How the Word Meaning task works
Each item shows three words in boxes. Two are related in some way and the third is the odd one out, which you click. The related pair can mean the same thing, like below and under, or the opposite, like up and down.
The words come from different parts of speech and range across a wide vocabulary. Thomas links the task to understanding written and spoken instructions quickly.
How to find the odd word
Check for the two kinds of link in turn:
- Look for a pair that means the same or nearly the same.
- If there is none, look for a pair of opposites. Opposites are the link people most often miss.
- Once you have a pair, click the word left over. You do not need to know what it means.
- If none of the words is familiar after a couple of seconds, decide whether a guess is worth it and move on.
Worked example
The words are rapid, swift and quiet. Rapid and swift both mean fast, so the odd one out is quiet.
The words are brave, kettle and timid. No two mean the same, but brave and timid are opposites, so the odd one out is kettle.
Tips for the real Word Meaning task
- Do not linger on a word you do not know. If you can see the pair without it, click it; if not, move on.
- A wrong answer is reported to cost half a mark. With three words a blind guess gains nothing on average, so guess only once you have ruled one out.
- Read widely in the weeks before, and look up words you half know. Vocabulary is the one part of the GIA that builds slowly.
- If English is not your first language, ask the employer before you start whether you can sit the GIA in yours.
Practise GIA Word Meaning on CogniPrep
Our Word Meaning drill gives you three-word sets from our own word bank on a 3-minute clock that starts when the first set appears and never pauses, with no fixed count. Each set has one pair of similar or opposite words, and each wrong answer costs half a mark. At the end you see how many sets you reached, how many were wrong, your adjusted score and a percentile against CogniPrep players. The 3-minute clock and the words are ours, because Thomas publishes neither.