Kaplan Word Power, Third Edition : Score Higher on the SAT, GRE, and Other Standardized Tests [Abridged] [Paperback]

Kaplan (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0743241150 | ISBN-13: 978-0743241151 | Publication Date: March 1, 2003 | Edition: 3 Sub

Empower Yourself. Communicate with Confidence.

In the Information Age, clear and concise communication is more important than ever. With Kaplan Word Power, you'll build the vocabulary you need to succeed in school, at work, and in everyday life.

Kaplan Word Power includes: • 750 must-know words • Engaging lessons to help you use words in context • 55 practice quizzes to test your skills • Helpful tips and strategies for figuring out new words, word roots, and more • Key words used on standardized tests like the SAT® and GRE®

Editorial Reviews

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Would You Abdicate or Advocate? abdicate v. to step down from a position of power The king decided to abdicate in favor of his smart, though woefully impetuous, son. The abdication (n.) heralded a new era. abridge v. to shorten, condense, or lessen in length At first he planned a lengthy abdication (adj.) speech, but then he decided to give an abridged (adj.) version so he wouldn't bore his kingdom to death. Had he not decided to abridge (v.) the speech himself, the queen was planning to lose it. absolve v. to forgive or free from blame As part of the king's historic decision, he decided to absolve all those villains who languished in the tower. abysmal adj. (a-biz-mal) extremely wretched, bottomless The prisoners had been living in an abysmal situation. acquiesce v. (ak-wee-ess) to comply passively, to give in The king's cabinet did not easily acquiesce to the pardons. Their acquiescence (n.) was critical. advocate v. to support, or be in favor of Not one cabinet member could advocate (v.) the king's position. They all became advocates (n.) of his proposal, however, when the king's son threatened to behead them. aesthetic adj. (es-thet-tic) concerned with or appreciative of beauty The queen, with her fine aesthetic sense, decided to stage the abdication with an eye towards high drama and bright colors. The queen considered her lady-in-waiting a true aesthete (n.) and often consulted with her when it came to matters of beauty and taste. affinity n. sympathy, attraction, kinship She possessed an affinity for the local artists, so she called upon them to display their wares at a pre-abdication crafts fair. agenda n. program, things to be done The queen's agenda grew longer every day and was impossible to address. aggrandize v. to make great The king's wealth had aggrandized (v.) during the time of his reign. The queen had also experienced an aggrandizement (n.) of her wealth. allusion n. (a-loo-zhun) an indirect reference She was sometimes referred to as Queen Jackie, which was an allusion to Jacqueline Onassis and her famous shopping sprees. altruistic adj. (al-troo-is-tic) unselfish concern with the welfare of others The royal family, despite their excesses, had been quite altruistic in its treatment of the poor. amnesty n. an official pardon for a group of people who violate a law In fact, the king himself had granted amnesty five years before to a ring of conspirators who had been planning to rob a bank. animosity n. ill will, active dislike He harbored no animosity towards the conspirators, even though a portion of his own money rested in the bank's vaults. anomalous adj. (a-nom-a-lus) irregular, abnormal, unusual The prince secretly plans to hang all criminals once he is crowned, as he considers his father's decision regarding amnesty an anomalous one. Plug In Plug in your answers to see if you've got the right word power connections. For this quiz, circle the correct definition. 1. abridge (a) to cross (b) to build (c) to shorten 2. abdicate (a) to rush toward (b) to step up (c) to relinquish power 3. abysmal (a) sickly (b) wretched (c) dark and dank 4. anomalous (a) interesting (b) unattractive (c) irregular 5. absolve (a) to forgive (b) to argue (c) to inspire 6. acquiesce (a) to approve (b) to inherit (c) to give in 7. advocate (a) to punish (b) to support (c) to disdain 8. affinity (a) hatred (b) familiarity (c) indecision 9. agenda (a) diary (b) schedule (c) reference book 10. allusion (a) reference (b) trick (c) saying 11. altruistic (a) truthful (b) generous (c) secretive 12. amnesty (a) affection (b) gift (c) pardon 13. aggrandizement (a) flattery (b) growth (c) pleasure 14. aesthetic (a) sense of beauty (b) joy of freedom (c) joy of life 15. animosity (a) love (b) dislike (c) attraction for The answer key appears on the following page. Plug In Solutions Here are the answers to the Plug In quiz. Check to see if you made the right connections! Test yourself again on the words and definitions you missed. 1. c 6. c 11. b 2. c 7. b 12. c 3. b 8. b 13. b 4. c 9. b 14. a 5. a 10. a 15. b

