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The support of 11+ tutors, independent school teachers, test writers and specialist authors has ensured that all
books in this essential new range are accessible, engaging and provide exceptional preparation.
■
Handy contents pages double as progress records to easily track progression throughout the course
■
No prior knowledge of verbal reasoning required, chapter introductions link the skills with work already covered
in English and maths lessons
■
Clear chapter headings divide revision into manageable chunks
Verbal Reasoning
■
Covers all skills and question types that could be encountered in
pre-tests and 11+ independent school exams
■
Includes helpful insight into the exams, with practical tips and advice
■
Includes topics such as constructing words, understanding word
meaning, working with numbers and algebra, and developing logic skills
11+ Verbal Reasoning
STUDY AND REVISION GUIDE
■
Practise extensively with over 300 questions in each book
■
Develop problem-solving skills and techniques
■
Improve speed in answering questions
Verbal Reasoning
workbooks
■
Perfect exam technique with a variety of exam-paper styles under
timed conditions
■
Identify weaker areas and improve results with detailed model
answers and commentary
■
Help children to improve their response rates with timed papers
11+ Verbal Reasoning
practice papers
Verbal Reasoning
Contents and progress record
Use this page to plot your revision. Colour in the boxes when you feel confident with the skill and
note your score and time for each test in the boxes.
l
How to use this book
5
l
Find the hidden word ..................................
12
l
Move a single letter .....................................
14
l
Find a common letter .................................
16
l
Join the words ..............................................
18
l
Find the missing letters .............................
20
l
Test 1 ...............................................................
22
l
Synonyms and antonyms .........................
26
l
Spot the difference ....................................
28
l
Word analogies ............................................
30
l
Match the meaning ...................................
32
l
Choose a word to fit a space ...................
34
l
Complete the sentence ............................
36
l
Definitions in context ...............................
38
l
Order the sentence ....................................
40
l
Anagrams and word meaning .................
42
l
Test 2 ..............................................................
44
1
Contructing words
2
Understanding word meaning
/ 40
/ 20
:
:
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11+ Verbal Reasoning Study and Revision Guide –
Contents and progress record
10
1
Constructing words
Introduction
As itsname suggests, this chapter is all about
wordbuilding
.Youwill learn to
findhiddenwords
in sentences andbe shownhow to
find common letters
that complete twounfinishedwords.
Otherquestionswill test your knowledgeofhowwords are constructed as you join two short
words together to
build longerwords
.
As you work through this book you will see these ladders appear. In this chapter you are
working through the skills at the bottom of the ladder, and by the end of the book you will
have reached the top!
The Learning ladders arehere to show youhow theseunfamiliarquestions are actually testing
skills you alreadyhave, just in a slightlydifferentway.The verbal reasoningquestions in this
chapter are trying tofindout if youunderstand
howwordsareput together
by looking at your
basic skills in
word reading
,
spelling
and
vocabulary
(shown at thebottomof the ladders).
Readingwillalwaysbe themosteffectivewayofbroadeningyourchild’svocabularyand
improving their spelling.Themore they read,themorewords theyencounterand theeasier they
willfindquestionsof thiskind,which requireanability to recognisea realwordwhen they seeone.
Advice for parents
Logic
VERBALREASONING
LEARNING LADDER
Applyingalgebra skills
Workingwithnumbersandalgebra
Understandingwordmeaning
2
incontext
Understandingwordmeaning
1
word level
Constructingwords
Editingandevaluating
own compositions
Literaryanalysisand
appraisalofwriters’work
Writing formeaning
andeffect
Using inferenceand
deduction
Planninganddrafting
text
Summarisingand
retrieving information
ENGLISH
LEARNING LADDER
Featuresofdifferent
genres
Understanding the
structureandpurpose
of texts
Comprehensionskills
Writing skills
Grammarand
punctuation
Understandingword
meaning in context
Transcription
andvocabulary
Word reading
and spelling
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26
2 Understandingwordmeaning
Synonyms and antonyms
Skilldefinition:
tofind twowords closest inmeaning (synonyms),ormostopposite in
meaning (antonyms)
Find twowords,one from each set, that aremost similar inmeaning.
