Verbal Classifications: Multiple or Other Parts of Speech - HSPT Verbal Skills

Each of the similar words here pertain to color or vision. The only word in this group that might cause confusion is “tone,” which could be interpreted in the auditory sense (“the tone of an instrument or a voice”) or as the general description of character (“the tone of the article; the tone of the discussion”). Still, there is a visual sense in which tone indicates the brightness of the color. While this world could be the one that does not match the others, the word “pungent” is completely outside the group of “visual” words, as it means a strong odor or taste. (Likely you have heard the expression, “A pungent aroma”).

Notice that each of the similar words pertains to something brief, immediate, or short-lived. Probably the only word that is a bit out of the ordinary among those provided is “blitz.” If you are an American football fan, you will know this word, but the original meaning (which is related) antedates the sport. It means “a quick and / or sudden attack.” The word is sometimes applied to the game of chess when moves must be made very quickly in sequence with little time between them. Something “prolonged” is neither blitz-like nor immediate (or any of the other related words).

All of the related words pertain to the state of being underfed or lacking food. To be famished is to be in a state of extreme hunger, and to be “malnourished” is to lack appropriate nutrients, either because lack of diet or at least lack of appropriate food intake. While someone who is starving is in a state of extremity—great difficulty and suffering—the word “extremity” can be applied to many other things than starving.

All of the “related” words appear to be rather unrelated. This mutual opposition should be a key, however. Note that regularity / irregularity as well as uniformity and being erratic all pertain to how some activity matches a pattern (or does not do so). The case of “schedule” merely describes a potential pattern. It is not an evaluation of the following thereof.

You may well have gotten this question correct because “psychological” appears quite less harmful than any of the other options listed; however, this is not the proper reason for that word not “fitting” with the others. Instead, each of these listed maladies are types of psychological disturbances. In distinction to this grouping, the word “psychological” is a broad category into which the others could be placed. It thus differs qualitatively from the other options.

The related set of words all pertain to some character trait that is identifying or at least rather unique. An idiosyncrasy is a character trait that is only had by a single person. If someone has a particular way clicking his or her tongue while talking, that could be called an idiosyncrasy. An oddity is something that is out of the ordinary—an odd person “just doesn’t fit in.” A quirk is an odd type of behavior or occurrence. Only “conventional” indicates something that is “normal” or generally known or accepted. A “societal convention” is a normal pattern of behavior that is found in some society as a whole.

All of the related words assert some sort of belief that there is meaning (or at least hope thereof). "Nihilism" generally means the state of believing that there is no meaning in the world or life. In comparison with this, being faithful or believing is quite different—for faith and belief of any type imply that some meaning is anticipated. Also, to be hopeful is to look for something to come about—which likewise signifies some hope of meaning. Certainly, meaningful is quite different than believing that there is no meaning at all.

Each of the related words here indicates something akin to a fad—a trend, style, or idea that is currently popular, though perhaps just for this moment. Such things come and go rather fluidly, as do whims. (To do something “on a whim” is to do so in response to a sudden change of opinion but not with any deep convictions). To be “in the vogue” is to be “fashionable right now.” Such things likely will be relegated to the time period of their popularity. When something is “novel,” however, it is merely being described as being new. While such a thing could perhaps be a mere fad, the word “novel” merely designates that the things is new and heretofore unheard of.

Each of the related words pertains to deep thought. A contemplative person is someone gives deep thought to matters. He or she might also be someone who is prayerful, but the word is used in this latter sense because it indicates a recollected state of thoughtfulness. The word “cogitation” is related to “recognize,” which literally means “to know again.” Cogitation is deep thought about something. To be “pensive” is to be reflective in temperament. It is related to the Latin word for “to weigh,” which is found in English words like “compensate” and “expensive.” When we compensate someone, we weight out how much they should receive in payment. Only the word religious does not necessarily indicate contemplativeness. This is not meant as an insult to religion, but is merely an observation that many can be called “religious” but not have a contemplative personality. Such persons can often do great charitable deeds, but this is not the same as being contemplative or pensive. This could or could not be the case, depending on the religious person in question.

