Vocabulary test for adults: can you pick the right word?
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Twelve sentences: pick the word that fits each gap. Easy first, hard last.
Vocabulary test
1 / 12The new rules won’t ____ anyone who already has a ticket.
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Affect. It is the verb for having an influence on something. Effect is usually the noun, the result itself, and infect is about spreading illness.
There were ____ people at the meeting than last week.
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Fewer. Use fewer for things you can count, like people, and less for amounts, like time or water. Smaller is about size, not number.
That scarf is the perfect ____ to your green coat.
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Complement. A complement goes well with something or completes it. A compliment is praise, and a supplement is an extra added on top.
Refusing to lie was a matter of ____ for her.
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Principle. A principle is a rule or belief you live by. A principal is a head teacher or the main sum of a loan, and a privilege is a special right.
The car was ____ at the traffic lights when the van hit it.
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Stationary. It means not moving. Stationery is paper and pens, and stagnant describes still water or a slow economy.
Could you ____ me your charger for an hour?
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Lend. You lend something to someone and borrow it from them. Owe is where you end up if you never give it back.
She gave a ____ account of the accident, leaving nothing out.
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Detailed. It means including every part. Brief and vague accounts both leave things out, which the sentence rules out.
After the twelve-mile hike, we were ____ and went straight to bed.
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Exhausted. It is how you feel. The hike was exhausting, and an exhaustive list covers absolutely everything.
The instructions were so ____ that nobody knew which cable went where.
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Vague. It means unclear or short on detail, which is why nobody could follow them. Precise or thorough instructions would have helped.
Her speech was ____: two minutes, three clear points, nothing wasted.
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Concise. It means saying a lot in few words. Lengthy and rambling are the opposite.
The doctor asked me to ____ my symptoms.
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Describe. You describe your symptoms, and the doctor prescribes the treatment. Subscribe is what you do to a newsletter.
The café was ____ by 8am, with a queue out of the door.
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Packed. It means very full, which the queue shows. Deserted means empty, and spacious means roomy.
My grandmother was ____: she never wasted a scrap, and she still fed half the street every Sunday.
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Frugal. It means careful with money and never wasteful, which is praise. Stingy means unwilling to spend or share, which a woman feeding half the street isn’t, and greedy means wanting more than you need.
In an unusually ____ interview, the coach admitted he had picked the wrong team and apologised to the fans.
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Candid. It means open and honest, even about awkward things. Guarded and evasive both mean holding back.
From the muddy boots, the detective ____ that the visitor had crossed the fields.
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Inferred. To infer is to work something out from evidence. Implied and intimated both mean hinting, which is what the boots did, not the detective.
The team grew ____ after three easy wins and lost to the worst side in the league.
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Complacent. It means too pleased with yourself to keep trying hard. Complicit means involved in wrongdoing, and compliant means following rules or orders.
I’m ____ about moving: excited about the city, sad to leave my friends.
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Ambivalent. It means having mixed feelings. Indifferent means not caring either way, and ambiguous describes words or situations that can be read two ways.
He gave a ____ smile, as if he knew something we didn’t.
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Knowing. A knowing smile hints that you are in on a secret. Knowledgeable means well informed, which a smile can’t be.
The soup was ____: no salt, no herbs, no flavour at all.
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Bland. It means lacking flavour. Mild means not strong or spicy, and subtle means delicate but still there.
The hotel staff were ____, bringing extra towels before we even asked.
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Attentive. It means noticing what people need. Intrusive and nosy both mean getting involved where you are not wanted.
Her tone was ____, as if she were explaining something obvious to a child.
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Condescending. It means talking down to someone. Considerate means thoughtful, and conciliatory means trying to make peace.
The scandal ____ his reputation for years.
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Tarnished. It means damaged or dulled, like silver left too long. Polished is the opposite, and varnished is for wood.
Quitting his job after one bad day was ____; he regretted it by Friday.
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Impulsive. It means acting suddenly without thinking it through. Deliberate means carefully planned, and reluctant means unwilling.
The two witnesses gave ____ accounts, so the police needed a third.
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Conflicting. Conflicting accounts disagree, which is why a third was needed. Consistent ones agree, and complementary ones fill in each other’s gaps.
As the referee, she must stay ____ and favour neither team.
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Disinterested. Here it means impartial, with nothing to gain either way. Many people also use it to mean uninterested, but only the impartial sense fits a referee. Uninterested just means not interested.
He ____ his new sports car, driving it slowly past every café in town.
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Flaunted. To flaunt something is to show it off. To flout a rule is to openly ignore it, and floated doesn’t fit a car on a road.
Regular exercise can help ____ the effects of stress.
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Mitigate. It means make less severe. Exacerbate means make worse, and to militate against something is to be a strong reason against it.
His replies were ____: a nod, a shrug, the odd “maybe”.
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Laconic. It means using very few words. Loquacious is the opposite, a big talker, and lucid means clear.
Even when the project looked doomed, she stayed ____, sure it would work out.
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Sanguine. It means calmly optimistic. Morose means gloomy, and sardonic means mocking.
The waiter’s ____ manner, bowing and agreeing with everything, made us uneasy.
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Obsequious. It means too eager to please. Officious means bossy about small rules, and oblivious means not noticing.
The minister gave an ____ answer that dodged the question without technically lying.
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Equivocal. It means deliberately unclear, leaving room to back out. Unequivocal means completely clear, and emphatic means forceful.
The heat was ____; by noon nobody had the energy to move.
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Enervating. It means draining your energy, despite sounding like energising. Invigorating means the opposite.
Critics called the speech ____: grand words with very little meaning.
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Bombastic. It means high-sounding but empty. Pithy means short and full of meaning, and terse means using very few words, sometimes curtly.
Her argument was so ____ that even her opponents nodded along.
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Cogent. It means clear, logical and convincing. Tenuous means weak or thin, and spurious means false.
She was ____ in her thanks, praising every volunteer by name.
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Effusive. It means expressing feelings freely and warmly. Curt and guarded both mean holding back.
He’s naturally ____ and rarely talks about his feelings, even with friends.
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Reticent. It means not revealing your thoughts or feelings. Reluctant means unwilling to do one particular thing, and garrulous means very talkative.
Your score
How the test works
- Each sentence has a gap and three words. Pick the one that fits best.
- You get four easy sentences, then four medium, then four hard, drawn from a bank of 36. “Try another set” deals you new ones.
- After each pick you see why the right word fits and what the other two mean.
- Your score covers these 12 choices. It is not an estimate of how many words you know.
What each level tests
| Level | What it tests | For example |
|---|---|---|
| Easy | Words that look or sound alike | affect or effect, lend or borrow |
| Medium | Close meanings with a different feel | frugal is praise, stingy is criticism |
| Hard | Exact, less common words, some with a trap | enervating means draining, not energising |
Recognising a word vs choosing it
Most online vocabulary tests show you a word and ask whether you know it. When you speak or write, you need the reverse: the word that says exactly what you mean, at the moment you need it. Choosing between three close words in a real sentence is nearer to that.
Knowing a word and using it are different, which is why a high score on a recognition test can sit alongside a feeling that you always reach for the same few words. How to turn words you recognise into words you use covers that gap.
How to get a higher score next time
- Read the explanation even when you were right. The two wrong words are often ones you will meet again.
- If look-alike words caught you out, Words people mix up takes the common pairs one at a time.
- For a few rounds like these each day, with new words as you go, try arcoco below.