Word Knowledge
15 questions · 9 minutes · AFQT
What's covered
Synonyms, sometimes with the word in a sentence. Nine minutes for 15 questions means about 36 seconds each — this is the fastest-paced section on the test. Trust your first instinct and move.
Learn roots, not word lists
Memorizing individual words has poor returns. Roots let you decode words you've never seen. bene (good), mal (bad), chron (time), dict (speak), spec/vid (see), port (carry), scrib (write), duct (lead), aud (hear), ject (throw), tract (pull), vert (turn).
Prefixes
a-/an- (without), anti-/contra- (against), circum- (around), sub-/infra- (under), super-/hyper- (above, excessive), pre-/ante- (before), post- (after), inter- (between), intra- (within), trans- (across), re- (again), dis-/un-/in- (not).
Suffixes
-ous/-ful (full of), -less (without), -able/-ible (capable of), -ist (one who), -ology (study of), -ify (to make), -ize (to become).
Charge matching
When you don't know the word, decide whether it feels positive or negative and eliminate the choices with the wrong charge. This alone often gets you to a 50/50.
Context sentences
When the word appears in a sentence, the sentence almost always contains a clue. Read it before looking at the choices, and predict the meaning yourself first.
Words worth knowing cold
abundant, adversary, ambiguous, candor, concise, deteriorate, diligent, ephemeral, frugal, hostile, innocuous, meticulous, mitigate, obstacle, pragmatic, prudent, reluctant, tenacious, verify, vigilant.
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