Prep and try our GRE-Verbal valid and latest training questions & answers

Admission Test GRE-Verbal Exam Overview:

Admission Test GRE-Verbal Exam Syllabus Topics:

Admission Test Section One : Verbal Sample Questions:

1. VERIFY : TRUE

A) terrify: confident
B) ratify: angry
C) mortify: relaxed
D) signify: cheap
E) purify: clean

2. The victory of the small Greek democracy of Athens over the mighty Persian empire in 490 B. C. is one of
the most famous events in history. Darius, king of the Persian empire, was furious because Athens had
interceded for the other Greek city-states in revolt against Persian domination. In anger the king sent an
enormous army to defeat Athens.
He thought it would take drastic steps to pacify the rebellious part of the empire. Persia was ruled by one
man. In Athens, however, all citizens helped to rule. Ennobled by this participation, Athenians were
prepared to die for their city-state. Perhaps this was the secret of the remarkable victory at Marathon,
which freed them from Persian rule. On their way to Marathon, the Persians tried to fool some Greek
city-states by claiming to have come in peace. The frightened citizens of Delos refused to believe this. Not
wanting to abet the conquest of Greece, they fled from their city and did not return until the Persians had
left. They were wise, for the Persians next conquered the city of Etria and captured its people. Tiny
Athens stood alone against PersiA. The Athenian people went to their sanctuaries. There they prayed for
deliverance. They asked their gods to expedite their victory. The Athenians refurbished their weapons and
moved to the plain of Marathon, where their little band would meet the Persians. At the last moment,
soldiers from Plataea reinforced the Athenian troops. The Athenian army attacked, and Greek citizens
fought bravely. The power of the mighty Persians was offset by the love that the
Athenians had for their city. Athenians defeated the Persians in archery and hand combat.
Greek soldiers seized Persian ships and burned them, and the Persians fled in terror.
Herodotus, a famous historian, reports that 6400 Persians died, compared with only 192 Athenians.
The Athenians were ___by some soldiers who arrived from Plataea.

A) strengthened
B) held
C) answer not available
D) welcomed
E) captured

3. A certain strain of bacteria called lyngbya majuscula, an ancient ancestor of modern-day algae, is making
a comeback in ocean waters just off the world's most industrialized coastal regions. This primitive bacteria
has survived for nearly three billion years due to a variety of survival mechanisms. It can produce its own
fertilizer by pulling nitrogen out of the air; it relies on a different spectrum of light than algae do, allowing it
to thrive even in deep, murky waters; and when it dies and decays, it releases its own nitrogen and
phosphorous, on which the next generation of lyngbya feeds. Lyngbya emits more than one hundred
different toxins harmful to other ocean life as well as to humans. Commercial fishermen and divers who
come in contact with the bacteria frequently complain of skin rashes and respiratory problems, which can
keep these workers off the job for months at a time. The bacteria further disrupts local economies by
blocking sunlight to sea grasses that attract fish and other sea life. Scientists attribute the modern-day
reappearance of lyngbya, and the resulting problems, chiefly to nitrogen- and phosphorous-rich sewage
partially processed at wastewater treatment plants and pumped into rivers that feed coastal ocean waters.
It can be inferred from the passage that the lyngbya majuscula strain has survived for billions of years
partly because it

A) emits harmful toxins that ward off potential predators
B) adapts easily to changes in water temperature
C) possesses the ability to essentially feed on itself
D) is threatened by few, if any, natural predators
E) does not depend on light for its existence

