4 Strategies To Learn GRE Vocabulary
If you’re a native English speaker or English is your second, third or fourth language, you may come across GRE vocabulary problems. As well as finding Sentence Equivalence (SE) and Text Completion (TC) challenging. According to a recent Poets&Quants article, here are four strategies to improve your score.
#1: Study the Quirks of English Idioms
According to Chelsey Cooley from Manhattan Prep, “As you review problems, you’ll learn other quirks of English... Whenever you run across an expression that seems to mean the opposite of what it says at first glance, make a flashcard and review it regularly. Your task isn’t to be perfect the first time—it’s to never be fooled the same way twice.”
#2: Context Matters
Often two words with very similar definitions in the English language are used in a very different context. The goal you need to set for yourself is to learn new words in context. According to Cooley, “Whenever you write down a new vocabulary word, also write a sentence or two that shows how to use the word correctly. Then try a Google search to see how real people are using it. If it’s almost always used in a specific situation, jot that down. And if you miss a problem because of a subtle aspect of context, add that to your flashcard about this word.”
You need to learn the particulars of how words are used to improve on this, not just how the dictionary defines them. This is a great resource to get better at GRE Text Completion and Sentence Equivalence problems.
#3: Study Academic Vocabulary
All of the major test prep companies have released vocabulary lists or flashcard decks. So do your research to find the best one suited to you. According to Cooley, “What’s harder is deciding how long of a vocabulary list you need. That depends on two things: How high of a score do you want and how much time do you have to study? Spend a week studying vocabulary for about 30 minutes a day, and then test yourself. How many new words have you really learned well? Aim to learn that many each week between now and a week or two before test day. (Spend that final week or two reviewing what you’ve already learned.)”
#4: Read from the Inside Out
When you’re taking the GRE, you shouldn’t approach each sentence word by word, reading from left to right. But try reading sentences from the inside out. What does that exactly mean? Cooley says, “Unpack the sentence, remove the trivial details, and get yourself down to the core and the clues.” Sometimes the structure and the logic of sentences are the same making the meaning or story easier to follow, but other times not.