Product Details

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Kaplan Publishing; 3 Sub edition (March 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0743241150
• ISBN-13: 978-0743241151
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.4 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #743,990 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Effective Way to Learn Vocabulary For Tests, February 20, 2003

By 

A.Trendl HungarianBookstore.com "What should ... (Glen Ellyn, IL USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Kaplan Word Power, Third Edition : Score Higher on the SAT, GRE, and Other Standardized Tests (Paperback)

Intentionally learning new words is difficult. Which words are important? Which definitions should you focus on?

Preparing for exams requiring a certain level of verbal knowledge necessitates more than flipping through a dictionary. "Kaplan Word Power" is what the studious test taker needs.

There are 750 words presented amidst 55 lessons. With titles like "Thomas: Not a Temerarious Tatterdemalion" you will enjoy the game of learning what chapter names mean.

Kaplan prepared this book. This matters because they are experts at teaching test takers how to get higher scores on the LSAT, GRE and other major exams. They aren't the only ones capably doing it, but they are among the leaders. They have the experience to write this book.

The definitions are brief, only slightly more complex than a Scrabble dictionary. With each definition is enjoined with a sentence following the theme of title.

For example, tatterdemalion is defined as "a ragged person, always in tatters" accompanied by "Tatterdemalions everywhere foraged through the garbage for some food."

There are 10-15 quiz questions for each chapter. A significant appendix called "Root Juice" provides a useful collection and explanation of key Latin, French and Greek roots.

This is an effective way to shine up your vocabulary. I fully recommend "Kaplan Word Power" by Meg F. Schneider.

Anthony Trendl
editor, HungarianBookstore.com

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book, but you'll only get out what you put in., December 29, 2001

By 

Kevin S. Currie (Richmond, VA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Kaplan Word power, Second Edition: Empower Yourself! 750 Words for the Real World (Kaplan Power Books) (Paperback)

After reading both this and Princeton Review's Word Smart to prepare for the GRE, this book is hands down the better book. The layout is much easier, the approach more fun and most importantly, the words covered here -at least in my experience- represented the GRE better.

Another handy thing is that the sections are organized into degrees of difficulty. This combined with the fact that 'frequent test words' are marked by a thunderbolt next to them helps you maximize your study time.

That having been said, you still get out what you put in. There's no way around it. GRE verbal is about memorization. Here's a strategy that I used to make the process easier and more fun. It can be applied to any vocabulary book

After one chapter, write down the words you had any trouble with on flash cards with definitions on the back, making sure to put the definitions in your words, not the books. As the chapters progress, shuffle the new flash cards in with the old and review them twice a day.

In addition keep a notebook and after each chapter write down all the words on the top of a new page. Below, create a paragraph (a story, essay etc.) using all the words in the chapter. At the end of each section of the book, write a new story or essay using only the words you remember.

A lot of work? Not really, considering it will be a lot harder to simply memorize from rote. And it will pay off come GRE time.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Thoroughly mediocre, August 29, 2007

By 

working girl - See all my reviews

This review is from: Kaplan Word Power : Vocabulary Building for Success (Audio CD)

I have a two hour commute each day and I'm trying to utilize that time in some positive fashion. I'm studying for the GRE and was looking for something I could listen to that would contribute to this goal/project. This was a waste of money, since I knew 98% of the words. Also, a few words I thought were not very well described, and the sentances were contrived. The way they use two words with the same root in a sentance seems to be a sure fire way in my book to help someone confuse the two words' meaning. On the plus side, buying this CD set has now made me see the futility of this method of studying for the GRE, and saved me from investing in a more expensive CD set. If like me, you're studying for the GRE, my advice to you is to set aside time to read scholarly journals or essay collections, dictionary in hand.