Sentence completions require you to find the appropriate vocabulary word to complete the sentence.
How to do Sentence Completions
1. Read the sentence and look for words in the sentence to match the missing word. They are often adjectives.
The politician's speech was _____________, verbose and overblown.
a) erudite b) democratic c) bombastic d) dogmatic e) restrained
The key words in the sentence completion are verbose and overblown.
2. Now fill in the blank with your own word. Notice you have not read the answer choices yet!
So for this example, you might write "too wordy or overdone" in the blank.
3. Now look at the answer choices for a word that matches the word/phrases that you wrote in the blank.
The only word that means "verbose, overblown, too wordy, or overdone" is bombastic.
If you do not recognize bombastic, cross out the words that you know do not mean "too wordy." Then guess among the remaining choices. Move on to the next question.
See my podcast on Sentence Completions here.
How to do a Critical Reading section
1. First , read the italicized blurb (if there is one). You can get valuable clues about setting, main ideas, and author’s purpose here.
2. Now, read the passage to get the gist of the passage, not the details. In other words, don’t read in depth and don’t skim. Many students prefer to skim the passage because they cannot read the passage and finish the questions in the allotted time. If you cannot read the whole passage, then you should read the introduction and underline the main idea. Then skim the body paragraphs. Now read the conclusion and underline the key idea there.
3. Read the questions and translate them into your own words using “what or why.” Identify key words to help you find the location of the answer in the passage.
4. Now, go to the passage. Read a few lines above and below the indicated lines to find the answer. Put it in your own words. Return to the questions and find a paraphrase of your answer.
5. When you know an answer is wrong, cross it out, so you don’t keep re-reading it.
6. Avoid answer choices that
- re-state the opposite of what is said in passage
- are half-right, half wrong
- contain information not mentioned in the passage
- provide an extreme answer (answer contains words like "never, always, inevitably")
7. If you cannot find an answer, ask yourself if an answer should be negative, positive, or neutral in tone. Eliminate any answers that don’t fit your description.
8. Look for evidence for your answer choice in the passage. Look for an answer choice that rephrases the information in the passage.
9. Always eliminate answer choices, GUESS, and move on to the next question.