Tips to Secure 160+ Score in GRE Verbal

The GRE verbal section of the exam is the most sophisticated way of assessing the critical thinking skills of a candidate and a clear check if the candidate is in a position to understand the master's level language in an academic context or not. Today we shall be discussing some real-time applicable GRE verbal tips and tricks so that the candidates can score high. We are sure if you follow the given GRE verbal tips, this article shall serve as a GRE verbal guide, especially for the students who are preparing on their own, i.e. self-study.

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This Story also Contains

1. How to get a 160 in GRE Verbal?
2. 14 tips to secure 160+ score in GRE verbal
3. Top 6 GRE test-taking strategies and time management
4. GRE preparation materials

How to get a 160 in GRE Verbal?

The GRE verbal section is the most difficult task for most test takers. Most candidates consider a 150+ in verbal a worthy goal to attain yet a 160 in GRE Verbal (86 percentile) is very much attainable if a student ensures that they approach their verbal preparation strategically.

To get a score of 160 on the GRE Verbal, a student must master multiple aspects of preparation.
Below are some of those:

1. Understand the GRE syllabus, exam pattern and scoring mechanism.

2. Learn and internalise question-wise strategies that work under test-day-like time constraints

3. Recognise and work on the strategies to overcome challenges faced while taking full-length tests.

14 tips to secure 160+ score in GRE verbal

1. Familiarize yourself with the GRE verbal section

The most important aspect of the GRE verbal section is that the aspiring candidate must have accurate awareness and knowledge of the format of the GRE verbal section, when we talk about the format, the candidate should just not be limited to knowing the types of questions but also must be aware of understanding what each question type assess and the techniques required to solve those type of questions. Hence, the best way to familiarize yourself with the exam is to give a diagnostic test and see how different types of questions put you in different thinking zones and how much time you take to solve them and also the level of accuracy that you achieve.

2. Overview of GRE verbal section

The GRE verbal section assesses your way of understanding the written academic text in analytical way, the way you are able to comprehend the relation of words used in the sentence. Always remember that to score high in the GRE verbal section you should be able to recognize the different parts of the sentence or the text to reach the accurate answer.

3. Understanding question types

There are different kinds of questions in the GRE verbal section and to score high one must follow certain techniques, the techniques to be followed may vary from individual to individual as each one has a different level of English. Different types of Questions in the GRE verbal sections are as follows:

• Reading comprehension

• Text completion

• Sentence Equivalence

4. Enhancing vocabulary

Attempting the GRE verbal section in an excellent manner calls for an enriched vocabulary of the candidate. Always remember that vocabulary does not enhance with learning thousands of words instead, you should follow some strategies to enhance the power of your language.

5. Effective vocabulary acquisition techniques

Some techniques are as follows:

• The most important one is to prepare your own GRE dictionary. Always remember that you cannot rely on following a particular dictionary that is made by someone else. Your dictionary should have words that are only difficult for you.

• In the dictionary, when you write a word along with its meaning, do not forget to add its synonym, and antonym, and the most important part is to frame a sentence of all the words.

• The human mind is more trained to remember the sentences made than just retaining the words.

6. Utilizing contextual clues

When you think of utilizing contextual clues, you are actually inferring the answer in context to what is mentioned in the academic context. You should be able to understand

• If words are used to give examples or support them

• If words are used in a contractive manner

• If words are used in a structure just for explanation

Example: In the sentence- “Her penchant for adventure led her to climb the highest peaks and explore remote landscapes.”

• The words penchant in the above sentence indicate a strong liking or inclination.

7. Employing root words and word families

The development of root words in your dictionary plays a crucial role in enhancing your vocabulary. So prepare a word map which highlights different words made from each root word.

For example: "Morph-" (Greek: form): Words like "metamorphosis," "morphology," and "amorphous" contain the root "morph-," indicating a connection to shape or form.

8. Developing strong reading comprehension skills

To excel in the GRE verbal reading section, one must have strong reading habits and also to retain the information, in other words, reading has to be focused and not just skimming the text.