(slip, jump, lead) (skip, slide, step)
slip
slide
Synonymandantonymquestionsaskyou tofindwordswith
similar
or
opposite
meaning.These
questions comeupvery frequently inverbal reasoning testsandareasked in lotsofdifferentways.
The example above showsoneof themost common typesofquestion and the ‘Try’questions
opposite show another type.Youmight alsobe asked tofindmissing letters in a cluewordor
even to choosewords from a grid.Butdon’tbeputoffby theway thequestions are asked– the
problems are still the same!
Mostquestions should containwords that you are likely to know as you arebeing testedon your
skills in
comparingwords
,more thanwhatdifficultwordsmean.
The skill in answering thesequestions is to really concentrateon the
kindofwords
you are
looking atbefore you start. Is theword anoun, verb, adjective, adverbor someother classof
word?Youwillfind that thewords you are looking forwill
alwayscome from thesamewordclass.
But think carefullybefore you chooseyour answer– sometimeswordshavemore thanone
meaning! For example: ‘fly’, ‘shed’ and ‘flap’ arebothnouns and verbs and sowillhave two
differentmeanings (thesewords are called
homonyms
), e.g. as a verb, ‘fly’meanshow abird
travels through the air;fly–noun is a typeof insect.Thesewordswithdoublemeanings are
often clues to the answer.
Method
l
Consider the kindofwords that appear in the followingquestion. Finding twowords from the
sameword class should reveal the answer.
(big,
glide,
cart)
(rabbit,
large,
take)
adjective verb
noun
noun
adjective
verb
l
The verbs ‘glide’ and ‘take’donotmean the same,nordo thenouns ‘cart’ and ‘rabbit’, so the
answer is straightforward: ‘big’ and ‘large’ areboth adjectiveswith similarmeanings.
l
Now look at the example at the topof thepage.
Somewords couldbeused either asnouns
or verbs: for example:
slip– to slip (verb)
a slipofpaper (noun)
slide– to slide (verb)
playon a slide (noun)
l
But ifyou take ‘slip’ as a verb, it is similar inmeaning to ‘slide’ as a verb. So this is the
correct answer.
Somesynonymsorantonyms
mayappearwithinthesame
brackets–thesecannotbe
selected.Alwayschooseoneword
fromeachbracket.
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27
Synonyms and antonyms
Somequestions ask you tofind
antonyms
rather than synonyms. In thesequestions you are
looking forwords that are the
mostopposite
inmeaning.The answer to thesequestionswill
also come from the sameword class. For example:
(dreaming,
ride,
asleep
)
(drive,
bed,
waking
)
verb
verb
adverb/adjective
verb/noun
noun
adjective
l
‘asleep’and ‘waking’areopposite inmeaningandarebothadjectives, so this is thecorrectanswer.
Sometimesmore than twowordsmay seemquite similar, forexample:
mend,repair, improve.
Youwillneed to think carefullyabout thesewords.Although theyareallverbs,and theyall
meanmaking somethingbetter,only ‘mend’and ‘repair’ involve something that isdamaged.
Tricky skill
Train
1
Can you thinkof two antonyms and two synonyms for the followingword?
difficult
antonyms:
synonyms:
Try
Find theword thatmeans theopposite,ornearly theopposite,of theboldword.Circle the
letterbeneath the correct answer.
praise
reward preach raise criticise practise
a
b
c
d
e
2
rise
smooth fall
twist
sun
rose
a
b
c
d
e
3
slight
small
weight large
trivial
tumble
a
b
c
d
e
4
hinder
trouble forest
interfere criticise assist
a
b
c
d
e
Test
Find twowords,one from each set, that aremost similar inmeaning.Circle thewords.
