It is true that CAT does not give you direct questions on
Vocabulary, such as synonyms, antonyms, etc. But you would definitely
require a good stock of words to solve the other question types such as
Reading Comprehension, para jumbles, fill in the blanks etc. Arks
Srinivas, CEO, VistaMind Education and former Director, T.I.M.E. says,
“Yes, while Vocabulary questions are not directly given in the CAT exam,
the same words are given under English Usage name. Remember that the
IIMs want you to be conversant with English that is in Vogue. So even if
they do give words or vocabulary, they will be normally the ones that
you come across in news papers and magazines.”
Hence it is
absolutely necessary to be well versed with Vocabulary and phrasal
verbs. “Enriching the word power is required not only for the purpose
of getting grand success in your ensuring CAT 2012 but through- out the
life, you beam with a built up confidence filled with rich Vocabulary,”
mentions S K Agarwal, Author and Verbal Ability Expert –
MBAUniverse.com.
You must build a right strategy for your preparation. Unless you make a right plan, you will end up wasting your precious time. Agarwal suggests 10 tips to prepare for Vocabulary to help you score high in the Verbal Ability area of CAT 2012 exam.
1. Do not memorize long lists of new words: If you try to mug up long list of words before the exam, it will not be much helpful for you. Most of them are forgotten the next day as you just memorize them and not understand the meaning and root of the word. The words which are learnt in context and those which can be put to use in speech and writing shall form the part of the vocabulary.
2. Read at least one newspaper in detail: Do not go for surface reading or sweep the headlines only. Select the editorials, articles; mark the new words as well as the words that you know but they have been used in different context. Try to guess the meaning of the word used in particular context. Then check the guess in dictionary, its correct spelling, pronunciation, and then finally, practice the new word. Frame sentences containing the word. Try to think how many times you have used the word during the day. Speak out the sentences to yourself, standing before the mirror or whatever means you find to use the same.
3. More and more reading: Read as much as possible. Listening can be of use but the fast pace of speech does not give you sufficient time to think about the words, you do not understand. Whatever stuff you are reading, it has to be ensured that you have understood the same, with the difficult words duly searched and used. If you do not understand the passage, you will get bored very soon. And by the time you reach the end of a sentence, you will forget what the beginning meant. If the reading material appeals to you, you will put in more effort and the new words you are faced with, will be more likely of use to you. You can opt for such authors who give you rich but clear vocabularies. Words once left you flummoxed will soon become familiar friends.
4. Listen carefully to conversations, speeches, the radio, television: Here you are able to have the visuals along with the audio. Do not simply relax but be attentive, while viewing and listening to news broadcasts, current affair programmes, documentaries etc. It is advisable, to listen carefully to the persons, who in your opinion speak good English-as you feel the words spoken by them are in right spirit. Try to work out what it is, that makes their language effective. Concentrate on the words that you do not recognize and work out from the context what they could mean.
5. Usage restrictions must also be duly taken care of: You must also take care of the usage restriction when trying out synonyms given in dictionaries and thesauruses. The synonyms may have roughly the similar meaning as the word you originally looked up but the context in which they can be correctly used may be quite different. People as well as ideas, books and other products of their minds can be abstruse. But we cannot say that a person is recondite, arcane or esoteric, though all of these words may be given as synonyms. The right word is supposed to be placed in the right place. When we talk about a handsome woman or a pretty boy, murdering a sandwich, cantankerous motor car; the listener is forced to interpret the word in a special way.
6. To avoid confusions, try to keep your first attempt at using a new word close to the way it was used when you made its acquaintance: Look at these sentences - He is an utter idiot(Correct), This idiot is utter (Wrong). Utter can be used only before the noun it qualifies. Suppose you come across a sentence – My friend is a consummate Accountant. Consummate, as you search for, means ‘greatly or supremely accomplished or skilled’. After some time you frame a sentence My friend’s accountsmanship is consummate, it would be Wrong. The word ‘Consummate’ can be used only before the noun it qualifies but not like the adjectives ‘Accomplished’, ‘Skilled’ that can be used either before or after the noun it refers to.
