Synonyms: Verbs About Physical Changes, Movement, or Location - ISEE Upper Level Verbal Reasoning

To "stymie" something is to hinder it, to prevent something from developing. To provide further help, "assist" means help; "suspend" means pause; "discern" means recognize and notice; "sanction" means approve.

"Kindle" means to light on fire, to ignite. To provide further help, "ridicule" means mock, make fun of; "defer" means postpone, put off, allow someone else to take charge; "abscond" means run away, usually run away with.

"Reverberate" means to echo, to rebound and re-sound. To provide further help, "recoil" means step back from in fear or disgust; "formulate" means come up with; "scrutinize" means carefully examine.

To "cleave" something means to cut in half, to split something. To provide further help, "enhance" and "augment" are synonyms, both words mean to make something better by adding to it.

To "pilfer" something means to steal, to plunder. To provide further help, "comprehend" means understand; "acquire" means get.

To "ruffle" means to disarrange, to disturb, to mess up. To provide further help, "imply" means suggest. To "postpone" something is to put that thing off for later. To "encourage" is to support or pump up.

If something is blighted, it means it is destroyed or ruined. For instance, crops can be blighted due to weather conditions.

Since "curtail" is a verb which means "reduce in extent or quantity; impose a restriction on," we need to pick out another verb that means something like "lessen." While "coda" may sound like an attractive answer choice because it means "tail" in Italian and specifically refers to the conclusion of a piece of music, it doesn't mean "lessen," so it can't be the correct answer. Of the listed answer choices, "limit" is closest in meaning to "lessen," so "limit" is the correct answer.

Since "mitigate" is a verb that means "make less severe, serious, or painful," we need to pick out a verb that means something like "assuage." While "exacerbate" might look like a good answer choice, "exacerbate" actually means "make a problem, bad situation, or negative feeling worse," so it is an antonym of "mitigate" and not the word we're looking for. "Alleviate," which means "make suffering, deficiency, or a problem less severe," is the answer choice closest in meaning to "mitigate," so it is the correct answer.

A good example where the word cleave is used is when you cleave a chemical bond, splitting a complex molecule into smaller molecules. Thus, cleave means to split or divide.

When something dilates, it means it increases in size or enlarges. For example, the pupils of the eyes typically dilate, or enlarge, in dark environments to let in more light.

An example of "atrophy" is when muscles atrophy there is a decrease in muscle mass. Thus, the best definition of atrophy is wasting away or shrinking.

The best answer choice is scatter since disseminate means to spread or disperse such as in the case of disseminating information.

"Cavort" is a verb that means "jump or dance around excitedly," or, informally, "apply oneself enthusiastically to sexual or disreputable pursuits." So, while we need to pick out an answer choice that has to do with movement, "amble" cannot be the correct answer because "amble" means "walk or move at a slow, relaxed pace," where "cavort" describes excited movement. "Caper," a word that when used as a verb means "skip or dance about in a lively or playful way," is the correct answer because it is the answer choice closest in meaning to "cavort."

"Transcend" is a verb that means "be or go beyond the range or limits of something abstract, typically a conceptual field or division," or "surpass a person or an achievement." So, while "concerned with" or "beleaguer" might each look like a potentially correct answer because each answer choice can concern abstract details, "go beyond" is the answer choice closest in meaning to "transcend," so it is the correct answer.

The word “hinder” can mean “behind” or “rear portion.” However, here it is being used in its more general sense of “to prevent something from acting fully.” A “hindrance” is like a “block” in the way of something’s activity. When one thing acts to “impede” another, it obstructs that thing’s action. The word “impede” literally means “to put something on the foot of (something else).” The “-pede” portion of the word is related to the English “pedal” and “biped.”

The word “migrate” is derived from the Latin root word for “to move or transport.” Among the options given here, only “relocate” signifies this general sense of the word. This word can apply not only to humans but also to animals. For instance, consider the sentence, “George was quite knowledgeable about the migratory patterns of spotted geese, which relocated themselves to Mexico every winter.” The word “migrate” is related to “immigrate” and “immigrant.”

"Enervate" is a verb that means "cause (someone) to feel drained of energy or vitality; weaken." So, we need to pick out an answer choice that means something like "weaken." "Fortify" cannot be the correct answer, then, because "fortify" can mean "strengthen or invigorate (someone) mentally or physically," making it an antonym, not a synonym, of "enervate." "Enfeeble," however, is a verb that means "make weak or feeble," and because "enfeeble" is the answer choice closest in meaning to "enervate," "enfeeble" is the correct answer.

When something is refined, it is cleansed of any impurities. For instance, one might say, “The water is refined so as to contain no solids by boiling the fluid and capturing only the vapor that rises from it.”

The word “taint” comes distantly from the Latin word for “to dye” and is likewise related to the English “tinge,” meaning, “to give a slight coloration to something.” The general idea expressed by “taint” is that something is being polluted or contaminated by another thing. One could say, “The water was tainted with fish blood, making it impossible to drink.” Likewise, one could use the term in a metaphoric sense like, “Ronald’s negative attitude tainted the positive spirits of the entire group, reducing everyone’s enjoyment.” When something is “adulterated,” it is corrupted, generally by adding something of worse quality to something of better quality.