5
(push, go, send)
(hold, pull, shove)
6
(break, reveal, miss)
(hide, snap, free)
7
(fearful, doubtful, calm)
(scream, anxious, dangerous)
Test time:
02:30
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11+ Verbal Reasoning
Study and Revision
Guide – Learning Ladder
for Chapter 1
11+ Verbal Reasoning Study and Revision Guide –
Chapter 2: Understanding word meaning
Te l :
0 2 0 3 1 2 2 6 4 0 5
I
V i s i t :
g a l o r e p a r k . c o . u k
Te l :
0 2 0 3 1 2 2 6 4 0 5
I
V i s i t :
g a l o r e p a r k . c o . u k
11+ REVISION & PRACTICE
Children can read about the skills
and follow an example either
individually or with a teacher
Learning ladders show how skills in verbal
reasoning link to familiar areas of English and
maths children have l arne in sc ool
tricky skill
12
2
Understanding word meaning
Synonyms and antonyms 1
Insert letters in the gap to complete thewordon the right so it is an antonymornearly an
antonymof thewordon the left.
available
t a
n
Have a go
Having a good vocabulary is really important.Thisquestion type tests your knowledgeof
antonyms and synonyms.Draw linesbetween thewordson the left and thewordson the
right tomatch thewords that areoppositeor closest inmeaning.Here are some fairly simple
ones to get you started.
1
eager
incomplete
2
unworthy
small
3
sharp
sensible
4
whole
unenthusiastic
5
talkative
tone
6
foolish
deserving
7
miniature
rounded
8
shade
reserved
Now try these.There aremorewords tomatch and themeanings are trickier so take your
time and think carefully!
9
purity
sparing
10
outstanding
caring
11
slovenly
unkind
12
callous
optimistic
13
assemble
careful
14
malevolent
contamination
15
cynical
disperse
16
economical
mediocre
k e
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13
Synonymsandantonyms1
Howdid you geton?Could youmatchup all thepairsof antonyms?
Test yourself
Insert letters in the gaps to complete thewordon the right so it is an antonymornearly an
antonymof thewordon the left.Write themissing letterson the linesprovided.
1
hollow
s
i
(1)
2
beginner
p e r
(1)
3
lethargic
a
t i
(1)
4
lonely
ro
ed
(1)
5
rigid
up
e
(1)
6
probable
i k
l y
(1)
7
urge
d
t
(1)
8
impartial
i
s
d
(1)
9
solid
r
y
(1)
10
obvious
h id
n
(1)
Try it out
It isuseful to know synonyms too,and sometimes knowingmore thanone synonym for a
word canhelp you to answer verbal reasoningquestions.Try to thinkof three synonyms for
eachof thesewords:
1
immense
2
minute
3
commence
4
harmless
5
prance
Score
/10
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Verbal Reasoning Workbook Age 9–11 – Chapter 2:
Understanding word meaning
11+ Verbal Reasoning Practice Papers 1 – Paper 3
16
Paper 3
Threeof thewords in the list are related to eachother in someway.Find theword that
is
not
linked to theothers.Follow the example to answer thequestions, thenwrite the
wordon the lineprovided.
shred
grate
grill
mince
grill
1
gloomy
bleak
grim
grace
2
field
fence
pasture
meadow
3
nearby
adjacent distant
close
4
peace
segment section
piece
5
catch
grasp
seize
drop
6
pitch
sound
key
tone
7
volleyball
cricket
badminton hockey
8
march
plod
travel
stomp
9
diary
journal
article
journey
10
sluggish
swift
fast
rapid
Insert letters in the gaps to complete thewordon the right so that it is an antonymor
nearly an antonymof thewordon the left.Follow the example to answer thequestions,
thenwrite themissing letterson the linesprovided.
available
t a
n
k e
11
easy
dif
ult
12
relax
ti
en
13
smooth r
gh
14
bent
st
ght
15
uncouth c
v li
e
Read the sentence and answer thequestion.Follow the example, thenwriteyour
answeron the lineprovided.
The icy surfacewashazardous.
Whatdoes ‘hazardous’mean?
Hazardous means dangerous.
16
Parrots can imitatehumanswhen they talk.
Whatdoes ‘imitate’mean?
17
Thepoliceofficer apprehended the felon.
Whatdoes ‘apprehended’mean?
18
Theboywas vindictive anddetermined to settle the grudge.
Whatdoes ‘vindictive’mean?
Test time:27minutes
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Complete exam-style questions
Test yourself
Children can try using
their new skills
try it out
Children can try these activities
to build their skills
Have a go
1 3
1 2
The age overlap covered by the workbooks means the ‘leap’ in
difficulty is less noticeable, and therefore more easily managed.
[The range] also helps boost confidence (which plays no small
part in success in these exams). -
Galore Park Customer