7. Choose a good dictionary: Always look carefully at the examples given after a definition. They are chosen to show how the word is typically used.
8. Build up your word-Bank: Never be afraid of learning long words. At times they are easier to be well understood than any short word. The technique is to break the long word in parts as it must definitely be having particular root (the basic part), prefix or suffix which has a certain meaning. For example-Gregarious, root-Greg=crowd, herd – living in flocks or herds. Prepare chart of roots, other prefixes, suffixes to the words, understand what you have prepared and start working on it.
9. Prepare Flash Cards: A simple and traditional method to improve the word power is to prepare the small cards with the words to be learned, written on one side and their synonyms & antonyms on the reverse side. Carry them with you, say, 10 to 20 words, use them vigorously. Use them in writing, conversation. Use every opportunity to revise them. Try to have a vivid mental picture of the word. Memory works better on pictures than on reading and lectures etc. Grab the opportunity to use the word in conversation.
10. Recommended Reading:
i) You can opt for such authors who give you rich but clear vocabularies like Evelyn Waugh, Anthony Burgess, James Thurbar, George Bernard Shaw, Graham Greene, Salman Rushdie, Herman Hesse,.
ii) Use a very good Dictionary, preferably the one that explains the meaning, amount of information with grammar & syntax as well. This may be Oxford, Cambridge or even better go for a good encyclopedic dictionary. The aim is- the best one will be that makes you feel comfortable to understand and follow the vast realm of variety of words.
iii) The quiz & other material being provided by us constitute an extract from the best available literature, science, fiction etc. Be attentive to solve and understand them. Word list is endless and enrichment with them is an ever growing process. Neither age nor time is a constraint. Nonetheless, your involvement with keen interest is required. Books on Vocabulary, word power, verbal ability available in market should be as per your choice as they give you the opportunity for quick revision in selected context i.e. by Norman Lewis, Wilfred Funk, Maxwell Nurnberg etc.
iv) Periodicals and magazines like India Today, Times, Reader’s Digest, News week, and the ones that is of interest to you, should be studied. Our target is to build the vocabulary with interest and ease. The selection of magazines, periodicals, therefore, must be accordingly made.
To read the previous MBAUniverse.com article on Vocabulary, click on the following link:
Boost your Vocabulary to crack Verbal Ability for CAT 2012
Stay tuned to MBAUniverse.com for more on CAT 2012.
Hence it is
absolutely necessary to be well versed with Vocabulary and phrasal
verbs. “Enriching the word power is required not only for the purpose
of getting grand success in your ensuring CAT 2012 but through- out the
life, you beam with a built up confidence filled with rich Vocabulary,”
mentions S K Agarwal, Author and Verbal Ability Expert –
MBAUniverse.com. You must build a right strategy for your preparation. Unless you make a right plan, you will end up wasting your precious time. Agarwal suggests 10 tips to prepare for Vocabulary to help you score high in the Verbal Ability area of CAT 2012 exam.
1. Do not memorize long lists of new words: If you try to mug up long list of words before the exam, it will not be much helpful for you. Most of them are forgotten the next day as you just memorize them and not understand the meaning and root of the word. The words which are learnt in context and those which can be put to use in speech and writing shall form the part of the vocabulary.
2. Read at least one newspaper in detail: Do not go for surface reading or sweep the headlines only. Select the editorials, articles; mark the new words as well as the words that you know but they have been used in different context. Try to guess the meaning of the word used in particular context. Then check the guess in dictionary, its correct spelling, pronunciation, and then finally, practice the new word. Frame sentences containing the word. Try to think how many times you have used the word during the day. Speak out the sentences to yourself, standing before the mirror or whatever means you find to use the same.
3. More and more reading: Read as much as possible. Listening can be of use but the fast pace of speech does not give you sufficient time to think about the words, you do not understand. Whatever stuff you are reading, it has to be ensured that you have understood the same, with the difficult words duly searched and used. If you do not understand the passage, you will get bored very soon. And by the time you reach the end of a sentence, you will forget what the beginning meant. If the reading material appeals to you, you will put in more effort and the new words you are faced with, will be more likely of use to you. You can opt for such authors who give you rich but clear vocabularies. Words once left you flummoxed will soon become familiar friends.
