analogies. what is an analogy? an analogy is a type of word problem that often appears on...
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Analogies
What is an Analogy?
An analogy is a type of word problem that often appears on standardized tests. It is made up of two word pairs, like this:
GRACEFUL : CLUMSY :: late : ___________
The symbol ( : ) means "is to" and the symbol ( : : ) means "as."
Read the analogy like this:"Graceful is to clumsy as late is to 'blank.'"
GRACEFUL : CLUMSY :: late : _______
Your goal in solving an analogy is to find a word that correctly completes the second pair. At first glance the words in an analogy may seem to have nothing to do with each other, but the words are always logically related. Both pairs of words have the same kind of relationship. To solve the analogy you need to find that relationship
GRACEFUL : CLUMSY :: late : _______
Ask yourself: What is the relationship between graceful and clumsy? They are antonyms—words that have opposite meanings. The second pair of words must also be antonyms. Fill in the blank with a word that means the opposite of late, and you've solved the analogy.
Early is the best answer.
Common Types of Analogies
We saw an example of an antonym analogy. There are other common types of analogies.
Common Types of Analogies
1. Sameness (synonyms)
wealthy : affluent : : impoverished : ________
A. Rich
B. Poor
C. Affluent
D. Beggar
The answer is B. Wealthy and affluent are synonyms. The synonym for impoverished is poor.
Common Types of Analogies
2. Part to Wholefingers : hand : : wheels : ________
A. Bicycle
B. Round
C. Move
D. Feet
The answer is A. Fingers are part of a hand, like wheels are part of a bicycle.
Common Types of Analogies
3. Cause and Effectoverspend : broke : : save : _________A. bankruptB. debtC. prosperousD. keep
The answer is C. Overspending causes a person to be broke, while saving causes a person to become prosperous.
Common Types of Analogies
4. Worker to Tool
carpenter : hammer : : _________ : needle
A. Teacher
B. Thread
C. Tailor
D. Sew
The answer is C. A carpenter’s tool is a hammer, while a tailor’s tool is a needle.
Common Types of Analogies
5. item to purpose
ruler : measure : :
A. Pen : Write
B. Cat : Mouse
C. Fish : Fisherman
D. Ball : Bat
The answer is A. You use a a ruler to measure and a pen to write.
Common Types of Analogies
6. Type
BANANA : FRUIT ::
A. lung : organ
B. grape : raisin
C. ocean : land
D. slope : mountain
The answer is A. A banana is a type of fruit, just as a lung is a type of organ.
Common Types of Analogies
7. Qualities or Characteristics
thread : fragile : : sidewalk : _______
A. Walk
B. Street
C. Hard
D. Pedestrian
The answer is C. A quality of thread is it is fragile, while a quality of a sidewalk is it is hard.
Common Types of Analogies
8. Location
HORSE : STABLE : :
A. heart : blood
B. street : lamp
C. view : window
D. guest : hotel
The answer is D. A HORSE stays in a STABLE, just as a guest stays in a hotel. .
Tips for Doing Analogies
Try to determine the relationship between the first pair of words.
Eliminate any pairs in your answer choices that don’t have the same relationship.
Tips for Doing Analogies
Try putting the first pair into a sentence: "Aspirin relieves a headache." Therefore, a nap relieves fatigue.
Sometimes paying attention to the words’ parts of speech helps. For example "knife" (noun) : "cut" (verb) : : "pen" (also a noun) : "write" (also a verb).