Analogies
What Are Analogies?
Analogies are word relationships that compare two things that have a feature(s) in common but are
otherwise unlike. Analogies follow a specific format.
An example of an analogy is, "Teacher is to School as Doctor is to Hospital." You can also write analogies
like this, "Teacher : School :: Doctor : Hospital." Other examples:
Bird : Cage :: Dog : _______ (Doghouse)
Hairbrush : Hair :: Toothbrush : ______ (Teeth)
Bed : Bedroom :: Stove : _______ (Kitchen)
Straw : Drink :: Fork : ______ (Food)
Hat : Head :: Shoe : ______ (Foot)
Why Is It Important to Learn Analogies?
Analogies provide opportunities to learn important critical thinking skills—concepts such as part/whole,
vocabulary, categories, opposites, functions, similarities, and differences. When children see the relationship
between things through analogies, they can then build on that knowledge and learn more about those
things. They can discover new ways to use things (e.g., using a broomstick as a pretend horse) and make
broader comparisons between things. This can help expand their creativity.
With analogies, you are looking for similar relationships, not similar meanings. Analogy
questions do not ask you to look for words that have the same meaning as the word in
CAPITAL LETTERS. To answer analogy questions, you must first figure out the relationship
between the two words in capital letters. Then look for the pair of words among the answers
that has the same relationship.
To answer analogy questions, start by making up a "test sentence" that explains how the two
words in capital letters are related. Then plug in the answer choices to see which pair makes
the most sense. For example:
SCISSORS : CUT ::
(A) window : close
(B) spice : season
(C) cloth : weave
(D) mask : frighten
(E) country : vote
A good "test sentence" would be:
Scissors are used to cut.
____ are used to ____.
Plug in the five choices and ask yourself which of the following sentences makes the most
sense:
(A) The window is used to close.
(B) The spice is used to season.
(C) The cloth is used to weave.
(D) The mask is used to frighten.
(E) The country is used to vote.
You can clearly see that (B) is the correct answer.
Another example:
SLUGGISH : ENERGY ::
(A) sheer : cliff
(B) reticent : tact
(C) inebriated : memory
(D) trite : speech
(E) satiated : hunger
A good "test sentence" would be:
Sluggish means without energy.
____ means without ____.
Plug in the five choices and ask yourself which of the following sentences makes the most
sense:
(A) Sheer means without cliff.
(B) reticent means without tact.
(C) inebriated means without memory.
(D) trite means without speech.
(E) satiated means without hunger.
(E) is the correct answer.
When you make a "test sentence", remember the following tips:
1. Try to make a definitional sentence because a definitional sentence can best express
the relationship between the two words. "Scissors are used to cut." is better than
"Scissors can kill people."
2. Keep the definitional sentence as short as possible while maintaining a proper
relationship. A long sentence tends to confuse you about the relationship. And try to
use active verb as well. "A suitcase contains clothes" is better than "A suitcase has
clothes".
3. Make sure you know what parts of speech are being tested. If you don't know whether
or not the capitalized pair of words are verbs, nouns or adjectives, look at the answer
choices. It's a rule that all the five answer choices must offer the same two parts of
speed as the capitalized pair.
4. If you reverse the order of the stem words when you make your "test sentence", don't
forget to reverse the words in the answer choices as well.
5. Make your "test sentence" as specific as possible. Sometimes when you plug in the
answer choices, you find that more than one answer choice fits your sentence. When
this happens, simply make your sentence more specific until only one choice fits your
sentence.
6. Be flexible. Every once in a while, the sentence you construct will work perfectly well
with the capitalized words, but then will appear not to work with any of the answer
choices. In this case, try to rewrite your sentence slightly and see if that helps.
If you want to start practicing now, click here to login "SAT Practice" section. We suggest that
you come back to this page and read the content again after you have spent 2 weeks of
practicing. You will definitely have a better understanding about the strategies!