Happy Holidays! PowerScore will be closed on December 25, but we know that for some of you, GRE prep never stops. Check out twenty commonly-occurring vocabulary words used in sentences about our favorite holiday classics. In Eight Crazy Nights, Davey Stone spends most of the movie obstreperously objecting to the austere judge’s sentencing—he even defies […]
Power Studying: The Podcast Method with Nevin Varghese
My name is Nevin Varghese and I have been tutor for about 5 years now. I initially started out as an SAT tutor and then more recently transitioned to teaching the GRE. PowerScore gave me an opportunity to not only teach one-on-one lessons, but to continue to develop my teaching in larger classroom groups. I […]
The Importance of Argumentation on the GRE
GRE Verbal comprises three distinct question types: Text Completion Sentence Equivalence Reading Comprehension Preparation for Text Completion and Sentence Correction problems tends to be centered on studying vocabulary and on learning how to extract context clues and predict the meanings of the blanks accurately. However, you might wonder how to effectively prepare for Reading Comp. […]
Sentence Equivalence and Secondary Definitions
A Rose by Any Other Name Attempt the question; then read the explanation below. A GRE Favorite Is this answer choice “appropriate?” What if we “appropriated” it? Where did you “obtain” those ideas? Do those ideas still “obtain?” The “wag” sang a “rag” just as my energy began to “flag.” hom·o·nym noun each of two […]
GRE Short Passage Questions and LSAT Logical Reasoning
Question Task Patterns Last week, in response to the news that the ABA approved a proposal that formally removes the requirement that the LSAT be used for admissions purposes we discussed overall structural similarities between GRE and LSAT Reading Comprehension. This week we will compare in more detail similar question tasks on the GRE and the LSAT, […]
Evaluate the Argument in This Increasingly Common Reading Comprehension Task
Attempt the question; then read the explanation below. To Help or to Hurt, that is the Question GRE Verbal sections include, on average, ten Reading Comprehension questions. Several of these Reading Comprehension questions include principles of argumentation, critical reasoning skills that test your ability to identify conclusions, premises, and the structure and strength of different […]
Reading Comprehension Strategy
The Goldilocks Passage Several weeks ago we analyzed the contents of the new PowerPrep Plus practice tests, their composition, question types, concepts tested, etc. This week, I’d like to focus on the Reading Comprehension portion of GRE Verbal, specifically, what kinds of questions to expect and how to shift your approach depending on whether you […]
Master this Challenge to Succeed on GRE Verbal
Long Passage GRE Reading Comp Deconstructed Did you try the long passage challenge set? Ready for some explanations? Read on for a complete breakdown of how to tear through a difficult passage like this (note: images of the entire passage set are also appended at the end of this post for reference). Question 9 This […]
Verbal Challenge: Another Text Completion
More Problems, Please! One frequent student complaint about GRE preparation is the lack of available, current material to work with. Yes, there are big books of “GRE” problems, except that they’re not; they are problems developed by third parties to approximate GRE questions. Available, current ETS material is as follows: Practice Book for the PBT […]
Verbal Challenge: Text Completion
Beyond Vocabulary: Prelude to Difficult Text Completion You’ve mastered GRE vocabulary, done the flashcards, unlocked all the achievements on the apps, irritated your friends, won the Scripps spelling bee and are still wondering what mountains are left to climb to master GRE Verbal. We have some good news and some bad news. The good news […]