How the Harver Verbal Reasoning test works
Harver prints each item as two pairs separated by a double slash, for example Bird - Nest // Bee - ?. The first pair sets up a relationship, and you choose the option that gives the second pair the same one: a bird lives in a nest, so a bee lives in a hive. Harver describes the subtest as finding connections between verbal concepts.
It is one of five subtests an employer can switch on in Harver’s cognitive module. Items are multiple choice, the whole subtest is timed, and your score depends on the number you answer correctly, converted to a 0 to 100% scale against a norm group.
How to solve a word analogy
Use the same steps on every item:
- Say the link in the first pair as a short sentence, such as “a pen is used for writing”.
- Put the third word into the same sentence. Whatever completes it is your answer.
- If two options fit, make the sentence more exact until only one does.
- Check the word type. If the first pair goes noun to noun, the answer is almost always a noun.
- Watch for a second meaning of the third word. Distractors often play on it.
Worked example
Thermometer - Temperature // Scales - ?, with the options Weight, Kitchen, Balance, Heavy and Fish.
The sentence is “a thermometer measures temperature”. Scales measure weight, so the answer is Weight. Balance is linked to scales but is not what they measure, Heavy describes a weight rather than naming it, Kitchen is where you might find scales, and Fish plays on the other meaning of the word.
Tips for the real Verbal Reasoning test
- Read every option before you choose. The first word that seems to fit is often the near miss.
- Keep the order of the pair. Kitten - Cat is young to adult; Cat - Kitten is the reverse.
- Practise the main relationship types: opposites, part and whole, tool and use, cause and effect, and degree, as in warm and hot.
- Give every item an answer before the clock runs out. Only correct answers count.
Practise Harver Verbal Reasoning on CogniPrep
Our version has 30 analogies in 9 minutes, each with five options, printed with Harver’s double slash. Select a word and press Next; there is no Skip and no going back. Your score is the number correct out of 30. Harver does not publish its count or clock, so ours are our own.