Need expert advice on a 30, 60, or 90 day study plan? Ask one of Grockit’s expert tutors!

Timing: The Verbal section contains 41 questions and you are given 75 minutes to answer these.  Remember that you will be able to answer some questions in a manner of seconds, while others will take significantly longer.  An important piece of your study plan is learning how to pace yourself so you don’t run out of time or move too quickly, especially since on the GMAT you cannot come back to a question once you have answered it or skipped it.

Format: There are three types of questions on the GMAT Verbal.  Here is a breakdown of the format of each type:

Reading Comprehension:  You will be given a passage followed by questions.  The questions are given in typical multiple-choice format, with five answer choices and one correct answer.

Critical Reasoning: You will answer multiple-choice questions designed to test your reasoning skills based on the information given.

Sentence Correction Questions: For these questions you will be given a sentence with a portion or all of it underlined.  The answer choices will give you five options for the best way to complete the underlined part.  The first choice will be identical to the underlined portion in the given sentence, and the other four choices will offer different ways to fill the underlined space.

Content Overview: 

Reading Comprehension: For this question type you will be given reading passages that are up to 350 words long, covering a wide variety of topics.  No outside knowledge is required; only use what is stated or implied by the information in the passage to answer the questions.  The questions will test your abilities to comprehend, apply, and infer from the passage.

Critical Reasoning: These questions ask you to evaluate and analyze given arguments.  Again, the material is from a wide variety of sources and no outside knowledge is needed.

Sentence Correction: Sentence Correction questions require knowledge of grammar and written conventions of English.  The questions will test your ability to express the English language correctly and effectively.

The tried and true multiple choice format of all Verbal questions is familiar to most all test takers, so the good news is that now you can focus on improving your strategies for approaching the three question types!

Check out this GMAT Reading Comprehension passage question for practice before test day.

Placement/choice of conjunctions, prepositions, and adverbs

Sentence A: Sergei chose to buy a house because of the increase in both the number of houses on the market and the number of his friends who owned their own homes.

Sentence B: Sergei chose to buy a house because of both the increase in the number of houses on the market and the number of his friends who owned their own homes.

Both sentences feature Sergei buying a house because of the number of houses on the market and the number of his friends who owned their own homes, but in Sentence A, both of those numbers are going up, while in Sentence B, only the number of houses is increasing. (I tried to come up with a sentence that had a more amusing shift in sense; I will envy you a little if you are able to come up with one.

Find out how you can get a FREE trial account and try Grockit free for 3 days with unlimited access to group and solo practice sessions, advanced skill data with insight into your strengths and weaknesses, and predictive scoring.

Note that the choice of conjunction can make a significant difference:

Phillip decided that for his birthday, he would eat macaroni, cheese, beans, rice, apple pie, and ice cream for dinner.

A. macaroni, cheese, beans, rice, apple pie, and ice cream

B. macaroni and cheese, beans and rice, or apple pie with ice cream

C. macaroni and cheese, beans and rice, and apple pie with ice cream

D. macaroni or cheese, beans or rice, or apple pie with ice cream

E. macaroni or cheese, beans or rice, apple pie, and ice cream

. . . as does the placement of some adverbs, such as the limiting adverb only:

It only seemed that the boxer touched his opponent’s chin when he scored the knockout punch.

A. only seemed that the boxer touched his opponent’s chin when he scored the

B. seemed that only the boxer touched his opponent’s chin when he scored the

C. seemed that the boxer only touched his opponent’s chin when he scored the

D. seemed that the boxer touched only his opponent’s chin when he scored the

E. seemed that the boxer touched his opponent’s chin when he scored the only

Answers next time!

Check out the other articles in this series:

More Than Just Grammar:  The Search for Meaning in the New SC (Part 1)

More Than Just Grammar:  The Search for Meaning in the New SC (Part 2)

More Than Just Grammar:  The Search for Meaning in the New SC (Part 3)

More Than Just Grammar:  The Search for Meaning in the New SC (Part 4)

Check out Grockit’s Facebook page and stay up-to-date with the latest in the 2012 GMAT test change.

In case you missed it or forgot, this was the question:

A group of well-regarded economists has recently published projected figures for the economy next year, which predict that if interest rates remain at their current level, lending should continue to increase as slowly as it has this year.