One of the authenticated academic reading practices can be done on aldaily.com

Remember you need to be an avid reader.

9. Strategic reading practices

Some of the strategies to follow as GRE verbal tips specifically useful for the reading section:

• Be focused and read with full concentration.

• In case, you are not able to relate the information to the answer, remember that there is no negative marking in the GRE test and it is okay to guess an answer

• You should not waste much time and move on to the next question.

• After you complete all, come back to the difficult one and re-approach it freshly.

10. Active reading strategies

While you are reading, do not forget the following :

• Engage yourself with the academic text

• Be curious as to what could be next

• Analyse the tone of the writer

• Make connections with the information in the text with your own experiences.

• Highlight the unfamiliar words

11. Analyzing passage structure

Analyzing passage structure is another important skill that will help you score high in the GRE verbal section. Some GRE verbal tips to analyse the passage structure are as follows:

• Understand the introduction of the passage

• Analyze the background information

• Understand the main argument or thesis that is included

12. Identifying main ideas and supporting details

Post understanding of the introduction, you should:

• Identify the main ideas that are presented.

• Focus on the way they are explained with details and evidence.

• Concentrate on the transitional words that showcase the movement from idea to details to portraying the evidence.

• Understand the structure with the help of words like therefore, in contrast, furthermore, as a result of.

13. Recognizing author's tone and purpose

The main purpose of the text will be identified after you understand the central idea of the passage. Analyze the detailed explanation given for the purpose and also check the persuasion the author has tried to make. It could be emotional, logical, or even authoritative.

14. Mastering sentence equivalence and text completion

Mastery of different types of questions comes with diligent practice. We have mentioned detailed strategies for solving each question type in our last article and we assure you that if you follow them, you will be able to boost your score. Listed below are some GRE verbal tips so that you are able to score high by following the strategies:

• Initially do not time yourself and practice each type of question and analyze your weakness

• Enhance your vocabulary

• Do not cram words

• Read the text for meaning and do not skim

• Logically attempt the questions

Top 6 GRE test-taking strategies and time management

After you have done the initial phase of practice, you should attempt a mock test in real-time so that you are able to check the level of your score and how far you are from the desired score.

Each student should have their own strategies considering the time they are able to manage for the preparation, however, students need to keep in mind that only practice and strategic preparation will help in achieving higher scores.

1. Developing an effective test-taking strategy

All students must give appropriate time to practice and must make a point of evaluating their level of performance on a regular basis. Ideally, every 10 days there should be a mock test in a real exam scenario, that is one should attempt the mock test in complete silence with full focus and concentration.

2. Prioritizing questions

While attempting the mock test or even the real exam, students should not forget that there is no negative marking and hence wasting time on a particular question that keeps you stuck is of no use, instead, you should move forward and attempt the next one. Your revision time will give you a chance to analyze the difficult question again.

3. Utilizing marking and flagging features

You should practice giving the mock test on authenticated web portals of the ETS website so that you are able to use the software in a free manner. Flagging difficult questions and returning to them at revision time gives you a chance to think again and also not forget to attempt them.

4. GRE time management techniques

Daily practice will help you develop speed and accuracy and you will be able to manage time in the best of manner. Once you are able to boost your score, you should have strictly timed practice of each section of the GRE so that you start gaining confidence in attempting the exam in real time.

5. Setting time limits for each question type

Divide each section of the GRE verbal on an individual basis, basically according to the level of difficulty and ease you feel for each type of question.

Remember that all questions are going to be in chronological order so you will not have to waste time reading the text again and again.

6. Practicing timed mock tests

Every 10 days you should give a mock test following a strict timeline and analyze your score. The increment in the score will motivate you to keep up the practice, however, if you score low, do not feel disheartened as you will be realizing your errors and will get a chance to further improve on the mistakes made.

GRE preparation materials

THE GRE ebooks designed by Careers360 include strategies and tips specific to each section of the GRE. Learning these strategies, such as how to approach different question types or how to outline and structure your essays for the Analytical Writing section, can significantly improve your performance.