All of the related words for this question pertain to leading or guiding. Likely the most troublesome word in this group is “conduct”—if you read it as being “somebody’s manner of acting;” however, remember that “conduct” can also mean “to lead” (as in a “conductor” who directs a train on its way or an orchestral conductor who leads an orchestra). Only “behavior” does not fit this group, for it is far too broad and does not signify leading in any explicit manner.

Each of the words in the set of related terms indicates something pertaining to the anatomy or the functioning of the human eye. This should be obvious in the cases of “retina,” “pupil,” and “lens.” The likely difficulty for this problem is making a distinction between “optical” and “visionary.” The word “optical” most often is used to describe something that is related to sight. An “optical illusion” is a trick of sight (caused by the bending of light rays). Similarly, an "optometrist" is an "eye doctor” focusing on the correcting of vision. While the word “visionary” likely seems equivalent to “visual,” it really indicates something or someone who can metaphorically see things in the future with great imagination and often in a way that notices trends before they happen. This is not directly connected with physical vision or the physical eye as are the other words.

The set of related words all indicate something that pertains to someone’s energy level. A sluggish or languid person is slow and lacks energy. In contrast, someone who is “ebullient” is full or energy (and perhaps cheerful in a “bubbly” way). A vibrant personality is one that is enthusiastic and energetic. To speak of “concentration” does not necessarily indicate anything (one way or the other) pertaining to energy. It is therefore the word that is not related to the others.

First, observe that all of these words pertain to being different in some manner. Still, there is a distinction between being “opposite” and being merely “different.” Two things can differ by a mere degree—as bright green differs from a hue of green that is slightly less bright. Two such things would definitely not be opposite each other (at least in any meaningful manner of speaking). The other related words all express the same sense of opposition. Two “antithetical” things are completely opposed. You might say something like, “Paul was the utter antithesis of Sally. While she was extremely disciplined and rigid, he was lax and quite slovenly.” Two “contrary” things are opposed. To say, “On the contrary” is synonymous with saying, “In opposition to the previous point.” Finally, two “inversed” things are opposed.

Note that all of these words pertain to being bad or unacceptable in some way; however, the wrong options all indicate being bad in some very strong way. “Turpitude” is depravity or wickedness. To be “depraved” is to be greatly perverse or wicked. A sociopath is someone who has such bad morals that he or she cannot even function in society. Something “vile” is very disgusting, and, when applied to moral matters, very bad or wicked. In comparison with all of these, “bad” is much weaker.

It might be tempting in this question to be distracted by “blaze” and “ablaze,” the latter being an adjective form of the former; however, note that all the words—including “ablaze”—describe the state of being on fire; however, the incorrect answers all share the fact that they all pertain to strong or large fires. In contrast to this, the simple case of “fire” is much weaker and thus differs from the rest of the words.

All of these words pertain to closeness and could be read merely as applying to spatial closeness. The “vicinity” of something is the area around it. The word comes from the Latin for “neighbor.” The word “proximate” does mean “close” but it can be used more strictly in the sense of being the closest thing in space or time. Since all of our words have this general sense of being close, this one stronger word is the one that does not fit with the others.

The four related words all indicate the state of being aware of something, though none of them indicate anything more than the awareness itself (or at least do not indicate deep awareness). The word “comprehensive” means complete and thorough, and thus does not allign with the meaning of the four related words.

The set of related words all indicate some sort of damaging remark that someone can make. To cast “aspersions” on others is to attack that person’s reputation. A denigrating remark is one that is unfairly critical. When someone defames another person, he or she damages that person’s reputation. A slanderous statement is a spoken statement that is false and intentionally damaging. By contrast, to “magnify” someone is to praise him or her greatly.

The similar words indicate something related to aiding or helping. The word “alleviate” means “to make lighter or to remove.” (“Levity” means “light-hearted humor.” Likewise, the word “relieve” is related to the same root meaning “to make lighter or remove”). When something is “detrimental,” it is harmful or at least tends to cause harm. This is quite the opposite of the other words pertaining to helping and thus does not fit with the rest of the group.