A. if interest rates remain at their current level, lending should continue to increase

B. when interest rates remain at their current level, lending can continue its increasing

C. if interest rates remain at their current level, lending continues to increase

D. if interest rates remain at their current level, lending will continue to increase

E. if interest rates remain at their current level, lending could continue to increase

I tried to make it a little tricky by having the sentence involve a study (since I had mentioned that statements of general truth with tense in present/present are often attached to studies), but this one is a straightforward prediction.

A. Incorrect. It is fine grammatically, but there is no reason to put a modal “should” in the second half of the condition. It’s already a prediction about the future, a prediction which may not come to pass; adding even more uncertainty to the “then” portion is not needed to convey that.

B. Incorrect. I suppose this was mean of me; by changing the beginning and end of one answer choice, I had an excuse to increase the length of the underlined portion and make you read more for every answer choice. This choice is technically correct as well, but I think it would only be a strange alternate universe where the GMAT wanted you to use phrases like “can continue its increasing.”

C. Incorrect. This one is the present/present tense trap that I mentioned, which is entirely grammatically correct and appropriate for studies. Here, though, the meaning is changed, claiming that WHENEVER interest rates remain at their current level, lending will increase at some (slow) rate. While a study could show that, it would not come in the form of a prediction.

D. Correct. Here we have a simple present for the static interest rates and a simple future for the predicted effect.

E. Incorrect. As with Choice A, the modal “could” is grammatically and even contextually plausible, but there is no reason to add this additional uncertainty to the prediction.

Next time: word placement!

Check out the other articles in this series:

More Than Just Grammar:  The Search for Meaning in the New SC (Part 1)

More Than Just Grammar:  The Search for Meaning in the New SC (Part 2)

More Than Just Grammar:  The Search for Meaning in the New SC (Part 3)

Conditional statements

If you are very hungry, you eat too much food.

If you are very hungry, you may eat too much food.

If you are very hungry, you will eat too much food.

If you are very hungry, you should eat too much food.

Find out how you can get 16 hours of GMAT test prep and 4 addtional hours of expert advice and consulting online.

Conditional statements in English have many different combinations of tenses and moods, which could be the subject of a whole series of blog posts on its own. Instead, I’ve chosen a subset of conditions here, each with a slightly different verb in the “then” clause.

If you are hungry, you eat too much food. This form is common enough, usually appearing in sentences announcing the result of a study or report (A recent Harvard Medical School study has conclusively shown that if you do not eat, you die). In English, when both parts of the condition are in the simple present tense, it refers to a statement of general truth; whenever the first thing happens, the second thing happens (When I get caught in the rain, I get wet).

If you are very hungry, you may eat too much food. By introducing the modal auxiliary verb may, we have added uncertainty, possibility, or permission to the sentence; eating too much food is something that you will not certainly do in all circumstances. It could either indicate one of several options (We may go to the festival tomorrow) or that permission has been granted (You may stay in my home for as long as you like).

If you are very hungry, you will eat too much food. In exchanging the present tense for the future tense in the “then” portion, we have changed our statement of general truth into a specific prediction about the future: if X is the case, Y will certainly happen (If it is raining right now, you will be soaked by the time you reach your car).

If you are very hungry, you should eat too much food. Finally, by putting in the modal auxiliary verb should, we have made overeating an obligation, something that is right or good (If you see your boss at lunch time, you should ask for some vacation time this summer).  Though it is beyond the scope of a test preparation blog, I would like to add that overeating is not right or good.

Here’s one for you to try:

A group of well-regarded economists has recently published projected figures for the economy next year, which predict that if interest rates remain at their current level, lending should continue to increase as slowly as it has this year.

A. if interest rates remain at their current level, lending should continue to increase

B. when interest rates remain at their current level, lending can continue their increasing

C. if interest rates remain at their current level, lending continues to increase

D. if interest rates remain at their current level, lending will continue to increase

E. if interest rates remain at their current level, lending could continue to increase

Answer next time!

Check out the other articles in this series:

More Than Just Grammar:  The Search for Meaning in the New SC (Part 1)

More Than Just Grammar:  The Search for Meaning in the New SC (Part 2)

Last time, I gave you this question:

On her way to the store, Priya decided to purchase a personal organizer, a new computer with a wireless network card, and a barking toy robot dog that would make her life easier, she decided.

A. and a barking toy robot dog that would make her life easier, she decided.

B. and a barking toy robot dog; that would make would make her life easier, she decided.

C. and a barking toy robot dog that would make her life easier; she decided.

D. and a barking toy robot dog making her life easier, she decided.

E. and, deciding that would make her life easier, a barking toy robot dog.

Study online anytime of the day, from anywhere you have Internet access. Grockit is convenient, no boring classrooms and lectures.