4. "Old woman," grumbled the burly white man who had just heard Sojourner Truth speak, "do you think your
talk about slavery does any good? I don't care any more for your talk than I do for the bite of a flea." The
tall, imposing black woman turned her piercing eyes on him. "Perhaps not," she answered, "but I'll keep
you scratching." The little incident of the 1840s sums up all that Sojourner Truth was: utterly dedicated to
spreading her message, afraid of no one, forceful and witty in speech. Yet forty years earlier, who could
have suspected that a spindly slave girl growing up in a damp cellar in upstate New York would become
one of the most remarkable women in American history? Her name then was Isabella (many slaves had
no last names), and by the time she was fourteen she had seen both parents die of cold and hunger. She
herself had been sold several times. By 1827, when New York freed its slaves, she had married and
borne five children. The first hint of Isabella's fighting spirit came soon afterwards, when her youngest son
was illegally seized and sold. She marched to the courthouse and badgered officials until her son was
returned to her. In 1843, inspired by religion, she changed her name to Sojourner (meaning "one who
stays briefly") Truth, and, with only pennies in her purse, set out to preach against slavery. From New
England to Minnesota she trekked, gaining a reputation for her plain but powerful and moving words.
Incredibly, despite being black and female (only white males were expected to be public speakers), she
drew thousands to town halls, tents, and churches to hear her powerful, deep-voiced pleas on equality for
blacks-and for women. Often she had to face threatening hoodlums.
Once she stood before armed bullies and sang a hymn to them. Awed by her courage and her
commanding presence, they sheepishly retreated. During the Civil War she cared for homeless ex-slaves
in Washington. President Lincoln invited her to the White House to bestow praise on her. Later, she
petitioned Congress to help former slaves get land in the West. Even in her old age, she forced the city of
Washington to integrate its trolley cars so that black and white could ride together. Shortly before her
death at eighty-six, she was asked what kept her going. "I think of the great things," replied Sojourner.
Sojourner Truth died at-

A) 63
B) 72
C) 86
D) 88
E) 48

5. Conflict had existed between Spain and England since the 1570s. England wanted a share of the wealth
that Spain had been taking from the lands it had claimed in the Americas.
Elizabeth I, Queen of England, encouraged her staunch admiral of the navy, Sir Francis Drake, to raid
Spanish ships and towns. Though these raids were on a small scale, Drake achieved dramatic success,
adding gold and silver to England's treasury and diminishing Spain's omnipotence. Religious differences
also caused conflict between the two countries. Whereas Spain was Roman Catholic, most of England
had become Protestant.
King Philip II of Spain wanted to claim the throne and make England a Catholic country again. To satisfy
his ambition and also to retaliate against England's theft of his gold and silver, King Philip began to build
his fleet of warships, the Armada, in January 1586.
Philip intended his fleet to be indestructible. In addition to building new warships, he marshaled one
hundred and thirty sailing vessels of all types and recruited more than nineteen thousand robust soldiers
and eight thousand sailors. Although some of his ships lacked guns and others lacked ammunition, Philip
was convinced that his Armada could withstand any battle with England. The martial Armada set sail from
Lisbon, Portugal, on May 9,1588, but bad weather forced it back to port. The voyage resumed on July 22
after the weather became more stable. The Spanish fleet met the smaller, faster, and more maneuverable
English ships in battle off the coast of Plymouth, England, first on July 31 and again on August 2. The two
battles left Spain vulnerable, having lost several ships and with its ammunition depleted. On August 7,
while the Armada lay at anchor on the
French side of the Strait of Dover, England sent eight burning ships into the midst of the
Spanish fleet to set it on fire. Blocked on one side, the Spanish ships could only drift away, their crews in
panic and disorder. Before the Armada could regroup, the English attacked again on August 8. Although
the Spaniards made a valiant effort to fight back, the fleet suffered extensive damage. During the eight
hours of battle, the Armada drifted perilously close to the rocky coastline. At the moment when it seemed
that the Spanish ships would be driven onto the English shore, the wind shifted, and the Armada drifted
out into the North Sea. The Spaniards recognized the superiority of the English fleet and returned home,
defeated
The two battles left the Spanish fleet ____.

A) open to attack
B) triumphant
C) discouraged
D) defeated
E) open to change

Solutions: