A strong pairing is "exhaustive" and "tentative/vague". "Although" signals a contrast between thorough detail and weak conclusions.
GRE Verbal Reasoning — Question Types & Strategy
GRE Verbal Reasoning has two sections with 27 questions in total (about 41 minutes). It tests how well you understand and reason with written English — analysing arguments, drawing conclusions and using precise vocabulary in context.
The section is section-adaptive: how you do on the first Verbal section sets the difficulty of the second.
The three Verbal question types
| Question type | What it asks |
|---|---|
| Reading comprehension | Understand, analyse and draw conclusions from a passage. |
| Text completion | Fill one to three blanks so the sentence is logical and coherent. |
| Sentence equivalence | Pick the TWO words that both fit and give the sentence the same meaning. |
Strategy that works
- For text completion, read the whole sentence for logical signals ("although", "because") before choosing words.
- For sentence equivalence, look for a matching pair of synonyms — there are always two correct answers.
- For reading comprehension, map the passage's argument and tone; answer from the text, not general knowledge.
- Build high-frequency academic vocabulary — it underpins all three question types.
- Use the mark-and-review tools to bank easy points first, then return to the hardest items.
Sample questions (original, in the GRE format)
Original examples in the official style — not real test items.
"Caustic" and "acerbic" — both mean sharply critical, matching "sparing no one." Always look for a synonym pair.
Frequently asked questions
Very — text completion and sentence equivalence rely on precise word meaning, and strong vocabulary also speeds up reading comprehension. Build high-frequency academic words steadily.
It is section-adaptive: your performance on the first Verbal section determines the difficulty of the second, which affects your score.
Two sections with 27 questions in total, in about 41 minutes on the shorter GRE.
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