In the GRE verbal section, the test-makers implement some subtle deception techniques to trick you into choosing the wrong answer. If you are ill-prepared, you will find yourself scratching your head, thinking why more than one answer seems correct.
Therefore, you need to pick out these little subtleties if you want to score well.
This is where vocabulary comes in. A firm grasp of the type of words used in the GRE is paramount to your verbal section’s success.
Those taking the GRE would know how essential vocabulary is. However, we find that students often have a couple of misconceptions regarding GRE vocabulary.
- The test makers have never released an official list of vocabulary used in the GRE. Any company claiming so is flat-out lying. Don’t fall for the false advertisement.
- Simple memorization of words will not guarantee success. You need to have good critical reading skills and reading comprehension.
In this Article
The Best Way to Build Up Your Vocabulary
Using flashcards is a tried and tested way of committing new words to memory. A flashcard has the word written on one side and the meaning on the other side.
Time and again, it has been proven that flashcards are perhaps the best way to memorize new words as it is easy and more convenient than, say, a long list of words or a book containing words.
Trying to memorize words from a list can be tedious. On the contrary, flashcards introduce a sense of excitement as you go about your day trying to incorporate the word you just pulled out into your daily speech.
Top 5 Best GRE Flashcards
Magoosh Free Flashcards for Desktop, Android, and iOS
Magoosh offers the most convenient free Flashcards that you can use as a smartphone application. If you want to use the Magoosh Flashcards on the desktop or the laptop, you can use this link.
The Magoosh app also lets you track your progress. It provides the meanings of the words and includes example sentences to help you get familiar with the usage of those words.
You will have access to a total of 1000 GRE words that have been picked by their experts.
The app offers difficulty levels ranging from “basic words” to “common words” to “advanced words.”
Magoosh covers the entire range of words that you can expect on the GRE. If you fully cover these 1000 words, you will most certainly know every word that shows up on the test day. In short, Magoosh GRE flashcards are an exhaustive list of every GRE word.
Best of all, you won’t have to spend a dime!
Manhattan Prep Essential and Advanced GRE Flashcards
If you have a solid understanding of basic vocabulary and are now looking to take your vocabulary to the advanced level, then Manhattan Prep can help. Manhattan Prep offers two sets of Flashcards: Essential and Advanced.
Each set consists of 500 words, so a total of 1000 words.
Manhattan GRE Flashcards are not free but can be bought cheaply over here on amazon.
Unlike other flashcards on this list, Manhattan’s will tell you a lot more:
- Roots and Origins of words
- Related words or synonyms that GRE frequently tests
- Example sentences
- Mnemonics and Helpful hints to memorize words
In short, Manhattan offers a lot more information on a GRE word than Magoosh.
Nevertheless, the Magoosh and Manhattan GRE Flashcards have 80% words in common.
Kaplan GRE Flashcards
Kaplan GRE flashcards, consisting of 500 essential words, are an excellent resource for beginners. They use straightforward example sentences and synonyms to help you learn the words.
This is helpful because you are more likely to remember a word when you learn in its simplest form.
GRE vocabulary ranges from simple words to words that can be hard to memorize. However, Kaplan is useful in learning simpler words with ease since the more challenging words are not covered in these flashcards.
Hence, if you are someone who is just starting, Kaplan flashcards can be an excellent resource for you.
The Kaplan Flashcards include:
- 500 words that have previously appeared on GRE
- On the front: word, parts of speech, and pronunciation
- On the back: definition, example sentence, and synonyms
You can buy Kaplan GRE Flashcards here.
The Princeton Review Flashcards
Like Kaplan, Princeton’s flashcards are helpful for a novice user. These 500 words are not too relevant for native English language speakers.
Princeton Flashcards offer simple definitions coupled with basic example sentences.
You can buy Princeton Review GRE Flashcards here.
Barron’s GRE Flashcards
Barron’s 250 vocabulary flashcards are the best flashcards for someone who wants to focus on the minimum number of most important GRE words.
Barron’s flashcards are also different in that they provide a blank space on the back of the card where students can write their clue for the word.
In addition to providing the synonyms for a word, they also include the antonyms. This may not seem like much, but learning antonyms for words is incredibly helpful in specific verbal questions.
The package includes:
- On the front: word, parts of speech, context clue, area to write own clue
- On the back: definition, synonym, antonym, example sentence with vocabulary word omitted
You can buy the Barron’s GRE Flashcards here.
The Bottom Line
Magoosh and Manhattan Flashcards are for the Serious Scorers
Do Magoosh or Manhattan if you have 2-3 months to spare for GRE prep and if you want to aim for a 160+ verbal score.
Don’t do both since most of the words are shared between them.
Choosing between Magoosh and Manhattan boils down to your learning style.
If you are OK with using technology to memorize words, then Magoosh is right for you.
If you want to have physical flashcards with you to make your scratch notes, then Manhattan Flashcards are well suited.
All in all, Magoosh and Manhattan both cover all the GRE words in their word lists and leave no stone unturned.
Barron’s, Kaplan, and Princeton are for Beginners
If you are a beginner or your goal is to maximize your score with minimal vocabulary, then Barron’s, Kaplan, and Princeton paper flashcards will do fine. Indeed, they don’t cover the entire range of words that appear on the GRE, but they certainly cover the most important ones.
Many students get a 150 on the verbal section by just doing the 250 Barrons words. It might sound like very few words, which they are, but these 250 words are sufficient to get a par GRE score.
If you feel challenged or overwhelmed with either Magoosh or Manhattan GRE flashcards, I suggest that you start with the 250 Barrons word list. Barron’s comes in very handy for starting your vocab prep. After finishing Barron’s, you can then gradually move to the more arcane Magoosh/Manhattan vocabulary.
My Recommendation
If you struggle with vocabulary, then do as follows:
- Start with Barron’s 250 words
- Then do Kaplan or Princeton Review Flashcards, but not both
- If you still want to do more vocabulary, then do either Magoosh or Manhattan, but not both.
If Verbal is your forte, then jump directly to either Magoosh or Manhattan, but not both.