4. Listen carefully to conversations, speeches, the radio, television: Here you are able to have the visuals along with the audio. Do not simply relax but be attentive, while viewing and listening to news broadcasts, current affair programmes, documentaries etc. It is advisable, to listen carefully to the persons, who in your opinion speak good English-as you feel the words spoken by them are in right spirit. Try to work out what it is, that makes their language effective. Concentrate on the words that you do not recognize and work out from the context what they could mean.
5. Usage restrictions must also be duly taken care of: You must also take care of the usage restriction when trying out synonyms given in dictionaries and thesauruses. The synonyms may have roughly the similar meaning as the word you originally looked up but the context in which they can be correctly used may be quite different. People as well as ideas, books and other products of their minds can be abstruse. But we cannot say that a person is recondite, arcane or esoteric, though all of these words may be given as synonyms. The right word is supposed to be placed in the right place. When we talk about a handsome woman or a pretty boy, murdering a sandwich, cantankerous motor car; the listener is forced to interpret the word in a special way.
6. To avoid confusions, try to keep your first attempt at using a new word close to the way it was used when you made its acquaintance: Look at these sentences - He is an utter idiot(Correct), This idiot is utter (Wrong). Utter can be used only before the noun it qualifies. Suppose you come across a sentence – My friend is a consummate Accountant. Consummate, as you search for, means ‘greatly or supremely accomplished or skilled’. After some time you frame a sentence My friend’s accountsmanship is consummate, it would be Wrong. The word ‘Consummate’ can be used only before the noun it qualifies but not like the adjectives ‘Accomplished’, ‘Skilled’ that can be used either before or after the noun it refers to.
7. Choose a good dictionary: Always look carefully at the examples given after a definition. They are chosen to show how the word is typically used.
8. Build up your word-Bank: Never be afraid of learning long words. At times they are easier to be well understood than any short word. The technique is to break the long word in parts as it must definitely be having particular root (the basic part), prefix or suffix which has a certain meaning. For example-Gregarious, root-Greg=crowd, herd – living in flocks or herds. Prepare chart of roots, other prefixes, suffixes to the words, understand what you have prepared and start working on it.
9. Prepare Flash Cards: A simple and traditional method to improve the word power is to prepare the small cards with the words to be learned, written on one side and their synonyms & antonyms on the reverse side. Carry them with you, say, 10 to 20 words, use them vigorously. Use them in writing, conversation. Use every opportunity to revise them. Try to have a vivid mental picture of the word. Memory works better on pictures than on reading and lectures etc. Grab the opportunity to use the word in conversation.
10. Recommended Reading:
i) You can opt for such authors who give you rich but clear vocabularies like Evelyn Waugh, Anthony Burgess, James Thurbar, George Bernard Shaw, Graham Greene, Salman Rushdie, Herman Hesse,.
ii) Use a very good Dictionary, preferably the one that explains the meaning, amount of information with grammar & syntax as well. This may be Oxford, Cambridge or even better go for a good encyclopedic dictionary. The aim is- the best one will be that makes you feel comfortable to understand and follow the vast realm of variety of words.
iii) The quiz & other material being provided by us constitute an extract from the best available literature, science, fiction etc. Be attentive to solve and understand them. Word list is endless and enrichment with them is an ever growing process. Neither age nor time is a constraint. Nonetheless, your involvement with keen interest is required. Books on Vocabulary, word power, verbal ability available in market should be as per your choice as they give you the opportunity for quick revision in selected context i.e. by Norman Lewis, Wilfred Funk, Maxwell Nurnberg etc.
iv) Periodicals and magazines like India Today, Times, Reader’s Digest, News week, and the ones that is of interest to you, should be studied. Our target is to build the vocabulary with interest and ease. The selection of magazines, periodicals, therefore, must be accordingly made.
To read the previous MBAUniverse.com article on Vocabulary, click on the following link:
Boost your Vocabulary to crack Verbal Ability for CAT 2012
Stay tuned to MBAUniverse.com for more on CAT 2012.
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