Synonyms & Antonyms
🔒 Log in to trackChoosing the nearest meaning: elimination by class, degree, charge
🔒 Log in to trackA synonym question asks for the word closest in meaning. You do not need the exact dictionary meaning. You only need to remove three options that fail one of four filters: word class, idea class, strength and tone.
You need the nearest, not the perfect
A synonym is a word with almost the same meaning. The question asks for the nearest one.
Each wrong option is built to fail one filter. Run the filters in order and three options will fall out.
Filter 1: word class
First decide if the given word is a noun, verb or adjective.
- ABOLISH is a verb. ABOLITION is a noun. ADAPTABLE is an adjective.
- The answer must be the same class.
Example: for the verb RELEASE, the noun "freedom" is a planted trap. It is related, but it is the wrong class.
Filter 2: idea class
The answer must belong to the same group of ideas.
Take DELUGE, a flood of water. Drizzle and mist are also water words, but only flood means a very large amount of water.
Remove options from a different group first. For DELUGE, an option like "quarrel" goes at once.
Filter 3: strength
Inside the right group, match the strength.
- TRIVIAL means of very little importance. It sits at the low end. Serious and vital are the wrong end.
- ENORMOUS means huge. The mild word "big" is too weak.
Rule: If the given word is extreme (enormous, furious, exhausted), the answer is also extreme.
Filter 4: tone
Say if the word is pleasant, unpleasant or neutral.
- NOTORIOUS means famous for something bad. Its answer must be negative, like infamous.
- "Celebrated" is also famous, but the tone is good. It is wrong.
SLIM and skinny both mean thin. Slim is pleasant. Skinny is not. Options are often chosen across this line.
When a sentence is given
Some papers print the word inside a sentence. The sentence wins over the dictionary.
- Read the whole sentence.
- Say what the capital word means there in one plain word.
- Match that plain word to an option.
Watch: Association is not synonymy. Cinema goes with film, but the two words are not synonyms. Ask: can one word replace the other?
Filters at work
| Given word | Wrong option | Filter that removes it |
|---|---|---|
| ABOLISH (verb) | abolition | word class |
| DELUGE | quarrel | idea class |
| TRIVIAL | vital | strength |
| NOTORIOUS | celebrated | tone |
| FUTILE | difficult | overlap |
Read each row as a small drill. Cover the last column and name the filter yourself.
Most questions need only two filters. Word class and tone remove the most options for the least effort, so try them first.
The 20-second routine
- Say the meaning in one plain word.
- Remove wrong word classes.
- Remove wrong idea groups.
- Remove wrong strength or tone.
- Read the answer back: "X means about the same as Y".
Question types you will see
Each type: how to recognise it, the method step by step, and one question to try.
Word-class filter
One option is a noun where the given word is a verb, often a related word such as freedom for RELEASE.
Fix the class of the given word from its ending and use.
Remove options of another class.
Choose among what is left.
A synonym must fit in the same slot of a sentence.
Nearest in meaning to RELEASE: (a) freedom (b) set free (c) prison (d) hold
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RELEASE is a verb.
Freedom and prison are nouns. Remove them.
Hold is a verb but the opposite. Set free stays.
(b) set free
Strength match
Two options are in the right group but differ in force (serious, vital, unimportant for TRIVIAL).
Place the given word on a scale from weak to strong.
Note whether it sits at an end.
Pick the option at the same spot.
Nearest meaning also means nearest strength.
Nearest in meaning to TRIVIAL: (a) serious (b) vital (c) unimportant (d) costly
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TRIVIAL means of little importance.
Serious and vital are at the high end.
Unimportant is at the low end.
(c) unimportant
Tone match
The given word is clearly pleasant or unpleasant (hostile, notorious, generous), and one option has the idea in the wrong tone.
Mark the given word + or -.
Mark each option + or -.
Keep only options with the same mark.
A pleasant word can never be the nearest meaning of an unpleasant one.
Nearest in meaning to HOSTILE: (a) unfriendly (b) calm (c) shy (d) cheerful
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HOSTILE is negative.
Calm and cheerful are positive. Shy is a different idea.
Unfriendly is negative and fits.
(a) unfriendly
Meaning from the sentence
The word is in CAPITALS inside a sentence, and the options are possible meanings.
Read the whole sentence.
Say in one plain word what the capital word does there.
Ignore other meanings you know for it.
Match your plain word to an option.
The answer is keyed to the sentence, not to the dictionary.
His reply was LACONIC, just two words. (a) rude (b) brief (c) angry (d) loud
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A two-word reply is very short.
Laconic means using few words.
Brief matches.
(b) brief
Overlap, not association
Options are related to the given word but do not mean the same (difficult, risky, tiring for FUTILE).
Say the meaning in your own words.
Ask if each option can replace the word in a sentence.
Keep the option that overlaps most.
Related words are decoys. Only a true overlap is a synonym.
Nearest in meaning to FUTILE: (a) difficult (b) pointless (c) risky (d) tiring
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FUTILE means it has no chance of success.
Difficult, risky and tiring can still succeed.
Pointless means no use. It overlaps.
(b) pointless
Shortcuts that save time
The right synonym can replace the word in most sentences. If the sentence changes meaning, the option is only related.
ELOQUENT: (a) quiet (b) articulate (c) wealthy (d) careless
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Eloquent means speaking well and with force.
Articulate can replace it.
Quiet is a decoy that is close to the opposite.
(b) articulate
Mark the given word + or - (notorious is -, celebrated is +). Options with the other mark can go without more thought.
Draw a line from mild to extreme. Put the word and the two surviving options on it. The option at the same mark wins.
Mistakes to avoid
Where most students lose marks on this subtopic.
Choosing an option because it is related to the word.
Choose the option that can replace the word in a sentence.
Picking a noun for a verb because it looks close.
Check the word class before the meaning.
Taking a mild word for an extreme one (big for ENORMOUS).
Match strength. An extreme word needs an extreme answer.
Ignoring the tone (celebrated for NOTORIOUS).
Mark the word + or - first. Keep only options with the same mark.
Answering from the most common meaning when a sentence is given.
Read the sentence and answer for the meaning used there.
Quick revision
Read this the night before the exam.
Four filters in order: word class, idea class, strength, tone.
Extreme word means extreme answer.
NOTORIOUS is negative, so the answer is negative (infamous).
With a sentence, the sentence meaning wins.
Related is not the same as synonym. Test by replacing.
You need the nearest match, not a perfect one.
Practice: 15 questions
Sets of 10, mixed across the question types above. Every answer has a step-by-step explanation.
Topic test · 10 questions
Suggested time 4 min · wrong answers go to your mistake notebook automatically.