A. Incorrect. While grammatically correct, the placement of that suggests that the barking toy would make her life easier, when it makes more sense for it to be either the whole purchase or just the non-toy portions.

B. Correct. By putting that into a new independent clause, it can make a stronger claim to modify the preceding clause. You can still argue that that refers back to the toy, but the connection is not as strong as it is in the other sentences.

C.  Incorrect. Though this one is technically grammatically correct, that modifies the toy again, and “she decided” is a very uninformative independent clause.

D.  Incorrect. Placing the present participle making directly next to the toy dog suggests it is the barking toy making her life easier, which isn’t likely (has anyone’s life ever been made easier by a barking toy dog?).

E. Incorrect. The placement of and before the deciding suggests they are part of the same unit: the final item in her list of purchases. This also suggests the toy will make her life easier.

I don’t believe you’ll see a question exactly like this on the GMAT; that’s not the point. The idea here is to show how the placement of punctuation can affect how you interpret certain parts of sentences. Next time, we’ll look at conditional statements!

Check out the other articles in this series:

More Than Just Grammar:  The Search for Meaning in the New SC (Part 1)

Follow Grockit on Twitter for the latest news on the  2012 GMAT release.

Punctuation

Sentence A: Let’s eat, Grandma!

Sentence B: Let’s eat Grandma!

Sentence C: Every dog knows its master.

Sentence D: Every dog knows it’s master.

The ancient Romans wrote with little or no punctuation, and usually without even putting any spaces between the words. It is hard to imagine the confusion that could arise from that, when in English a simple mark (such as a comma or an apostrophe) can make such difference in the sense of the sentence. In the first pair, Sentence A conveys familial devotion, while B implies cannibalism; in the second pair, Sentence C features man’s best friend looking up to humans, while in Sentence D, the dog looks down on humans.

Of course, the GMAT is unlikely to feature something so simple (or potentially comical), but punctuation is often needed to reduce ambiguity or to change the meaning of a phrase or clause. Relative clauses – clauses starting with a relative pronoun like which, who, or that – are prime candidates for a change in meaning, especially ones starting with which or that. Semicolons and commas, because they separate clauses, can also change the meaning of a sentence by changing the point where one clause begins and another ends.

On her way to the store, Priya decided to purchase a personal organizer, a new computer with a wireless network card, and a barking toy robot dog that would make her life easier, she decided.

A. and a barking toy robot dog that would make her life easier, she decided.

B. and a barking toy robot dog; that would make would make her life easier, she decided.

C. and a barking toy robot dog that would make her life easier; she decided.

D. and a barking toy robot dog making her life easier, she decided.

E. and, deciding that would make her life easier, a barking toy robot dog.

Answer next time, and after that, a brief look at conditional statements!

Find out how you can help under-served students achieve their dreams of higher education with Grockit for Good.

Challenge yourself with adaptive solo practice sessions on Grockit today!

1. It’s/Its. “Its” is the possessive form of the pronoun it. This is unique because usually an apostrophe is needed to show possession. Its’ is never correct. It’s is the contraction for “it is” or “it has.”

2. Whose/Who’s. “Who’s” is a contraction of “who is” or “who has.” “Whose” is the possessive form of the pronoun “who.” If “who’s” cannot logically replace “who is” or “who has.”
3. Among/Between. “Among” is used when dealing with a group of three or more. “Between” can only be used for a group of two.
4. Amount/Number. “Amount” can only refer to an uncountable noun. We can use “number” to refer to a countable noun.
5. Fewer/Less. “Less” refers to an uncountable noun, whereas “fewer” refers to a countable noun. Remember that some words can change from countable/uncountable depending on whether they are plural or singular. For example, “stone” is uncountable, but “stones” are countable.
6. Over/More Than. “Over” refers to location only and is a preposition. “More than” is only used to refer to a number or a quantity.
7. Much/Many. “Much” refers to an uncountable noun. “Many” refers to a countable one. Check out this practice GMAT question from Grockit’s database:

Records from the latter half of the 19th century show that in 1876 in Westbridge County there were 1,200 landowners, nearly 12 percent of the state landowner population, three times as many as 1852.

A   three times as many as 1852

B   three times as much as 1852

C   triple what it was in 1852

D   triple the figure for 1852

E   thrice the number that was recorded in 1852

We know that it can be three times as MANY as something countable, but “1852” is not countable, so A and B can be eliminated quickly. Ideally, we’d want an answer to say “three times as many as in 1852” but we aren’t given that option. In option C, we have an ambiguous pronoun. D and E have the same meaning, but D it much more concise and therefore correct.

8. Better/Best. This concept tests the comparative/superlative forms. Comparative forms like “better”, “more”, etc. are only used when two things are being compared. Superlative forms like “best”, “most”, etc. are used to compare three or more things.

For another great post on English proficiency for the GMAT check out this article.

(Using a relative clause): The employee who is surveying the land is a good friend of mine.

(Using a present participle): The employee surveying the land is a good friend of mine.

Don’t miss out on the latest GMAT and MBA admission tips! Follow us on Twitter today!

We generally consider these two versions of the same sentence to be interchangeable. The “who” can be used or not, yielding the same meaning. There are cases, however, when you cannot consider the relative clause and present participle interchangeable. Consider these two versions of the same sentence:

(Using a present participle) 1. The price of produce is rapidly increasing, a trend eventually culminating in a consumer’s revolution.

(Using a relative clause) 2. The price of produce is rapidly increasing, a trend that will eventually culminate in a consumer’s revolution.

Here, we have two sentences that use what was thought to be an interchangeable form, but one version does not quite make sense logically. The first sentence is technically incorrect because the verb “culminate,” when paired with the adverb “eventually,” must happen in the future. Using the present participle of the verb culminate (culminating) suggests that the verb occurs in the present, and so contradicts the adverb “eventually.” But the important question is this: how do we know that, in the first sentence, “culminating” happens in the present? In other words, what determines the tense of the present participle modifier? The reason “culminating” in this sentence is present is that the modifier is directly linked to the main verb of the sentence: is rapidly increasing. It is the main verb of the sentence that determines the tense of the present participle modifier:

Past: I observed my neighbor washing his car. (the washing takes place in the past)

Present: I observe my neighbor washing his car. (the washing takes place now)

Future: I will see my neighbor washing his car. (the washing will take place in the future)

So, what’s the lesson to take away from all this? Because the tense of the present participle modifier is contingent upon the tense main verb, using this form is much more limited than using the relative clause. So, if you want to express freedom of tense, use the relative clause.

Incorrect: I see the employee cleaning the office yesterday.

Study online anywhere, any time for any amount of time on Grockit.

Review your answers with detailed explanations and strategies on Grockit.

Question 1: The OLEX Petroleum Company has recently determined that it could cut its refining costs by closing its Grenville refinery and consolidating all refining at its Tasberg refinery. Closing the Grenville refinery, however, would mean the immediate loss of about 1,200 jobs in the Grenville area. Eventually the lives of more than 10,000 people would be seriously disrupted. Therefore, OLEX’s decision, announced yesterday, to keep Grenville open shows that at OLEX social concerns sometimes outweigh the desire for higher profits. Which of the following, if true, most seriously undermines the argument given?

Conclusion: OLEX’s decision to keep Grenville = Social concerns valued over more $$$
Evidence: Refining costs cut by closing Grenville; Grenville closing = loss of jobs/live disruption

Evidence + Assumption = Conclusion

How does the fact that Grenville’s closing would mean loss of jobs necessarily mean that OLEX is socially concerned?

Assumption: The disruption would not lead to less profitability long-term (OLEX is not motivated by greed).

Now we’re going to reverse the assumption, and use it for our Prediction.

Prediction: Disruption = less profitability, OLEX is not concerned w/social well-being and is motivated by greed.

The Prediction should match the correct answer choice as closely as possible. That is why it’s important to write one down whenever possible. When you write down a Prediction, it clarifies for you what you should look for in the answer choices.

A. The Grenville refinery, although it operates at a higher cost than the Tasberg refinery, has nevertheless been moderately profitable for many years.

B. Even though OLEX could consolidate all its refining at the Tasberg plant, doing so at the Grenville plant would not be feasible.

C. The Tasberg refinery is more favorably situated than the Grenville refinery with respect to the major supply routes for raw petroleum.

D. If the Grenville refinery were ever closed and operations at the Tasberg refinery expanded, job openings at Tasberg would to the extent possible be filled with people formerly employed at Grenville.

E. Closure of the Grenville refinery would mean compliance, at enormous cost, with demanding local codes regulating the cleanup of abandoned industrial sites.

