Vocabulary Puzzles The Fun Way to Ace Standardized Tests

wizened (adj.) withered; shriveled
The Wicked Witch of the West was
a wizened old woman.
wistful (adj.) full of sad longing
Even years later, she still became
wistful when she thought about her
short-lived romance with Jim.
zenith (n.) highest point
At its zenith, the company made
more computers than anyone else.
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AFTER THE TEST
Preparing for College was my first title for this section, but I changed it when I discovered that
many of my students didn’t read it. They thought since they had already taken the SAT
and, in some cases, had been accepted into the college of their choice, they were fully pre-
pared. If you’re one of those students, I hate to burst your bubble—nothing could be fur-
ther from the truth. One of the unfortunate byproducts of standardized tests is that stu-
dents prepare for them and not for college. Unfortunately, some prepare so well that they
are admitted to colleges where they find it difficult to compete. If you memorize enough
vocabulary to improve your score on the SAT, but—like most students—never really use
it, you have a problem. It will be very difficult for you to compete with students who have
extensive active vocabularies they use when they write and speak. That is why, if you are
wise, you will spend 15 minutes a night reviewing the vocabulary you have just learned.
Do this and you will have your newly acquired college-level vocabulary when you arrive on
campus. If you allow six to eight months to go by without reviewing, a substantial part of
it will slip away.
Colleges insist that the SAT tests your vocabulary because they know it affects your
ability to handle complex material. As I mentioned earlier, experience has taught them that
students who are verbally impoverished have problems in college and often do not gradu-
ate. If you spend as little as 15 minutes a night reviewing and reinforcing what you have
learned, your college experience will be richer, more pleasant, and successful.
If you are using flashcards, go through them twice a day for three days each week. If
you cannot instantly recall a word or use it in a sentence, read aloud the flashcard for that
word a dozen times a day for seven days, slowing down and emphasizing the word each
time you say it.
If you are not using the vocabulary flashcards in Part 3, return to Part 1 and read all
the definitions, each time trying to recall the word that matches the thought. Then attempt
to put that word in a sentence. If you cannot instantly recall a word or use it in a sentence,
look it up and put it into a sentence. Read the sentence aloud a dozen times. When you
read the word, slow down, emphasize, and write it. Keep doing this until the procedure
becomes so boring that you can do it without thinking. This exercise will almost guarantee
that you will use your newly acquired vocabulary when you speak and write.
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Once you are in college you will be assigned readings containing vocabulary with
which you are not familiar. You must not only look up these words, but you also must
make a list and study them, using the same techniques I described. Remember, all areas of
study have unique vocabularies, and you can’t expect to understand a subject until you have
mastered its vocabulary.
Once again, good luck!
Vocabulary Puzzles
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