Analogies

The word boards may be a verb meaning gets into or a noun describing the lumber from which rowboats are constructed. The best answer is C gets on : bus. The choices make clear that boards is a verb. The relationship between boards and rowboat is the same as the relationship between gets on and bus.

The best answer is D map : atlas. The sentence you could have used is “A recipe is found in a cookbook.” You could then have tried each of the choices. A a letter is found in a secretary. No, that’s incorrect. B a formula is found in a chemist. No, that’s incorrect. C a blueprint is found in a building. Possibly, but not usually. D a map is found in an atlas. Absolutely! E a prescription is found in a pharmacy. Possibly, but not necessarily. Another, possibly better, sentence is “A recipe is contained in a cookbook” and “A map is contained in an atlas.”

The best answer is B football : sport. In this case, you might say to yourself, “A sonnet is a type of literature” and therefore recognize that the relationship is between an example and the larger category. Now, doing the same thing with the answer choices, you will find that the correct answer, B, shows the same relationship. Football is a type of sport. This sentence can be expressed as “Sonnet is to literature in the same way as football is to sport.”

The best choice is C formless : shape. Your sentence should go something like this: “An anonymous person or thing is lacking a name.” Choice C is best because it correctly completes the sentence: “Anonymous describes the lack of a name in the same way as formless describes the lack of shape.”

The best choice is B paw : cat. Using the sentence “Hand is a part of a man” eliminates choices D and E, but is not specific enough to get the right answer. Choice A “Tail is a part of a dog,” choice B “Paw is a part of a cat,” and choice C “Bumper is a part of a car,” are all possibilities with this general sentence. But if you make the sentence more specific, such as: “Hand is a part of a man that is used for grasping,” then choices A and C can be eliminated.

In this case, you may say to yourself, “Oratory is a specific kind of communication” and thus recognize that the relationship here is between specific and general. This strategy eliminates all the choices except C and E. A more precise or specific sentence that would lead you to the best answer is, “Oratory is always a specific and typical kind of communication.” Is choice E cursing always a specific and typical kind of crime? No. Is choice C dancing always a specific and typical kind of recreation? Yes. Notice that cursing is not necessarily a crime. Dancing is necessarily a recreation. Therefore, C dancing : recreation is the best choice.

The best choice is D infection : antibiotic. A headache may be cured by an aspirin, and an infection may be cured by an antibiotic. Though quinine is taken to prevent or to reduce the symptoms of malaria, the order of the two terms reverses that of the original pair. Remember that maintaining the order given in your original sentence “a headache may be cured by an aspirin” is key.

The best choice is D sailor : lighthouse. A sleeper is warned by a smoke alarm in the same way as a sailor is warned by a lighthouse. Choice C is incorrect because the order is reversed.

The best choice is D pistol : holster. A quiver is a case for holding an arrow; the closest parallel is holster, which is the case that holds a pistol. Notice that, in this situation, it is probably easier to make a sentence starting from the second word. Just remember that each of your sentences for this question must then be consistent and start from the second word.

Perjury is the opposite of truth. This sentence shows that the primary relationship between the original words is one of opposites.
Beyond this primary relationship, you must consider secondary relationships. First, notice that perjury is an unlawful act. Second, notice that, considering more specifically the relationship of perjury to truth, you may conclude that perjury is a violation of truth. Scanning the answer choices, you see that treason is the opposite of loyalty and that courage is the opposite of cowardice. However, only choice B presents a relationship in which the first term is an unlawful act and in which the first term is a violation of the second. Thus, taking the secondary relationships of the original pair fully into account, you should conclude that B treason : loyalty is the best choice.

The best choice is E penalty : fouling. “Speeding can cause you to get a fine.” This sentence tells you that the original relationship is between two actions. The primary relationship is that the second action causes the first. Choices A, “retiring can cause you to get a watch,” B, “achieving can cause you to get a certificate,” and D, “working can cause you to get a payment,” are all second actions that could ultimately cause the first action. But the secondary relationship to consider is that speeding is illegal and is punishable by a fine. This secondary relationship helps you focus on the important specifics needed for the right answer: choice E, “fouling can cause you to get a penalty,” and “fouling is illegal by the governing rules and is punishable by a penalty.”

The best choice is D slander : reputation. “To vandalize is to destroy property.” This sentence tells you that the original relationship is between an action and its object: Property is the object of vandalism. Beyond this primary relationship, you must consider secondary relationships. First, notice that destruction is the object of vandalism. Second, notice that it is unlawful destruction. Scanning the choices, you see that to judge can destroy (condemn to death) a murderer; to criticize can destroy (by discouraging) creativity; and courage can (under certain conditions) destroy villainy. But in none of these choices - A, B, or E - is the relationship between the terms typically or necessarily one of destruction. In choice C, to incinerate necessarily destroys combustibles (flammable objects); and in choice D, slander typically destroys reputation. So both of these are possible choices. However, only one of them refers to a typically unlawful act as well, choice D. Thus, taking the secondary relationships of the original pair fully into account, you should conclude that D is the best choice.

The best choice is C surprising : shocking. Even if you didn’t know the meaning of the second word, blaring, and therefore couldn’t make a sentence, you could still get the right answer. Notice that blaring is a harsh or extreme word. The only second word that is harsh or extreme is shocking. Blaring is the extreme of loud in the same way that shocking is the extreme of surprising. So if you didn’t know the relationship between the original words, or even the meaning of the words, you could get the right answer by using this strategy to make an educated guess.

The best choice is A skimming : reading. Notice that the original pair of words, tasting and eating, are from the category of food, and notice that three of the choices, B, C, and D, have words from the same category. But you are looking for the words that have the same relationship as the original pair, not words from the same category. Tasting is to eat or drink in small quantities, lightly. Skimming is to read in small quantities, lightly and swiftly. Even though skimming and reading are from the category of books and reading, this pair has the closest relationship to the original pair and is the best answer.