Idiomatic Language on the GRE
The verbal portion of the GRE presents many opportunities to test us on our understanding of idiomatic language. Such language can come in the form of expressions or constructions that mean something different than what the individual words might mean on their own. Alternatively, we may be looking at a secondary or more rare definition of a word. This kind of language can be tested both on vocab questions (text completion and sentence equivalence) and on reading comprehension.
First, try this problem (© Manhattan Prep). Select the answer choice that most closely represents the meaning of the original sentence.
The experiment only looks like a success.
(A) It is not possible to see the experiment as anything other than a success.
(B) The experiment might be successful, but we don’t know for sure.
(C) The experiment has the appearance of a success, but really is a failure.
Have you picked your choice? Great, let’s talk about it!
I know, you want me to tell you the correct answer right away. Don’t worry, I will tell you “ but not for a couple of paragraphs. The idiom in question here is only looks like “ X only looks like Y. Drop the word only and here’s what we have: X looks like Y. Amy looks like Sarah: they resemble each other.
The cake looks like a chocolate one. Here’s where it gets more subtle.
That sentence could just mean: I’m not sure what kind of cake it is, but I think it’s chocolate. But if you heard me say, well, the cake looks like a chocolate one, but then you’d know I’m saying: it resembles a chocolate cake, but it isn’t or might not be.
If we insert the word only back into the idiom, what do we get? The cake only looks like a chocolate one. Now, the word only is telling us an additional piece of info: while the cake does resemble a chocolate cake, it is NOT actually one. Maybe it’s vanilla or carrot cake instead.
When we say that X only looks like Y, we’re saying that X really isn’t Y, or like Y, after all. So what does our original sentence, The experiment only looks like a success, mean? It means that, though the experiment might seem successful, it is not actually a success. Only answer choice C fits that meaning “ and C is the correct answer.
Did you find that one a struggle? Start reading newspaper articles from well-written sources such as the New York Times or the London Times. When you run across an idiom you don’t know, see whether you can figure it out from the context of the article; if not, do a Google search to see what you can pick up about that idiom or expression.
Did you find that one easy? Great. Try this one next!
On its face, the dispute is about the study’s integrity. In actuality, the lead scientist will brook no opposition to his own theories.
(A) The dispute is directly about the honesty of the study. But really, the lead scientist will not go with the flow of opposition to his own theories.
(B) The dispute at first seems to be about the study’s honesty. But really, the lead scientist will not tolerate opposition to his own theories.
(C) The dispute is directly about the honesty of the study. But really, the lead scientist will not encourage opposition to his own theories.
The first idiom is right at the beginning: on its face. The words at the beginning of the second sentence, in actuality might give you a pretty good idea of what on its face might mean. Whatever follows on its face is only what seems to be true. It is not actually the truth of the situation. Rather, whatever follows in actuality will tell us what’s really happening here.
The dispute is really not about the study’s integrity, then “ it only seems to be about the study’s integrity. That’s enough for us to choose the correct answer, because only answer B matches that meaning. (Note: honesty is a synonym for integrity. They don’t mean exactly the same thing, but close enough.)
What about the second half of the sentence “ what does brook no opposition mean? The simple idiom here is the word brook, but the additional words no opposition might help provide context. It means that the lead scientist will tolerate no opposition to whatever he’s saying. His theories are correct and everybody else should shut up! = )
That meaning fits with the second half of our correct answer, B.
Takeaways for idiomatic expressions:
(1) Some idioms will be expressions (groups of words) that may not mean what the individual words mean. In this article, we first examined the expression X only looks like Y and discovered that it meant that, though there may be some superficial resemblance (physical or metaphorical), X really is not like Y. The expression on its face meant something similar: something seems one way but is not, in actuality, that way.
(2) Other idioms will consist of single words that don’t mean what you might initially think or expect. The word brook is a very common word, but we weren’t talking about a tiny river in the problem! We had to know the secondary “ and much more rarely used “ definition in order to answer this question correctly.
(3) If you’re using our books to study, you can find an entire section on idiomatic expressions in your Text Completion & Sentence Equivalence Strategy Guide. Break out the flash cards and start drilling!