shows tenacity. "Stupidity" doesn't work in context with "amazing" (see sentence). "Cowardice" and "sleepiness" don't make sense in the sentence either; "cowardice" means timidity or fear and is the opposite of "tenacity."

The town's residents highly desire rainfall in their area because there has been a scarcity of rain in the recent past, so we are looking for an answer choice that describes a deficiency of rain. The best answer choice is "drought," which means a prolonged period of abnormally low rainfall.

Being the first African-American in the MLB, Jackie Robinson paved the way for future players of diverse backgrounds to play professional baseball. "Pioneer," defined as a person who is an early leader in a certain area, is the best answer choice.

Mayor de Blasio won the election by a substantial number of votes, so the best answer choice is "landslide," defined as an overwhelming majority of votes for one candidate in an election.

This question is one in which filling in the blank with each answer is useful for finding the best word for the sentence. "Exercise" and "solution" don't make sense in the context of the mom's busy, hectic day. "Interruption" sort of works, but as it means a pause without necessarily implying rest, it doesn't quite fit. A "breather" is a break, or a rest. The busy mom needs a rest, so "breather" is the best answer choice and the correct answer.

The sentence tells us that Bell is widely perceived to be the inventor of the telephone, but some believe that his idea may not have been original. The best answer choice is "controversy," which is an argument among people who strongly disagree with one another.

"Composure" is calmness and self-control of personal emotions. In the context of this sentence, a person who was upset would want to calm herself before talking to a teacher.

We know that the word that fits the blank describes a science project that the students want to work on together, so we need to pick out a word that can refer to academic projects and means "work together on something." While "collaborate on" and "copy" could both be used in relation to academic projects, "copy" cannot be the correct answer because copying a project would be cheating, and so we can infer that the students wouldn't ask their teacher's permission to cheat. However, "collaborate on" makes sense in the sentence's context because "collaborate" means "work jointly on an activity, especially to produce or create something," so "collaborate" is the correct answer.

We know that Nigel "offer\[ed\] his sister half of his ice cream sandwich as an apology," so we need to pick out a word for the blank that means something like "gave something to someone in order to apologize." "Compensated" is a verb that means ": to give money or something else of value to someone in return for something (such as work) or as payment for something lost or damaged," so it is the correct answer because it best fits the sentence's context.

The key to this sentence is noting that the driver was new and therefore presumably jerky in his movements. Thus, the new driver probably lurched foward.