The answer here is E. Notice the phrase “at enormous cost”; it shows that OLEX’s motivation is financial and not social. Now try one on your own!

Question 2: The New Deal in America began in 1933 and included widespread bank reforms, unprecedented government infrastructure spending, and unparalleled expansion in the size of government. Some political commentators and economic historians contend that President Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal singlehandedly propelled the United States out of the Great Depression and into decades of uninterrupted prosperity. To support this claim, these economists note that during the years following 1933, GDP grew, unemployment shrunk, and optimism increased. Which of the following statements, if true, would most weaken the above argument?

A.  The considerable debt burden that the government assumed to fund the New Deal sparked fear in the minds of some economists, investors, and businessmen.

B. The considerable government expenditures and massive labor requirements engendered by America’s entry into World War II in late 1941 helped employ Americans and grow GDP.

C. On average, GDP per capita fell and unemployment rose in many foreign countries during the years after President Roosevelt announced his New Deal.

D. During 1939, the U.S. economy contracted sharply, unemployment jumped 5%, and America’s optimism fell.

E. U.S. GDP during the mid 1930s stood at levels much lower than 30 years later.

Check out the wording of the final sentence before the question. “To support this claim, these economists…” We can translate this as knowing the claim is based on 3 good things that happened after 1933: GDP grew, unemployment shrunk, and optimism increased. What would WEAKEN the argument is that if that evidence, the basis of support for the claim, was taken away.

What would most weaken would be if there were other reasons for (+) outcomes, or if after the New Deal in 1933 things did not continue to get better. Notice how D perfectly matches our prediction. It shows that just 6 years later, things were bad again, contradicting the “decades of uninterrupted prosperity” mentioned in the argument.

Did you choose another answer choice, perhaps B? Let’s examine. Notice how D more directly relates to the specificity of the argument. Since 1939 is earlier than 1941, it would show that the New Deal had even less of an impact. Furthermore, since B produced a positive result, helping Americans and growing GDP, you could argue that so did the New Deal. Who’s to say that it was only America’s entry into WWII that caused the growth? Pre-1941 there could have still been (+) growth, so the argument is not necessarily weakened by choice B.

See other articles in this series:

Anatomy of a Weaken Question – Part 1

Anatomy of a Weaken Question – Part 2

1. Rephrase each answer choice.

2. Go back to the Scope of the question.

3. Find the difference between the choices.

4. Select the one that best answers the question.

Find out how you can challenge yourself with adaptive solo practice sessions on Grockit today.

Let’s look at how we might do this without even reading the passage with this Grockit question:

The main goal of this passage is to:

A            discuss the daily newspaper from a new sociological stance.

B            show the main arguments from a blog.

C            compare and contrast two views on art.

D            disprove a commonly held assumption about the value of art.

E            raise funds for research in an under-appreciated social field.

STEP 1: First let’s rephrase the choices in simpler terms:

1. Talk about a paper in a new way
2. Describe a blog
3. Talk about two viewpoints
4. Criticize something
5. Try to get more $$

Even without the passage, we can see that A, B, and C are more neutral in tone, so it is likely the correct answer will lie there. A and B focus on 1 thing: a paper and a blog. C talks about 2 things. Again, it’s more likely the “Final Two” will be A and B since they are the most similar.

1. Talk about a paper in a new way
2. Describe a blog’s main points
3. C.    Talk about two viewpoints
4. D.    Criticize something
5. E.    Try to get more $$

STEP 2: Let’s look at the Scope of the question. It’s a Main Idea question asking what the MAIN GOAL is of the passage, so we’re looking for a broad, expansive answer choice. Both A and B are relatively broad.

STEP 3: So, what is the difference between the choices? A focuses on a newspaper, and B focuses on a blog. At this point, we’d need to ask ourselves: what does the author spend the most time discussing? What is his focus? A quick look back to the first sentence of each paragraph reveals the following:

“During the summer of 1946, two large abstract paintings sold for $150,000 at Agatha & Agatha’s Auction House.”

“Now in 2007, 45 year-old James Ovariano keeps up a wonderful sociological blog called “Ovariano’s Tomorrow” in which he details his concerns regarding his family’s classist past.”

“James’ blog painfully accounts many times….”

“Another blogger, known only as Captain CapitalYay, disputes James’ assertion that society…”

STEP 4: We can see the focus here is on a blog, not a newspaper, which is likely a minor detail mentioned elsewhere in the passage. The correct answer is B.

Test your GMAT Reading Comprehension skills with this RC practice question!